MIDI Tracks
Godin xtSA Guitar Synth

Wow.... I can' t say enough great things about the Godin xtSA guitar. I just got it a couple months ago, so I'm still getting used to playing guitar as a synth. It does require a little different technique. The sounds you can get from this guitar are infinite and the tracking is superb. Midi guitar has come a long way, as I remember the early stages well...ugh.

I have it running through the Roland GI-20 into my Mac with Logic as the host application (also works well with GarageBand). The guitar has a 13-pin midi output that goes into the GI-20 which then plugs into the Mac via usb. It also has a standard 1/4" jack that I plug into the Mac via a firewire interface (Mackie Onyx Satellite) for the audio track. The ability to combine the midi sound with the standard pick-ups is very nice. It also has a piezo pick-up for a more acoustic sound.

One of the neat features of playing midi guitar is the ability to play alternate tunings at the push of a button. You can create patches in the GI-20 with the individual guitar strings set to any note or octave. This really comes in handy for me when I'm playing LedZeppelin's the Rain Song (tuned to EADADE) or Kashmir (Drop D). I do not have to retune any strings at all to switch to alternate tunings!

Obviously the other cool thing about this guitar is the ability to play any sound in the huge Logic library. Click the red titles below to hear sample sounds played on this guitar synth (not all titles are available yet... I will add them as time permits:)

• Pianos and strings (The Rain Song - Led Zep)


• Bass guitar (inspired by Flea)

• Nylon classical acoustic (Starship Trooper - Yes)

• Electric piano (Circles - JJ Grey & Mofro)

• Moog synth (Dance on a Volcano - Genesis)

• 12-string acoustic guitar (And You and I - Yes)

• Dobro slide guitar (blues)

• Roundback chorus guitar (From the Beginning - ELP)

• Drums (even drum sounds can be played!)

The ebony fretboard and transparent red maple finish are fantastic on this Canadian made instrument. The neck plays nice and smooth. And I really love having the 2 humbuckers wtih a single coil pickup configuration. I'm not sure I like the Godin pickups as much as the Seymour Duncans on my other guitar, but I find myself using it most for the midi anyway.

Audio Tracks
Native Instruments -
Guitar Rig 3 Software:

I have had a great time playing with this software within GarageBand! After some demo downloads and internet research I decided on Guitar Rig for my audio guitar recording.

I think you get the most for your money compared to the competition (IK Multimedia). I really loved playing with the demo of Amplitube's Jimi Hendrix, but it was not worth $300 imho. I want to sound like Jimi plus my other favs as well.

There are 17 guitar amps, 6 bass guitar amps, 4 rotary speakers, 9 microphones and 44 effects to combine and virtually acheive any tone you want. I love the graphic interfaces that look like the real thing too. I think I'm finally ready to sell my real amps and effects on eBay now that I have this!

The easy to read menu has many presets available that are dialed into some classic signature sounds. Below are some samples of my favorite tones. (not all titles are available yet... I will add them as time permits:)

• Citrus (Ten Years Gone - Led Zep)

• High White (Dirty Woman - Pink Floyd)

• Octaver (Advent of Panurge - Gentle Giant)

• Scooped (Crazy Train - Ozzy)

• Phased Romance (Little Wing - Jimi Hendrix)

• Jazz (Like A Star - Corrine Bailey Rae)

For more information, check out the Native Instruments website HERE.