Guitar sound: Amp + mic vs Direct input

When I play guitar, I can never seem to get a distortion sound that I am happy with. I almost always play with my guitar hooked up the an effects pedal and the pedal hooked up to my headphones- thereby skipping the amplifier entirely. But now I am thinking this might be the problem.

So do you think that an amplifier turned up real loud can produce a unique guitar sound that cannot be replicated digitally?

and if I wanted to record some music- what are the advantages/dissadvantages of plugging a guitar straight into the computer versus from a guitar- to an amp- to a mic- to a computer?

 

Ok, I have read that a lot of people prefer to mic an amp to get a more desirable distortion sound.
(I know that the type of amp, quality of the mic, the pickups on the guitar, and the acoustics of the room play very important parts in the end sound. But those things aside)

If someone could also go through the basic process of mic'ing an amp (how far away do I place the mic etc etc), I will be very happy.

Thanks.

 

I prefer micing an amp if possible. An amp gives the sound more balls and the tones can be clearer. Direct injection always seems to make the sound thinner with distortion guitar. just put the mic right up to the speaker about 3 inches away. it all depends if you want to use the ambiance of the room that you are recording in. i prefer to mic my amp so that I get less room reverberation, and then digitally add reverb. This is only because ive never really recorded in a room with great acoustics. Once that day comes, I suppose I will use good acoustics to my advantage and digitize reverb less. so yea, just use your ear.

 

general rule of thumb is electric guitars use an amp, bass guitar or acoustic use DI

 

Always use a mic when recording.

 

eh, when recording vocals, I prefer to avoid using mics. instead I just stick a quarter-inch cable up my ass. it works wonders for my voice.