Guitar Rig 4

Sonar X1 in 64-bit.  Open Guitar Rig 4 (64 bit) in the FX Bin of a track.  There is a long list of guitar amps; however, clicking on them does nothing.  My only active choices seem to be Jump, Twang Reverb, and Bass Pro.  Same problem with Guitar Rig 3.

Is that normal, or messed up?  Is it possible Sonar only comes with a starter set in Guitar Rig and I need to buy an upgrade?

All I am able to do so far is pick from a very limited list of presets for these three amps (really only two since I am trying to use this on a Strat, not a bass).

As always, thanks for any help.

Yes Sonar ships Guitar Rig 4 LE (Lite Edition). If you want access to all if the features you'll need to upgrade to the Pro edition. It's available for $99.00. 

I've just installed the 64 bit version of X1 (after using the 32 bit version since the launch) and was confused by Guitar Rig 4, as was the NI authoriser! 
I have a distant memory that people complained that Guitar Rig 4 LE is only 32 bit and if that is correct then it would explain the lack of "LE" and the "DEMO" plastered along the top.
I'll use Pod Farm!
 
Grum. 

They're rather different beasts. Guitar Rig is really a deep environment and can be used for radical, experimental signal routing and sound design... in other words, it's made by Native Instruments. Amplitube is probably a bit more user friendly, and their focus has been on really trying to nail the tone of things. There's a whole wack of pedals and such, but maybe it's a bit less flexible in terms of signal flow. Some swear by the Amplitube models, others not so much, it kind of depends on your needs and your ears I guess. Personally, not being a 'real' guitarist by quite a stretch, and being quite into fairly wacko sound design, GR is more than enough kit for me and authentic enough tone for my purposes. 

You can get a basic free version of Amplitube 3 now, and try it out, and buy individual units as inexpensive plugins, so that's another option if you have a favorite setup or three you want to re-create in the virtual realm. 

I have all 3 of the major amp sims (Amplitube 3.5; Guitar Rig 4 & Pod Farm 2.5). They all have their pluses and minuses. Yet for me, GR4 is easily the best sounding. Pod Farm has some good models. (i love the Connor 50 and the Diezel models from the Metal Pak) Amplitube 3 was to me a big waste of money. The amp models react in a bizarre manner. Not like a tube amplifier. There are a few good picks there. I have played some of the Fender models from the fender version and those area ton more usable. I actually just bought a Fender Mustang III and I absolutely love that amp. I have been tracking direct into X1 and then re-amping through the Mustang with a SM57 and a Samson CO1 for room sound and it has been fantastic. Recording direct sounds really good too, but I use the GR4 cabinet models rather than the fender ones. There's my two cents.

Amen to that. I can't wait to dump my toneport interface. I am thinking of the M-Audio Fastrack Ultra or one of the Focusrite Sapphire interfaces.

Skyline_UK


I have GR4 and Amplitube and they are both very good.  You need to try demos of both to decide, as we guitarists have many different sound, tone and style predilections!  I suppose if someone told me I had to live with only one from now, then the keeper would be GR4.

I would agree to this as GTRrig4 being the keeper.

Guitar Rig seems to react more like a real guitar amp than Amplitude.  I really like the stand-alone feature of Rig, I use it to capture ideas with it's tape recorder function all the time, and then copy and paste those ideas into Sonar Projects for future work.
 
If you are serious about guitar tone, I would pick up a SansAMp.  You can then chain your old analog pedals thru and have a blast.  For those of you who like experimental sounds, pair your SansAmp with a Digitech Whammy pedal or a Boss Auto-Wah.  Be careful with the SansAMp, when I first started playing I was playing with tones that made your average Boogie rectifier sound tame.. it's got way more saturation than any real amp if you 12 all the dials.  Their are tons of folks that have screenshots of nice settings out there.