Better Guitar

Guitar Rig 3 - Kontrol Edition

Review by Mark Starlin

Guitar players are spoiled. We have a wealth of options when it comes to gear — tube, solid-state, modeling, and hybrid amps; analog and digital effects; recording devices like the POD; and a zillion guitar models to choose from. Recent years have also brought us software to emulate nearly everything available in hardware. The only real limitation is budget. WIth modeling software, even budget is becoming less of a factor. It is now possible to buy a single software package that offers more amps and effects than even the best recording studios can offer. Guitar Rig 3 is one of those packages. It not only offers a large number of amp and effect emulations, it also provides a hardware controller and audio interface — all in one box. A software only version is also available.

Version 3

Guitar Rig is now at version 3 and offers several software and hardware improvements including four new amp models and six new effects models. The controller has also been updated with a new look and a new AD/DA section taken from the NI Audio Kontrol 1 audio interface. The software interface has also been improved and a "Live View" has been added.

Studio Or Live

Guitar Rig 3 (GR3 from now on) operates either as a standalone application or as a plugin in a host DAW. Standalone mode is useful for when you just want to plug in and play, or for those brave enough to play through a laptop in a live setting. The plugin version of GR3 gives you access to all of GR3’s features as an effect in your host DAW for an incredible amount of tonal possibilities while recording.

The new "Live View" makes it easier to see GR3 settings on stage.

Setup

Setting up GR3 involves installing the GR3 software and the RIg Kontrol 3 driver. Once the software is installed and authorized (using NI’s Service Center application) you are ready to add the Rig Kontrol 3. This is as simple as plugging it in to an open USB 2 port on your computer. Next you need to select the Rig Kontrol 3 as your soundcard (and audio in device.) This is done in the Audio Setup section of GR3. Then you need to set RIg Kontrol 3 as your audio output device. Next plug your guitar into the Rig Kontrol 3 and set the gain to match your guitar’s pickups. You can now record audio and control functions of the GR3 software via the RIg Kontrol 3.

If you are content to monitor your sound through headphones, simply plug a pair into the RIg Kontrol 3 and you are done. If you want to use studio monitors you have two basic options. You can plug powered monitors into the audio outputs on the Rig Kontrol 3 and you are good to go. If you prefer to leave your monitors hooked up to your computer or audio interface, you will need to do some additional work to route the audio to your monitors. Depending on your setup (OS, audio interface, soundcard, etc) this can be a hair-pulling experience. On my Mac this involved using the Mac OS Audio/MIDI setup application to create an Aggregate device that allows me to use the RIg Kontrol 3 as my input device and my audio interface as the output device. After accomplishing this, my monitors showed up as outputs 3 and 4 in GR3’s audio setup, although they are 1 and 2 on my audio interface. Be prepared for some initial frustration if you plan to go this route.

If you want to use your own audio interface for audio input, you can still use the RIg Kontrol 3 as just a controller. You will need to select your audio interface as the soundcard along with the proper audio input and outputs.

Latency

Latency is the delay caused by routing your guitar signal through AD/DA converters and the GR3 software, then sending it to your speakers or headphones. If you have a fast computer you can eliminate most of that delay by setting your audio buffers to a low setting. You need to find the lowest setting your computer can handle without causing clicks or pops in the audio. On my MacBook Pro 2.2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, using the Rig Kontrol 3 as my soundcard, I was able to get down to 7 ms without audio clicking. Using my MOTU 828 Firewire audio interface as my soundcard, I was able to set my buffers at 4 ms without clicks and didn’t notice any delay at all. I then backed it up to 6 ms and it was still good. At 8 ms I began to notice a very slight delay, although still very usable. As you go higher the delay gets more noticeable. To avoid latency you will need a newer, fast computer.

Set your audio buffers as low as possible to avoid latency.

The Rig Kontrol 3

GR3 Kontrol Edition comes with the the Rig Kontrol 3, a controller and audio interface that puts control of GR3 at your feet — where guitarist like it. The Rig Kontrol 3 is solid, housed in a sleek black aluminum case with 8 freely assignable metal switches and an expression pedal. The audio interface is high quality featuring up to 192 kHz sampling rate at 16 or 24 bits using Cirrus Logic converters. It also features MIDI in and out, a headphone jack, two additional controller pedal jacks, and audio out jacks for speakers or to send your signal to a PA, mixer, amp, etc. All the input and output jacks are well marked on the face of the unit.

