VST Guitar - 4 Sample Based Guitar Plug-Ins for the Keyboard Player

By Alan Williamson

In a previous article I talked about a method of creating realistic live Guitar solos using my keyboard. However, if you are like me and cannot play a real guitar, how can you create believable guitar tracks in your home studio when either composing, or producing audio backing tracks for your solo performances?.

Well, the answer is VST.

Briefly, VST or (Virtual Studio Technology) is a software interface designed by Steinberg, which allows a person to simulate either musical instruments or studio hardware effects realistically, such as Reverb, Compression, Delay, Audio Mastering to name just a few.

Many VST 'plug-ins' can operate as stand-alone programs but generally they are used (or 'Plugged in') to your music sequencer - Cubase, Logic or Sonar are prime examples. There are many VST plug-ins available on the market, but for the purpose of this article I am concentrating on the use of VST Guitar plug-ins which, through the use of audio sampling, emulate the style and sounds of a real guitar. (Not to be confused with just simulating Guitar Effects and Amplifier Cabinets)

So, what is special about being able to emulate a Guitar?

This type of emulation VST Guitar plug-in uses audio samples of the actual type of guitar that has been selected. This means that as a non Guitar player I can realistically reproduce a guitar sound using my keyboard. Also, by the use of the keyboard I can also affect the performance and style of the produced sound.

For example, I can play a chord with my right had and with my left press keys (often at the top or bottom register of the keyboard) to produce performance techniques such as full attack and sustain, bridge mute, slap, harmonics, fret noise, pitch bend, strum, up/down stroke - the list goes on.

Another plus to these plug-ins is that you can control them from your Midi tracks within your sequencer. This is useful if you are converting your midi tracks to audio backing tracks. Let's face it, if you are using backing tracks for your solo act, nobody wants to hear midi anymore, and the converted-to-audio quality is so much more professional.

MusicLab RealGuitar

One of the VST Guitar packages that I use is MusicLab's RealGuitar 2L. This particular plug-in features 8 Acoustic guitars, including Steel, Nylon and 12 String. I have used this plug-in very successfully converting my Midi tracks and the performance simulations are extremely realistic.

MusicLab RealStrat and RealLPC

MusicLab have two other similar virtual VST Guitar samplers named RealStrat and RealLPC. The first, as the named suggests, emulates the sounds and style of the Strat Guitar. Not only does this plug-in have the usual range of control over playing techniques and articulations, but also has its own Pattern Manager complete with a Pattern Library, enabling the user to easily create guitar accompaniment tracks.

MusicLab RealLPC

Next is RealLPC. This plug-in emulates a Les Paul Custom Guitar which boasts an innovative approach to guitar sound modelling and guitar techniques. The appeal of this high-end custom Guitar is probably because it is used by many Guitar Heroes such as Gary Moore, Carlos Santana, Eddie Van Halen etc.

The playability of this VST instrument is based on unique performance modes, combined with an easy to use keyboard layout which allows the Keyboardist to perform with whole new performance realism.

Vir2 Instruments Electri6ity

There is one final VST Guitar sampler I want to mention, and that is Vir2 Instruments' Electri6ity. In my search for "the perfect" VST Guitar, the most difficult to find has been a virtual guitar which can produce stunning realistic lead guitar - especially the heavier Rock type of solo you might hear John Petrucci or Eddie Van Halen perform.

Electri6ity uses 8 guitars including the Les Paul, Strat, Tele and Rickenbacker and the software incorporates more than 24,000 audio samples of each guitar allowing you to play every articulation on every string of every fret to produce that authentic guitar sound. Certainly for lead work, this plug-in really rocks my boat.

Conclusion

If you are a Keyboard Player looking to buying a VST Guitar plug-in and are a bit unsure about which, then I hope the above has given some insight which one may be right for you. Excellent quality VST samplers for emulation of other instruments like Piano, Drum, Orchestral instruments etc. have been around for quite a while, but finding that right realistic guitar emulation - especially for lead work - has only been available, in my opinion, quite recently thanks to more powerful computing power - handling huge quantities of high quality audio samples in real-time, combined with a powerful and well thought out control via your keyboard.

There are a number of excellent VST Guitar plug-ins available - some create virtual Guitar realism using thousands of audio samples of various makes of Guitar, while other plug-ins allow a REAL Guitarist to connect to a computer, and simulate hundreds of Guitar Effects and Amplifier Cabinets.

If you would like further information on these and other VST Guitar plug-ins, including videos of some of these plug-ins in action, then please visit http://www.vstguitar.com.