A Beatles Virtual Instrument

[zed]

The Beatles thread is resurrected!

I have to admit that since I started focusing more on recording real guitars, all of these VI guitars (as good as they might sound in certain contexts) do not match up to what can be gotten from playing lead or rhythm on a real instrument.

But having said that, there are some great sounding instruments in that Fab Four collection, some of which I will use for doubling and such. Those British FX included in this bundle are pretty good too...

Funny enough, Frodo just mentioned the Rickenbacker 360-12c63 in another thread within the last half hour!! So this guitar discussion has been continuing on, just not in this particular thread of late.

[Frodo]

Neat. Beatles forever, even at a discount!!

I'm still waiting for news of an F4 expansion pack. The Rickenbacker 325 is shamefully scant in the current version, among other signature instruments.

[zed]

I'm still waiting for news of an F4 expansion pack. The Rickenbacker 325 is shamefully scant in the current version, among other signature instruments.

I think you'll be waiting for a long while. I doubt it is even in the pipeline.

When they talked about an expansion pack, it was never something they were hurrying to get out the door. I'll bet it is still sitting on a the shelf as a future project they have yet to embark upon. So don't hold your breath.

But I agree that there should have been more Ricky's represented, including the 360-12.

[Frodo]

No-- not holding my breath on it. While I don't regret buying it for a lot of other reasons, its sample set was easy to outgrow quickly.

But you alluded to it-- getting real instruments (sans drums) and forcing myself to play them has been at once challenging, fun, frustrating, rewarding, and gobs more believable and flexible.

[Frodo]

Hah. This thread is 13 years old almost to the very day! Since it started we've been through an entire round of Beatle 50th anniversaries!

Maybe Zedd will chime in and tell us more about MusicLab's RealRick and how he got some very convincing tones ported into GuitarRig.

So, happy thread anniversary to Zedd and all those who chimed in here over 109 pages!

Twist and Shout for a Happy 2020!

[zed]

Wow. It's hard to believe that it's been 13 years!!

This thread still shows up in my profile stats as my "Most active topic".

So glad you started this thread way back when, Mr. Frodo. Happy 13th Anniversary!

There have been a few Beatles Virtual Instrument releases since last reported, including Cinesamples release of Abbey Road keyboards including the Challen and the Mrs. Mills piano. And, of course, all the Abbey Road plugins released by Waves to make our other virtual instruments and guitars sounding more Beatley.

But yes, as Frodo mentioned, I love the MusicLab electric guitars which have all materialized over the past 13 years and weren't around when we started this thread. All of their electric guitars are really good and provide their own special magic, but that RealRick guitar is very versatile sonically... SO MUCH SO that they managed to use that one guitar product to mimic all of the Abbey Road guitar sounds, despite the fact (I believe) that a Ricky not actually used on Abbey Road.

RealRick comes with variations of both 6 and 12-string Rickenbackers.

Check out this video of all the Abbey Road songs in a medley with the RealRick in different settings and with different GuitarRig presets...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mvws1ugt7dI

The first ones are not the best of the lot, but keep listening... it get's better and better... there are some very good matches in there. The bass is done with their RealEight guitar.

And the best part is that you can download the assets. Even if you don't own the RealRick you can use the GuitarRig presets with other virtual guitars or the real thing to great effect. Check it out and give that video some likes... the work they did has been unappreciated, it seems to me.

It's fun stuff.

Rock and Roll my Beatley friends!

[bayswater]

How did I miss this? It started a few weeks after I joined the board.

Zed, that really is a lot fun just listening to those clips, even if a lot of them were not even originally done with Rics. I might get this, just to waste hundreds of hours playing with it.

[zed]

Hey Bayswater,

I have a feeling that you did participate in this thread somewhere within it's 109 pages. I feel like you were there the whole time... but maybe that was just seeing you in other threads. Not sure.

The great thing about these guitar tones is that you can download the assets right now for the GuitarRig presets and just plug in one of your guitars for instant gratification! I tried them on a few different guitars and a large part of the sound is in the GuitarRig presets. Very nice of MusicLab to make them available.

[bayswater]

Hey Bayswater,

I have a feeling that you did participate in this thread somewhere within it's 109 pages. I feel like you were there the whole time... but maybe that was just seeing you in other threads. Not sure.

