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iRig HD Garageband

3 Reasons To Love The iRig HD

You might remember that I took a long hard look at IK Multimedia’s iRig a wee while ago and addressed how to deal with some of it’s shortcomings when used with Garageband. While a fantastic tool for musicians on the go, the iRig does fall short in a couple of areas sound wise, namely an over abundance of irritating background noise and some  problems when used with hi gain amp models/effects.

Nonetheless, I was happy to declare my undying love for the thing, citing  its versatility and ease of use as major plusses.

So to say I was as excited as a kid at Christmas when IK Multimedia’s latest interface – the iRig HD – arrived on my doorstep would be an understatement.

Now,  I know there are (and have been for a while) several other options for getting better sounding audio on iOS.

After publishing iRig SOS, everyone and their mother pointed out that the Apogee Jam sounds miles better than the iRig when hooking up your axe of choice to your iDevice, but it seems IK Multimedia set out to not only fix the audio niggles that plague the original iRig, but create something that far exceeds the quality of anything else in it’s class

I’ve had my grubby little paws on it for a while now and I have to say, they’ve definitely succeeded.

Let’s dive in and see what’s what with the iRig HD.

 

First off, how about we warm up with IK Multimedia’s official announcement video?

 

 

Here comes the science bit

 

In case you’re feeling particularly tech-y, here’s the iRig HD’s specs:

 

• Maximum Input Level: 330 mVpp to 7 Vpp

• Gain Control Range: 26 dB

• Input Noise: -97 dB RMS

• Distortion (THD): 0.005 percent

• Frequency Response: 20 Hz – 20 kHz +/- 0.2 dB

• Conversion: 24-bit A/D

• Sampling Rate: 44.1 and 48 kHz

• Size: 30 x 99 mm x 21 mm (1.18 x 3.9 x 0.85 in)

• Weight: 35 g (1.23 oz)

 

All of which roughly translated  means the iRig HD has the same sound quality as a ‘proper’ guitar/bass pre amp at an extremely portable size and affordable price.

Superb!

Now that’s out the way let’s get on with it..

 

3 Reasons To LOVE The iRig HD

It’s Ridiculously Versatile

If you own or have ever used IK Multimedia’s previous guitar interface (the original iRig) you’ll be familiar with the different ways you can use this piece of kit.

If not, let me break it down for you – The iRig HD lets you attach a Guitar, bass or synth to your iPhone, iPad, iPod or Mac using a 1/4″ jack. You can then use a metric ton of apps and software to simulate everything from guitar effect pedals, bass amps and synth modules (to name but a few) straight from your iDevice.

It also works extremely well as a Direct Input to your Mac. In fact, it sounds a lot better than some dedicated USB connections i’ve previously used. This is probably down to the built in Pre amp and Gain control. It’s easy to get a balanced signal strength, which in turn makes it easier to get things sounding great.

You can connect the iRig HD to your Device of choice by a number of methods.:

iRig HD Cables

#1  30 Pin Connector – Allows you to connect the iRig HD to your iPhone (4, 4S) iPad         (1st, 2nd and 3rd generation) and iPod Touch (4th and 5th generation)

 

#2  Lightning Connector – Use this to connect the iRig HD to your iPhone (5, 5S +) or         iPad 4th generation.

 

#3 USB Connector – Finally, you can stick this end into your Mac.

 

It sounds better than the iRig

Yup, much better in fact.

Gone are the signal strength issues, background noise woes, narrowed eq’s and premature sustain degradation.

What we’re left with is strong, clear adjustable signal strength, a full dynamic range and not an audio burp to be heard.

Judge for yourself – In this video I pit the iRig and iRig HD against each other in a sound quality fight to the death!

Disclaimer: No guitar interfaces were harmed during the making of this video 😉

 

 

Uh… yeah – so that was fun… (See if you can name which movie the victory music is from – put it in the comments!)

 

It Comes With Free Stuff!

If you caught my iRig HD unboxing video on The Garageband Guide YouTube Channel, you’ll no doubt remember me wittering on about the free amp and effects that come with the iRig HD. It’s astonishing how much free content IK Multimedia are giving away to purchasers of their latest gizmo.

