Riaan
I couldn't find a thread specifically about GR 3, so here's one now... ?...I'll probably be asking a lot from the GR experts in the next few weeks.
This past weekend I reinstalled all my recording stuff after a format and reinstalling of Windows. This time I avoided some mistakes I made the first time around, got the I/O's and stuff right and all that. Ok, so I know all you IT guys and recording engineers would say "so what?" but for me that was one of those "Yes...yes..." orgasmic moments when everything worked.
Delirious with success, I went online and bought the full version of Guitar Rig 3. So far worth every cent. This is what I was looking for ever since I bought my first electric and very tiny amp years ago and to think that if it wasn't for this forum, I wouldn't even have know about it!
So, I have seen the future, and it is SOFTWARE!!!!! ?
FenderBender
GR3 is fantastic! One of my favourite presets is "Brians Vision" on the "Signature Sounds" group. I couldn't believe how much it sounds just like the original Queen sound ?
Riaan
One of my favourite presets is "Brians Vision"
Yep, mine too. Now only if I could play like Brian May!
One thing I'm looking for is how to get the best sound for an acoustic guitar. I've played around with the jazz amps, but I suspect that the best would be to not use an amp simulator at all, just the natural acoustic guitar sound and add a bit of subtle effects?
I still have to go and RTFM... ?....I'm a bit lazy when it comes to things like that so up to now I've just been exploring and fooling around.
AlanRatcliffe
Riaan wrote:
So, I have seen the future, and it is SOFTWARE!!!!! ?
Couldn't agree more. If you consider that modelling technology is only a decade or so old, what has been achieved with it already is amazing - especially on the guitar amp front. I've already replaced all my synth hardware with software and aside from just jamming, I use GR for everything else.
I downloaded the GR3.2 update the other day, but haven't had a chance to install it yet.
One thing I'm looking for is how to get the best sound for an acoustic guitar. I've played around with the jazz amps, but I suspect that the best would be to not use an amp simulator at all, just the natural acoustic guitar sound and add a bit of subtle effects?
I use the DI box sim in the speaker simulator module with subtle modulation from the Ensemble on only frequencies above 4KHz or so.
I'm finding the biggest limitation for acoustics in GR is the reverb, which is better suited to electric guitar sounds, so I'll usually use another reverb plugin for recording. Unfortunately that doesn't help with just playing though.
giggsy
Was playing around with GR3 at a mates last night, and was blown away! Just wanted to check something though - we recorded some songs with the Tapedeck things, but all we got was the clean guitar, no effects. Is GR3 in essence just an 'effects pedal' and not capable of recording? Do you need to use it as a plugin on another programme to record? And excuse my stupidity, but how would you do that?
AlanRatcliffe
There are two tape decks - one usually before the effects (that records the clean signal and plays it back through the patch) and one after that records the effected signal.
The one before the effects can be used to record the output like the second deck - there is a "play at input/output" switch.
The two decks are nice - it means you can record a backing (or load a drumbeat), play along and record the two together. You can then transfer the resulting file to the other deck and add another guitar, etc., etc., etc. - ad infinitum.
giggsy
Alan Ratcliffe wrote:
There are two tape decks
Ah - just me being slow again... Thanks Alan, sure that it will now work perfectly
RobK
I'll definitely be keeping an eye on this thread, having just got the software myself.
So far I haven't done much apart from plugging in the guitar and going through some of the built-in setups. I've gone through the manual and I'm going to start experimenting with components, although I'll just stick to the standard amps and figure all those out first before I add in anything else. Don't want to pile up too much stuff in one go and not have a clue what I've done or why.
AlanRatcliffe
That's the way to do it Rob. Feel free to chip in any questions you might have. Same goes for anyone else.
GR is a powerful bit of software and you can do just about anything you want, but some of the more advanced stuff is not as intuitive as the basic control. In fact it feels a bit like programming an old modular synth when you go deep - you have to start using multiple modules and modifiers to achieve certain things. Fortunately I have as much fun figuring out how to do stuff as I do playing.
