Native Instruments Guitar Rig 4 Pro

I first approached Guitar Rig when I was taking my first steps in mixing and mastering, and even then it was quite easy for me to load the plugin and get it to work on Nuendo or as a Standalone. I've tried it in a good number of PCs with no compatibility issues. The only problem that may arise, as with every software of the kind, is compatibility issues between your sound card, and the ASIO drivers.

The graphic nature of Guitar Rig makes the manual almost useless, in my opinion. The fact that the pedals and boxes are stacked as in a visible traditional guitar rack helps to easily put order to long chains of effects. As for the software itself if doesn't have much options or menus to deal with, so you'll find yourself mastering Guitar Rig in a short time without ever resorting to the manual.

You can work with presets or build a whole set of FX from scratch. Most of the times, for practicing, quick demo recordings, etc, the presets will be more than enough (there are a good deal and they are quite the first thing you get access to).


SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Performance is amazing. I've only found issues with Guitar Rig when I've really overloaded my computer. That being said, it puts a strain on any DAW to run more than a couple of GR instances, or running instances with tons of effects. I've been using Guitar Rig since GR3, and the quality of the software improved dramatically with the fourth version, as did the sound and the available effects.

I've never gotten the Rig Control (the pedal that was made particularly for this piece of software) but I understand you can replace it with any MIDI pedal. In any case, the Rig Control was especially designed for this, so it should work best.

OVERALL OPINION

The sound is nice and some of the presets are really well crafted. The ironic titles give away the kind of sound that they should recreate, and I was surprised to see how many actually nailed it. I think that Guitar Rig is an amazing tool because of its simplicity. I've tried other guitar software before, but I've only stuck with GR and Amplitube.

I actually work with a combination of Guitar Rig and Amplitube: after the initial surprise at the sheer amount of effect GR offers wears down, you'll find that some of them sound a kind of plastic. It is essential to be willing to tweak the knobs a little bit if you are willing to get something near to a professional sound. It is also essential to understand that, while GR may excel when it comes to quick recordings and such, you will need to use it in combination with other software in order to get a high standard sound.

So far as I tried it, there were no compatibility issues at all. The tricky part comes from the configuration setup. You'll have to play with the Audio and MIDI setup options in order to have it working properly, so my advise it'll be to check to several tutorials while you first use it, since the ASIO drivers could be a real pain in the neck, depending on the computer that you're using.
As regards the manual, if you're a guitarist used to just "plug and play", then you'll not understand a bit from it. If you have real technical knowledge, it's really helpful and very simple to read. Every single detail from the program is there.
Besides all that, the interface it's very user-friendly and very intuitive as well.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

Once it's properly setup, it's AMAZING. It may have some latency due to the ASIO software drivers, but this can be solved by acquiring an external audio card. Works like a charm with my Lexicon Alpha.
Stability problems? Not at all. No freezes, no crashes, no nothing! It's just like it's previous version, but with a few more options.
Performance it's outstanding. You can select from the several presets from the program and even create your own ones. Several amps, delays, reverbs, filters to choose from! From a Bon Scott AC/DC sound to the Richard Z. Kruspe Rammstein's sound (which is included as the Rammfire preset and it's great for metal playing).
I've been using it for a few years now and it became a vital part of my guitar compositions.

OVERALL OPINION

Sound quality? EXCELLENT. I used to have the GR3 and I find this one better in every single aspect. At first it may sound a little bit synthetized, but with a few adjustments works great. The more you use it, the more you learn from it, and the more you love it. It's a great product, and although it can be used as a stand-alone software, it's also recommended to get the Rig Kontrol foot pedal to get the best of it. Yes, it can be used with another MIDI foot pedal, but the Rig Kontrol was made for this program and viceversa, so that says it all.

As a Native Instruments user, I couldn't expect less from them. Great sound quality, everything adjustable and customizable to the user's needs and preferrences, very intuitive user interface and outstanding performance.
Worths every single cent and more, not to mention the free presets that can be downloaded straight from the Native Instrumens website.
Excellent option for both studio recording and live performance.

As a final thought, if you have the chance to get this software, don't hesitate. You won't regret it!

Native Instruments' Guitar Rig is just an incredible product. On its fourth version, things couldn’t be different. I was introduced to Guitar Rig 3 a couple years ago and I was blown away by its super quality of legendary guitar amps and effects simulation. The beauty of this product really is found on how good and professional any guitar you plug in will sound.

I’ve been quite lucky lately and I got a free copy of Guitar Rig 4 from Native Instruments. The full version retails for $225 but I would strongly recommend to purchase Komplete 7 which not only includes Guitar Rig 4 as also a series of really awesome virtual instruments.

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A few of the new features in Guitar Rig 4 make it an even better product. The Control Room feature lets you quickly mix your guitar signal through an array of different positioned mics on your chosen amp, giving you the power to craft an original guitar sound even before adding any effects to it. Guitar Rig 4 comes now with a Limit button that guarantees your signal will not peak. Very useful if you love to keep adding more and more to the chain. Besides featuring 3 new built-in amps, my favorite one is Rammfire, which is sold separately, but it is included on Komplete 7. It’s a really awesome amp for modern and heavy guitar sounds. If you are a Richard Z. Kruspe fan you will enjoy it even more. The gigantic list of effects found on Guitar Rig 4 will cover all your guitar needs and even more. Exclusive components found under Modifiers, Sound FX and Tools, will let you craft sounds never before imagined.

It’s hard to find a flaw on this amazing product.

Made by Native Instruments, Guitar Rig 4 has a clean and easy to use interface that comes with great features. Also it won’t consume much of your RAM.

Guitar Rig 4 is a powerful tool for music production. The results you can get with it are astonishing. It is definitely a worthy investment for your studio and computer.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

As with all Native Instruments' products the package includes a clear manual and instructions on installation. The set up is easy, and once you actually open up the program you'll find that its easy to navigate and use. The software is really intuitive as well. The components are broken down into categories so you can find them quickly and add them to your preset. If you are just looking to use the factory presets Guitar Rig 4 has a great browser which allows you to find what your looking for based on criteria like "style", "effect", and type of guitar.

SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE

I've been using Guitar Rig 4 for about a year now, and I've had a great experience. It is not too CPU intensive, so having multiple instances running at the same time is no problem. I use it with FL Studio 10 on six core, 6GB RAM CPU running Windows 7.

OVERALL OPINION

I was a little skeptical about getting Guitar Rig 4 because I was using IK Multimedia's Amplitube Fender, which I was enjoying a lot. When I got it though, it was great. Not only was I getting great results routing Music Lab's Real LPC through it I was only sing it on every other instrument. Piano's and strings sounded awesome with the creative presets that come with Guitar Rig 4. I was able to create totally new sounds which really added to my beats. I've tired making my own presets but I love the factory ones so much I just use those. There are plenty of them, and they range from weird psychedelic effects to normal guitar amps. Now that I've tried IK Multimedia's Amplitube Fender as well as Guitar Rig 4 I would definitely make the decision to buy Guitar Rig 4. It's a great software guitar amp as well as program capable of turning traditional sounds into fun creative ones.