The only thing I didn’t like about the Rig Kontrol 3 is the loud click the metal switches make. This can get annoying when switching through several presets, and could be noticeable when playing live in a quiet setting. The click is mechanical only, it doesn’t affect the signal and is not recorded so it won’t affect your recordings.

The Rig Kontrol 3 makes it easy and fun to the use Guitar Rig 3 software.

The Rig Kontrol 3 rear panel jacks.

Assigning functions to the switches and pedal is a snap thanks to GR3’s virtual Rig Kontrol display. To assign a function you simply ctrl-click (Mac, right-click on Windows) on a switch or pedal and choose a function from the popup menu. You can also assign functions from the Options panel.

Pop-up menus make quick work of setting up the controller.

If you buy the software only version of Guitar Rig 3, you can program third party MIDI controllers using the virtual Rig Kontrol interface. Although I didn’t have a third party controller to test this with, it should make setting up and using a third party controllers much easier.

The Software Interface

The main software interface is made up of four sections. The top is the global header where you can monitor audio levels and CPU usage. You can also access the Live View from here. At the top right is the Toolbar, where frequently used functions such as saving and comparing changes to presets is located. Below the Toolbar is the rack, where you build your rig and tweak it. The left side is the Sidekick where you can access the preset browser, select components for your rig, as well as other options such as Rig Kontrol setup and interface preferences. The Sidekick section can be hidden if desired. The GR3 interface is logical and laid out well. Everything does what you would expect it to do and is a pleasure to use.

The Guitar Rig 3 plugin and standalone interfaces are identical.

The Models

Of course, none of the previous items I mentioned would matter much if GR3 sounded terrible. Don’t worry, it doesn’t. In fact, it sound great. It provides enough amps and effects to cover practically any tone you could want. From jazz to country to metal, it’s all here. In fact, you will probably never exhaust all it has to offer. Software modeling has come a long way. It is never going to provide the actual experience of using a real tube amp, but it certainly can capture the tone. And GR3 does so very well. Some may say such and such amp is not quite “right”, but even real amps of the same model can vary in their tone. I found all the amp models good sounding and usable, and with the four new amps, the tonal options are increased even more. I also found most of the amps to be fairly dynamic, cleaning up when I picked lighter and grinding more as I dug in. But just like a real amp, you need to find its "sweet spot" to get the best tone.

The thing to remember is these models need to be tweaked, just like real amps, to match your guitars and effects. Don’t settle for the presets, dig in. It’s worth the effort. Also, just auditioning the tones by themselves is fun but not as effective as trying them in an actual musical situation. After I loaded a backing track into the the included tape deck and could hear the tones in the context of a song, they sounded even better. This bears well as to GR3’s use for recording.

New Models

The four new amps cover varied sonic ground. The Ultrasonic is a modern high gain amp that make getting raging metal tones easy. The Citrus amp provided a unique distortion that fits 70’s music perfectly. The High White provides the 60’s invasion tone, great for those windmill power chords. Tweed Deluxe provides warm clean and crunch tones but gets a bit buzzy when pushed too hard.

Guitar Rig 3 offers four new amps and six new effects.

The new effects include the Tape Echo which simulates the sound of tape echo with delay times up to 960 ms. I felt the delays were a little to pristine to come off as tape echos, but it is still a nice sounding delay. It has two heads to offer some cool ping-pong effects. The Delay Man gives you a delay/chorus/vibrato stompbox effect reminiscent of the Electro-Harmonix pedals in the 70’s. The Sledgehammer earns its name with pounding distortion for those times when your tone needs to be brutal. Its contour and frequency knobs provide you with a wide palette of grind.

The Custom EQ is an easy to use, warm sounding EQ. It makes it easy to get a more vintage tone. The Ring Modulator provides unusual filter and vibrato effects. It’s not something I would use often, but fans of weird guitar tones will probably like it. The Real Wah is designed to emulate the signature wahs that started appearing in the 90’s, which were geared more for high gain tones. To my ears the wah effect is minimal until you reach the treble range where it jumps out at you almost like a booster pedal was engaged. It’s a non-traditional wah, but interesting.

