Not all of us are blessed with guitar skills. And even for the talented among us, often, it just takes too long to record a clean phrase, pattern or bassline or come up with a fresh idea. That’s why adding a virtual guitarist to your studio can free you up to focus on the songwriting. We’ve put together our top favorite virtual guitars on the market in every category, from Fender Telecasters to upright acoustic basses.
Acoustic and Electric Guitars
Purely in terms of strumming, the Applied Acoustics Systems Strums GS-2 remains one of the most classic and flexible virtual guitar instrument plugins around. Although its acoustic picking may not be best in its class in today’s market, it really excels in translating keyboard chords into strummed chord parts. Rather than relying on sampled phrases, its playing is based on physical modeling. So, you get to decide your down and upstrokes, scratches and mutes all while playing chords as you normally would on your keyboard. And the Strums GS-2 will translate each of your notes to the most probable string on the fretboard. So, it ends up playing very naturally, like a guitarist would.
That said, if you don’t want to experiment with your own strumming gestures, you can pull up the extensive range of strumming patterns in a bunch of different styles to lay down your tracks easily and efficiently. More impressive is the fact that it recognizes 84 different types of chords, so your progressions never have to be boring. Choose between 253 acoustic and electric guitars, including nylon, steel, single-coil, clean, crunchy and more to get the sound that’s optimal for your track. You’ll also have a lot of options with respect to articulation and expression, such as slides, bends, aftertouch effects, vibrato and more.
For something a little more modern and user friendly, definitely check out the Virtual Guitarist Silk 2. It’s a relatively recent release, and although it’s a nylon string guitar at its core (which feels beautiful), it can almost sound like any guitar you want, offering a ton of different styles that allow you to emulate an acoustic steel vibe as well as all types of electric and more experimental sounds. Like the Applied Acoustics Systems software above, it allows you to manually play your chords. But the added benefit of this program is that that you can play chords and change phrases simultaneously. You can also strum and pick at the same time with both of your hands engaged. Its character is especially ideal for enhancing your pop and rock tracks, but it will also work well for any genre you write. Overall, it’s an impressively powerful plug-in, especially for the price. And if you want to invest in a few different types of guitars, Ujam also offers a bundle, including an electric rhythm guitar, steel sting acoustic, hardcore electric, and heavily distorted guitars.
In terms of realism, it’s hard to beat the virtual guitars from acousticsamples, one of the leading brands in the virtual instrument realm. Particularly with respect to picking, its line of guitars might be the one of the most natural-sounding instruments we’ve heard. It’s just so nuanced in its articulations, allowing you to control and tweak a wide range of details with respect to the tonal qualities of the instrument. The AS Guitar Collection includes a sampled Guild acoustic, aa sampled Gibson acoustic, the Telematic V3, which is a tele-style electric.
Acoustic and Electric Bass Guitars
For those looking for a fingerstyle electric bass virtual instrument, check out Bass Fingers from Waves. It allows you to easily lay down authentic and natural-sounding bass lines with the expressiveness of a real-life bass player. Realistically play at any fret position with a versatile fingerstyle bass sample library. It includes eight velocity layers and six round-robins for every sampled note. So, if you’re looking for nuanced articulation with the personality of a seasoned bass player, this program is a great bang for your buck.
If you’re ready to invest in a more substantial program, consider the IK Multimedia MODO BASS. MODO BASS, which uses physical model synthesis technology to recreate the physical elements of a real electric bass being played. Play around with 14 bass models, customizable string gestures, and 24 interchangeable pickups. You’ve also got a bunch of amps and FX to choose from. With a wide range of expressions and comprehensive control over which strings you play, you can expect a very convincing, human-like delivery.
For songwriters who are less familiar with bass playing technique, it’s a great idea to invest in a plug-in that provides basslines for you. It not only speeds up your recording process but also gives you creative ideas that you may not have thought of on your own. The DANDY from Ujam features 30 styles, 990 phrases and 100 presets, allowing you to create, as well as mix and match any number of basslines to suit your track. And in addition to incredibly natural bass tones and articulations, you also get 15 finisher multi-FX chains, drive control, four character presets, four amp presets, and several master FX. Overall, for those who need a great session bass player who can record your bottom line for you, the DANCY is a great investment.
If you’re looking to perform real-time acoustic basslines or even synth bass patterns in addition to electric, take a look at the impressively powerful and authentic sounding, Spectrasonics Trilian. You’ll be presented with a huge library of production-ready sound, from down-and-dirty synths to funky slaps and highly convincing acoustic uprights. Use the software’s automatic selection of legato and release articulations to perform in real-time with round-robin variations to craft authentic sounding basslines. Or make use of the flexible arpeggiator to create colorful note progressions that spur new ideas.
With over 60 different four-, five-, six- and eight-string electric basses, presented in fingered, picked, fretless, slapped, tapped, and muted technique variations, you’ll have endless control over the expressiveness of your instrument. Meanwhile, the Acoustic Bass is the most detailed instrument Spectrasonics has ever released, with four audio channels and over 21,000 samples used to create the single instrument. In fact, the sound is as realistic as it gets. With respect to its synth bass sounds, Trilian also features core library integration with Spectrasonics’ Omnisphere virtual synthesizer, allowing Trilian’s sounds to be included in the Omnisphere system for further customization. So, no matter the genre you’re working with, this all-in-one package will cover all your bases. Excuse the pun.
For more information about the virtual instruments listed, including additional features, specs, and highlights, be sure to check out the detailed product page for more information. Or drop us a line below, and we’ll do our best to answer all your comments and questions.
