You never know when inspiration might strike, but when it does, you want to be recording in minutes – not hunting through manuals.
Well, if you want to get recording quickly, you may be interested in the Apogee Jam+. It’s a tiny little palm-sized interface and it’s possibly, the simplest way to record your guitar into your PC, Laptop, or iOS device – all you need is a guitar cable and a pair of headphones.
In this blog, we’re going to be taking a look at its features and how it can be just the guitar interface you need when inspiration strikes!
Looking at the Jam+, it’s quite an unassuming box. It’s small enough for the pouch on your gigbag – even small enough for your pocket, and doesn’t need a power supply to operate as it is completely USB bus-powered.
The front has a ¼" jack for connecting your guitar and the rear has an 1/8” jack for your headphones alongside a USB port for your device – it doesn’t get simpler than that!
Operationally, there is just one knob and one button which controls the level of the headphones as well as the input gain for your guitar. That control combination also allows for some easy mixing/zero-latency monitoring options - overall, it’s as plug-and-play as you can get on an audio interface.
Sound-wise, it’s typical Apogee. If you aren’t familiar with Apogee and the quality of the equipment they make, then all you need to know is that Apogee interfaces and converters can be found in some of the biggest studios in the world and they’ve been making world-class interfaces since 1985. All of that expertise and knowhow has been poured into the Jam+.
To appeal to guitarists who use their laptops and amp modelling to achieve their electric guitar tone, the Jam+ has a unique analogue ‘drive’ feature that applies an overdrive to the guitar input to give it a more realistic feel and sound – a bit like if you were to add a drive pedal in front of your guitar amp.
If you want something clean and pristine to capture your natural acoustic or bass guitar tone, Apogee’s PureDIGITAL connection allows you to do so at 24-bit/96kHz resolution – which is as clean and pristine as you will ever need!
At the top of the Jam+ is a headphone output dedicated for monitoring both your computer playback as well as your direct guitar signal. The mix of the two sources can be controlled using the controls on the front of Jam+ - Click once for a 50/50 split between your instrument and the USB playback, click again for 100% USB playback.
Having the option to select a 50/50 split of your instrument and playback allows the Jam+ to deliver a true, zero latency monitor mix that feeds directly to your headphones. This means that the instant your pick hits the strings, the sound comes out of the headphones with no latency (meaning no delay between hitting the strings and hearing the sound). If your signal was run through the computer first to be processed before reaching your headphones, that extra trip would cause the audio signal to be heard slightly after the initial strike of the strings which can be quite uncomfortable whilst recording. All this means is that with Jam+ in 50/50 mode, you never have to worry about latency issues putting you off recording the perfect take.
You can hear more about the importance of Zero latency monitoring during guitar tracking in this little snippet of the video, where Grammy Award-winning guitarist Brent Paschke writes a ‘Katy Perry-Inspired' track using his Jam+ and an iPad!
The beauty of having such a portable interface is that you can take it wherever you need to go. Apogee takes this to the next level by also making the Jam+ compatible with iOS devices such as iPhone and iPad – meaning you don’t even need your laptop to start recording. Whether you’re a seasoned pro who needs a bit of practice time on the tour bus or someone who wants to record a bit whilst they are on holiday, the Jam+ isn’t limited by the positioning of power outlets – you can write music wherever you want with your tablet or phone with the highest possible quality. Lightning, USB and USB Type-C cables are all included in the box.
In this video, Joshua Ray Gooch – an LA based guitarist / producer and guitarist for Shania Twain, talks about how he uses his Jam+ to record dry guitar parts for products and engineers whilst he is out on the road all over the world.
When you get home of course, you can connect the Jam+ to your Windows or Mac PCs and utilise the included BIAS FX LE amp modelling for a complete guitar recording solution. You can even connect the headphone output to a couple of speakers for a more complete recording experience.
Overall, the simplicity and portability of Jam+ makes it ideal for capturing audio anywhere you go and one of the best guitar interfaces on the market. Combining Apogee's experience in making great-sounding interfaces, it packs a mighty punch for such a small box with unparalleled ease of use and sound quality that makes it a must-have for pros on the go and a perfect introduction into recording for beginners.
This new blog is presented by the team at Sound Technology Ltd, a leading distributor of musical instruments and pro audio equipment in the UK and ROI.
