I am not the lead guitarist for Fall Out Boy. I do not have the resources to drop the thousands of dollars on Pro Tools software and hardware. What I do have resources for is a simple digital audio workstation (DAW) to use with my MaBook.

Line 6 is a major player in the DAW manufacturing space. I decided on the Tone Port GX off of the recomendation of Macworld. The Tone Port GX from Line 6 is a simple DAW, having a single 1/4 inch input for a guitar or microphone. It also comes with GearBox software that allows several different amplifier and cabniet combinations. This is their entry level product, costing less than 80 dollars to obtain.

Imagine my dismay when I plugged it into my iMac and all I got was static…

Guitarist is an app developed by Moo Cow Music that attempts to be your on-the-go guitar. It’s not going to replace your real guitar, but it might help you seize the moment when creativity strikes.

Since the iPhone has multitouch, using it as a guitar simulator makes sense. There is one striking negative about this app, and I want to get it out right at the start. Since you’re only working with a piece of glass, there is no tactile feedback. It should be noted that this is not a problem with the app, but a limitation of the device itself. If you can get over this one point, then you’ll love this app.