In Use

Using GR3 in standalone mode is easy. You can start with one of the many presets, which are organized by amp, style of music, and a few other categories like FX, signature sounds, and Live, or create your own preset from scratch. The presets cover a lot of ground and are also good starting points for tweaking. But building your own rig is even more fun. Imagine walking into the best music store ever and picking from a large collection of amps and effects. It is a lot of fun to try different combinations, and a lot less work than real hardware (no cables to deal with!)

The two mandatory modules every rig starts with are the Input and Output modules. These are where you set your signal levels. A handy learn button on each module makes it as easy as selecting the learn button and playing. GR3 then sets the level automatically according to how hard you play. The input module also has noise reduction that works extremely well. It is very smooth as the signal fades out. None of the stuttering that plagues many NR units. The output module has a limiter to keep your signal in check if you get too exuberant while playing.

Other available modules include a tuner, two tape decks, and a metronome. The tape decks are very handy, allowing you to load a backing track in one, play along and record the results into the other. You can then save it to disk as a WAV file. Great for saving ideas. Another cool module is the Loop Machine which allows you to build layers of guitar and save the results.

To create your rig you simply switch to the Components section and drag the module you want into the rack. The Components section is divided into 8 sections by category (amps, distortion, EQ, etc.) which are selectable via buttons. Once a component is in your rack, you can tweak it to your hearts content and then save it as a component preset, which is available from a pop-up menu in the component. This way you can save a setting in a phaser and then access it from any rack that includes that phaser. Very nice. Between all the amps, stompboxes, and rack gear, you have nearly endless possibilities for tweaking. And I haven’t even mentioned speaker cabinets and microphone placement which also have a huge effect on the tone.

Once you have created your rig, you will want to save it as a preset. Presets are saved into banks. You can save presets and banks with a name of your choosing. You can even share presets with other GR3 user via the Guitar Rig User Library on NI’s website, although you can only export banks. You can export a bank with a single preset, though.

Plug It In

When using GR3 as a plugin, there are more issues to deal with. Since GR3 acts as an effect in plugin mode, you need to assign it to a track. In order to use the Rig Kontrol 3, you need to display the virtual Rig Kontrol and click the Active button. You also need to remember that you are not recording the effect (GR3 tone) only the straight guitar signal, which is cool if you want to make changes to your tone later with GR3. However, If you want to record the GR3 tone you need to bounce the audio to another track, or bus it to another track and record it.

One method I found that works well with my DAW — Digital Performer 5 — is to use two audio tracks. I place the GR3 plugin on one track and bus the audio to the second track after the effects section. I record enable both tracks and the result is, I hear GR3 while playing and end up with one track of straight guitar signal and a second track of guitar processed through the GR3 plugin. I can then keep the processed track and still go back and make changes to the straight audio track if I want to [click here for step-by-step instructions of this setup]. Every DAW works a little differently so you will have to consult your manual and find the best method for your setup.

Another issue is automation. If you want to record the movement of the Rig Kontrol 3 wah pedal, you need to enable automation recording on your track. Again, you will need to check your DAW manual to see how this is accomplished. Unfortunately, there is an issue with Digital Performer (my DAW of choice) and NI’s implementation of the AU spec, so currently, automation recording is not working in Digital Performer. Hopefully this will be remedied soon. MOTU (publisher of Digital Performer) has assured me they are working on a solution. In the mean time I have found a workaround. I simply use the two audio track method mentioned previously to record the wah effect as audio.

Tip Of The Iceberg

If I tried to cover every component, feature, and possible use of Guitar Rig 3, this review might never end. So I’ll just wrap it up now with some final thoughts.

Final Thoughts

Guitar Rig 3 is unique combination of hardware and software that work together the way guitarists like — with foot control. The Rig Kontrol 3 is solidly built and includes a high quality USB 2 audio interface — although I was able to get slightly lower buffer setting using a Firewire interface. GR3 features a huge collection of amp and effects models. The new Ultrasonic and Tweed Deluxe amp models fill some previous gaps and the Citrus and High White amps provide unique new tones. The Virtual Rig Control makes it easy to setup controller functions and the new Live View will please those using GR3 on stage. Simply put, Guitar Rig 3 provides an all-in-one guitar recording studio for your computer that can double as a live rig. It has nearly endless possibilities for creating and tweaking tones and it sounds great. If you are considering guitar software for recording or live use, Guitar Rig 3 is definitely worth a look.

