Electric Guitars

[honeyiscool]

Here are some of the things I've bought and my quick thoughts on each:

Apple Logic 9 + Mainstage
Probably the most essential programs I have. I use GarageBand a lot, too, and Logic can import GarageBand files, which is great. Mainstage is great for playing guitar through.

Native Guitar Rig 5
Well worth the money (esp since I got it for free w/ my Native Komplete interface), but I find myself using Apple's built-in amp modelers a lot more lately.

Guitar Pro 6
We're all busy people, right? So I occasionally write parts for my bandmates to play and I can tab them out quickly in Guitar Pro, then make a quick playthrough video, and then they can learn parts at their own leisure and you don't have to waste time in rehearsal. If you're a writer, I think this program is essential.

iZotope Studio
This includes Alloy, Ozone, and Nectar. It's great for when I don't want to sit there and work out every effect I want to use on everything, I can have pretty powerful channel strips at my disposal.

Melodyne Editor
Yeah, judge me all you want. This program is amazing. A little goes a long way, and it seems to work better than Autotune.

XLN Addictive Drums
Having tried other drum programs like BFD or DFH, this is my favorite. Also very affordable. The Ludwig kits are amazing. I will probably buy Addictive Keys soon. I have a drummer now but I still like to use Addictive Drums for demos, and I've also been pretty successful with sample replacement using Addictive.

[Jerry_Lev]

I'm using Cubase 6 Elements as my DAW on an iMac. I have BFD for drum programming.

I've been seriously contemplating Izotope Ozone 5, but now that you mention the Studio bundle, I'll have to think about whether I need Nectar and Alloy, too, before I make the purchase. 

Native Komplete is also on my shopping list.

I don't need Guitar Pro yet, because I'm only interested in recording my originals, not performing them at this point. Although I'll admit I sometimes forget myself how I played something when I come back to it after a while. 

[kit_strong]

Like you I also have Logic 9 (express) and Mainstage.  I do still find myself using Garageband more often than not and probably could have done without Logic but Mainstage is defiitely money well spent.

My best purchase to date has been Schuffham Amps S-gear.  It's a fantastic amp modelling package and at only $75 is an absolute steal.

In addition to those I also have Camel Audio's Phat and Space which are  pretty cool plugin effects and Nomad Factories Magma virtual effects.

Between those effects and S-gear I have more than enough tools to create any guitar sound/effect I could ever imagine.

I also have a Native Instruments Maschine but don't use it nearly as much as I should.

[slvrsrpnt]

I bought Reaper and EZ Drummer with a few of expansions (drumkit from hell, metalheads and metal machine)

[BydoEmpire]

Logic 7 (I keep meaning to upgrade, but I'm not sure I really need any new features so it's been hard to justify).

EZ Drummer - it's been my studio drummer and writing partner for the last 5+ years.

I also turned these into music software:

Word - eventually all my lyrics get put into Word.

Excel - I use spreadsheets for everything.  Tracking practice... Tracking setup specs... Marketing... Taxes...

[kayd_mon]

I've used Guitar Pro, but only to learn stuff.  I never took the time to learn how to import my own stuff in there.  But with the guys I work with, it would be a waste of my time, as they wouldn't read tabs I write out for them.

I have Cubase, but I haven't had much luck with it.  I don't have good enough drum mics to make home recording worthwhile at the moment.

[VTEC_Dreams]

Garageband. T-Racks 3. Independence Free drums.

Works for me.

[honeyiscool]

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Jerry_Lev wrote:

I've been seriously contemplating Izotope Ozone 5, but now that you mention the Studio bundle, I'll have to think about whether I need Nectar and Alloy, too, before I make the purchase. 

---

Nectar is a bit unnecessary but I think Alloy is excellent. I'd definitely miss it if I didn't have it. Izotope makes a Mix & Master bundle for Ozone and Alloy, and I think that'd be enough if I were doing it over.

[nuke_diver]

ProTool 8 LE Main recording software.   I like it well enough but I am dreading moving to Win 7 on my next computer since I don't think it is supported any more and if I have a problem I'm SOL.  The big advantage I see is that it does come with a lot of plugins already.   The disadvantage...while it's AVID...  I did test Reaper and it seems pretty good but since it doesn't have the plugins I don't find it as useful right now...maybe later

EZDrummer I get a lot of use out of this particularly as a drum machine since it runs as a standalone groove track player.   My problem with drum software is that I am not a drummer so simple is best.  This works for me and it was cheap.   I did download AD and had BFD lite but this is more flexible than either and so I prefer it over the other 2

GarageBand on Ipad/Iphone The only app I've paid money for.   Most useful for a quick recording of an idea without setting up the computer to do a PT session.   Worth the $5 for that alone.  Actually pretty decent software though I hate the fact that it always saves when you open something (I've ruined a few ideas because of that)

TuxGuitar Free Tab editor which support Powertab and Guitar Pro files, handy little program

I think thats all I have now

[maarkr]

pulled the trigger on XLN Audio Addictive Keys -- all pianos for $99. Sounds nice.

