Recording in the AmpliTube MultiTrack Recorder on an iPhone

A few things have changed since I wrote my last article about AmpliTube on the iPhone. Enhancements have been made, new features have been added and the awesome new Slash range of effects and amps has been released. I purchased the pack within my instance of AmpliTube and haven’t looked back since. The tone is awesome.

Let me share some of that tone in a rundown I’ll call Recording from within AmpliTube on the iPhone. Recording in the AmpliTube MultiTrack Recorder on an iPhone

Review: AmpKit LiNK

AmpKit LiNK is difficult to type on account of its varied capitalisation, but it’s so simple to use. Here’s the basic process.

  • ensure your battery is in place (I’ll mention how cool the battery feature is later)
  • plug in your guitar
  • plug in your headphones/speakers
  • insert interface into iOS device
  • rock!

Review: AmpKit LiNK

Review: GuitarConnect Cable

GuitarConnect Cable by Griffin was the first guitar interface I purchased for my iPhone. I found it on eBay and noticed in the product description that it worked with iShred LIVE. That was convenient for me as I had already heard of that amplifier emulator and was interested in trying it out. It was almost like destiny—the predetermined fate kind, not the funky Jacksons album from 1978 kind.

I’ll be honest and state that when I first saw it I thought it couldn’t actually work. All the other interfaces I’d seen were little boxes that you plugged your standard guitar cable into. This just looks like your average guitar cable with connections (style and quantity) that don’t initially make sense. But once I’d purchased the cable, I saw immediate advantages to this system. I also saw that it clearly worked well. Review: GuitarConnect Cable

Review: GuitarJack

Another interface I used for the testing of guitar emulators in my recent test of 11 iPhone guitar emulators was GuitarJack by Sonoma Wire Works. I was doing my testing using the GuitarJack Model 1 for the following reasons:

  • It was on sale when I purchased it (reduced to $49.00 USD)
  • It connects to my iPhone 3GS
  • I wanted it.

From what I’ve seen and read, GuitarJack Model 2 is way cooler (as are the iPhone 4GS and the iPad). But I can’t write about that other than to say “I want all of those things!”

But let’s learn more about my experiences with GuitarJack Model 1 and the 11 apps I tested it with. Review: GuitarJack

Review: JamUp Plug

Now that I’ve completed my articles on the amplifier emulators I have access to on my iPhone, I thought I’d write some articles on the interfaces that make it possible to connect your guitar to your iPhone. When I first started the review process I was aware of four interfaces. That soon changed to seven. I believe I am now aware of nine. The most recent interface I’ve managed to add to my collection is the JamUp Plug by Positive Grid. It’s one of the easiest interfaces to use and it’s quickly becoming one of my favourites.

Let me show you why. Review: JamUp Plug

GarageBand for iPhone

GarageBand for iPhone is quite the beast. It’s not a simple guitar amplifier emulator, as it also has built in instruments you can play (and record) such as drums and keyboard. There are also smart instruments that you can utilise. But I’m not here to cover any of that. I’m here to tell you that you can plug your guitar into your iPhone (using GuitarConnect Cable, Ampkit Link or GuitarJack) and play ‘amplified’ guitar. Luckily you can also record your guitar playing in a multi-track recorder.

GarageBand is one complete package. GarageBand for iPhone

Guitar FX Deluxe for iPhone

Guitar FX Deluxe is another app for the iPhone that I didn’t know existed until I started my recent journey of discovery. It’s also another app I purchased just to make sure my series of reviews was as complete as I felt it needed to be. That of course means I could justify the cost to myself.

What I couldn’t work out (or justify) was the other seemingly similar apps by the same developer which are more expensive and seem to be more restrictive in sound choices. They’d be the Guitar FX Chorus and Guitar FX Echo apps. At $11.99 each, I decided to focus on the Deluxe app instead. It’s cheaper and includes the Chorus and Echo effects. Guitar FX Deluxe for iPhone

GuitarTone for iPhone

GuitarTone is another recent discovery I made when searching for ways to play my guitar on the iPhone. Luckily I follow Sonoma Wire Works on Twitter and was there to see them announce the application’s release. Since then, I’ve had fun creating my own presets for hours on end. Why? Because I believe it’s one of the easiest apps to use for playing guitar on the iPhone.

Let’s get straight into this and the black and white imagery that accompanies all of my reviews. GuitarTone for iPhone