how to upgrade my recording equipment

[Ovidius]

Hi everyone, for a little while i`ve been recording with a line 6 UX1,superior drummer 2, running through sonar8 etc etc
I`m "happy" with the sound i get but i would like to improve my guitar sound, so i was thinking to get a new interface, but i`m a bit confused in what to get, i`m a newbie to recording, so any advice would be very much appreciated, i see many names around, torpedo live, kemper, focusrite, presonus studio channel, and also...if i get a presonus studio channel or a focusrite for example, can i just plug my guitar through the them and play or do i need some other equipment??
Thanks for the help

 

[dainbramage]

If you want to improve your guitar sound, what you're going to need is an amp, a dynamic mic such as an SM57 and an audio interface with XLR inputs and microphone preamps.

The devices you mention are very different from each other. Kemper is for direct recording (like you're probably doing now). It will have much better guitar sounds than what you're getting with your UX1, but it is still not a real amplifier. The Torpedo Live is primarily a cab simulator and a dummy load. That means you'll need a real guitar amp in order to use it, but you could use the amp quietly and with no mics. Focusrite makes very decent audio interfaces with XLR and microphone amplifiers. I'd suggest the Scarlett series.

You'll also be able to plug your guitar directly to most audio interfaces and use an amp sim which simulates the sound of a guitar amp, but in most cases it doesn't sound even remotely as good as an amp with a mic. It is great for practicing and writing though if you, like me, have neighbors who likes to sleep when you're at the peak of creativity.