The first time you attach the iRig HD to your iDevice with the Amplitube app active, you’ll ‘unlock’ two exclusive metal amp models (the Metal 150 and the Metal W) as well as two Metal flavored effects (the Wharmonator and the X-Flanger) for you to use at your leisure. Both the amps and pedals are up to par with the other models in the Amplitube app and are perfect for anyone who wants to rock out with their clock out from time to time…

 

Amplitube Metal iRig HD

 

That’s not all – Mac users also get access to the Amplitube Custom Shop , IK Multimedia’s free amps and effects plug in which can be used as a standalone program or loaded into an effects slot in Garageband.

As if that wasn’t enough, you ALSO get access to the complete Amplitube Metal collection, which includes 48 gear models – for FREE! I can’t help but think that someone at IK Multimedia HQ has lost the plot… not that i’m complaining, mind.

Here’s a quick audio sample of some of sounds you can get from Amplitube’s Metal Collection, using a Mac, Garageband and the iRig HD’s USB connection.

 

 

Sound good? Get your hands on an iRig HD and support The Garageband Guide at no extra cost to you. Simply purchase using this link: iRig HD

 

So It’s Good Then?

The short answer? YES – VERY GOOD!

The iRig HD delivers on so many levels and replaces the original iRig as THE all in one solution for Garageband loving Guitarists, Bassists and Synth players. Not only that, it improves on it’s less refined sibling’s shortcomings, providing pro quality audio. Throw in a huge amount of free software coupled with an incredibly affordable price tag and it’s fair to say IK Multimedia have set the bar for portable instrument interfaces.

I can’t get enough of the thing…

What do you think? Tried the iRig HD yet? Love it? Hate it? Share your feelings on the iRig HD in the comments below, then join the conversation on Facebook!

Show Comments (74)
  1. Good info, as usual. I only wish that IKMultimedia would have some kind of hardware
    upgrade option where you could send in your old iRig and get a discount on the HD version.

    Until then, I do like the Apogee Jam and don’t get hounded by IKM’s constant in-app purchase notices and pop ups.

    Cheers,
    Mike

    1. Hey Mike,

      Like the Trade-In idea, not sure IK would benefit from it much, but it would definitely incentivise those looking to upgrade.

      I think the question of whether the iRig HD is better than the Apogee Jam is a whole other kettle of fish… though the variety of connectors that comes with the HD makes me think that it’s the more versatile of the two.

      As for in app purchase nagging, yeah, I hate that too – i’m recording guitar, NOT playing Candy Crush Saga! Do you know if these pop ups are present in the ‘full’ paid version of the app?

    2. Well, Mike, if you have previously purchased IK products and registered them on the IK website then you would be collecting Jampoints which would indeed give you a discount off new purchases. As long as you are ordering direct through the IK webstore then you can be getting a significant discount!

      Paul – IK UK

  2. Hi Mike, great review! I’m thinking about getting iRig HD, but how does it compare to Sonoma’s Guitar Jack2, which I’m fully happy about. Their GuitarTone app also unlocks many effects and amps models which sound very good with that tubey feel.

    And using with MacBooks, how does it stand compared to Line6 interfaces (UX, GX, etc.)? Would you A/B it using the same guitar set up from GarageBand and tell us your impressions?

    Thanks!

    1. Hey Alfredo,

      Not sure if you meant to address me (Patrick) there, but i’ll jump in and reply, regardless 😉

      It looks like the sound quality for the Sonoma and the iRig HD would be similar on iDevices that use 30 pin connections, but remember the HD has a lightning and USB connection too, meaning it’ll work with any iPhone/iPad/iPod touch as well as any Mac…

      Afraid to say I don’t own and haven’t used any of the Line 6 interfaces – do you use one? Would you be able to link to something you’ve recorded using it if so? I’d love to get an idea of how it sounds.

