Acoustic Guitar Simulator Vst Free
- Acoustic guitar simulator vst (for electric) Home Home Recording Forum Computers & Software acoustic guitar simulator vst (for electric) Posted on Jan 10, 2008 05:11 am.
- The Boss AC-3 Acoustic Simulator (Reverb.com) is viewed amongst the online guitar community as the most popular pedal for emulating lush acoustic guitar sounds with an electric. And for good reason, the AC-3 produces warm and hyper-realistic acoustic.
- Is there a VST that turns your electric into an acoustic? I see lots of virtual instruments out there but no 'FX' which makes an electric sound acous.
RedShift (is a free vst that attempts to let you alter the characteristics of the pickup and the guitar material you're using. I don't think it's quite as accomplished as the description makes out, but you can probably get something usable from it. 10 Free Guitar VST Plugins – Best Guitar VSTs Here are the best Free Guitar VST Plugins online that can be used with FL Studio, Reason, Ableton Live, and other VST supported software. Tutorial: How to Install VST Plugins.
If you’ve been producing music for a while, you probably know that a lot of the commercial guitar VSTs or libraries out there are pretty expensive and not always easy to use. Although I own a few commercial guitar libraries, I also wanted to see what free guitar VSTs and sample libraries are available these days. I have to admit I was surprised by the number of interesting instruments I found. So, I’ve put together this list to talk about the best ones.
For this article, I looked at both acoustic and electric guitars but left out guitar amps and other effect plugins (I will cover these in an upcoming article).
Free Acoustic Guitar Plugins
Ample Sound: Ample Guitar M II Lite
Format: AU, VST, AAX, RTAS / 32 bit + 62 bit
OS: Mac, Windows
Audio examples:
Ample Sound is a Beijing-based company that has been creating guitar and bass VSTs since 2011. The Ample Guitar M II series aims “to bring the Martin D-41 Acoustic Guitar sound to your studio.” Luckily for us, the company also released a free lite version of the instrument, which comes with a reduced sample rate, fewer articulations and features and a lower sample count than the original (by now, version III has been released already).
This doesn’t prevent Ample Guitar M II Lite from being the best sounding (non-Kontakt) acoustic guitar in this list, though. The samples sound full and lively and can be triggered directly through MIDI (or your DAW) as well as through a built-in sequencer, the “strummer.”
The strummer makes it super easy to build patterns out of single notes, up and down strokes and mutes. Additionally, there are a bunch of effects and features available to change the tone. One of my favorite features is the doubling switch, which adds width to the instrument in an instant.
Another particular useful feature of Ample Guitar M II Lite is that it shows you which string corresponds to the note you’re playing. This quickly helped me create more realistic arpeggios.
If you also use Guitar Pro Tab, you can even import your tabs into Ample Guitar M II Lite. Note that you are limited to the first four frets of each string when you’re using the lite version.
There are so many fully functioning knobs and switches in this free plugin that I didn’t manage to get to all of them in my 45 minutes of playing around with it. What more can you ask for in a free guitar?
You can get Ample Guitar M II Lite on the Ample Sound website.
This is a quick introduction to the instrument:
DSK Music: Dynamic Guitars
Format: AU, VST / 32 bit + 64 bit
OS: Mac, Windows
Audio examples:
This guitar VST has gotten a lot of attention lately, especially since the release of LifeStyleDidIt’s video “I FOUND THE BEST FREE GUITAR VST” (see below). DSK Music is a project by a Spaniard named Víctor who has been making hundreds of free virtual instruments since 2002.
DynamicGuitars contains three different instruments: an acoustic guitar, a nylonguitar and a steel guitar. It also offers control over the envelope of thesamples as well as the dynamic range and the voice mode (poly, mono, legato). All the included guitars feel smooth, warm andthick but could use a little EQ action for clarity.
In this video, you can see the plugin in use:
You can download DSK Dynamic Guitars here.
