If you know anything about electronic gadgets, you’ll probably be aware that some types of equipment (including some guitars) can only be used with certain types of plugs. The plug-in adapter is the one that takes a standard USB cable and attaches it to a standard audio interface. The advantage of using this kind of device is that it makes it possible for you to use your guitar or keyboard with almost any other electronic device. If you’ve ever used a guitar without a plug-in adapter before, you’ll know how incredibly convenient it is – you don’t need to worry about whether your guitar player’s cord will work with the wall outlet in your house. You can simply use the appropriate cable to get your music playing!
One of the problems some guitarists face when they use a non-standard guitar pedal is that the sound of the string or pick might not be transmitted through the pickup correctly. It is common for an electric guitar player to use a “stomp-pedal” or model guitar. Basically this means that the guitarist hits a heavy guitar pedal on the fretboard and pushes the string in a certain direction to play a sound. Guitarists often like to do this to create a more “organic” sound. However, the pick or the entire leg of the stool may not work properly if there is no compatibility between the pickup and the audio interface. This is where a plug-in becomes useful.
There are two basic kinds of plug-ins – hardware and software. Both these types can be used with virtually any type of audio interface; however, some guitar effects, such as those used with wah and reverb units, require specific hardware capabilities to function. Hardware plug-ins need to have a corresponding driver installed on your computer that enables it to recognize the device and provide the proper sound output. In addition, most plug-ins use specialized hardware to handle the signal level and frequency matching with the incoming signal. The driver is usually part of the operating system or a dedicated software program and designed to match the hardware of your guitar and your audio interface.
It is generally accepted that once you are done playing your guitar through an audio interface, it is generally safe to leave the guitar plugged into an audio interface. However, some guitar players like to perform live gigs using a stand-in for a microphone and speakers. If you feel the need for a live performance with your guitar and sound system, then you should consider having your guitar plugged into a turntable.
Turntables generally allow you to manually adjust the levels of the sounds coming from the sound system. In addition, there is a growing trend of using foot controllers, which allow a guitarist to play lead and rhythm guitar at the same time.
There are many situations where leaving your guitar unplugged from an audio interface might be a good idea. For example, some guitarists like to mix their own guitar signal and mix it with other sources, like microphones, headphones or amplifiers. In this case, there is no need to disconnect your guitar’s pedals from their audio interface. However, it’s important to make sure that your signal can reach your mixer and speakers. If you intend to perform live, you should always consider having the amplifier and mixer connected to your computer via a USB cable.
Some people believe that it is a bad practice to leave guitar pedals plugged in an audio interface. This is especially true if you are not going to be practicing live. However, if you are planning on recording yourself playing along with a band, there really isn’t any reason to worry about unplugging your guitar every time you turn the volume up and down. If one of the members in the band is also going to be live stage monitoring, it is perfectly acceptable to leave the guitar pedal connected to the audio interface. But remember, you don’t need to have an additional monitor to do live stage monitoring.