        1. Just adding: I used the “Spy Movie” guitar effects template in GarageBand.
          Another comment, if the notebook is connected to the power outlet the GX generates hum noises, mainly when using distorted sounds. Then I have to position myself with the guitar at a certain spot where the hum won’t be generated. if you know what I mean. My guitar has Fender Noiseless pick-ups. But if I use the notebook running into its battery then there won’t be any hum. Could you test the iRig HD with the notebook connected to the power source and recording distorted guitar sounds? Any hum you could notice with it?
          Thanks & cheers from Brazil!

        2. Ha ha- great recording Alfredo and the sound quality is fantastic. I’d say you would get equal sound quality from the iRig HD, but probably not any better.

          I recorded all the guitar for the different parts of this article through my Macbook Air – it was hooked up to the power at all times, so there was definitely no humming while using the iRig HD. (Check out the Metal collection demo above for proof).

          Hope that helps Alfredo!

  3. Yet another great review Patrick! Thks! Er, don’t know what the victory music’s from but is the challenge music from the Cpt. Kirk fighting bits of the old Star Trek series? Oops, showing my age perhaps!

    1. Hi Rosa,

      YES! Phew – I was worried no-one was going to catch that Star Trek reference…

      You’re not showing your age, just your good taste! 😉

  4. Hi again Patrick. Thanks for your support. I guess I’ll get the iRig HD because it’ll be one single interface which I can use with the same (high) level of quality whether in my iPhone, iPad or MacBook.
    And it’s never too late to state that the victory song is from Rocky 4!
    Best regards,
    Alfredo

    1. Hey Alfredo,

      Sounds good! I know you’ll love it as much as I do!

      YES – you’re absolutely right – it IS from Rocky. Gold Star!!!

    1. Hey Stephen.

      I’ve never tried it myself, but i’m not sure how you would go about connecting everything up. The HD inputs to the 30pin/lightning adapter of your iPad, so I don’t know how you would output to your amp?

      ps – liking the JamHub + Camera Connection video on your site!

      1. I found a way to Connect the original iRig, with a 3.5mm to a 1/4 inch jack adaptor. But you’re right, the iRig HD couldn’t be connected to your amp.

        1. Hi guys, I just want to say that you can indeed connect both the irig and the irig hd into an amp or directly into a mixing desk with very good results (with the original irig you may have to adjust the settings a little and possibly use a noise gate). All you need is a cable from stereo mini jack to two mono 1/4, or to two RCA. You may use an adaptor from RCA to 1/4 jack, but chances are adapters from stereo to mono won’t work. I’m a traveling musician and have been touring around Asia using an iPod touch, an electric guitar and a couple of cables, now that is travelling light 🙂
          I would only recommend it for small venues though

        2. It’s easier and more efficient connecting either the iRig or the iRig HD to an amp such as a Fender Mustang I, II, or III via a 3.5mm m/m patch cable to the aux in port of the Mustang. Some older amps such as my Fender Rumble 100 have a CD IN jack. Just use a 3.5mm M to Left/Right RCA Male breakout cable in that case. You probably can get some better impedance and definitely can avoid ‘coloring’ the sound if you avoid using the guitar input on your amp also.

        3. One more thing, I haven’t tested this yet … but I understand that I should be able to input the iRig HD via the USB port of my Mustang I Amp, as they are both supposed to be ‘standard’ USB interfaces.

    2. Hi all,
      I bought the Line6 Sonic Port a few days a go and it comes with a dedicated output for an amp. Sound quality is a little lessened (bright highs are lost and a little too much bass) but results are good. When plugged into a PA though it really shines; great tone. At 88 euros it was a good investment in my book.
      Steve

  5. I just go mine on your recommendation and very happy with it. Using it with iPhone.

    Two issues I have is the noise when recording through macbook. It seems to be picking up system noise for some strange reason.

    Other issue I have is is trying to get a clean tone in Amplitube .

    1. Hey Dave,

      Seems strange that you’re picking up system noise when recording through your Mac – You got it set up so the light on the unit glows blue/green when recording?

      As for Amplitube, the free amp is a little crunchy by default – try dialling the Gain right down to 1-3 and boosting the amp volume. That usually works for me. Alternatively, download the free version of Amplitube Fender. That bad boy gives beautiful clean tone.