[honeyiscool]

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maarkr wrote:
pulled the trigger on XLN Audio Addictive Keys -- all pianos for $99. Sounds nice.

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The samples I heard sounded astounding. It seemed responsive and fast. If it's anything like their drums, it's probably well worth it.

[hardtdc]

For a DAW, I think Acid Pro can't be beat. It's one of the easiest to use and most intuitive out there. I also have an older version of Guitar Tracks, Cubase LE, and Audacity but I still mainly use Acid Pro.

I also use EZ Drummer but have Smart Loops acid based loop drum cds as well which are excellent. They are recorded dry and you can add your own effects. They also have individual beats so you can create your own loops. I do record with a digital drum kit too.

I also have Guitar Rig 5 and Amplitude as well as a GNX3 that I can run through a SPDF input. I would much rather run my pedalboard through a tube pre through my Focusrite external soundcard though so that I get better guitar effects.

[mnewb1]

Logic Pro 9  I bought this went I went Mac..My Protools 8 LE would not work on Mac very well and the $200 to buy Logic was a heck of a lot better then $500 to upgrade (yes that was the Avid upgrade price ) to ProTools 10.

Native Instruments GR5 good compliment to my Eleven Rack...I like to record with the eleven rack a dry track and a processed track, that way I can go back ad re-amp with the dry track in GR5 or with the Eleven and try out a bunch of different tone palettes without re-recording a track

Imovie for processing video files taken with the Ipad.

[BryanMichael]

I've always been addicted to software - ever since I got my first drum machine and 8 track cassette machine in the late 80's, then graduated to a Roland MV-30 sequencer and TD-7 drum module, I've always wanted more power to freely create arrangements for my tunes.  I've always considered myself more of a songwriter than anything else (I mean, all you REALLY need is one good acoustic.... ;-))  so I've always ben attracted to loops, samples, MIDI, sequencing, anything that made getting an arrangement down EASIER.

My favorites?

ACID PRO has always been a favorite since ACID 2.0.  Unfortunately, it can't keep up with my 64bit OS, VSTi's, and other advancements in technology so I've had to abandon it recently.

PreSonus Studio One - is my current DAW.

EZ Drummer / Superior Drummer - EXCELLENT products, and with all the sales that Toontrack is always on about, I have quite a collection of kits and MIDI,.  While I got to be very good at editing drum loops with ACID, I could never get the same "kit" across different songs...now I can.

 KONTAKT AND GUITAR RIG - Must haves.

GeForce M Tron Pro - I love the Mellotron and I grew up with an Optigan - these add some serious "Vintage vibe" to any track.

Waves signature plugins - EZ to use, and some nice tones.

EZ Mix by Toontrack - again, same as above.

The truth is that I have been writing songs since I was 15 in 1985, I don't care what people think of me using loops, samples, presets, anything to actually GET A SONG DOWN - I play several instruments, and have been in many bands - I'm 42.  I just want to enjoy hearing my songs played back to me at this point...

[RedJamaX]

Well, I suppose I'll chime in for the low-end on the cost spectrum... These aren't really for recording or assembling any pieces, really just for playing.

Native Instruments AC Box

This is a cool Amp Sim from NI that came with my Behringer UCG102 USB to Guitar cable adapter.

Guitar FX Box 3.0

This is a really versitile and inexpensive AMP Simulator that sounds great and has a ton of control over the effects

TB Strobe Tuner

Nice inexpensive Strobe Tuner Program for PC, this is probably the best tuner I have, I just can't carry it around with me (no iphone, so those apps won't work for me)

Of course with the PC based AMP programs, you will want some decent speakers and and good audio card to get a great sound...

[Jerry_Lev]

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honeyiscool wrote:

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Jerry_Lev wrote:

I've been seriously contemplating Izotope Ozone 5, but now that you mention the Studio bundle, I'll have to think about whether I need Nectar and Alloy, too, before I make the purchase. 

---

Nectar is a bit unnecessary but I think Alloy is excellent. I'd definitely miss it if I didn't have it. Izotope makes a Mix & Master bundle for Ozone and Alloy, and I think that'd be enough if I were doing it over.

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Thanks for your response, Paul (honeyiscool). That will save me some cash that I can use for more synth sounds, maybe Cakewalk Rapture. Electronic keyboard sounds seem to enhance best some of the recent lyrical ideas my songwriting partner has come up with, and GM Midi sounds are far too limiting. 

