I just want something I can plug my guitar into and record that will make it sound really heavy. What is the best option? I'm willing to spend enough if it makes a big difference. HELP

AxeFx

Only semi kidding. That shit is expensive. There's the V-Amp, Boss GT-10, G-Major... etc etc. You'll still need a recording interface. Check out M-audio.

thanks

How much money, duder?

I picked up the Line 6 POD Studio, does me just fine for a hundred bucks.

if you wanna do it cheap, check tascams two channel usb interface. i don't know the software it comes with now, but it is cheap and reliable, just not the cleanest piece of hardware ever.
after that, you'll want a mic or two... just get an sm57 style mic and depending on what you want to spend, you could go super cheap and do an sm58 (which is usually used for vox, but can give you an interesting cab sound) or you can go a little futher and do a condenser mic... you'd be looking at 200+ for anything halfway decent.
you could run a multi effect pedal into that interface as well to get a little cleaner sound than running straight into the cpu mic input.
overall, if you want something to just make noise and work for really shitty sounding recordings, you can get some radioshack adapters to put a multieffect pedal into your computers microphone input... but you'll never get anything that sounds very good. if you wanna get a little more professional than that, then you're gonna have to spend a little cash.

You can get an old layla 24/96 for dirt cheap, and spend the rest on a good mic (ldc tube, or an ldc multi-pattern for more options) and a good pre (chandler limited germ is my preference).

MOTU makes some rad digital-in boxes too, which you could probably score used for cheap.

well i don't want it to sound like shit. i want it to be listenable and heavy. i still want to know if all i need is one of these, my computer and guitar. can i plug into this and it will make my guitar sound like i am playing through an amp on the recording? i'm looking at the m-audio fast track with 2 mic inputs for about $200

No direct-in will sound like an amp. You can come close but it's never exact. I'd go with what t2daeek said or get an effects processor into a recording interface.

There's a bajillion options. Some popular choices for hardware would be the Vox Tonelab, Line 6 POD series (I use these), Behringer V-Amp, Digitech RP series, etc...

For software only options, I REALLY REALLY like the Overloud TH1. These things sound KILLER. There is also a site - Acme Bar GIG that literally GIVES AWAY tons of sweet sweet software amps. There are also products like Amplitube, Guitar Rig, and Waves GTR that offer software only approaches.


You've got a ton of options. Download the TH1 demo and see if you like it. Find a friend with a POD (not some shitty spider amp) and try it out.

Before I got my XT Live, I had bought a Line 6 Toneport off ebay for $120. Came with every single model and effect line 6 has. Some 80+ guitar amps, 30 bass amps, vocal pre's, a bajillion kajillion effects, free VTS plugins, etc... etc...


As for recording software, if you want free try REAPER, it's free and it's amazingly versatile. I believe it's made by the guys that created winamp, of all things.

For examples, here's a clip I recorded with the toneport. It's just a single 1/4" input, 0 latency guitar input, all the audio is processed onboard so you get no latency. It can get nicely heavy, although my own tone isn't godlike by any means:

Shit Turducken


N. Russell, P.I.

Bullshit.





bennyhillifier


Line 6 Pod XT live.




bennyhillifier

Pod XT Live





bennyhillifier

Vox Tonelab




bennyhillifier

More Line 6.

I can go on and on. Download those Overloud demos and play em through a good set of monitors. You WILL be impressed.

thanks arrow those demos sound great(that keith morrow song was sick) i might go with that. i also will be recording drums and vocals too. i know the more mics the better for drums, but i'll see what happens with a couple mics. thanks

I don't know about you but I can definitely hear a lack of depth in all those videos.

And you are listening through what?

M-Audio AV40s.
I'm not saying it's impossible to get good sounds from direct-in. You've shown that in those videos and I know it from other experiences. I'm just saying it does NOT sound EXACTLY like playing through an amp through a cab.

by the way i have cakewalk 3 on my computer already and it has some amp simulators on there and shit. i tryed plugging directly in and it sounds really bad. the m-audio fast track pro comes with software i think so i could try both programs.

I tried the M-Audio software when I first got the interface and it was a piece of shit. Guitar Rig 3 isn't horrible actually.

My point is that it doesn't sound like an amp. Your AMP, for that matter, doesn't sound like an amp either. Not when I stick it in the other room, mic it, and run it back out through your M-Audios. It will frustrate you greatly, over the years, trying to get the sound you hear out of your amp onto a recording.

Again, download the Overloud plugins, try them. I think you'll be impressed.

For the record, I have some other stuff that I don't think I'm entitled to post where the kid recorded initially with a Pod, then got an Engl Powerball and re-recorded the track. The difference is haaaaard to discern, and I've converted many a naysayer in person with this example.

Well I suppose I should clarify and say that it won't sound exactly like an amp through a cab through a mic through a computer through a speaker.

I will probably try the Overloud things but I'm just saying for the sake of argument that tone is supah-subjective. Except when it SUCKS.

Agreed.

if your gonna be doing drums, you can get a pretty good drum sound with that sm57 on the bass drum and a condenser as a over head... it'll catch everything. but yea... pretty subjective. if your comuter has some balls, i would just say torrent a really good set of drum samples... something like battery or drumkit from hell. and then link it up to some sort of midi sequencer. you can definitely get away with sequencing drums if it's metal, which i would assume youre recording because you asked here... hey, it worked for meshuggah

erp... computer... not comuter.

also, to be quite honest, i suggested to multieffect processors because it's quiet and you can be recording at anytime if you need to... however, it wont sound as good as an amp will and you will be unsatisfied with the ambient effects.. such as feedback, spring reverb crashing, and while you can slightly edit this in some processors, where you mic an amp... dead on, off center, etc.. that's why people hear sterility in most digially produced guitar sounds. things like that are just achieved through eq curves and filters.