
Recording guitars and basses
You can record a guitar or bass in a Real Instrument track. You can record an acoustic guitar or bass using a microphone, or if the guitar has a built-in microphone or pickup, you can connect it directly to an audio interface.
You can record electric guitars and basses by connecting them to an audio interface. If your computer has an audio input port, you can also connect a guitar or bass to the audio input port using an 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch adapter cable. You may want to use a preamplifier to boost the signal coming from the guitar or bass.
When recording an electric guitar or bass, the sound of the amplifier is an important part of the overall guitar tone. GarageBand includes an effect that simulates the sound of different guitar amplifiers. This effect, called amp simulation, lets you change the sound of your guitar or bass as you play and record. You can change the sound after recording by choosing a different amp simulation preset. Many of the Real Instrument settings in the Bass and Guitars categories include amp simulation.
To record guitars and basses with amp simulation:
- To see if a track uses amp simulation, select the track, then open the Track Info pane. Click the Details triangle to see the effects settings. If included, Amp Simulation will appear in one of the two additional effect pop-up menus.
- To add amp simulation, choose Amp Simulation from one of the two additional effect pop-up menus in the Track Info pane.
- To change the amp preset, choose a new preset from the preset pop-up menu to the right of the effect pop-up menu.
- To adjust the amp presets, click the Edit button (with the pencil icon) next to the effect preset pop-up menu, then drag the sliders to adjust the amp preset settings. Settings include Amp Model, Pre-Gain, tone controls, Master, and Output Level.
- To save a new preset after adjusting settings, choose Make Preset from the amp preset pop-up menu, then type a name for the new preset.
If you are using an external amp simulator, you may want to choose No Effects from the Instrument list, so GarageBand does not alter the sound coming from your amp simulator.
When recording a guitar or bass in a Real Instrument track, be sure to turn on input monitoring for the track, so you can hear the instrument and the amp simulation effect as you play.
