In a previous article I discussed a method of creating realistic live guitar solos using my keyboard. However, if you’re like me and can’t really play a guitar, how can you create credible guitar tracks in your home studio by composing or producing audio backing tracks for your solo performances?
Well the answer is VST.
Briefly, VST or (Virtual Studio Technology) is a software interface designed by Steinberg, which allows a person to realistically simulate musical instruments or studio hardware effects, such as Reverb, Compression, Delay, Audio Mastering, to name just a few. .
Many VST ‘plug-ins’ can function as standalone programs, but are generally used (or ‘plugged’) into your music sequencer; Cubase, Logic, or Sonar are the best examples. There are many VST plug-ins available on the market, but for the purpose of this article I will focus on the use of VST Guitar plug-ins that, through the use of audio sampling, emulate the style and sounds of a real guitar. (Not to be confused with just simulating guitar effects and amp cabinets)
So what’s so special about being able to emulate a guitar?
This type of VST emulation guitar plug-in uses audio samples of the actual guitar type that has been selected. This means that as a non-guitarist, I can realistically reproduce a guitar sound using my keyboard. Furthermore, by using the keyboard I can also affect the performance and style of the sound produced.
For example, I can play a chord with my right and left hands by pressing the keys (often in the upper or lower register of the keyboard) to produce playing techniques such as full attack and sustain, bridge squelch, slaps, harmonics, noise. of frets. , pitch bend, strum, stroke up / down – the list goes on.
Another advantage of these plug-ins is that you can control them from your Midi tracks within your sequencer. This is useful if you are converting your midi tracks to audio backing tracks. Let’s face it, if you’re using backing tracks for your solo act, no one wants to listen to midi anymore, and the quality of the conversion to audio is much more professional.
MusicLab RealGuitar
One of the VST guitar packages that I use is RealGuitar 2L from MusicLab. This particular plug-in includes 8 acoustic guitars, including Steel, Nylon, and 12 String. I have used this plugin very successfully to convert my Midi tracks and the performance simulations are extremely realistic.
MusicLab RealStrat and RealLPC
MusicLab has two other similar virtual VST guitar samplers called RealStrat and RealLPC. The former, as the name suggests, emulates the sounds and style of the Strat guitar. This plug-in not only has the usual range of control over playing techniques and articulations, but it also has its own pattern manager complete with a library of patterns, allowing the user to easily create guitar backing tracks.
MusicLab RealLPC
Next is RealLPC. This plug-in emulates a Les Paul Custom guitar that features an innovative approach to guitar sound shaping and guitar techniques. The appeal of this high-end custom guitar is probably due to the fact that it is used by many Guitar Heroes such as Gary Moore, Carlos Santana, Eddie Van Halen, etc.
The playability of this VST instrument is based on unique playing modes, combined with an easy-to-use keyboard layout that allows the keyboardist to play with completely new playing realism.
Electri6ity of Vir2 instruments
There is one final VST guitar sampler that I want to mention, and it is Electri6ity by Vir2 Instruments. In my search for the “perfect” VST guitar, the hardest to find has been a virtual guitar that can produce an impressive realistic lead guitar, especially the heavier kind of Rock solo you can hear John Petrucci or Eddie Van Halen perform. .
Electri6ity uses 8 guitars, including Les Paul, Strat, Tele, and Rickenbacker, and the software incorporates more than 24,000 audio samples from each guitar, allowing you to play each articulation on each string of each fret to produce that authentic guitar sound. Certainly for lead work this plug-in really shakes me up.
Conclution
If you are a keyboard player looking to buy a VST guitar plugin and not sure which one, I hope the above gave you an idea of which one may be right for you. Excellent quality VST samplers for emulation of other instruments such as piano, drums, orchestral instruments, etc. have been around for quite a while, but finding the correct realistic guitar emulation, especially for mainstream work, has only been available, in my opinion, recently thanks to more powerful computing power, handling large amounts of high-volume audio samples. quality actually. time, combined with powerful and well thought out control via its keyboard.