  6. I have the original iRig, and while it was good for recording, it generated a hell of a lot of noise in an onstage scenario. It did not play nicely with DI boxes, due to an impedance mismatch. I would only purchase the iRig HD if they had addressed this issue, as it would be great to use it plugged directly into the PA

    1. Might be a little late to this discussion but I had the iRig (gave it to a friend) but now have the iRig Stomp and iRig HD. All 3 worked fine with DI’s (active and passive). Only issues I have are from the stomp box as it’s a little noisy.

  7. why is there some kind of stereo reverb present on the hd irig nasty song test but not on the non-hd one?.. makes it kinda hard to compare the two.

    1. It’s really a shame that you don’t have other sources to test, such as the Line 6 Sonic Port or the new version of the Apogee Jam. Testing the HD against the original iRig is obviously night and day, but isn’t really saying much IMO since I think that the original sucks pretty hard.

      @Stephen McFarlane: Do you have any recordings to share of your Line 6?

      1. Funny you should mention it Doug – Apogee are very kindly sending me a Jam 96k review unit next month. How does an iRig HD vs Jam 96k comparison video sound? 😉

  8. Hi all,
    Have Live6 Sonc Port now up and running on an iPad Air and using Mobile POD. Tested with directly into Fender Deluxe verses the guitar directly in. DEFO loss of high end on the guitar but if you’re not playing clear or jazz this might not be a big issue for you. Never have to carry a heavy amp again? I’m afraid we’re still a long while away from that.
    Steve (Ireland.)

  9. help! Brand new to all of this and when I plug my strat in through irig pro and amplitube on inter ap audio the ipad mic picks up everything. I see posts online that suggest the built in mic should automatically shut off when guitar is plugged in but in my case, it doesn’t.
    The little bit of guitar I am hearing thru my headphones sounds like it’s just what is being picked up by the on board mic, not directly from the guitar.

  10. Please I need a HELP about my iRig HD. I Have an M-Audio microphone, can I connect it to the iRig HD?

  11. Hey out there………… Is there a way to run my iRig HD into my iPhone 5c and STILL have a way of powering the phone? I can’t use the power supply for the phone if I have something plugged into the Lightning port on the phone.

  12. Tha iRig HD manufacturer sells a 6.5 stereo to 9 mono cable that works great but is pricey. Tried a stereo to stereo one first which did not go well at all…..hum and feedback issues.

    1. Thanks Marcus, I’ll check it out. It’d be a shame to lose stereo output sound I’m used to from the Mac laptop, but worth it to be able to keep the iPhone powered and still have an audio output to mini-mixer for tiny gigs. Thanks!
      Mark

    1. IMO, if you’re ever going to record using an XLR microphone, the Pro is the way to go – there’s just more flexibility. Only going to use jacked instruments? The HD will do fine – and work out a little cheaper!

  13. Patrick, I just read your review of the iRig HD and it is spot on! I had it connected using just Garageband but I am having issues with connecting the iRig via USB and changing the outputs as stated on some posts on the net. I still pick up sound through the external speakers. Sounds rather odd playing and hearing yourself grunting as well. Am I missing something here? I don’t have anything plugged into the headphone jack. Thanks for any suggestions. IK seems to even have issues. I have a MB Pro.

  14. I am just starting out with the guitar and trying to decide between either the iRig HD setup through my Ipad or a Mustang II amp. I like all of the options that the i-rig and Amplitube setup gives, but what if I wanted to use a speaker rather than headphone output? Would that be routed back through an amp (seems redundant) or is there some other sort of speaker setup that you’d hook up to ( just a speaker box and not an amp).

  15. Just bought the iRig HD – still in its packaging.

    Anyone know if I can I connect Amplitube (Ipad) into a Roland Micro Cube GX – without it clashing with the built-in model amp tones (which can’t be switched off)….basically I want to use the Micro Cube as a loudspeaker.

