You can add backup tracks, or you can record your dry input to try with different setups.Īt this point, you're probably wondering how it sounds, right? It sounds awesome! Some of the effects obviously won't be everybody's cup of tea, but a little tweaking and a decent set of speakers or headphones, and you can pull off some amazing sounds. In addition to the metronome and tuner, the base application also allows in-app recording. It's all very intuitive, and settings are exactly where you'd expect them to be. Tap the dials on any pedal, and you get all of the options for that pedal. Within a setup, tapping the amp gives you all of the controls you'd find on a real head, and tapping the cabinet gives you control over the mic you're using.
I had all of the additional gear available to me for the review, and I was hard pressed to find a sound I couldn't match with AmpLink. You can duplicate existing presets and save your edits, or you can build a new set from scratch. They make a great starting point for finding a sound, and the effects are easy to tweak individually. These range from Snappy Acoustic to Nu Metal Valve King, with plenty of blues, funk and decades of rock history between. Depending on the pedals you have in your arsenal, AmpKit will offer you preset combinations of amps and effects.
Whereas the AmpliTube software limited you to three pedals and custom amp settings, you can have as many of the available pedals as you want in an AmpKit setup. Most pedals are around $3 and range up to $6.99. All of the additional gear can be purchased from within the app. Compared to buying the actual hardware to achieve these sounds, of course, it's a tidy savings. It looks like buying the AmpKit+ bundle saves you 50 percent off of buying the gear individually.
AmpKit+ is available for $19.99, and includes four amps, two mics and, eight pedals.
The free AmpKit app starts, of course, with a metronome and tuner, which are both well done, and it includes a dual-channel amp, two mics, and two pedals. The software on the iPhone is where the party really starts. You can disable notifications at any time in your settings menu. The extra power gives you added volume on the output, as well as more advanced noise-canceling options. Unlike the iRig, it requires two AA batteries, but after daily use for two weeks, I haven't killed the batteries that came with the unit. It gives you a quarter-inch line-in for your instrument, an eighth-inch output to go to headphones, mixer, speakers, etc., and it has an eighth-inch male jack to plug into your iPhone (no iPad app available yet, but the hardware works if you don't mind pixel-doubling the app). The hardware (US$39.99) is pretty simple. That being said, click "Read More" for my thoughts on the AmpKit/LiNK setup. I don't doubt that it would perform well on both counts, but I haven't battle-tested it. I'll tell you up front that I'm not currently gigging, so I can't attest to the road durability of this hardware, or the actual feasibility of using it onstage. I received a review unit of the AmpKit LiNK this month, though, and for the last couple of weeks, it's been the mainstay of my practice sessions. I pre-ordered the iRig, and I loved it from the moment I got it in the mail and plugged my guitar into it (I did unbox it first). Matt Tinsley recently reviewed the iRig and AmpliTube combination that also became available recently.
It's loud, it's lightweight, and it's an extremely flexible (and relatively inexpensive) alternative to a floor full of pedals.
No other app can match the gear selection or tone quality that you’ll find in AmpKit.Peavey and Agile Partners have just introduced AmpKit and AmpKit LiNK, an iPhone-based hardware/app combo that takes portable guitar and bass effects to a new level. The Gear Store offers discounted bundles to help you expand your gear library economically. The in-app Gear Store lets you browse & buy an amazing selection of additional gear: a total of 38 amp channels in 22 separate amps, 26 pedals, 28 cabinets and 8 mics. Pedals include overdrive, distortion, fuzz, compressor, chorus, phaser, flanger, reverb, noise gate and 10-band EQ. Amps include the Peavey ValveKing and 3120, Colonel Vintage, Vintage Brit, matching cabinets and 8 mics. This AmpKit+ version includes a well-rounded collection of 4 amps with 7 amp channels, along with 10 pedals, at less than half price. *Not available on iPhone 3GS and iPod touch 3rd generationĪmpKit transforms your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch into a powerful guitar amp & effects studio! Just attach your electric guitar or bass using an interface like Peavey AmpKit LiNK & rock out!
★ Enhanced support for AmpKit LiNK HD digital guitar interface ★ Compatible with Audiobus (input, effect, output)*