If you’re a guitarist who’s just getting started with GarageBand and are dying to jump in a start recording, you may be overwhelmed with the different gear options available to you.

While many would argue that the only way to accurately capture an electric guitar performance is by mic’ing up your amplifier and hitting record, in my latest video I share 3 ways that you can directly input your guitar into your Mac so that you can record it in GarageBand.

Guitar Jack Ipad Garageband 2

Jul 02, 2012  MIDI Guitar use Virtual MIDI to drive other iOS synth apps or Garageband, and it can host AudioUnit synths and effects. You need a guitar interface for best results. We recommend a digital interface (using the lightning connector) over analog (via headphone jack. I've plugged in my bass and guitar through the headphone jack in GarageBand for the iPad, but it refuses to record from anything but the mic. I've tried messing with various settings and nothing seems to work.

Directly inputting (or ‘DI-ing’) your instrument in this way gives you more control over how your recording sounds if you choose to use Garageband’s built in amp designer and/or Audio Unit plug ins.

Check it out below:

You can find the gear mentioned in the video here:

TOOGOO(R) 3M Guitar to PC USB Recording Cable

IK Multimedia iRig Pro I/O

Guitar Jack Ipad Garageband For Mac

Focusrite Scarlett 2i2

Garageband Iphone Guitar Input

How do you prefer to record your guitars in GarageBand? What gear do you use? Leave a comment and let me know or come join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.