Recommendations for what to purchase friends and family unit will be plentiful in the days leading up to the holidays as everyone give their opinion on what would make the unadulterated endowment . Macworld ’s Gear Guide debut on the site a couple week ago , and Playlist launched a hebdomad - long look atiPod - themed gift ideasearlier today .
I thought I ’d try a dissimilar tack , chiming in with recommendations on gifts for musicians . When I ’m not filing write up about the Mac , I act the guitar , so these are all products I ’ve used over the past few months .
•Guitar Rig 2 : My first must - have guitar Christmas present tense is Native Instruments’Guitar Rig 2($579 ) . Guitar Rig sparked a lot of pastime in the figurer for many guitar players , including me , when it was introduce during Apple ’s Worldwide Developers Conference two eld ago . With the recent release of Guitar Rig 2 , Native Instruments will take the ironware - computer software combination to novel audiences with the addition of several new amps including the Marshall JCM 800 emulation that pitch the powerful how-do-you-do - gain tonus that define the sound of many metal bands .
There is a lot more to like about Guitar Rig 2 , too . Among the 36 stomp box emulations , Native Instruments has included a new compressor , a classic Autofilter mannequin and a genuine - to - life emulation of the Dunlop Cry Baby Wah pedal .
•PodXT Live : If I had to nibble one merchandise that impressed me the most in 2005 it would unquestionably be thePodXT Livefrom Line 6 . The PodXT Live is a guitar effects stompbox that has some of the best effects and adenylic acid moulding I have ever heard . With over 80 stompbox effects , 36 ampere , 24 cabinet and 4 mic simulation , the POD allows a guitar player to build an almost limitless amount of tone .
In accession to the hardware , agate line 6 also has a Mac OS XTC Tiger -compatible software covering that allows you to establish tincture on your computing machine and then save them to hardware unit over a USB connection . you may also login over the Internet and download tones from the party or accede by other users . The PodXT Live packs a slug and does it very well . ( The PodXT Live leaning for US$ 600 , but I have seen it at many medicine retailer for $ 399 ) .
•GNX4 : Digitech do it tone . Partnering with some of the most popular guitarist in the world ( Eric Clapton among them ) it is no surprisal the fellowship could come up with theGNX4 , the workhorse of digital consequence guitar central processor .
What sets the GNX4 apart from other products is the extras that are work up into the hardware whole . The GNX4 let in a MIDI tympan machine — unlike many MIDI drum machines , this one sounds very naturalistic — and also plays MP3 files . While you may read on your computer from the USB connection , you may also record on the GNX4 with its built - in 8 - track recording capableness .
All in all the GNX4 populate up to its tagline of being the “ Guitar Workstation . ” ( The GNX4 lists for $ 699 , but is uncommitted for $ 499 ) .
•Black Box : I have n’t been using this guitar effects mainframe as long as the other ware mentioned above . But I ’ve been very impressed by what I ’ve seen so far from M - Audio ’s $ 329Black Box . M - Audio get by to pack a draw of feature article into quite a small software program . If you are traveling and necessitate some great musical note when you get to your hotel , the Black Box will become your needs perfectly . That ’s not say it does n’t work well at menage too — I have mine crochet up to my G5 and output to a pair ofM - Audio Studiophile BX8amonitors . The tone and volume is very good .
The unit emulates 12 guitar ampere , and includes a built - in drum machine with 100 brake drum patter in a variety of style , with the ability to set tempo manually , water faucet pace , or synchronise to an external MIDI clock .
One hundred manufacturing plant presets do with the Black Box , along with 100 drug user programs . The twist features a great LCD control panel , button and rotary encoders and programmable expression foot pedal comment , and two momentary pedal inputs .
•SoftwareThere are a lot of software applications useable to help pro and amateur musicians put down and manipulate their work . The easiest of these to recommend is Apple’sGarageBand($79 as part of iLife ’ 05 ) .
For the Mary Leontyne Price and the feature article , GarageBand 2 is believably one of the well buy out there . I do n’t have sex of a single player that does n’t like to record Riffian while they are sit back , unwind and just encounter whatever comes into their straits — some of the most popular songs every spell started out this way . I used to have a cassette deck of cards for that , but that was a long sentence ago . GarageBand is a quick , easy and sinewy option to some of the higher - end applications .
If you are getting more serious about music and want to move up from GarageBand , Logic($999 — Logic Express 7 cost $ 299 ) is plausibly your next step . The good affair about move to Logic is that all of those GarageBand projects you made will just open up in Logic without any crazy importation or messing around with the files .
Make no fault about it , Logic is a pro - level app , but once you get over the learning curve there are some amazing thing you may do with your euphony .
The other pro - level diligence I ’ve been using a lot these past few months isSteinberg ’s Cubase($799 ; Cubase SE $ 149 ) . I care Cubase and Logic equally — they both include gamy - remainder feature and are visceral once the learning bender has been overcome . I do n’t recollect you could go wrong with either one .
•Music Loops : After register your own deeds with any of the software listed above , you ’ll desire to lay down backing racetrack . I have gone on a music - loop shopping fling , buying all kinds of different tracks and instrument .
Being a guitar role player , I opted to purchase mostly drums . I have Blues , Rock , Hard Rock , Jazz and mixtures of most other genres . Sometimes I tot up a drum iteration to a running and play along with that , matching the nonpayment pace of the loop . Other times , I work the other way and match the drum to my playing . No matter how you do it , there is no backup for recording a riff and then hearing a full Sung dynasty with barrel , bass and perhaps some keyboards .
Apple does have loopsavailable for GarageBand and Logic , but I found the drum loops atBeta Monkey Musicto be 2nd to none . These loops are created with a real drummer in the studio , so what you hear is real , not synthesise in any way .
The other quality loop situation that I shoot the breeze often isBandmateloops.com . That site has some incredible sound drum loops that I utilise , but what I like more about it is the variety of instruments . It feature synth , metal drum , electric guitar , galvanizing bass voice , and Sound FX — essentially anything else you’re able to think of in many different genres .
Well , there you have my instrumentalist ’s vacation picks for 2005 . I hope you find them useful for that special instrumentalist in your life .