RobK
So far, I've figured out that I'm not 100% happy with the sound coming out of my sound card. Can't pinpoint what it is, but I just don't really like the quality of the sound, regardless of the amp model used in GR.
In all fairness, it is a Creative Labs card and may it isn't really meant for high end audio. What it does have is optical SPDIF output and I'm thinking that might help with sound quality a bit, so I'll mess around with that too.
AlanRatcliffe
Careful - If Rene (Renesongs) sees a reference to Creative Labs, it might set him off ? In short, no, they are not all they are cracked up to be.
But the biggest issue with using any domestic sound card to input guitar is that the inputs are not designed for a low output, high impedance source like an electric guitar. The impedance mismatch between the two does things to the frequency response and dynamics that make the guitar sound and feel a little lifeless (IMO). You could use a DI box to interface better between the two, or you could just decide that GR is worth the investment and upgrade your soundcard.
RobK
I think you hit it, lifeless is the word I was looking for.
I do plan on upgrading the sound card - if I'm not mistaken, the Rig Kontrol is one and I think I'll be going that route. My logic is that the Kontrol will work best with GR as it's designed specifically for it. I also plan to do an upgrade of the speakers too.
All of this will come a little later, though, as I figure out what exactly I want. I hate just going out a buying stuff only to find out it's not what I was looking for.
RobK
OK, lets revive this thread a little.
I'm just looking for opinions on soundcards to use with GR. I know I can get the Rig Kontrol, and that might be the best option, but if I set a budget of R2000, the Rig Kontrol doesn't fit in there ? . So with that figure in mind, I've got a list of 4 interfaces:
M-Audio FastTrack USB
M-Audio Delta 44
ESI Maya44e
ESI Juli@
Opinions?
Of course, these are retail prices of new cards. I'm sure I could get something better than those second hand.
Thanks
AlanRatcliffe
Either the M-Audio FastTrack USB or the ESI Maya44e as both have specific inputs designed for guitar. You should get lower latency with the ESI as it's an internal, but the USB M-Audio will be compatible with more computers and especially laptops.
Riaan
Now that I've overcome most of the initial bewilderment after getting and beginning to use GR3 and Sonar almost at the same time, I've noticed a few problems, presumably due to some installation errors.
When choosing the input in Sonar, under the Edirol FA-66, there are only the following options:
- Left FA-66 mic in left
Right FA-66 mic in left
Stereo FA-66 mic in left
And the same for all the other inputs - there is no Left/Right/Stereo FA=66 mic in
right.
I also notice that in GR, when choosing stereo on the GR components, I get sounds on both channels, on the left channel when I choose "left" but nothing when I select "right" only.
The Hi-Z input on my Edirol works however, I use that one when choosing right FA-66 mic in left.
Any ideas? It seems like a FA-66 driver installation problem to me - I'm planning on reinstalling everything this weekend again.
Riaan
The Hi-Z input on my Edirol works however, I use that one when choosing right FA-66 mic in left.
I should add that the Hi-Z input on the Edirol is the RIGHT input channel and it works, the other one is LEFT for mic and guitar.
AlanRatcliffe
Yup - if both pieces of software have the same issue, it's probably a driver issue. Make sure you have the latest driver when you reinstall.
giggsy
On a totally different note, but still regarding GR3, I spent ages trawling the internet and have built up a sizeable amount of presets if anyone is interested. Guess I could use box.net?
Riaan
@giggsy: I would be interested, thanks. I think to a box.net account would work fine. I also have a number of presets, but just the ones I got off the GR forum on the NI website, you probably have those already.
I managed to sort out the I/O problem, it did seem to be driver related. I used ASIO all the time, but the correct inputs appear when I use the WM driver. A bit more latency though, but I still need to tweak things a bit.
