dirtypurple Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 I have no real idea about Guitar Rig and using it on a PC/Mac. How does it all work? You plug the RIP into a Mac, run the software, it outputs the sound how...? back down via the RIP and into your amp? What sort of spec Mac Book do you need? Sorry for rambling questions...i'm a complete newbie to this stuff - I suspect I could find this if I searched around so apols for being lazy too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MCK Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Yes. You are right. All sound is routed in thru the RIP, processed and sent back out to RIP. You can plug your headphone into the RIP and play your heart out or route your output to any neutral amplifier (ie monitor, PA etc) or a mixing desk. PC specs wise, Core2Duo 1.6 Ghz onwards should be ok from what I figure. The faster the CPU the lower you can drive your latency. Not an expert on the macs but it seems like any MacBook or MacBook Pro will do but I think some newer MacBook Pro's (aluminum body?) don't have the firewire port. Might be wrong on this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elantric Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 MCK is correct Get a White Macbook as they have a required Firewire port. Avoid the Aluminum Macbook, zero Firewire ports and no way to add one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoPimp Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 the minimum spec would be either a "white 13-inch MacBook" which still has a Firewire port or one of the previous Macbook Pros. The new 'unibody' Macbooks don't have Firewire anymore but the unibody Macbook Pro's do. If would personally recommend you buy a MacbookPro with the fastest processor you can afford. Although even the white Macbook should be fine for basic use with GuitarRig i think you will be quickly underpowered if you want to pile up effects. Since there is not so much hum and hiss with every effect added like with normal pedals/fx you'll quickly find the need for much much processing power than is available in any current laptop. Especially if you start working on entire projects with say, Live, Logic, Cubase you'll find that even a top of the line MBP can be quickly overloaded with a couple of instances of a good plugin. I've tried running GR on a MacMini and that didn't turn out too well (was hoping to hook up a midi controller but no screen for a tiny portable fx/amp monster) ... on my 3 year old G4 Powerbook 17 it's practically unusable .... on my MacbokPro 2.4GHz Core2Duo from early 2008 GR runs very well but when i pile up a lot of stuff with some modifiers here and there and try to set a latency below 10ms it goes down to it's knees pretty quickly, especially when i have a couple of other things going. But this is probably all because i'm used to work on the MacPro where i can throw pretty much anything at it with no concerns about performance. If you are listening to the sound through the computer, the key to satisfying guitar play through a DAW for me is latency, the lower you can go, the more 'real-time' you can hear your sound 'inside' your computer. But the lower you go the more CPU is used, so the faster the better. The audio interface itself is also a huge factor in latency, some work much better at lower latencies than others, in the case of the RIP i don't know (haven't got the DF yet) but i have several audio interfaces which all behave very differently in terms of stability and latency. Will be interesting to see how the RIP compares. To be honest i rarely use guitar rig when i play or record guitar ... and yet i use it all the time, for most of my fx processing on keyboards, beats, vocals etc ... it's just that i have a Pod which sounds lovely with my guitars and is an independent standalon device that doesn't hog my cpu's .. so although the sounds are not quite as good as GR and the possibilities much more reduced, i still preferr to play and record guitar with no latency whatsoever and also i have much more simple tastes in terms of guitar sound than for my other instruments ... but that will have to change when the DF arrives hexaphonic processing ..... mmmmmhhhhh .... not sure if that's going to run so well on the white macbooks ... one thing not to miss out on when you start playing around with guitar rig: MODIFIERS (LFO's sequencers, etc) huge fun ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boardusmcer Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 what do the modifiers and sequencers do? thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiscoPimp Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 what do the modifiers and sequencers do? thanks it's hard to explain but easy to try out .. the manual says: Modifiers generally enable you to link external value changes with one or more of the settings in your rack. You can find the available modules that can be used as modifiers under Comomponents – MDFDF. Try dragging their Assign button to any knob to see how they work! Build your own tremolo effect in seconds by linking your volume control to the LFO module – and this is just a mere example of the possibilities of this feature. think of it as some virtual technicians twiddling the knobs of your fx pedals ... there is a great PDF that comes with GR called: GR3_MiniTutorial_MultipleModifiers.pdf .. it should be in the 'Documentation' folder inside your Guitar Rig 3' folder. Check it out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markt Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 I have the previous Macbook Pro with the silver case, it does have a firewire port. I think you are correct the new ones are bad. Mark T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boardusmcer Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 thanks for the tip on the pdf, i'll check that out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elantric Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Macbook Pro - any vintage is good - new ones simply require a Firewire 800 to Firewire 400 adapter its the basic Macbook that is the problem. The new Aluminum Macbook lacks Firewire ports. However the revamped new White Macbook does have Firewire - so get the white Macbook if you are on a budget But if you suspect you may want to dabble in more advanced work(Video Editing, Protools, Final Cut Pro) Get the Macbook Pro - 15" or 17" as the Macbook Pro adds the Expresscard 34 slot - I use a ESATA adapter there http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16839104022 and run an external ESATA RAID box with a pair of 500GB SATA drives - like this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816111073 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtypurple Posted March 3, 2009 Author Share Posted March 3, 2009 Thanks for the replies..I understand now. Reason I asked is someone at work is selling a MacBook second-hand. I think it was 1.8 Ghz, but that sounds a bit under powered. I'll try with my iMac once the guitar comes. It does sound pretty good. Is it possible to have the RIP connected to both Guitar Rig (and then the PA) and the guitar itself also connected directly to a guitar amp? or is one or the other? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgarlie Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 MCK is correct Get a White Macbook as they have a required Firewire port. Avoid the Aluminum Macbook' date=' zero Firewire ports and no way to add one.[/quote'] Actually, the (aluminum) MacBook Pro has a firewire port (maybe that's what makes it a Pro;-) Charlie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elantric Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 MacBook Pro has a firewire port Correct - and that is what I use Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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