NAMM: IK Multimedia iRig BlueBoard and iLoud
IK Multimedia was one of the very early adopters of guitar products for mobile devices, and they’ve now completed the portable rig with iRig BlueBoard and iLoud. BlueBoard is a Bluetooth MIDI pedalboard for iPhone, iPad and Mac which lets you control your sounds with your feet instead of having to do the ‘tap tap tap’ thing with your fingertips when you’d rather be going ‘tap tap tap’ on your fretboard. And iLoud is a deceptively powerful stereo speaker with built-in iRig interface for plugging guitar guitar in and rocking. Here are the press releases.
IK Multimedia Announces iRig BlueBoard
The first Bluetooth MIDI pedalboard for iPhone, iPad and Mac, gives musicians hands-free control over music apps
January 23, 2013 – IK Multimedia – the leader in mobile music-creation apps and accessories for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad – is proud to announce iRig® BlueBoard, a groundbreaking new Bluetooth MIDI pedalboard for iPhone, iPad and Mac, which gives guitarists, bassists and keyboard players hands-free control of mobile and Mac music apps. Continue reading
COOL GEAR ALERT: Squier USB Strat
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (November 12, 2012) – Squier is proud to introduce an innovative new Strat guitar model that can directly connect with and record to Apple iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac or Windows-based computers.
The Squier by Fender Strat Guitar with USB and iOS Connectivity features an onboard mini-USB connector that allows players to interface directly and easily with all these devices, with no additional hardware needed – including GarageBand and other music apps on iOS. Continue reading
IK Multimedia iRig STOMP out now
IK Multimedia’s iRig was one of the first guitar interfaces for iOS devices, and while it’s a very handy little device, a few later products trumped it in features. IK have never rested on their laurels though, and they’ve hit back with what’s got to be the most impressively-specced and most player-friendly iOS guitar interface yet. It’s housed in a stompbox case, lets you plug your iDevice into your amp, gives you manual control of the input signal strength, and hell, it even lets you use the iPad in line with other pedals, which is great for incorporating guitar synth apps or other gadgetry into your guitar rig.
Here’s the press release:
IK Multimedia announces iRig STOMP: First stompbox-style guitar and bass interface for iPhone/iPad is now shipping
Take the stage with your mobile guitar rig – incorporate your mobile guitar amps and effects into your live performance
September 6th, 2012 – IK Multimedia, the leader in mobile music creation accessories and apps announced today that iRig STOMP, the first guitar and bass stompbox-style interface for iPhone/iPod touch/iPad, is nowavailable from retailers worldwide and the IK Multimedia online store.
REVIEW: Sonoma Wire Works GuitarJack Model 2
The iPad is the perfect practice tool for guitarists. Because it instantly becomes whichever app you load, it can be a warehouse full of amps, a fully-featured demo studio, a TAB reader and writer, a guitar synth, a scale library, and probably a whole bunch of other thing we haven’t even envisioned yet. But most of these functions are useless with a guitar signal entering the iPad. There are plenty of interfaces for guitar out there, and they all seem to operate in different ways. Some are simple and inexpensive, while others are a bit more pro-spec. That’s where the GuitarJack Model 2 comes in.
IK Multimedia upgrades SampleTank for iOS
SampleTank Makes Performing on iPhone/iPod touch/iPad Even Easier
The first pro-quality sound and groove workstation for iOS adds MIDI Control and Program Change + free instruments in every category
July 2012, Modena, Italy – IK Multimedia is proud to announce the 1.2 update to SampleTank® for iOS, the universal app for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, through the iTunes App store. The update, for both regular and free versions, is available as a free download to existing users that adds support for MIDI Program Change and Controller editing of all edit strip knobs for enhanced expression and performance in any environment from the studio to the stage. The 1.2 update also now provides free instruments in every category so users can create instantly anytime and everywhere.
REVIEW: IK Multimedia AmpliTube Slash for iPad
Slash is one of those players who manages to cross the divide between generations. Original classic rock fans love his blues-based style. Hard rock and metal fans dig his attitude. And kids are drawn to his guitar hero persona. Slash has always used top-quality gear and has had no hesitation in putting his name to the equipment that meets his standards. We may not all be able to afford a Gibson Slash Les Paul and his signature Marshall AFD 100 amp, but now with AmpliTube Slash you can at still rock out with a version of Slash’s iconic tone – no, scratch that, make that tones.
AmpliTube Slash is available for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, and you can use IK Multimedia’s iRig or iRig Stomp to connect to the app. Other interfaces which use the 30 pin connector work too, and you can also use iRig MIDI to control AmpliTube Slash with your floor controller.
The app includes five effects (Chorus, Delay, Booster, OctoBlue and Distortion/Wah, the latter being available for free when you register the app) as well as a noise gate, two amplifier heads (Marshall JCM Slash Edition Silver Jubilee and the AFD 100), a single track recorder, expandable to eight tracks with mastering effects. You can export your recordings via email, SoundCloud, FTP or File Sharing. There are 30 tone presets included, and you can create your own too. There’s a tuner, a metronome, and you can import/purchase and play along with your favourite Slash tracks or any music in your library. The SpeedTrainer section lets you slow down or speed up licks while maintaining pitch for practicing. if you currently own AmpliTube for iPad or iPhone, upgrade to version 2.5 for free and all AmpliTube Slash gear models are available as in-app purchase, either as a complete set or a-la-carte.
