To each his own. I have been trying to find a simple method to record guitar for many years. Late last year I purchased a PODxt Live from Line 6 and it came with a demo version of a software package called RiffWorks from Sonoma WireWorks. Well, needless to say, Riffworks was the ended my quest for the recording software I was looking for. I’m not saying it meets all my requirements, but for the price it is the best I have seen yet. I am not going to detail everything about RiffWorks here in this post. I highly recommend that you go to the site and check it out for yourself.

I do want to highlight the feature that I love the most - Instant Drummer. Set the tempo, choose the drummer and you are ready to go. You have control over the intensity, variation and ambience of the drummer. And this drummer will listen to you.

Sonoma announced, at this years CES show, that version 2 will be released soon. Check out the announcement link for screenshots and some new features.

Click on any of the links on the right under My Music which were all recorded using RiffWorks and posted to RiffCaster.

You can also browse the Support Forums and read what users are saying about the product. Great forums and support staff at Sonoma.

Another great feature is the built in effects that you can use on your recordings.

The main drawback to the program is you can only access it through a Line 6 product - POD, PODxt, GuitarPort, ToneWorks, etc. The program is registered to your hardware.

Share with us what kind of recording you do and how you do it. Looking forward to hearing from you. Keep recording.

Another NAMM trade show wrapped up on Janurary 22nd. I am pumped about some of the newest technology that I don’t need and can’t afford. One of the hottest things for guitar players that I have read about is a product from Source Audio called HotHands which is a motion-controlled effects unit. It’s not that this particular product is “all that”, but it does open so many possibilites.

More MIDI ready guitars for those of us interested in guitar synth. Plus these Brian Moore guitars have built in USB connectivity. If a PC or Mac is not part of your gig rig, then it probably soon will be!

Read more about these products and others in this NAMM Reports thanks to audioMIDI.com’s Doug Edge.

A friend of mine is leaving in a few weeks for a new life in the nation’s capital. It’s not often that God puts someone in my path that I so immediately connect with. I call him my friend, but even better he is my brother in Christ. His name is David Russell and he is going to be the ‘Digital Pastor’ for the National Community Church. I really hate to see him go, but I know that he and his lovely wife Missy are fulfilling God’s call and to that I say Amen! It has been a blessing to work, play music, discuss tech things and have lunch with David in this short period of time. I pray that God will use David in a mighty way.

Stay in touch.