Reader Comments

Better Guitar encourages your input. Agree with this review? Think I’m crazy? If you have used Guitar Rig 3, email me your comments and I’ll post them below. The more opinions we have available, the better our buying decisions will be.

Jono Evans (Endless Hallway)

I've been using Guitar Gig 3 with RigKontrol 3 on stage since August of last year. I've used it on several tours, including supporting Gavin Rossdale, Circa Survive, Vast, and many others.

I get a lot of compliments on my tone, and on my use of creative effects. But really it's just taking advantage of the more in-depth abilities of the midi syncing between the expression pedal on the RigKontrol and effects in Guitar Rig. I've had a great time with it - I always keep my laptop off to the side of the stage so I can let loose and have fun up there.

It's spoiling to have so many different amps and effects at hand. But I really love it, I can recreate almost all of the tones on our record with total ease. Plus a direct connection to the PA has its advantages! Anyway, just thought I would share my experience with you. Take care, Jono

Kenny Mac

Hey GREAT review on GR3. I just got it yesterday I would usually hold off on a review until I have used it for awhile but I like it so much I wanted to share some thought and a link to a demo. First off my rig controller crapped out on me in 12 hours — the input 1 died. Oh well, not that big a deal, Music 123 will replace it. But the sounds are really nice and are the most authentic that I have come across. I have been using the Pod Farm (which is nice as well) but when I replaced the sounds with GR3 my mix completely changed, it was amazing. Anyway, here is a link to a real basic improv that I did with 3 of the sounds from GR 3. Check it out if you have time. Thanks for your review.

Robert Atwell

I just read your GR3-Kontrol Edition review and loved it. Thanks very much. I am probably typical in that I have an EVH 5150III half stack and I am just a bedroom/office musician. GR3 seems like it would be ideal and save me a bunch of space. I would rather collect guitars than amps. In your review, you mentioned "standalone". Does that simply refer to plugging your guitar in one side, some powered speakers in another side of the Kontrol foot pedal and then the pedal to computer via USB? That's seems the simplest and how I would want to use it just for practice and playing at home. Lastly, can I still use my EVH flanger and phase pedals in standalone or do those become obsolete?

Reply: That is correct. You plug your guitar into the Kontrol unit; plug the Kontrol unit into your computer using the USB cable (it is BUS powered, no power cable required); and plug headphones or powered speakers into the Kontrol unit to hear yourself. This is the easiest setup. The one I use for portable use with my laptop.

Standalone use means you are using the Guitar Rig 3 software as an application. You don't need anything else. Guitar Rig 3 also works as a plugin in a DAW, such as Digital Performer, Cakewalk, Sonar, etc. Although the setup is more complicated, you can also route the audio to other devices such as computer speakers, an audio interface, studio monitors, etc.

You can use any effects pedal you like with GR3, you just put it before the input jack (like you would with an amp), although GR3 has a full compliment of effects so you might decide not to bother (the pedals will always be useful with your amp.) - Mark

Luis Ruiz Arauz

I have GR3 Kontrol edition and it is amazing. I sold my Marshall amp out to buy a couple of Fender monitors. You covered all my doubts in this review, including how to hear GR from the computer (a basic thing for me but non even mentioned in most of the GR articles.) As you said the only thing we miss with GR is the experience of playing trough the real tubes, so I think that is what NI should focus on in the future in order to have the best amp emulation software. So it should integrate a tool like QuikQuak-RaySpace (a reverb and space designer) where the user can control the space, air, and so on. Thanks.

Josh Griffin

You mentioned that you wanted to hear from someone who used Guitar Rig live. Well, we use it for two of our guitar players in our worship group at church. Tone is great and it allows us a lot of flexibility for tone without having to lug around a bunch of equipment. We just learned to be careful with the laptops, and they sit in a stand off to the side. No problems yet and we have been doing it for a little over a year.