So those amp models: it appears that there are two included, but really there’s three, with two contained within the Marshall AFD100 amp, just like with the real amp. Lemmie explain. The original AFD100 Slash amp features two modes: AFD and 34. The 34 mode is based on Slash’s modded JCM 800 2208 (which has ’34′ stencilled on the side). The second mode, AFD, adds an extra gain stage and is based on the sound heard on the Appetite For Destruction album. So the AFD model in the app is based on this amp and its two modes. Cool huh?
I plugged my Gibson Les Paul Traditional in using Sonoma Wire Works GuitarJack 2 (I don’t have an iRig Stomp handy) and let rip. I could tell you all about the sounds, but you can hear some of my noodlings here.
Rock Prodigy free for SXSW week
Wow! Rock Prodigy, the incredible guitar education app, is free for SXSW week! Head over to iTunes to check it out.
NAMM 2012: IK Multimedia iRig Stomp
Now this looks cool. To be perfectly honest I wasn’t 100% happy with the original AmpliTube iRig – I bought one from my buddies at World of Music and and it was certainly handy, but the feedback and crosstalk issues meant you couldn’t really turn it up loud enough to rock. And cranking it up loud is part of what makes rock fun! As a result I found myself looking around for other options, which I felt pretty awful about because the IK Multimedia folks are awesome and AmpliTube is one of the best things you can ever do for your guitar in a digital environment.
Well IK has solved that problem and made a more stage-friendly and roadworthy unit in the iRig Stomp. It can go on your pedalboard, it has an active circuit to improve the headroom (especially when used with high-gain amplifiers in the AmpliTube app) and this reduces feedback and crosstalk when recording. Awesome! It can be used inline with other effects pedals, or directly connected to amplifiers or PA systems using regular 1/4″ guitar cables, with no need for adapters.
More info here.
COOL GEAR ALERT: Agile Partners GuitarToolkit 2.0
PRESS RELEASE
Agile Partners Announces GuitarToolkit 2.0
Featuring All-New iPad Version and GuitarToolkit+ Upgrade for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, December 15, 2011 - Agile Partners, a leading developer of iOS apps for guitar players, today announced GuitarToolkit 2.0, featuring an all-new iPad version that is free for existing GuitarToolkit users and the GuitarToolkit+ Upgrade, an in-app purchase that adds Chord Sheets, Custom Instruments, and Advanced Metronome.
One of the App Store’s top-rated apps for guitar players, GuitarToolkit was introduced on the opening day of the App Store in July, 2008 and has received thousands of five-star ratings from customers around the world. Recognized as an iPhone Hall of Fame inductee, GuitarToolkit on iPhone, iPod touch, and now iPad is a collection of essential tools for guitar players: an extremely accurate tuner, a precision metronome, an extensive library of chords, scales and arpeggios, standard and alternate tunings, and more. In addition to 6, 7 and 12-string guitar, GuitarToolkit also supports 4, 5 and 6-string bass, banjo, mandolin and ukulele, with chords, scales, arpeggios and alternate tunings for each instrument.
“We redesigned GuitarToolkit specifically for iPad to take advantage of the large screen and power of the device,” said John Berry, a principal at Agile Partners. “The large, high-resolution screen is perfect for displaying the interactive Chord Sheets that are included in the new GuitarToolkit+ Upgrade. Users can capture chord progressions and song ideas by adding any combination of chords from GuitarToolkit’s vast chord library. You can touch any chord on a chord sheet to hear it play, print the entire chord sheet to an AirPrint-enabled printer, and email a PDF of the chord sheet to a band member or student,” said Berry.
COOL GEAR ALERT: SHREDDER Synth for Guitar
Oh now this is bitchen. Ever wanted to turn your guitar into a synth but couldn’t afford or figure out MIDI pickups and the like? Well if you own an iPad, you’re in luck!
For immediate release
Yonac Software Releases SHREDDER – Synth for Guitar
Yonac creates the first professional iOS synthesizer designed for the guitar.
(Durham, NC – December 14, 2011) Yonac Software is pleased to announce the release of
SHREDDER, now available on the iTunes App Store. SHREDDER is a synthesizer/MIDI interface specially designed and developed for guitar players. It allows guitarists to play a true analog modeling synth by simply plugging in – no special pickups needed! SHEDDER’s synth engine is a powerful, fully configurable FM/Subtractive design including:
• Dual oscillators
• Three custom-designed filters
• Three dedicated envelopes
• Dual LFOs
• Many more sonic features to empower the musician!
Hi! I'm Peter Hodgson. I write for Gibson.com, Australian Guitar, Australian Musician, Mixdown Magazine (including my instructional column, 'Unleash Your Inner Rock God,' which has been running since 2007), Blunt, Beat (including their weekly hard rock/metal column Crunch) and The Brag. And I'm Assistant Social Coordinator with Seymour Duncan.
I've been playing guitar since I was 8 years old, and I've been writing for magazines since I was 18. I've also worked as a guitar teacher (up to 50 students a week), a setup tech, a newspaper editor, and I've also dabbled in radio a little bit. I live in Melbourne, Australia, and my hobbies include drinking way too much coffee, and eating way too much Mexican food.
You can check out my guitar playing at Bandcamp or on YouTube, and feel free to email me at iheartguitarblog@gmail.com