The devices

Apogee Jam ($99): At 99 bucks, the Apogee Jam isn’t cheap, but it earns high marks for me. The great thing about the Jam is it comes with connectors for the Mac, and a 30-pin iOS cable. I’ve never had a problem with it and the audio quality is very, very good. The chief concern is with the two small, cables it’s easy to misplace them. To avoid that, I keep them both rubber-banded to the body of the Apogee. You can also buy replacement cables if you lose them.

Line 6 Pod Studio UX2 ($199): The Line 6 UX2 is a very versatile device. It will let you record two instruments at the same time (handy if you’re recording with a pal). It also has two XLR inputs if you want to mike your amps instead of directly inputting your guitar. But wait, there’s more: the UX2 also has more than 20 models of guitar and bass amps, and more than 20 models of guitar and bass cabinets. The amp models are based on Fender and Marshall amps. The UX2 is a good piece of gear to start building your budget studio around and is great if you’re recording multiple instruments at the same time.

Ubisoft Rocksmith Real Tone Cable ($29.99): While the Ubisoft Rocksmith Real Tone Cable is primarily designed for the Rocksmith game (not available for the Mac, which is either a good or bad thing, depending on your view of learning devices such as these). I’ve found it to be a pretty decent USB guitar interface given the cost, and while it has no iOS connectivity, that’s not a deal breaker, especially since this article primarily deals with OS X. In the short time I’ve had it, it feels like a decent cable and I haven’t experienced any issues with it.

USB Fender Squier Guitar ($199): Now, admittedly the USB Fender Squier guitar won’t let you plug in any instrument to GarageBand, it being a guitar and all. However. for $199, I’ve found it to be a great guitar. Since the Squier is Fender’s low-cost line, when I got mine I expected it to be extra low-budget, given the additional electronics for the on-board USB interface. Instead, I was quite happy with it and still continue to play it almost four months after I got it. The iOS interface is especially nice if you’re traveling and want to practice. It comes with the cables to connect the guitar to your Mac and iOS device.

Connecting the devices to GarageBand

Obviously step one is connecting the USB cable to your Mac. (Note: for best results plug them directly into your Mac; not into a USB hub.) After that, open GarageBand and go to Preferences and click on the Audio/Midi tab. Select your input device from the pull-down list.

After that go into your project and add a new track. Select Real Instrument from the selection screen if you are miking your amp, or using a keyboard. Select Electric Guitar if you want to use GarageBand’s built-in amps and effects.

Last, go the Track menu and select Show Monitoring for Real Instrument Tracks. This will ensure you can hear your instrument through the speakers while you play.

Using Amps and Effects

Unless you are miking your amp, you’re probably going to want to play around with GarageBand’s amps and effects. To do that, select the guitar track in the track listing on the left. On the far right, you can choose the amp you want. You can also choose from a number of preset sounds from a pull-down menu in the same area. You can also adjust the bass, treble, etc. from this screen.

How I use them

For input devices, I float between the Rocksmith cable and the Apogee Jam. For the most part, choosing one comes down to which interface I can easily find at the moment. The Jam and the iOS cables may take up permanent residence in my gig bag so I can practice outside the house regardless of what guitar I happen to have with me (I tend to favor Les Pauls over Fender guitars).

I don’t usually use the amps built-in to GarageBand. Instead I use the GarageBand plug-in for Guitar Rig and Amplitube. However, if you can’t afford either of these programs the included amps will do the trick. The presets are really helpful in quickly dialing in a sound.

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Back in the day, our best options for learning were either slowing down a song, having a friend teach us, or hoping it was featured in a guitar magazine. Apple has a surprising amount of available technology for picking the guitar back up — my iPhone, iPad and MacBook Pro are at the heart of my learning process. Here’s a look at how I’ve used them, and some tips for those who’d like to do the same.

The iPhone

Every Monday night, I take a lesson from an excellent blues guitarist. Rather than take notes and write down the various chord progressions he shows me, I instead shoot video of the homework parts of the lesson on my iPhone 4S. I then quickly edit the clip in iMovie to add a title and then re-save it to my camera roll.

