I’d already been using the older iRig (as well as the iRig mic) and had found them pretty enjoyable. I even worked in some iRig guitar on my band Japan Soul‘s debut single “Plastic Utopia.” But there was a limit to what I could do with the old iRig. It was completely self-contained. While I could achieve quality recordings with iRig, they had to be done exclusively within the Amplitube iOS app. Going direct to a DAW with the old iRig would result in some unusable background noise. This presented some workflow issues and meant I didn’t use the old iRig as often as I would have liked to. It just wasn’t a studio friendly device yet. Fast-forward to the new iRig HD model and I’m thrilled to say that those hurdles have been solved.

I fired up the iRig HD, plugged right into my DAW and was ecstatic to hear the sounds of good, clean and convincing guitar amplification with effects. The guitar now records beautifully as if it were a real amp, or hardware/plugin emulator. Emulators may be a hard-sell to guitar purists. There’s nothing like firing up a real amp. For those, I still recommend the device in times when you may find yourself with a guitar in-hand yet no means of amplification.

iRig HD at a glance: High-quality instrument-level 1/4” Hi-Z input jack Detachable cables for Lightning, 30-pin and USB connector compatibility Preamp gain control High-quality low-noise, high-definition preamp High-quality 24-bit A/D conversion 44.1 and 48 kHz sampling rate Powered by the iOS device or USB Connect electric guitar and bass Also works with line level signals from synthesizers, keyboards and mixers Ultra-compact and lightweight Comes with AmpliTube FREE apps (free download on App Store) Comes with 4 exclusive gear models, never before available for iOS, which are unlocked in AmpliTube (v. 3.0 required) after the first time you connect iRig HD. The models include Metal W & Metal 150 (amps), and Wharmonator & X-Flanger (stompboxes) Free AmpliTube Custom Shop software (download from IK site) and free download of AmpliTube Metalcollection for Mac users

For more info on the iRIG HD, please visit http://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/irighd/.