Music technology company UJAM have announced the rebirth of Virtual Guitarist. Virtual Guitarist was the first and best-selling virtual instrument that brought realistic-sounding rhythm guitar tracks to computer-based musicians worldwide. Back in 2002, when we reviewed it, Virtual Guitarist was made by Wizoo and sold by Steinberg. Now the core team behind the original Virtual Guitarist has re-united to build a new generation of virtual instruments based on new technology and a new content concept.
The first in a new series of Virtual Guitarist products — each with a unique guitarist personality and custom playing style and setup — is Iron, providing a rock- and heavy-centric set of guitars, amps and styles. “Real professional guitarist performances on a special custom-built vintage guitar have been captured and integrated with UJAMs new virtual instrument engine" explains Peter Gorges of UJAM.
Iron comes with 6 GB of uncompressed content. It offers more than 100 styles and over 1100 phrases that can be played in real-time - using keyboards and other controllers - and flexibly adjusted to any song. Iron also allows for customising the guitar sound dramatically with a wide range of pick-up and amplifier/cabinet combinations.
"We have built Iron with musicians in mind. Don’t know about guitar voicings? No idea how to set up and record the amp and cabinets? Have no fear – we designed Iron to be fail-free, and you can always trust it to sound great no matter how you set it up." says Paul Kellett, Principal Engineer and UJAM's music technology mastermind.
Closely collaborating with Berlin-based Native Instruments, Iron also features full integration with NI's new NKS standard, with Virtual Guitarist Iron supporting NKS hardware controllers straight out of the box, enabling the use of Virtual Guitarist with the Light Guide, Smart Play features, and the full creative potential of Komplete Kontrol or Maschine Studio Mk2.
On top of the entirely new engine and content, UJAM seem to have focused on ease of use and user experience beyond the instrument itself, building a bespoke user service platform. There’s also no dongle to worry about, easy registration and automatic updates.
Virtual Guitarist Iron is currently available as an AU and VST plugin, instantly downloadable for €99
at www.virtualguitarist.com. Users who want to try before they buy will appreciate the fully functional 30-day trial version.
