How to Use "Guitar Hero" as a MIDI Controller

Although a guitar controller lets you play musical games like "Guitar Hero" and "Rockband," some gamers may want to make more use of the controller's capabilities. Fortunately, freeware options exist that allow you to use a guitar controller to make music on your own. You can use your guitar controller to freely design your own MIDI music by downloading the right programs and installing the right drivers.

• 1
  Plug the USB extension of the "X-Plorer" controller into the USB port of your computer.
• 2
  Install the drivers for the X-Plorer controller. On a PC, the computer will automatically detect the controller without user instruction and will install the drivers on its own. Mac users must manually download and install the "Tattieboggle" drivers. See the reference section for the location of a free download.
• 3
  If you are a PC user, download the "LoopBe1" MIDI driver (See References).
• 4
  Download and install the "AXIS" application, which is available for both Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows. (See References)
• 5
  Open "AXIS" and you can use your controller to create MIDI music.