I also have a few apps on my iPhone to help me out. I have an iRig, which I pair with their Amplitube app (free). While I don’t use the app as my main practice amp anymore after I bought a modeling amp, I do use the app as my tuner and for the Song feature to play along with a song I’m learning.

GarageBand for iOS ($4.99) is also a handy practice tool. I really hate using a metronome, but having something keep the beat is crucial. So my solution is to use a sample drum loop from GarageBand on my phone that sounds close to to the beat I want.

The iPad

My iPad is the device I keep on my music stand while practicing. I use Apple’s Camera Connection Kit to import the video from my iPhone onto my iPad. I’m also toying with shooting the video on my iPad and skipping this step, but I find the small size of the iPhone is easier for recording when I’m also holding a guitar. Then I watch my lesson video and follow along, pausing and fast-forwarding as needed.

I also use Songsterr to look up the tabs for songs I’m interested in, and then use its iOS app ($9.99) to “favorite” the song. Then the app becomes my music sheet when I’m playing. While Songsterr isn’t perfect — some songs are transcribed perfectly, some are good enough and some aren’t even close — I find it does an adequate job.

We’ve covered reading apps on the iPad already, so I won’t go into it too much here, but there are two apps I use for reference: Zinio and the Kindle app. I subscribe to several guitar magazines on Zinio, so I reference those while practicing. I also have some music theory books I’ve purchased for Kindle that I’ll look up chord fingerings on.

The Mac

While the iPad sees the majority of the music action, I still use my Mac. When I find (an accurate) song on Songsterr’s site I want to practice, I’ll mute the instruments on the web view of the song and then use Audio Hijack Pro to record the backing tracks. While my Amplitube setup lets me play along to the song, I find this is good if I want to do any recording, or if I don’t want to listen to the additional guitar parts.

After that I import those into GarageBand for Mac ($14.99)  and lay down guitar tracks on top of them. I have an amp (a Peavy Vypyr 75 watt) with a USB port, so I can hook my Mac up to it without having to mess around with mikes and the like. I’ll also use the drum loops in GarageBand to outline a basic song structure to jam over. If I want to try and mimic jamming with friends, I’ll use the Magic GarageBand feature to add some drums, bass, keys and harmonica to a track. One thing I don’t like about Magic GarageBand — the jam session feature in Apple’s software — is that I have to click “Open in GarageBand” to change the key; it would be nice to be able to do that from the main screen.

Coda

It’s been a lot of fun getting back into the guitar, and a lot of that fun has been how much iOS devices and OS X have aided me in the process. While I’m still in the early stages of getting going again, the skills and techniques I’m gaining with the software, in addition to the instrument, will form a great foundation for future work. It won’t be too long before I’m recording full demo tracks in GarageBand.

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Plugging In

Apple recommends the Apogee JAM ($99) for plugging your guitar into the iPad, but I use the iRig ($39, and also conveniently for sale at most Best Buys). In addition to being cheaper, I like that the iRig leaves my dock connector free so I can charge my iPad while playing. I then either use headphones or a set of nice PC speakers as my “amp.” I also use the Griffin A-frame stand on my desk to prop it up at a nice viewing angle. I then jack in my ’62 Reissue Strat in and let loose.

Once you’re plugged in, launch GarageBand on the iPad and choose Guitar Amp from the Instruments window.

Cranking It Up

By default, you’ll be using the Clean Combo amp on app launch. To change amps, just click on the button labeled Clean Combo to bring up the available preset amps. There are four tabs: Clean, Crunchy, Distorted, and Processed. Since I’m a rock/metal player I spent a lot of time in the Distorted tab and my favorite option under that tab was Woodstock Fuzz.

You can also customize the sound by either adjusting the controls on the amp head, or add effects by clicking on the Stompbox icon in the upper right hand corner. This brings up a small pedalboard, and if you click on the empty pedal spot you can add more pedals. I found a nice variety of pedals: a couple different distortion effects, a chorus, flanger, compression, echo, and a phase tripper.