[Jerry_Lev]

BryanMichael wrote:

The truth is that I have been writing songs since I was 15 in 1985, I don't care what people think of me using loops, samples, presets, anything to actually GET A SONG DOWN - I play several instruments, and have been in many bands - I'm 42.  I just want to enjoy hearing my songs played back to me at this point...

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Nothing to apologize for by me, Bryan. That's also my primary motivation, just to create something I'm proud of and I feel can compare to my influences. It's cool if someone else digs it, but I'm too well-established in my computer career to pursue music seriously. 

We had a pro keyboard player lay down some tracks for us a while back, and he expected us to use his parts as loops. He said he rarely plays through an entire song anymore in the studio. I'm getting quite comfortable with that mindset myself these days. I can finish a studio track much more quickly if I don't have to worry about playing through the entire tune without the slightest hitch in my playing. For my live band, there's no substitute for practice, but they are different entities for me.

[Jkater]

Reaper. Love it.

I also have guitar pro 6 but use that rarely.

[mistersully]

.....

logic pro 8

love it... i've been a logic user for a long time now... i know my way around the program, which makes a big difference

honestly though... DAWs these days are all great... it's when you really get into using aux channels and mixing in stems that they really shine

my mixes are a hybrid thing... everything goes back to be mixed through my midas venice f firewire mixer

bfd2

again, i think all the big drum programs today are good.. i'm happy i chose bfd though... love the raw samples... i do most of the editing in logic though, rather that bfd... i send each drum to it's own track, then the whole lot to a stereo aux channel... then i bus another aux from that and run parallel compression (either software or hardware

t-racks 3

i mainly use the single pieces in this now.. particularly the 1176 and la2a models... i have a hardware la2a but the plugin is still pretty cool... i sometimes use their fairchild plug for parallel compression

i used to run a mastering chain of t-racks after i finished a mix (or during a mix)... but i now use a hardware drawmer 1968 mkii compressor to mix into

amplitube 3

never use it

ampeg svt

i usually put this on an aux of my di'd bass tone, just blended in a little... it adds some beef to the track and adds flexibility to shaping the tone

for bass i record through a samsamp bass driver di and the di of my UA solo610 (which has my hardware la2a on the insert for tracking).. the aux of the solo 610 goes to the ampeg software.. then all the tracks come back into 1 channel of my mixer, which sometimes has another hardware compressor on the insert for mixdown

steven slate drums

very rarely use them

valhalla room and vintage reverbs

$50 each and both cool usable reverbs... i'm really hanging for a great hardware reverb though... either a bricasti or tc4000

and a bunch of other plugins that i rarely use

[mistersully]

logic pro 8

love it... i've been a logic user for a long time now... i know my way around the program, which makes a big difference

honestly though... DAWs these days are all great... it's when you really get into using aux channels and mixing in stems that they really shine

my mixes are a hybrid thing... everything goes back to be mixed through my midas venice f firewire mixer

bfd2

again, i think all the big drum programs today are good.. i'm happy i chose bfd though... love the raw samples... i do most of the editing in logic though, rather that bfd... i send each drum to it's own track, then the whole lot to a stereo aux channel... then i bus another aux from that and run parallel compression (either software or hardware

t-racks 3

i mainly use the single pieces in this now.. particularly the 1176 and la2a models... i have a hardware la2a but the plugin is still pretty cool... i sometimes use their fairchild plug for parallel compression

i used to run a mastering chain of t-racks after i finished a mix (or during a mix)... but i now use a hardware drawmer 1968 mkii compressor to mix into

amplitube 3

never use it

ampeg svt

i usually put this on an aux of my di'd bass tone, just blended in a little... it adds some beef to the track and adds flexibility to shaping the tone

for bass i record through a samsamp bass driver di and the di of my UA solo610 (which has my hardware la2a on the insert for tracking).. the aux of the solo 610 goes to the ampeg software.. then all the tracks come back into 1 channel of my mixer, which sometimes has another hardware compressor on the insert for mixdown

steven slate drums

very rarely use them

valhalla room and vintage reverbs

$50 each and both cool usable reverbs... i'm really hanging for a great hardware reverb though... either a bricasti or tc4000

and a bunch of other plugins that i rarely use

[Bad Robot]

Logic Pro;

Amplitube 3 (with metal & Hendrix);

Melodyne;

Addictive Drums;

BFD2;

T-RackS Deluxe;

Scuffham Amps;

Miroslav Philharmonik;

Sonik Synth 2;

Addictive Keys (just the grand);

I think that pretty well sums it up. More toys than I ever thought I'd own. I tend to prefer ADD over BFD2 for various reasons, simplicity being the main one. I bought BFD2 for €99. so I don't feel too bad about that. I love Amplitube 3, and Scuffham Amps, which is better for certain tones. I rarely plug into an amp these days. Sonik Synth has a few nice mellotrons, and drone Indian instruments (Tambour, I think?).