Pettinhouse Free Acoustic Guitars
Pettinhouse is a project by Andrea Pettinao. The company sells a wide variety of guitars and also offers a handful of free guitar sample libraries. Let’s take a look at them!
FreeAcousticGuitar
Format: Kontakt 3 and higher (full version required!)
Audio examples:
Free AcousticGuitar is a simple but well-recorded and programmed acoustic guitar Kontakt library. The samples are loaded as a multi and are separated into attack+ sustain, releases and fret noise sounds and come in different velocities. The samples are well mixed and sound wonderfully natural.
FreeClassicGuitar
Format: Kontakt 5 and higher (full version required!)
Audio examples:
When you open the free version of Pettinhouse’s Classic Guitar, you’re getting a multi consisting of two instruments: classic guitar and noises. These work well together and offer a realistic and nice warm sound.
Yummy Beats: Modest Guitar
Format: Kontakt 5 and higher (full version required!)
Audio examples:
Yummy Beats is a platform for drums, loops and Kontakt instruments. You can also find a few free instruments on this site, including the free Modest Guitar. This Kontakt library delivers a present sound with round robin and three articulations: acoustic guitar, flageolets and fx guitar. Unfortunately, I found that the fx guitar produced noticeable crackle sounds (might have been my setup!). However, my favorite part is the flageolets with their well-rounded tone, anyway.
I found the steps to get Modest Guitar a little complicated. You have to open a Yummy Beats account, go to this page and enter the unlock code that you find here. If you’re looking for a free, quality flageolet sound, this is a good instrument to try out, though.
Here’s an example of a song that uses Modest Guitar (from the Yummy Beats YouTube channel):
Alternatives
Didn’t find what you were looking for? Here are some more acoustic guitar libraries:
- DSK AkoustiK GuitarZ (VST / Windows / 32 bit)
- DSK Guitars Nylon (VST / Windows / 32 bit)
- DSK Guitars Acoustic (VST / Windows / 32 bit)
- DSK Guitars Steel (VST / Windows / 32 bit)
- Spicy Guitar (VST / Standalone / Windows, Mac / 32 bit + 64 bit)
- Big Cat Instruments General Midi Soundset (has a guitar section / Kontakt)
Free Electric Guitar Plugins
Now, let’s talk about electric guitars.
Spitfire Labs: Peel Guitar
Format: VST2, VST3, AAX, AU; 32 bit + 64 bi t
OS: Windows, Mac
Audio examples:
Looking for a smooth moody guitar that fits into an ambient track or your next film score? Peel Guitar might be it! Originally, the guitar was sampled by Christian Henson in 2006 and, according to him, was used all over his scores. The instrument consists of three presets that differ slightly in guitar tone. Each guitar feels soft and comes with a long release, which adds to the atmosphere of the instrument. The minimalist interface offers control over the volume, velocity, reverb and “tightness” of the sound. To get Peel Guitar, you will need to install Spitfire Labs first (also free).
Iridium Iris: Lethality
Format: VST, 32 bit + 64 bit
OS: Windows
Audio examples:
The following examples were created with Lethality and Guitar Rig 5:
Lethality was released in 2014 by Iridium Iris. The developer’s website has been down for a while, so it’s not clear if they’re still working on new instruments. However, Lethality is one of their products that you can still come across today.
I wasactually quite surprised to see how many functions are built into Lethality.Besides “regular” single notes, the plugin also has open string and mutedstring articulations. Additionally, you can switch on hammer-ons, pull-offs andportamento articulations, which can be triggered by playing legato notes.
To find theright articulation on your MIDI keyboard, you can take a look in the manualthat comes with the instrument. When you’re as used to Kontakt as I am, it’s alittle inconvenient that the keyboard layout (including articulation zones andkeyswitches) is not displayed visually in the plugin. This means that you’llhave to remember the keyswitches and articulations you’ll need when playing.
If you’renot sure how to program your guitar, you can use the built-in riff patterns.They can be activated directly from the plugin or exported as MIDI clips intoyour DAW of choice. Truthfully, though, it makes more sense to program your ownMIDI clips, if only to create a more dynamic guitar part.