Overall, I found the amps to sound pretty good on their own. The metal ones did have some feedback, but adjusting the Noise Gate fixed that problem. Click on the Guitar Cable icon to adjust noise gate and whether you can hear the amp while you play. One area I think GarageBand really shines is the variety and quality of the built-in sounds; unlike other amp apps, I didn’t really have to futz around with it too much to get a good sound. The clean sounds were crystal clear, and the distortion amps had a decent amount of sustain.

One area I think GarageBand fails at is is managing your presets; apps like AmpliTube let you have one-tap access to all your presets. Switching tabs to juggle between a clean, dirty, and metal tone can be cumbersome. However, I found a neat trick to organize your favorite and custom-created sounds. Once you have a sound you like (even if it’s just a built-in one), hit Save in the amp selection window. This will put the sound in a tab labeled Custom, making it very easy to choose between your favorites.

Encore

So, is GarageBand a worthwhile tool for the practicing guitar or bass player? Definitely. I wouldn’t want to gig with it, but it’s perfect for practicing without annoying the neighbors. What I love is just how much you get for $4.99. While apps like Amplitube and iShred have free or low cost versions to get you going, to really customize your sound you’re going to need to make in-app purchases for amps and effects. With GarageBand, every amp or pedal I would want is already included.

I think GarageBand is a good tool for serious musicians who want to hone their craft. Little things like using drum loops to play along with and an easy-to-use multitrack recording interface add a ton of value to the app. While I wouldn’t want to record an entire album on it, I think it’d be great for doing some light recording when inspiration strikes in a rehearsal studio, or wherever you happen to find yourself with your gear.

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So, after watching Apple’s “iPad is Electric” commercial I decided to take a look at amp apps for the iPad. Three in particular caught my eye: Amplitube, PocketAmp, and iShred.

Hooking Up

First you need a way to hook your guitar into your iOS device. You can either make a cable yourself, get one from Griffin, or use the iRig. I chose the iRig and it’s a fairly simple adapter. You have a female guitar cable input on one end, a male headphone jack that plugs into your iOS device, and a female headphone connector for connecting headphones or a set of speakers. It may not suit the needs of perfectionists, but for the general user, it fits the bill.

The Apps

Amplitube (Free/$19.99): While the $20 price tag is a big turn off, I found the free version to be perfectly fine for the average practicing musician: the paid version gives you more presets and the ability play songs from your iTunes library. The free and paid versions both have in-app purchases for more pedals. Amplitube does have a lot of in-app purchases, even if you purchase the paid version, which may seem greedy. To me, it seems more like an effort to offer very specific levels of customizability. One of the things I liked most about this app was that for relatively little money, I could tailor my playing experience the way I wanted it.

There’s in-app recording (single track is free, multi-track is an additional $15), but I’m just as happy pumping the feed into Garageband. That’s because the sounds I got from this app were fantastic. I could get a nice warm clean tone and also a heavy metal scream. You get three pedals (delay, noise gate, and distortion) with the free app. Those combined with the ability to save presets let me build a nice library of sounds. Additional pedals are $2.99.

PocketAmp (Free/$4.99). This is the perfect app if you just want to  jam with a minimum of fuss.The free version comes with two presets (Clean and Rock) and both sound decent. You also have a few sliders to customize the sound. For $4.99, the paid version is almost a no-brainer. You get more presets (Clean, Blues, Rock, Metal) and a handful of effects (Chorus, Flanger, Rotary, Tremolo). Both versions lets you play along to your iTunes library on your iOS device. The app lacks the customization you’ll find in Amplitube, but you get more than your five bucks worth of sound. PocketAmp is also a universal app, so it works on both iPhone/iPod touch and iPad. The one big problem I have is likely to be minor for most: PocketAmp is portrait-only on the iPad, and I prefer a landscape orientation.

iShred (Free/in-app purchases): While it got decent reviews, I had a hard time getting good sound out of this app. Even with the in-app purchase of the “Screamer” distortion pedal, the sound came off as weak. It gets points for being both a universal app and having free iTunes play-along, but loses just as many for having a weak overall tone. That said, if you’ve got physical effects pedals you love the sound of, and just want a free amp app to practice over songs, this might be a good choice. I was much happier with even the free PocketAmp app.

