Hello Composers! Mike here, with my review of Shreddage 3 electric guitar. Do you want to add electric guitars into your music, but you lack the guitar skills and gear? Then keep on reading! =)

SOUND & FEATURES

Shreddage 3 ReviewShreddage 3 can do anything from clean arpeggios, to 70’s wah wah guitars, to driving rock, and all the way to high gain metal guitars.

And what’s really impressive is that it does not only do rhythm guitar and arpeggios well…it actually can pull off amazing lead guitar sounds too, with vibrato, bends, hammer-ons, and all that so important expression! =)

They have improved the fret and string selection algorithm, where you can also choose the fretting mode, picking mode and even use a capo if you wish.

You can also adjust with a slider if you want to play lower or higher down the neck of the guitar. You can choose the picking mode, the fretting mode, preferred range etc.

How does it sounds then? Watch my Quick Sound Demo Video here.

Control & Mappings

Something I am a real fan of in virtual instruments, is flexibility of mappings of expression controls and performance controls.

For example choosing how you want to control vibrato, mutes, bends etc. And that can easily be customized by you in Shreddage 3.

Another really cool feature they added, is called “Poly Input”. It is a kind of look-ahead algorithm, which allows you to switch between playing strums and single strings in real time, without using key switches.

Strumming & Rhythm

If you use the built-in amp presets you can now also easily do double tracking, or even quad tracking in one single instance of Shreddage 3.

They also added a strumming engine, which you can customize a lot as a user. Such as controlling the strum speed, dynamics etc. And again, you can choose how you want to map these performance controls.

In the strumming engine you can also play individual strings on the chords, by using the single string keyswitches they have added.

And an extra bonus is that Shreddage 3 is NKI compatible, which means you can use it with Komplete Kontrol for extra powerful control and better overview of key switches etc.

Built in Amps & FX

They also added a page called “Console” which is a very powerful FX and mix section to control the tone and overall sound of your guitars. And you even get access to built-in amps, cabinets and pedals in here.

Essentially you don’t need to add any external effect plugins, amps, etc. if you don’t want to. Shreddage 3 really is an all-in-one package for electric guitars.

Finally, what I love as a keyboard player, is that I can play riffs and chords in any way I want on my MIDI keyboard. And those voicings are being played by Shreddage 3 instead of re-voicing them.

Now, this might not be your preference since some voicings will be very strange and even impossible for a real guitarist to play. But I like to be in control of the overall sound as my number one priority.

THE INTERFACE

The user interface have a whole new look and design compared to Shreddage 2, and I am really liking the improvements.

Much crisper, better layout, and to be honest: lots of more control! The added control does come with a bit higher learning curve, but I personally thing it is well worth it.

It is also a bigger UI, which is a big improvement for me, since I am on a high resolution screen.

MY 3 FAVORITE THINGS

1. The Flexibility of Tone & Style
I am not kidding when I say that you can basically get any type of electric guitar performance style from Shreddage 3. It’s not really focused on a particular genre…you can do them all! =)

2. The User Control
This is something I personally love in virtual instruments. Give the user the control and power to choose how to map expression and articulations for they way you prefer to play, record and control your performances. And Shreddage 3 gives you that control.

3. The Playability
You don’t need to add effects, pedals, amps, cabinets etc. You don’t even have to use keyswitches to play guitar performances with variation and expression. If you learn how to use Shreddage 3 deeper features, you can get that instant playability that I personally love as a composer.

MY FINAL THOUGHTS

I’ll be completely honest with you. I’ve tried many electric guitar plugins, and have have never been truly happy to the point I end up using it a lot.

Shreddage 3 might not be the holy grail for virtual guitar VST plugins, but I love it for the versatility, control and flexibility. It has made it my absolute favorite electric guitar plugin.

I have found it to be especially great for riffs and powerchord rhythms, as well as lead guitar. Strumming using full and big chords with natural guitar voicings is a bit more work to do, but it is possible.

Granted, it does come with a bit of a learning curve due to all these options and control. But I find that it is well worth the time investment, to get a really good plugin for electric guitar.

With Shreddage 3 you can really do all styles of electric guitar performances. And if you spend some time adding expression and performance style variation, you can end up with a truly authentic sounding electric guitar performance in your music production.

LEARN MORE

Learn more about Shreddage 3 by Impact Soundworks here. Get a full overview and specifications, listen to audio demos etc.