Although Lethality offers a distortion function, to get a good sound you will most likely want to use an external amp simulation or other effects on this instrument.
As the official developer website is down, you can get Lethality here.
Impact Soundworks Shreddage Stratus Free
Format: Kontakt 5.7 or higher (full version required!)
Audio examples:
The Shreddage series by Impact Soundworks has been the go-to place for affordable guitar sample libraries for years. Recently, the company made a very generous gift to composers when it released a free version of its Shreddage 3 Stratus guitar. Compared to the commercial version, the free version only offers neck pickup (instead of neck, middle and bridge), 12 frets (instead of 24), a reduced range and fewer articulations. However, this shouldn’t stop you from creating great, realistic electric guitar parts with this library. Up to 24 samples per note, including sustain, palm mute and choke articulations make this an amazingly usable library that will fit into many productions.
Amazingly,the free version of Shreddage 3 Stratus also comes with full mix consolefunctionality. In the mix console you can add effects, whether that’s pedals,amps, cabinets or EQ. The included presets (called “snapshots” by ImpactSoundworks) sound instantly great and are compatible with other Shreddageinstruments (as long as they use the same console). This is definitely the bestand most versatile free electric guitar on the market right now – so if youhave a full version of Kontakt, don’t miss out on this one.
Check outthe following video for an overview on how to use Stratus Free:
Get Impact Soundworks Stratus Free here (you will need to get a free account to download the instrument).
Pettinhouse Free Electric Guitars
Just as Pettinhouseoffers a few great acoustic guitar libraries, it has also released a fewinteresting electric guitars:
FreeDirectGuitar
Format: Kontakt 5 and higher (full version required!)
Audio examples:
The following examples were created with DirectGuitar and Guitar Rig 5:
Using this direct guitar library by Pettinhouse gives you maximum flexibility for sculpting your own tone. It comes with a range of four octaves and also includes a few effects (open the “strum” and “layers” instruments to find out where they are located on the keyboard). Amp and effects are not part of the instrument, so you will need to add one yourself. I used Guitar Rig 5 for the audio examples.
FreeMute&Slap
Format: Kontakt 3 and higher (full version required!)
Audio examples:/free-realistic-guitar-vst-mac.html.
Mute&Slap is a very specialized instrument: The articulations range from mute tones in the lower velocities to slap notes in the higher velocities and are great for adding some funky notes to your beats and songs. While Free Mute&Slap also contains a couple of effects and amp choices, it might be worthwhile trying out a few different amp simulations with this to have more control over the tone.
Here’s avideo review for Mute&Slap:
FreeFunkyGuitar
Format: Kontakt 3 and higher (full version required!)
Audio examples:
Need more funk in your music? Check out Pettinhouse’s Free FunkyGuitar. Besides regular plucked string sounds, this library also contains strum loops and muted strum loops. These are especially convenient (programming funk guitar rhythms manually is hell) and can be tempo-synced to the host or adjusted manually (in a range of 85 bpm – 130 bpm). The library comes with a built-in reverb, delay and phaser and a selection of amps. The guide tab will help you find your way around this instrument quickly.
FreeWarmJazz
Format: Kontakt 3 and higher (full version required!)
Audio examples:
When I was researching for this article and came across WarmJazz, a realization hit me: There are barely any jazz guitar sample libraries on the market. Apart from the occasional funk library, most current guitar libraries and VSTs are oriented towards rock, metal and blues. If you’re looking for a jazzier sound, though, you should check out WarmJazz by Pettinhouse. In its free version, it comes with seven presets and a range of effects (chorus, reverb, delay, compressor). The quality of the sound is indeed warm and jazzy and hard to re-create with any other library.
KaroryferSamples Cute Emily Guitar
Format: SFZ, Kontakt 5 and higher (full version required!)