    Thanks, Doug
    Sydney, Australia

  16. I have the iRig HD and so far I love it when using it with my iPad. I keep reading about all these incompatibility problems with mono/strereo cables when trying to hook up the iPad to an amp using the iPad stereo headphone jack into a mono amp input. What I plan to do is take the stereo iPad output into 2 rca connectors (simple “y” connector) then another y connector rca to 1/4 mono. This I plan to plug into the effects return jack on my amp. This will bypass the amps pre-amp and tone stack stages and plug the iRig directly into the amps power stage. I’m pretty sure that this will work except for the nagging stereo/mono cable problem. I’d appreciate any feedback (pun intended). I think the iRig HD will be great for doing small club gigs accompanying different vocalists where you can access different presets instantly with no knob twiddling.

  17. Great, great info, as usual. Sorry if it’s obnoxious, but I just have to point out that “it’s” should only be used when you are contracting “it” and “is,” such as “It’s such a drag that this English teacher is harassing me.” Otherwise, it’s always “its” with no apostrophe, as in “Its strengths are its sound and ease of use,” etc. Sorry…

  18. I have an iRig HD connected at one end to a Les Paul and at the other end to an iMac (OS X Yosemite V10.10.5} via a USB.The blue light comes on the iRig, but there is no sign of any connection with the Mac. No guitar sound comes out. The iRig is brand new and I have never been able to get it to work. Am I doing something wrong?

  19. hello…just starting out and trying to use the iRigHD with GarageBand but it does not seem to recognize it. I have selected the iRig as an input in the “Sound” as well as Audio MIDI. Seems there is no inout control. Would you know where I could go to find a solution?

  20. Can I use the Irig HD without headphones or amp ? In other words can I travel with just m,y guitar and the iPhone and get sound out of the iPhone?

  21. Hi Patrick and all that follow,

    I just wanted to mention, because I didn’t see it in Patrick’s review, nor in the comments, the the iRig HD can also be used as an interface with Windows PCs! The included USB cable works with Windows the same way it does with a Mac, of course some may need to download the AISO4ALL drivers, but I’ve used mine many times with excellent results on my Windows PC! IKMultimedia also has Windows versions of all the same software they give you (Amplitube, Custom Shop, T-Racks etc)!

    I’ve since moved on to a better USB interface for the PC (a BOSS ME-80) but still have the mighty little iRig HD for use with my iPad/iPhone.

    Those looking for an inexpensive USB interface solution for their Windows PC, should look no further than the iRig HD! Especially now (June 1st thru July 31st 2016) iKMultimedia is having the “Fully Loaded guitar interface” promotion where if you buy an iRig HD, iRig Pro, etc, you get Amplitube 4 Deluxe (a $299 value) for free!

    Check out ikMultimedia’s site for details…

    Thanks again Patrick!

  22. Hi,
    First of all, thank you for your website, it´s very usefull.
    I have a Question: I own the iRig PRO, and it records at 24-bit (as the iRig HD) and I use it with Garageband in my iPhone and iPad, being very happy with the combination.
    BUT, when I check the wav file of each track that Garageband creates on iCloud Drive, I can see they are 16-bit, not 24-bit.
    So, how can Garageband record at 24-bit?
    Thank you.
    Andrew

  23. What do you like/recommend more ? irig vs phisical foot pedal ?
    Have you seen the new Fender Stratocaster with iOS USB connection? Do you know if it is the same as an iRig?

  24. Hi everybody. I bought irig hd. I’m using it on IPAD air in GarageBand. I have a little delay and the sound is not good. Can you advise me something?

  25. Hi Patrick, great post! And still getting hits even thou it’s a few years old now 🙂

    I bought the iRig HD for my wife to use with her acoustic guitar to record demos but have never really gotten it working properly on iPad mini or our macbooks…

    For the iPad/iPhone the blue light doesn’t come on and it’s not registered in the amplitude app, for the macs the blue light does come on but it doesn’t register in any of the device panels in audio setup (aggrigate devices etc) and get no sound except for very occasionally and temporarily…

    Does this sound like a faulty unit?

    Many thanks
    Simon

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