Recording Guitar... Questions About Preamps Etc... Options

[Righteous Bullet]

ok i know its a good idea to use a preamp for recording direct with guitar. this is a dumb question but im wondering if you should use it with a mic too. The reason i ask is because i am (for the time being) micing my amp sending that into my mixer and then mixer hooks to the pc, and im using free software just so i can record a little and get my ideas down since i dont have a good setup yet. Anyway when i record my amp with my guitar distorted it can often sound pretty crappy and im not sure why, and i think there are preamps in my mixer anyway... is this something i should fix with the sofware? like use a compressor or something? or what?

[Panopticon]

Well, I've been around all the modeling stuff (A LOT...I've used everything from POD XT to Amplitube to Amp Farm, and everything in between). In my opinion, they're all interesting tools, but not suitable for getting really good guitar tone. They make o.k. tone. Right now, I'd say the best one is Rock Amp Legends, but no matter what I've used, all the modelers sound great in the mids and highs, but totally lose it below 250Hz. Obviously, MOST of a guitar's tone is above that mark, but the part that's below it is crucial if you want truly pro sounding tracks. Using equipment that can keep the bottom end tight, however, is not cheap; and budget IS a big concern for most of us.

And it depends on what kind of music and guitar tone you're looking for. But if you ever plan on getting, say, great sounding drop D palm mutes and chugging riffs, the modelers won't come close to a real Marshall or Mesa stack miked up. But they also cost SO much less...

Ok, all you POD and Amplitube guys, feel free to flame away...