I’m just going to come right out and say it. If you own an iPad, iPod Touch or iPhone, and you play the guitar, you should invest in an iRig (seriously, you can thank us later). The iRig guitar accessory from IK Multimedia, and the accompanying AmpliTube iPad and iPhone software, are really a treat to use. The basic premise of the product is this: you hook your iRig adapter up to your iDevice and guitar, you then hook up the output of the iRig to headphones or an amp, you fire up the AmpliTube software and begin to tinker with the plethora of effects, amps, mics, pedals, and cabinets the software puts at your finger tips and start to jam. You can layer effects and change amplifiers and cabinets to get the exact sound you want from your guitar with the flick of a finger. Want to play a little Rage Against the Machine on your Taylor acoustic ax? Not an issue. One of the coolest features we found was the ability to use your iDevice’s accelerometer to control a Wah Wah pedal. How one would successfully “Wah” while simultaneously playing is sort of beyond us… but it is still a really cool use of the accelerometer.
The unit was designed and works best with an electric guitar, but in out testing we found it worked really well with pretty much any 6-string with a decent pickup. The iRig retails for $39.99, requires iOS 3.1.3 or higher (see compatibility chart here), and is a ton of fun. If you have someone in your household who is learning how to play the guitar, the iRig might not be a bad investment for you either. Couple the device with a good set of headphones and your guitar playing n00b can channel their inner Kurt Cobain without rattling all the windows in your place. You can check out a video of Richard Fortus from Guns N’ Roses going to town with his iRig after the bounce. Let us know what you think.
