mixed in the analog realm to magnetic
tape, but for most musicians the digital
conversion happens much earlier. Often,
their instrument is plugged directly
into a digital audio interface, with amp
simulators and plugins taking the place
of real amps, cabinets, pedalboards, and
microphones. There’s nothing wrong
with either method, and if the recording
is executed well, the final results can
be equally excellent. In my experience,
though, if you’re the kind of guitarist
that tends to record direct to the
computer, either for practical reasons
or personal preference, it can be much
easier to dial up a rockin’ guitar tone
by prefacing the digital converters and
software plugins with a nice analog
preamp that has been purpose-built
for guitar.
Plugging into an analog guitar preamp
prior to converting the signal to ones
and zeroes can improve the recording
experience and the achieved tones in
several ways. For one, most recording
interfaces are general purpose, with
neutral sounding preamps designed
to make a clean, truthful document of
any instrument. For distorted electric
guitar especially, this can mean that
the recording resulting from plugging
directly into such an interface is often
somewhat flat, both in feel and tone,
lacking the color and response of a real
amp’s input circuitry. Plugging into a
good guitar preamp first can often fix
this problem, achieving an amp-like
feel and sound before the signal ever
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TONE TALK //
4 Pristine Analog Preamps for your Digital Studio