Final Thoughts

If you want fully-customizable sound, and don’t mind paying a little extra for in-app purchases, my favorite of the bunch is Amplitube, even using just the free version. I probably spent about $8 on a few extra effects and amps and really love the sounds I got from it. For the more budget-conscious that have a higher need for iTunes playback than I did, PocketAmp is a great value; even the stock presets sound great.

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Guitar Rock Tour has arrived to challenge Tap Tap Revenge‘s rhythm-action throne. The new arrival touts a bevy of terrific tunes to tap along to, plus the option to play drums or guitar, loads of characters and unlockable awards.

While Guitar Rock Tour may be Rock Band squished on to the iPhone, it’s just as loud and rocks just as hard. Whereas Tap Tap Revenge is free, Guitar Rock Tour costs a few bucks ($9.99) and as such is polished better than a factory fresh Fender Strat.

At the core of any decent music-based game is the soundtrack and, while all of the song in GRT are sound-a-likes of the real thing, these are well performed covers and during a frenetic, in-game jam session the tracks come across as hard-rocking and suitably authentic.

Choose your track in Guitar Rock Tour

There’s a real range of tunes too, most of them classics in their own right, from contemporary tunes like Bloc Party’s Banquet across to classic hits with recognizable riffs such as Message in a Bottlee by The Police. Conversely, Tap Tap Revenge is heavy on excellent, yet obscure, indie and electronic artists spiced with a few chart-topping acts like Kaiser Chiefs and The Offspring.

In essence, the soundtrack for Tap Tap Revenge is more experimental and certainly more edgy. Where Gameloft call on a Blink-182 cover for some cool caché in Guitar Rock Tour, the folks at Tapulous feature girl-kissing chart topper Katy Perry’s latest hit in Tap Tap Revenge.

Play drums too in Guitar Rock Tour

One thing that Guitar Rock Tour implements wonderfully is multiple instruments. For each track you’re able to choose between shredding your way to fame on guitar or beating your way out of obscurity on the drums. In particular, playing the guitar is a joy: with chords executed in a smart way and techniques included for hammer-ons and pull-offs.  As a result, it’s far more tactile-feeling than TTR.

Another feature in Guitar Rock Tour that is absent from Tap Tap Revenge (though not necessarily missed), is a Tour mode. After picking a character and signing a cartoony contract, you and your amateur band take to the road, playing tunes across the U.S. and Canada, and rocking your way to stardom.

Along the way you also pick up various awards, meet some odd characters and unlock new tracks to play live. The story is indeed silly, yet it’s great fun and certainly a compelling way of playing through the game’s selection of 17 tunes.

Stylized clarity in Tap Tap Revenge

In terms of the graphics, the aesthetic in Tap Tap Revenge has a stylized clarity, suiting tons of musical genres, while Guitar Rock Tour is designed with a gritty rock feel — it’s like Guitar Hero meets one of those dingy little bars where the bands jam around Hendrix tunes. Effectively, it’s cliché but it works and screams of console-gaming.

But although Guitar Rock Tour clearly means business, there’s a show-stopping bug that lets the entire game down. On tracks that require more shredding and finger-picking, the backing track falls out of sync with the guitar track. As a result, the game suddenly becomes a lot harder to play and the music ends up sounding like a bad covers band who can’t seem to play in time.

The folks over at Gameloft have made a raucous rocker of a music game, with a stomping soundtrack too, and yet sometimes it just doesn’t work. For now, we’d say hold back from investing until Gameloft patches the problem and releases an updated version of Guitar Rock Tour.

In the mean time, grab Tap Tap Revenge, it may not have all the extras of Guitar Rock Tour, but it’s free, plays very well and includes some fantastic tunes too.

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