Yet another "which looping pedal?" question...

[boo radley]

Hmm....I'm not a luddite, but I'd like a very simple pedal, so that I can play a few changes, and then practice over it.
I've never owned a looping pedal or effect.

I'm concerned though, that some of the suggestions I've read here (Akai HeadRush, Hardwire -something), only have 15 or 20 seconds of capacity. For, say, a 12-bar blues at slow tempo...I'm not sure I'd get to the V chord. <grin>

So if I'd like to get 30-40 seconds, it sounds like I'm going to have to go Jamman or RC-2*, or something, with a commensurate learning curve? Not complaining - just checking the facts.

Or, for those that use the pedal like I'm planning to, is 15 or 20 seconds plenty? Thx

[jjkrause84]

You want as much time as you can get a SLOW blues progression will take much longer than 20 seconds.

I have an old Boomerang which I love dearly.....you might want somethign similar. VERY easy to use and great learning tools

[Jelle]

I have an EHX Memory Man with Hazarai and have great fun with the looper (30 sec.). Versatile digital delay as well.

[boo radley]

Wow -- looked at those Boomerangs. Yikes($), but there's probably a reason why. That EHX pedal looks interesting.

Here's a really stupid question, however: I have a Classic30 amp. 1 input with an effects loop. Can I get two different 'tones' simultaneously? Ie, clean rhythm from the looping pedal, and dirt from the live guitar?

[Verne Bunsen]

I've had great success with my JamMan, and the FS3X external footswitch adds a whole extra dimension of versatility. Right out of the box it has like a 30 minute capacity, and you can upgrade the Compact Flash card to upgrade it to like 6.5 hours. Thats a lot of 12 bar. There's definately a learning curve, but what could be more fun than playing with new gear? I've recommended it to a few buddies and haven't heard anyone regretting the purchase.

If you put the looper in your effects loop, then you should be able to do exactly what you describe. Play your rhythm clean, then when you kick in the dirt for your lead your clean rhythm will remain unaffected.

What ever you decide on, have fun!

[fivenote]

I use a Boss RC-2. I attach an extra FS-5U to make it a little easier to control. One press on the FS-5u to stop the loop vs 2 hits on the main pedal. It holds something like 16 minutes of music, lets you overdub, save loops, add drum patterns. I use it for practice and live gigs. I'll record while playing/singing the first verse, then playback later so I'm freed up to play solos or melodies.

[crossroader]

I'm still using my old Boss RC-20 that I bought several years ago. Love it!
Great practice tool and you can get pretty creative when you start overdubbing and building little "compositions".

It's pretty straightforward to use and you can save a bunch of different loops if you want.

As far as loop time, I don't think I'd be happy with a 15-20 second limit. If you want to practice over chord progressions - or even songs - I'd recommend a dedicated looping pedal, as opposed to a delay that tacks on a 20-second loop capability as an add-on feature.
That was my thinking when I bought the RC-20, anyway, and I'm glad I went that route.

[mr newhaven]

yeah i fiddled around with some delays and loopers and just went with the boss looper pedal...

its solid...there might be better...but i didnt wanna spend a year finding one!
id rather spend that time learning how to use my damn pedal instead
haha

good luck to you!

[MikeS29]

+1 on the JamMan. It is a blast, easy to use, and is a great practice tool.

[hannigan]

For what you want to do a dl4 would be fine.
I am loopy and use:
DL4 (two of em)
lo fi loop junky
rc2
jamman
boomerang+
EHX 16 second delay RI
boxes full of thrift store tape recorders
I also use a line 6 back track for looping.
I use them all for various applications.

[krauser2]

hardwire looper/delay pedal

great digital delay with loop function. Not the most indepth, but I really like it. Not expensive either. Plays well with analog delays like the CC :)

[HOBBSTER01]

Originally Posted by MikeS29

+1 on the JamMan. It is a blast, easy to use, and is a great practice tool.

I agree.
I've owned just about all of 'em and JamMan is the best IMO.
I've got just over 18 hours of home built tracks on 4 different CF cards.

[jjkrause84]

Originally Posted by boo radley

Wow -- looked at those Boomerangs. Yikes($), but there's probably a reason why. That EHX pedal looks interesting.

Here's a really stupid question, however: I have a Classic30 amp. 1 input with an effects loop. Can I get two different 'tones' simultaneously? Ie, clean rhythm from the looping pedal, and dirt from the live guitar?

If the brand-new Version 3 Boomerangs are 450 bucks how much is a used Version 1? My guess: not too much.....

[jjkrause84]

Originally Posted by jjkrause84

If the brand-new Version 3 Boomerangs are 450 bucks how much is a used Version 1? My guess: not too much.....

Actually I looked and even old V. 2s are going for upwards pf $200

Still, very nice pedals

[Scotty Lonesome]

RC-2 for practice, Jamman to record and overdub ideas that can be transferred to computer and modded, sent, etc...
Scotty.

[boo radley]

Thx all -- sounds like I can't go wrong, really, with a couple of different options. I'll see what pops up on CL or eBay in the next week or so, or hell - might just buy a new jamman online. I like that it has some built-in rhythm stuff.