No problem Tedd, glad to try and help!
The version of Amplitube that is bundled with GT3 may have already been recognised during the installation process.
Try this: In the
Mix View, right click inside a track's effects bin and click on
Audio Effects - you should see AmplitubeLE listed. Just click on the name to open it. You will have to follow the onscreen instructions to register it within 10 days to avoid having to use it in demo mode.
If it's not there, you'll need to direct the VST Adapter to the folder Amplitube .dll plug-in is located:
- Computer > OS(C) > Program Files > Cakewalk > Shared Plug-ins > IK Multimedia > Amplitube LE
The version of Amplitube that ships with GT3 is quite a way out of date now Tedd. IK Multimedia currently offer a free version of Amplitube 3. It contains a few amp models, speaker cabs and effects - all in all enough to get you started and much better than the LE version you already have. Once you've downloaded and installed it, you can also use it in standalone mode.
If you want to purchase new amps and effects for it in future, you can click on the
Custom Shop link in the top right hand corner of the Amplitube 3 interface.
By way of comparision, the bundled AmblitubeLE interface looks like this:
Here's a screenshot of my version of Amplitube 3, with the Soldano amp (I purchased later) - you can see how much more sophisticated it is! You can also view the speaker cabinet options, the stompbox options and the rack options in the main pane.
If you're interested, the free version of Amplitube 3 is available to download from
HERE.
For future VST plug-ins you might want to use, I'd recommend creating two specific VST Plug-in Folders to hold all the plug-ins you wish to add.
The way I've always done it is to create one folder to hold all the downloads, and another folder just to hold the plug-in .dll's (the 'dll is the actual plug-in itself that the VST Adapter needs to scan).
I have a folder in my Documents folder named
VST Downloads, and a folder I created inside the Cakewalk Folder to hold the .dlls - I call this
VST Plug-ins.
Create it here:
Computer > OS(C) > Program Files > Cakewalk > VST Plug-ins
It may seem a little over-complicated to have two such folders but long term you will see that it's a much more efficient way to organise your effects.
Most plug-ins you download will only be available as Zip Files. You will have to unzip them before proceeding.
Some effects only require downloading, unzipping and then scanning with the Adapter before they work, others will actually require installing. Those that require installing will give you the option at some stage to choose which folder to install the plug-in - as a general rule, always install the actual program itself to your normal Programs folder (e.g. C > Program Files), and always choose your newly created VST Plug-ins folder to install the plug-in itself (the .dll).
Another method I'd recommend (providing you are happy that the website is safe), especially with VST's that require installing an accosiated program, is to choose Save as the download option, in preference to Run. That way, if ever the plug-in should become corrupt or unusable for any reason, you have the installer or the unzipped .dll to fall back on. Although you could always download the product again, a lot of very good plug-ins have been discontinued and you may never get the chance o use it again.
By way of an example (work through it with me if you like Tedd - it might help!), here's how I'd go about downloading a new plug-in and then making it available to use in GT3 - I'll use the very useful Variety Of Sound Baxter EQ as my example (I'll assume you have already created the two folders in the locations I listed above).
Go to Variety Of Sound website HERE, scroll down to the row containing Baxter EQ and click on Download Choose Save and navigate to VST Downloads as your destination folder. Open the folder and unzip the downloaded file (I'd suggest using the unzip option to place the contents into a new folder and then you'll have everything you need nice and tidy! You can even place the downloaded zip file in there to keep all the stuff associated with each plug-in together).
Open the newly created BaxterEQ folder and inside (assuming you've dragged the original downloaded zip file in there) you should see four items - the zip, the BaxterEQ .dll, the Text Licence agreement and the PDF manual:
Copy the BaxterEQ.dll file, then open the VST Plug-ins folder and paste it inside. Run the VST Adapter and make sure to Add the VST Plug-ins folder when the screen opens. Once the VST Adapter has finished, either open GT3, or if you started the VST Adapter from the GT3 Tools menu, you will have to close and then re-open GT3. In the Mix View, right click in a track's effects bin, select Audio Effects > VST Plugins and you should now see BaxterEQ listed as one of the options. Click on it to open the plug-in.
Hope that all makes sense Tedd, just get back to me if you need anything explained in more detail.
Steve