Get Pro Sound from Any Amp Using Modeling Guitar Processor
When considering a modeling guitar processor, it is important to take stock of your needs as a musician. Will you be playing primarily in the studio, or will you be touring? Are you looking for a device that provides effects, or are you also interested in amp modeling? Finally, are you looking for a rackmount interface or something you can stomp on?
Luckily for guitar players, the last few years have seen an explosion of options in terms of guitar processors. For those who are looking for something they can control with their feet, the Digitech RP80 modeling guitar processor is a robust piece of guitar gear. The built in expression pedal offers guitarists the ability to change the Digitech guitar effects parameters on the fly and the integrated drum machine is perfect for practice sessions or even self-accompaniment. The RP80 offers eleven different amp models and 40 factory preset effects, allowing it to act as a direct box for connection to any PA system or mixing board.
If what you need is a more powerful, studio-oriented guitar modeling processor, the Line 6 POD XT PRO Guitar Preamp/Effects Processor is at the forefront of guitar effects technology. With 15 different cabinet models and 16 digital effects running through balanced XLR outputs, you may never need to use a guitar amp in your studio again. Boasting exceptional tone control, Line6 is a popular choice for recording guitars and bass guitars in home and professional studios where space is at a premium.
For the ultimate in outside-the-box thinking, musicians can now consider using their laptops as a guitar effects processor. By taking the software found in a typical guitar modeling processor and expanding it to take advantage of a PC’s digital horsepower, programs like IK Multimedia’s Amplitube 2 have opened a creative universe. Along with Guitar Rig 2 from Native Instruments, software models enable the guitarist to make their axe sound like any vintage guitar ever recorded. Electric guitars and acoustic guitars alike benefit from the immense amount of choice of guitar effects and modeling crammed into these easy to use software packages. With control over parameters like room size, microphone placement, and cabinet size, musicians could spend hours merely investigating all of the different options available. A further advantage of using a laptop computer as a multi effects processor is the ability to create, save and distribute your own unique effects patches and amp models over the internet, keeping musicians in touch with a global community of like-minded players.
Clearly the electric guitar and bass guitar are benefiting from a renaissance of musical technology, thanks in large part to the proliferation of digital recording. The concept of recording directly onto a portable computer through either a hardware guitar modeling processor or guitar processor software gives artists a newfound freedom to explore their sound without the pressures of paying for studio time. When you factor in the possibility of bringing these audio processors with you on stage and maintaining the same level of control over your sound, the benefits of going digital are undeniable.