The next three examples use Guitar Rig 5:
Cute Emily Guitar is originally a project by Karoryfer Samples and was first published in 2014. To quote the creator:
“There area lot of guitar samples out there intended for lots of styles of musicguitarists like, from Latin jazz to metalcore, but this library is for musicguitarists really hate, from hip-hop to EDM. It’s designed to be easy to usefor producers who don’t necessarily know a lot about guitars and don’t need awhole lot of different articulations, control over left-hand position, note offgroups, etc. Instead of all that you get a fat, percussive sound that’s greatfor crisp rhythms.”
Indeed, the instrument, which is a sampled Epiphone Emily the Strange, has a very pronounced, percussive attack. As the samples were recorded directly, it makes sense to run them through an amp simulator of some sort (I used Guitar Rig 5 for my tests).
You have the choice between two versions of this instrument: The original Karoryfer Samples version in SFZ soundfont format or a Kontakt version by Bigcat Instruments. The Kontakt version includes various effects, such as a phaser, chorus, reverb, delay, compressor, distortion and EQ. You can also add tremolo and adjust the velocity curve, as well as the attack and release.
Alternatives
Looking formore options? Check out the following instruments:
- Greggjazz Suburban Guitarist (VST / Windows / 32 bit)
- Krakli Strat-A-Various (VST / Windows / 32 bit)
- SuperRiff: SuperRiff Guitar (VST / Windows / 32 bit)
Over to you…
Do you have any other favorites that you didn’t see included on this page? Let us know in the comments!
Are you an electric guitar player looking for the lush, warm, and woody sound of an acoustic guitar? But you only have electric guitars in your collection?
This post is the beginner’s guide to transform your electric guitar to the sound of an acoustic guitar with some helpful tips along the way.
The best way to make an electric guitar sound like an acoustic is to use an ‘acoustic simulator’ effect either with a stompbox pedal, digital effect unit, or VST plugin. The effect simulates the resonance and tone of an acoustic guitar so your electric guitar can sound like an acoustic.
What Does an Acoustic Simulator Effect Do?
An acoustic simulator either a pedal or a modeling patch from a digital effect unit is essentially an effect that converts your electric guitar signal to simulate the woody sound of an acoustic guitar.
Typically the effect works best when engaged and combined with a clean guitar tone. Recycle bin for android phone free download.
This means no distortion or gain in the signal for the most accurate acoustic tone while using your electric guitar. Remember keep it clean!
Why Use an Acoustic Simulator Pedal Effect
- You don’t have to buy an expensive acoustic to get a good acoustic tone
- You can cut down on the number of guitars needed for live gigs.
- Use any of your electric guitars (some provide better acoustic tones than others)
- Makes recording easier
- Cut down on additional recording gear
- Recording a physical acoustic can be cumbersome and time-consuming
- Recording an acoustic requires a recording worthy environment with good room acoustics
Acoustic Simulator Effect vs Real Acoustic Guitar
Many acoustic simulator effects from various pedals are great at producing an acoustic sound while conveniently playing your electric.
However keep in mind, the tone will not exactly sound as accurate and authentic as hearing a professionally recorded Taylor or Gibson acoustic guitar. Which is to be expected of course!
Many diehard acoustic players will likely detect the difference with their ears between a real acoustic recording and an acoustic simulator effect.
But you cannot deny that many acoustic simulators can make an electric guitar sound very similar to a genuine acoustic. while saving a ton of convenience, time, money, and additional gear.
Plus, modeling digital effects have improved so much over the years, that many sound authentic and very close to a real acoustic guitar and will continue to improve.
Whatever method of recording ultimately hinges on your personal preferences.
