Recording guitar through amp into Mac...

[Stefanovic]

Hey Mac peeps, I don't know if there is a way to do this, or even if I'm putting this question into the right place but I've wanted to digitally hear and record the exact sound I get through my headphones when I run my guitar through my amplifier setup. Is there a lead I can plug straight from the amp to the Mac and any software that will receive it and play it digitally?

At the moment, I am using Garageband, and Amplitube with their own synthetic sounds from them programmes, but I want the exact one from my amp. It's a Marshall MG50dfx btw.

Cheers!

Stefanovic

 

[treestar]

Use the headphone out of your amp to whatever input you have to your Mac. Record in Garage Band. Monitor the sound via the headphone out of your Mac.

 

[Mickey8297]

As stated above, you can plug a cable from the headphones/line out on your amp to the mic/line in on your mac. Using GarageBand, change the input to built in line in under GarageBand>Preferences>Audio-MIDI>and change Audio in to Built in input. Plug your amp in to your mac using a standard 3.5mm cable and 1/4 in headphone adapter. On a new track, change to input to built in input stereo and monitor on. These settings are on the right side of the window under the browse tab. Hope that helps.

 

[Stefanovic]

I've tried all this, and I can hear the noise of the metronome etc through my headphones coming out of the Mac (headphone port), but the lead I have connected from the Mac Input to the Line Out of the Amp isn't heard at all. I have literally used a 1/4 to 1/4 lead with a 1/4 - 3.5mm adapter to put into the Mac, and still no sound from the amp. In Mac System Preferences, it is set to Built in input, and in the Garageband Preferences, it is Built In input. Same with the browser setting on the right, on Garageband.

Confused, much

 

[treestar]

I've tried all this, and I can hear the noise of the metronome etc through my headphones coming out of the Mac (headphone port), but the lead I have connected from the Mac Input to the Line Out of the Amp isn't heard at all. I have literally used a 1/4 to 1/4 lead with a 1/4 - 3.5mm adapter to put into the Mac, and still no sound from the amp. In Mac System Preferences, it is set to Built in input, and in the Garageband Preferences, it is Built In input. Same with the browser setting on the right, on Garageband.

Confused, much

Try the headphone out of your amp.

 

[Stefanovic]

Try the headphone out of your amp.

If you mean the headphone port, it is the same as the Line Out port. If you mean plug my headphones into my amp instead of the Mac, it's the same port, so I can't do both. The only other ports I have on my Amp is CD In, FX In and FX Out...

 

[treestar]

This isn't always the reason what you are doing doesn't work, but if you use a mono 1/4" cable to go from a stereo source (the Headphone/Line Out of the MG50) it can create a short. Try a stereo TRS cable. If you can verify that the Line In on your Mac works with Garage Band and any other signal, and we already know the Headphone/Line Out of the MG50 works, then I'll say with confidence the mono cable you are using is the problem.

 

[Stefanovic]

Been playing around with it, and still no workies

 

[Nova77]

DON'T do this. Sorry but thats the best answer I can give you. I'm a musician/composer (also a university student), and I'm not very rich so I basically tried every way to record my guitar. If you plug the line out of your amp to your computer, you might just damage it. I tried it and there was some weird things going on my computer's screen. Looked like too much voltage, something like that.

The real way to record your amp is by putting a microphone in front of it, either on the axis of the center of the speaker or slightly off axis. Thats what they do in recording studios.

If you don't want to do this, you have 2 choices: - get a virtual amp application (such as guitar rig, amplitube, etc)
- get an hardware amp simulation (Don't remember the names, they are less popular these days. These are stuff like guitar pedals for example).

Edit: It took me DAYS (if not weeks) to forge a good guitar sound with amplitube metal (same as amplitube 2). If you want to have a sound as good as the one coming from your Marshall, you can, but this requires a lot of patience. With EQs and virtual amp software you can imitate the sound of any real amp, but thats not easy. Also, you will not get the "live feel" of a real amp (but we could debate on that forever).

 

[firestarter]

Been playing around with it, and still no workies

OK, here's what I think the problem is.

Your amp output is 1/4 inch mono, and you're hooking this to a 1/4 to 3.5mm adapter.

When you do this, the right channel of the 3.5mm stereo out will be grounded and silent, and the signal will only be on the left.

Try switching your 'input source' from 'Mono 1 (built in Line input)' to 'Mono 2 (built in Line input)' in Garageband. This may start to pick up the signal on the left channel - and might fix your problem.

You shouldn't have any problem with 'over voltage'.

 

[Nova77]

OK, here's what I think the problem is.

Your amp output is 1/4 inch mono, and you're hooking this to a 1/4 to 3.5mm adapter.

When you do this, the right channel of the 3.5mm stereo out will be grounded and silent, and the signal will only be on the left.

Try switching your 'input source' from 'Mono 1 (built in Line input)' to 'Mono 2 (built in Line input)' in Garageband. This may start to pick up the signal on the left channel - and might fix your problem.

You shouldn't have any problem with 'over voltage'.

First, yes that is probably the reason why you hear no sound.

Also, I agree he "shouldn't" have 'over voltage' issues (I thought the same), but fact is it happened to me. I was just sharing my experience. I got it working, you know. I had the headphones out go straight into the computer, and the sound came out of my speakers. It sounded crappy, and there was some weird voltage issues.

Imo, there is a reason why nobody uses guitar amps directly into their computers.... Otherwise why would companies sell products like guitar rig or amplitube for such a high price?? We would be just all using small amps on the road, headphones jack out into computer... add some reverb to simulate the cab...