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IK Multimedia iRig
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IK Multimedia iRig
Hatsubai Hatsubai

« Interesting but not that great sounding »

Published on 06/19/11 at 05:44
Given the popularity of the Apple touch products, it was only a matter of time when somebody decided to create some sort of software amps simulator for it. IK Multimedia has developed the AmpliTube iRig in an attempt to create some sort of rival to the "pocket" amp sims out there. While their intentions were good, their execution was a tad poor. First of all, this requires a special cable to work with the guitar. You can't just plug in any adapter and expect it to work. Once you plug everything in, it works decently. There are some real inherent problems, number one being that the built-in speaker on the touch devices suck. One solution to that would be to use some sort of external monitors, but that'll defeat the entire purpose of having a "pocket" amp simulator.

The good thing about this product is that there are very few crashes. I did experience one, but I just reloaded the program, and I was back to where I left off, really. It's easy to install, easy to set up and easy to maneuver around. It doesn't seem to suck the battery life any more than other applications out there for these devices, so there shouldn't be any huge issues there. One thing I'm curious about is if somebody calls you. I never had anybody call me when I was using it with my iPhone, but I wonder if the application would close, still work or what.

Despite me giving the other parameters some high marks, the product really isn't that great. For one, you need the special cable to use it. Also, the built-in speakers on the Apple devices are pretty poor. You could add some sort of external monitors, but it defeats the entire purpose of this device, in my opinion. It might be work checking out, but I think there are better options out there for this kind of thing.