Pros of Acoustic Simulators
- Cheaper than buying an acoustic guitar
- Time-saving
- More convenient when it comes to recording
- Acoustic simulator pedals are very affordable
- Need a microphone and good room acoustics to record a physical acoustic
- Some mid-level acoustic guitars are expensive
- Some budget acoustics ($100 and less) can sound low quality and difficult to play
Cons of Acoustic Simulators
- Do not sound as genuine as recording a quality acoustic guitar
- Seen as cheating by some players
- Miss out on playing a physical acoustic guitar thus improving your skills
- Some acoustic sims are limited in tone and EQ options
- Having an acoustic is a fun alternative to playing the electric
- Learning how properly to record an acoustic guitar is a useful skill as a guitarist
Best Acoustic Simulator Pedals
So now you are seemingly questioning what are the best acoustic simulators on the market?
I have provided a pick of some awesome and proven pedals for adding to your pedalboard for gigging and recording.
Let’s take a look…
Boss AC-3 – The Industry Standard
The Boss AC-3 Acoustic Simulator (Reverb.com) is viewed amongst the online guitar community as the most popular pedal for emulating lush acoustic guitar sounds with an electric.
And for good reason, the AC-3 produces warm and hyper-realistic acoustic tones with full control with the bundles of EQ options and useful features to satisfy any tone geek.
This pedal effect can transform your electric guitar to the convincing sound of an acoustic guitar straight out the box.
When it comes to features, the AC-3 includes 4 acoustic modes to choose from each simulating a different size and style of acoustic (Jumbo, Piezo Standard) with an ‘Enhance’ Mode. Each mode can be tweaked to customize your ideal acoustic tone.
Secondly, this pedal is unique in that it also includes built-in reverb which none of the other options on this list have.
Other features include the option for battery compartment for power and a line out input for connecting this pedal directly to a PA system for live gigs.
The Boss AC-3 is one of the premium choices for a reliable and great-sounding acoustic simulator adding to your arsenal of pedals.
Joyo Ironman Wooden Sound – Most Affordable
The Joyo Wooden Sound is a simple pedal that creates impressive acoustic tones for use with any electric guitar.
This bite-sized pedal is compact and housed in a metal chassis making it tough, sturdy, and can squeeze on any small gigging pedalboard. you can grab the Joyo Wooden Sound on Reverb.com here.
When it comes to versatility the pedal includes 4 simple EQ knobs for shaping and crafting your ideal acoustic tone to your tastes and preferences.
The Wooden Sound makes the list as it has been praised for its great acoustic tones considering it is a very affordable option on this list.
Joyo has a reputation for producing some excellent sounding and affordable stompboxes and effects within the companies catalog of pedals.
Mooer Acoustikar – Best Value
The Mooer Acoustika pedal is another great choice to recruit for a guitarist gigging pedalboard.
The Mooer Acoustikar can recreate 3 different acoustic types (Standard, Jumbo, Piezo) to a realistic standard for any electric guitar player searching for authentic acoustic sounds.
The body dial to adjust the resonance and the main large knob to control the highs and brilliance of the sound.
For its size, the Mooer Acoustikar is highly versatile offering some great acoustic resonance from the playability of an electric guitar.
And for the affordable price, it firmly places this pedal as the best value effect on my recommendation list.
Where to Place An Acoustic Simulator on a Pedalboard
When it comes to arranging your pedalboard. You will need to know where to position an acoustic simulator as pedal order matters.
So where does an acoustic simulator go in the signal chain?
The Acoustic sim is usually placed at the beginning of the pedal chain likely after the tuner and before the compressor pedal. Remember the pedal chain starts from right to left! (Demonstration Below!)
The reason this effect is closer to the beginning of the chain is that ideally, you want the cleanest signal traveling into this pedal for processing an electric signal to an accurate acoustic sound.
You should not have any effects that distort the signal such as overdrives, chorus, flangers, etc before the acoustic sim pedal. Remember what we said? Keep it clean!
Top Tip: When it comes to electric guitar choice combined with an acoustic simulator.
Semi-hollow guitars sound great as they are one-half acoustic. When it comes to solid-body guitars, thin-sounding guitars with single-coils are good choices such as Strats, Teles, Jazzmasters, etc.
Quick Word on Amplifier Choice
The Amplifier you decide to use with your electric guitar combined with an acoustic simulator will play a role in the quality of the acoustic tone.
