My Gr20 died.

The A string and sometimes the B string don't play but the PU and cord are good
I had it looked at by a wizz tech to no avail.
Instead of buying a replacement of this old hardware technology, should I be looking at some new digital technology?
Basically I used it for sax and brass, keyboards, harmonica, orchestral strings and other "real" instruments.
The advantage was I could play and record real time with the various instruments while overdubbing with almost no delay.
The disadvantage was it was Audio.
It did have Midi in and out but I never figured how to use that in Sonar.
IOW is there now a program where I can play my guitar and get midi in and have it play all these quality instruments back?
I know I can play audio and convert to midi but how does one get to monitor in real time with the various instruments?
 
I do use SI Bass and SI strings and can input with a keyboard and then adjust for my awful keyboard playing, but I'd like horns and the other instruments. The GR20 had so many fine sounds.

Glenn, you have to check out Midi Guitar: http://www.jamorigin.com/products/midi-guitar/
 
A lot of us Sonarites have it and it works really well......it's excellent in recording/tracking, no latency, and you can practically play any software synth you have installed in your DAW. The best part is you don't need any additional hardware to use as it's a VST, but you'll have to slightly adjust your playing technique (play more cleanly & precise) in avoiding getting unwanted notes. You can also bend strings (depending on the synth) for added feel.   

Boss has a new unit...just plug your gtr cable in.  Not sure of your budget.  I have an old GR33 that I like a lot.  The MIDI into the computer has too much latency, as I might suspect the GR20.  The GR55, some have claimed to be OK for MIDI in.  There's the Fishman Triple Play too.  You can google or YouTube that. 
Maybe another unit off Ebay or the like? 

Thanks for the link Mesh. I need to check that out especially since it's polyphonic.

MGM, I've been using this for a few years now. Nice and cheap, easy, and inexpensive.

http://www.sonuus.com/products_g2m.html

Just like Mesh was saying about the SW, need to adjust playing a bit more to the clean side but works well once you do.

Anyone remember how to setup MIDIGuitar?
I d/l'ed it. Do I put the VST's into my vst folder?
When i ran the MIDIGuitar64 application, a stand alone program UI came up.
What do I do with this?
https://dl.dropboxusercon...om/u/24683934/midi.jpg
 

++ for Jam Origin's Midi Guitar.  It's amazing, cheap and you can try a demo too to evaluate it.
 
I have fitted a GK3 to a Les Paul SG.  It works perfectly with the Roland GP10 which the GK3 pickup came with, but I tried a GR55 and it went straight back; not only terrible triggering issues, but I thought the synth sounds in the module were pretty awful.  I have heard that you get better results with the GR55 if you use a guitar that has a built-in divided pickup (such as the GC-1 Fender Strat, or many Godin 'synth ready' guitars) than the DIY GK3.

I have one of these:
http://www.yourockguitar.com/
 
Guitar Center had them on sale for $99.00.  It works has its own MIDI-> USB interface.  Playing feels a little weird, but I am getting used to it.
Yes it IS plastics and kinda cheap feeling, but it does work.

If you end up replacing completely, the Fishman TriplePlay might work for you.  I have one that I like a lot, but I don't push it very hard

Glenn, Have you tried the MIDI output yet? 
 
The only differance is it introduces latency.
The main reason for Roland including a sound module with there systems is they found that driving a synth directly without midi reduced latency and the results are why their system was the most exceptable of all. 
NNow the issue is those sound modules are very outdated and to most the sounds are not anywhere near as good as what we are used to. But then again a lot of people have no problem with "Vintage" synth sounds. I take mine for what they are and have a dozen or so that I still use, like the organs, Poly Synth and flute. 
 
If it's only the sound module that is hooped but the midi output is still sending, then there's no reason you can't record midi into Sonar. 
 
Just hook the cables up , insert something like TTS-1 and set the input to the midi input of your interface. 
There will be some latency but the higher you play the less a of a lag. PLay the parts and then just quantize and transpose etc. 
I tried that MIDI Guitar by Jam and it's not even close compared to my GR 50 with the Godin. 
The Godin seems to track perfectly, no latency using the module and very few false triggers if I play it right. I'm using it in my band again after 20 years of gathering dust. All along the issue was the GK2 PU.  

The GR-55 would be the current replacement for the GR-20. I think it's pretty good. It has a COSM channel that does guitar/amp/synth modelling. If you do synth modelling in COSM there is virtually no latency. It also has 2 PCM channels that play with some latency. It does GTR-To-MIDI as well. It does have a known problem - the guitar out is noisy. The main outs are fine. Street price in the states is around $700 without a pu. If you have any interest in it check out the vguitarforums web site.
 
I like the SY-300, you don't need a hex pickup and there is no noticeable latency, but it is like an old analog synth and is probably not what you want. It does do some nice string and brass pads, ambient pads, good brass leads, etc, but you'll have to program them yourself.. There is no latency or glitchiness and is very expressive.
 
The following song was done with a GR-55 using GTR-To-MIDI for the background and SY-300 for the lead
https://sites.google.com/site/phoenixtaiji/music/content/cantShakeThisFeeling.mp3
 
This song has SY-300 for the leads. The bass is VG-99, but GR-55 can do the same.
https://sites.google.com/site/phoenixtaiji/music/content/strangeEvents.mp3
 
The electro-harmonix key9 pedal is pretty nice if you like Rhodes/Wurly keys, but that is all it does.
 
+1 for the yourock. I use it for pads or rhythmic patches that last more than a couple bars.

On the Jamorigins instructions for Sonar, I got to here and bogged down.
5.Launch Sonar. Add new audio track. Insert MIDI Guitar (now found in Soft Synths menu) to FX bin.(no problem, I called it "midi guitar" . I found the Midi FX and a midi guitar window pops up)
6.Go to Synth rack view. Right click grey area of the MIDI Guitar synth block and click “Enable MIDI Output”. ok done
That’s it. Add your favourite synth to a new track and route MIDI input from MIDI Guitar, (done) which should be visible in MIDI input menu
When i play, the meters in the "midi guitar" track respond but no sounds from the SI Strings instrument synth

Hm, attached are the two interfaces of the midi guitar window. I don't see the word Instrument on the top corner.

The paid version is not a beta although there is a v2 beta available. The first image is an old beta. The second image is the regular 1.0 release version. I purchased when the product was still in beta for v1 and have no experience with the trial package.

The delay is the result of your audio buffer settings. The best results are had using an ASIO buffer setting of 128 samples or smaller.