The great thing about these guitar tones is that you can download the assets right now for the GuitarRig presets and just plug in one of your guitars for instant gratification! I tried them on a few different guitars and a large part of the sound is in the GuitarRig presets. Very nice of MusicLab to make them available.

Thanks, I'll be doing that.
Maybe I was there. I just noticed the posts about not holding your breath for them to add the Ric 325. I made my own. Maybe this topic was the kicker.

[Frodo]

That guitar is amazing looking!!!

I would consider having a custom done that said "frodo", but there are not enough letters to warrant it!

Please tell us about the pickups and any other customizations with the electronics.


And it's a lefty! I was born a lefty but spanked into being a righty. That makes the guitar even more unique, a one of a kind!

[bayswater]

Maybe "Frodo Baggins" would fit?

I didn't customize anything knowingly. I bought all the metal parts and knobs from Rickenbacker except of course anything with a brand on it. The wiring diagram is from the Ric site, using stock electronics. The wood is local alder, and a rosewood slab and fret wire from Stewmac. Dimensions are from the Ric site with details culled from various sites. A sheet of Bayswater logos from a local printshop to avoid a call from Mr. Hall, and that was it.

AFAIK, the pickups as as close to the originals as you can get at the moment. It sure sounds like the early Beatles rhythm parts through a Vox amp, which was what I wanted.

[zed]

Maybe "Frodo Baggins" would fit?

But without the space... Frodobaggins

Or Frodobacker...

I didn't customize anything knowingly. I bought all the metal parts and knobs from Rickenbacker except of course anything with a brand on it. The wiring diagram is from the Ric site, using stock electronics. The wood is local alder, and a rosewood slab and fret wire from Stewmac. Dimensions are from the Ric site with details culled from various sites. A sheet of Bayswater logos from a local printshop to avoid a call from Mr. Hall, and that was it.

That's one beautiful guitar, bayswater!! I just love that headstock. It truly looks fantastic, and it makes me feel better about having capitalized the "B" in your name in my previous post!

Sadly, I cannot play left handed, so I won't be asking to borrow it any time soon!

[bayswater]

Or Frodobacker...

Frodo better copyright that immediately.

That's one beautiful guitar, bayswater!! I just love that headstock. It truly looks fantastic, and it makes me feel better about having capitalized the "B" in your name in my previous post!

Sadly, I cannot play left handed, so I won't be asking to borrow it any time soon!

Thanks. Being left handed in a guitar world is a curse. I've wanted a 325 for a long time, but they were either unavailable or stupidly expensive. But then a few months after I made this, they started making them again, and had a LH one at L&M.

[Frodo]

I am still salivating over that 325. Ouch.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's Rickenbacker.

Yeah, but look at that thing! I'm a big Fender fan, but the sound of a Ricky has an inimitable deliciousness about it. It's not always about the wonderful sound of "Ticket To Ride" or anything related to the Byrds. Tom Petty's tracks are so nicely balanced where the Ricky is not so instantly recognizable.

Okay. It appears to be a closed F-hole model (akin to mine). Is it a Capri?

[mikehalloran]

Way cool guitar! I started lefty and changed when I realized that there were no lefty bowed string players in any orchestra I’d seen. It was more the realization that many were left handed than a premonition that I’d be a cellist and bassist a few years later. About that time, my dad came home from work (Ampex in Redwood City when we lived in Sacramento) one weekend and discovered that I’d restringed his guitar — busted! Anyway, I made the switch but never lost the ability to play lefty. Like Tiny Tim, I became better as a righty than a lefty.

Back to the topic:

A friend had a 325 but my hand was way too big to be comfortable playing it. I had picked up a used Fender Jazzmaster and Vox solid state amp for nearly nothing—the most uncool instruments one could play in 1970. I discovered that my guitar’ s lack of sustain combined with the MRB 2 circuit on the amp gave me the sound of John Lennon’s guitar on many Beatle tracks (especially I Feel Fine) and that was my rhythm guitar sound in high school.

Later, I built a PartsOCaster from Fender parts with the sole purpose of emulating the sound of the two Strats used on Ticket to Ride. I used an Alembic Strat-O-Blaster to get the top end boost that Paul added on the mixer. Nailed the sound, too. I sold the neck and the Alembic unit recently but still have the rest of the guitar.

Owned a Höfner bass for awhile (another instrument you could buy dirt cheap used in the ‘70s) but it wasn’t comfortable to play sitting or standing. Once the novelty wore off, I put it away and made a nice profit when I sold it a few years ago.