[Lee Bob]

Hello all,

I'm in need of some help. I just got a job that is going to require extensive travelling and thus is going to force me to leave my band. I personally can't justify keeping my Stiletto, Diezel 2X12, second electric guitar and effects etc when I will rarely if ever be able to play them (I also live in an apartment so I would never be able to turn it up anyway). Therefore I am looking at selling those pieces and funneling some of that money towards a good practicing/recording rig that I can take on the road with me since I'm gonna spend many nights in a hotel room alone.

Which products should I begin looking at? I am new to this sector of the market and I'm not up to date on what's out there. I was originally thinking of getting the PODXT Live and a decent recording program. Or perhaps NI's Guitar Rig 2? (Does it have the ability to record multiple tracks?)

Your suggestions and some info on why you made that suggestion would be very much appreciated. The main things I'm looking for is sound quality, versatility (lots of amp, cab and effect sims), price and portability.

 

[Jeff Flowerday]

Are you going to have a laptop with you?

 

[Lee Bob]

Are you going to have a laptop with you?

Yes I am. Hence why I'm thinking of Guitar Rig 2 as a possibility.

 

[buckaroobanzai]

I was disappointed with Guitar Rig 2, especially the noise level on the high-gain models. ( I was using my high-end Dell laptop and a borrowed M-Audio Firewire Solo interface.)

Now I'm using an M-Audio JamLab that I bought used for $35, and Audacity for doing quick 1-track demos.

I use Reaper and a number of free VST's for multitrack recording. ( Amplitube Uno, Simulanalog Guitar Suite...there's a number of them out there.)

I use Hammerhead stand-alone for basic drum tracks, and then load the finished .wav files into Reaper or Audacity.

You might want to see if you can put together a low-cost travel rig like this before shelling out for Guitar Rig.

 

[mirthvader]

I like the pod option. I thought it sounded good for what it was and it doesn't take up much space.

 

[zdogma]

Yeah the guitar port works well. The modelling sounds are just OK, but it is very easy to use. Get the UX2 it has input monitors, two mic inputs and phantom power, so you don't need a mic pre.