Clean amplifiers are the best choice when combined with an acoustic simulator pedal for the most accurate acoustic tone. The reason is they are better at compressing and highlighting high frequencies and producing the desired acoustic resonance.
The other reason is that clean amplifiers project a transparent signal and do not color the tone as compared to other amps.
This needs to be mentioned as amplifiers make a large portion of your sound combined with guitar choice and pickups.
Clean amplifiers such as Fenders, Roland and even acoustic amplifiers are great at keeping the signal clean and transparent giving the best tonal results for a lush and warm acoustic tone. Always experiment with your gear to find the best guitar tone for you.
Top Tip: for the best acoustic sound, use an electric guitar with single coils rather than humbuckers for better realistic acoustic tones.
The reason is humbuckers are naturally warm and bassy whereas single coils produce thin and piercing frequencies closer to the sound of an acoustic guitar. This is just my opinion, experiment with guitar choice to see what sounds best to your ears.
Method 2 – Use an Acoustic Simulator Plugin
Another convenient method for turning your electric guitar to the sound of an acoustic guitar. Is to capture your electric guitar signal with an audio interface connected to your PC.
Free ableton vst reddit. Then when inside your desired recording software (DAW), engage the amp simulator software plugin to modify the captured guitar signal to sound like an acoustic guitar. The software is essentially a virtual acoustic simulator effect.
The pros to this method are…
- High level of customization with lots of EQ options to tweak your acoustic tone
- Record and edit your tone in real-time
- A simple and convenient way to record guitar
- Avoid having to buy an acoustic simulator pedal
- Avoid buying a physical acoustic
- Avoid recording a physical amp
- Save, edit and re-upload your saved acoustic tones
- Great versatility
Best Acoustic Simulator Plugin Software
The plugin I recommend is ‘Blue Cat’s Re-Guitar Plug-in.’ This modeling software modifies your current guitar pickups to sound like a different pickup altogether.
For example, let’s say you have a telecaster with single coils but want a thicker and warmer tone from a humbucker pickup.
No problem, select from a range of humbucker presets for a humbucker style tone for a beefier tone and vice versa.
Blue Cat’s Re- Guitar Acoustic Simulator – Review
Besides the pickup modeling software. Re-Guitar includes impressive acoustic simulator modeling technology to modify your guitar altogether and transform the tone into a warm and lush sounding acoustic guitar.
Blue Cat’s Re-Guitar Plug-in includes several acoustic presets (Jumbo, Vintage, Modern) which can be tweaked and customized for acquiring that desired lush acoustic sound from your electric.
This program is the only good acoustic simulator plugins I know of available with most acoustic simulators available in a single stompbox pedal or digital multi-effects processor.
As an overview, this plugin is a great convenient way of recording acoustic guitar using your electric guitar.
Without the hassle of setting up the recording environment and knowing about mic placement and technical aspects of recording.
Either purchasing a stomp pedal or using the amp sim plugin route is up to the player’s preference depending on which option is your preferred preference and sounds best to your ears.
Related Questions
Can you make a regular guitar sound like a bass?
The best way to make a regular guitar sound like a bass guitar is by using an octave effect either from a pedal, digital multi-effects processor or software plugin on PC. Adjust the octave preset down a few octaves to mimic the sound of a low sounding bass guitar.
Can you put acoustic strings on an electric guitar?
You can but it is not recommended! Doing so gives each string an unbalanced volume. Also when played through an amp, the output will be much quieter than with regular nickel electric guitar strings. Your guitar will not sound like an acoustic with bronze and steel acoustic strings.
Final Thoughts
Acoustic Guitar Simulator Plugin Free
Now you have learned some ways to transform your electric guitar into a lush and warm sounding acoustic. You will vastly increase the number of tones, songs and sounds available to you as a guitar player.
Before You Go! I recommend you view my related post….“Can Guitar Pedals Be Used for Bass” Learn why many bass players choose guitar pedals for some sick sounding bass tones!