Reply: Thanks Josh. A year with no problems is impressive. - Mark

Mark Starlin

I wanted to mention that I have been using Guitar Rig 3 as a mobile recording setup with my laptop lately and it works great. Since the RigKontrol 3 is powered by the USB bus, with a laptop, you can use it anywhere to capture ideas. No outlet needed!

Jason Buck

Great review. I have received a lot of great advice from you. Could you use this in a live setting, or do you think that the latency would foul you up if you’re playing with a band, like in worship?

Reply: If your computer is fast enough, latency is not really an issue. In fact, if you use a long guitar cable you are adding latency to your signal. It is only when the latency gets long enough that you notice a delay between picking and hearing the notes that it becomes a problem.

If you can use Guitar Rig successfully at home with a laptop, then you should be able to use the same laptop for gigs — if you are brave enough to use a laptop on stage. I think I would worry about it the whole time. Will it get knocked over? Will it crash? Will someone steal it? (hopefully not during a worship service!), etc. 

Keyboard players use laptops all the time live, but they usually have a safe place to put them... Guitar players like to stomp on things! I would love to hear from someone who has used Guitar Rig in a live setting. - Mark

• • Twelve guitar and bass amps
• • New matched cabinet module provides classic sounds in seconds
• • 44 emulated guitar effects
• • 17 guitar and six bass cabinets, four rotary speakers and nine microphones
• • Includes Rig Kontrol 3 foot controller with Audio/MIDI interface
• • Intelligent preset management for fast access to a huge selection of sounds for all styles
• • Essential tools: Integrated tuner, metronome and two tape deck modules for easy recording
• • Loop Machine
• • Dedicated "Live View" for performing on stage
• • Dynamic Tube Response Technology delivers realistic playing response

1. Positives

2. Huge number of tonal possibilities; Solid, well-built Rig Kontrol makes recording and controlling the software easy; great sounding audio input; easy setup of Rig Kontrol; includes tape decks and loop machines for capturing ideas; can be used live; fun.

3. Negatives

4. Setting up alternate (non Rig Control) monitoring can be confusing; foot switches make loud mechanical click when used; processor intensive — requires powerful computer.

5. Rating

6. Performance: 9
7. Software Models: 9
8. Sound Quality: 10
9. User Interface: 10
10. Overall: 9.5

11. Ratings Key

12. 0 = Worthless
13. 10 = Excellent

14. Approximate Street Price

15. Kontrol Edition: $499
16. Software Edition: $299

17. Available At Guitar Center

18. Native Instruments GUITAR RIG 3 KONTROL Edition Standard
19. Native Instruments GUITAR RIG 3 Software Edition Standard

20. Company

21. Native Instruments

22. Demo Available

23. Native Instruments

24. System Requirements

25. 
26. Mac OSX 10.4.x, G4 1.4 GHz or Intel Core Duo 1.66 GHz, 512 MB RAM. USB 2 port.
27. 
28. Windows XP + Service Pack 2 or Windows Vista (32 bit), Pentium/ Athlon XP 1.4 GHz, 512 MB RAM. USB 2 port.

• Audio Examples

• Created using a Les Paul Custom (humbuckers) and a Stratocaster (single coils) through GR3 presets
• Citrus - Blue Citrus (humbucker - bridge)
• Citrus - Lite (Single coils - bridge)
• High White - Pink Numb Lead (single coils - neck)
• High White - Sledge Crunch (single coils bridge)
• High White - Pete Can’t Explain (humbucker - bridge)
• AC Box - Hot Treble Boost (single coils - bridge)
• Gratifier - Modern (humbucker - bridge)
• Gratifier - Raw Crunch (humbucker - bridge)
• Lead 800 - Rockin’ 800 (humbucker bridge)
• Plexi - Jimi Wing (single coils - neck)
• Plexi - Voodoo Jimi (single coils - bridge)
• Plexi - Zep Breaker (humbucker bridge)
• Twang - Warm Tremolo (single coils - neck)
• Tweedman - Bluesy Tweed Lead (single coils - bridge)
• Ultrasonic - Scooped (humbucker - bridge)
• Ultrasonic - Ubersonic (humbucker - bridge)
• FX - Crazy Talk
• FX - Crystalline
• FX - Pulsar Alpha
• FX - Steel Lung Pitch

• about
• contact

Copyright ©1998-2009 Mark Starlin