If you're a guitarist with a fondness for the sound of synthesizers but can't play a keyboard, why don't you change up your sound with the help of a guitar synthesizer? It's easier than ever these days.
Create Unique Sounds With a Guitar Synth
Guitar synthesizers and synth effect pedals are able to chew up and render the sound of a guitar virtually unrecognisable - in a good way. Some even turn your guitar into a fully-fledged synthesizer, or an organ, a piano, a totally different guitar or pretty much any instrument you want. You've basically got two options here: a specially designed (hexaphonic/MIDI) pickup that can be mounted directly onto your guitar or a stompbox-style guitar synth that you simply plug in like any other standard effects pedal. In whatever form they come, many of these effects offer countless sound-warping options, including octavers, envelopes, frequency and resonance settings. Other effects pedals that come close the sound of synth effects are Ring Modulators and Filters.
Guitar Synthesizers
A well-known example of a pickup-based guitar synthesizer is the Roland GR-55. The pickup that forms the core of a guitar synthesizer system either already comes built into a specific guitar model or can be mounted onto your guitar. This special pickup registers the vibration of the strings and converts them into separate signals per string that are then sent through a synthesizer. The synthesizer, which may come in the form of a pedal, then takes the signals and converts them into a selected sound (usually digital), just like a keyboard. This way, you can take any electric guitar and give it the ability to mimic various guitar effects, evoke the sound of acoustic and electric guitars or basses, and control any virtual instruments via MIDI. Besides guitar synths, you'll find matching cables and separate pickups in this department.
