using a looper

[jswiss]

Hey guys. I recently got into pedals so im sorry if this is a basic question but im interested in how most guitarists use a looper pedal.
Is a loopers primary purpose to clean up the signal by taking a chain of effects out of the signal, or is it used more often in order to turn on more than one effect at once (for example, if i have delay and OD turned on in the bypassed loop, i could switch the looper, effectively "turning on" both pedals at once.)
Or is it used for both? or are there other purposes? thanks!

[lefty73]

When I hear "looper" I think of creating audio loops, or layers, that you can play over. Something like this. I've seen players use these, switch to bass and loop a bass line, switch to electric guitar to add some color, then switch to banjo, then switch... you get the idea.

The "looper" you describe is similar to one of these. Really a great utility pedal, and you've defined it perfectly. Depending on how you set up a looper box like these, or the amount of ins and outs it has, you really open up a world of possibilities to what happens in a single stomp.

[fendrguitplayr]

Bill Frisell uses one (and seems to get the most out of it) on a few of
his YouTube clips and recordings.

Check this out at just past the halfway marker:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hbq13bLylCY

[mike257]

Originally Posted by jswiss

Hey guys. I recently got into pedals so im sorry if this is a basic question but im interested in how most guitarists use a looper pedal.
Is a loopers primary purpose to clean up the signal by taking a chain of effects out of the signal, or is it used more often in order to turn on more than one effect at once (for example, if i have delay and OD turned on in the bypassed loop, i could switch the looper, effectively "turning on" both pedals at once.)
Or is it used for both? or are there other purposes? thanks!

The loopers the other guys are talking about are a different kind of looper!

You're talking about a 'bypass' looper - and the descriptions you've come up with are two of the most common uses.

You can, as you've said, take a whole chain of effects out in one go - some guys with big boards find it helpful to have a master bypass for the whole thing. It's a nice thing to have in an emergency if something goes nuts and breaks down I guess!

Some pedals that aren't 'True Bypass' can have an audible effect on your tone even when switched off, so you could use leave the pedal permanently switched on and bring it in or out of your chain with a loop pedal.

And yes, the other one you mentioned - if you stack certain effects together for a particular tone, you can stick them all in the loop and bring them in/out in one go. Only problem there is if you want to use any of those effects in isolation, you've got a lot of extra tap-dancing to do.

For that last use - you might be better off with something like this: http://moenfx.com/gec9.html

It has a number of loops, and you program presets of which ones you want switched on or off - for example, you can switch from OD>Trem>Reverb to OD>Delay>Boost with one button.

[Verne Bunsen]

Originally Posted by mike257

something like this: http://moenfx.com/gec9.html

That thing is hot! I've been flirting with the Carl Martin Octa-switch, but now I'm looking at this guy. Thanks for the link!