AmpliTube

Another person switching to jamup pro here. It was nice to get started with iRig—the interface was ~$30-$40, & there’s a free version of the app. I had my gripes with in app purchases constantly (& even after getting paid version) but ok. I got an iPad and found that it’s a separate thing entirely and no in-app purchases carry over... okay, annoying, but okay—I guess (there are technical explanations/reasons for this). I look into getting some manner of controller to actually be able to use the effects while playing with others (without stopping to tap on my device with the hands I’m using to play guitar)... and it’s another $100+ ... when there are cheap controllers that work for jamup for ~$20... and jamup pro is only $12 and is the same on iPad and iPhone. Unless jamup is a total disaster later on for some reason I haven’t found yet (seems to work about the same as amplitube if not a little more intuitive) I don’t think I’ll be back to the iRig ecosystem. Why not just make the interface a little more expensive and sell a version of the app that is actually all inclusive and doesn’t pester users with in-app purchases IK?? That’s what I wanted in the first place. I guess they’re making money and maybe their gear is really good, I’m not sure—I’m just not ready throw in with a company that seems to be out to nickel and dime us...

I'm looking at people ripping the crap out of this ap for it not being the mega $20,000 studio for $20, c'mon people!! I love this thing!! Use it for what it is! I had the free, liked it so paid for the full version. you get 5 or 6 stomp boxes that to buy at the store alone would be almost a grand, and they sound GOOD! I ponyed up for the Fender pack and again, lots of amp tones and more stomp boxes that to buy at Guitar Center would be another few grand! I own a few Fender guitars and a real 60w Fender Supersonic amp (there is a supersonic amp tone in the fender pack). I use the irig with a $2.00 adapter I bought at radio shack and run it through the amp on the Vibrolux (clean) channel. I get every tone on here through the amp and it sounds AWESOME!! Just like the real stompboxes! You can only do 3 stomp boxes on the ap at a time, but I run a wah pedal from the irig jack through the effects loop on the amp, works perfectly! If you have other boxes run them through the effects loop on the amp and go nuts! (though 3 is really more than enough at a crack.) Ladies and gentlemen, don't expect this thing to write songs for you or teach you how to play guitar or read your thoughts. It is modeling software, and probably the best out there for $20-$30 bucks! I just bought the recorder and haven't had a chance to use it yet, but will let you know how it goes!!

This is guitar-oriented app, though there is a small sub-set of amps, cabs, and effects that are potentially good for bass players. The problem is it is very difficult to get a clean sound through Amplitube. The overall modeling bias is toward crunchy, overdriven tones which might be OK for rock guitarists, but masks the fundamental tone of a bass too much to be of use to me. Also, aside from the modelling, the app (running with a Lakland bass plugged into the $40 iRig accessory with a Mogami cable) is incredibly hissy. When you try to boost the input and/or output levels over the hiss, it distorts the tone even more. I did manage to tweak things to an acceptable balance between jaggedy digital artifacts and incessant line hiss, but at that point, the output to my Sennheiser HD280 phones was so low the built-in metronome all but drowned it out. I'm not expecting audiophile sound here, but for $60 (iRig plus app), a few good, usable clean tones should be part of the package. The concept behind this app is great; the execution is horrendous. If you are a guitarist playing heavily-effected, overdriven sounds, this might be an acceptable choice for you; bassists and others looking for clean reproduction of fundamental tones are going to be very disappointed.