Looper sound quality

[capgun]

Hello! I think this should be the right place to post this. I’m wanting to get a looper to help with my progress. My question is, as far as playback of the recorded loop, is there any looper that has a clearer sound or are they all pretty much the same? Thanks.

Capgun

 

[Guitarteach]

Digital tech is pretty good. Most decent brands will be good. I use a Boss RC3 and love it. Can’t fault the sound.

I’d be looking for features you want,, length, storage slots, metronomes, extra stop/start button, etc.

 

[beninma]

Digital Tech is pretty good but it also marches forward in an unstoppable way.

I have a Boss RC-10r and several Dittos (original model).

The Boss is noticeably higher fidelity on the playback. The new 2020 Ditto might be greatly improved here.

It makes sense seeing there are years and years between when they each launched and a big price difference. The DSP/CPU in the Boss has got to be much more powerful considering when it launched.

Likewise I have a Beat Buddy Mini and the drum sounds in the RC-10r are much higher fidelity and sound much better through a guitar amp since it has EQ settings for a guitar amp vs a FRFR speaker and the drum patterns are more sophisticated.

 

[schmee]

I have 2 ditto's , they seem to produce what I put in well.

 

[Tuneup]

I use a $99 Ditto looper, has 5 minutes record time and you can layer loops.
Uncompressed 24 bit audio.

 

[rand z]

I like my DigiTech Jamman.

Ive been using it a lot in my solo shows for almost 11 years.

 

[TwoBear]

I bought Digitech stereo looper maybe 10 years ago and I have abused it, tripping and falling on it and knocking off a couple of knobs, and leaving my gear on all day so I can just pick it up and play besides when are used to work it could be six days a week with doubles on Saturday and Sunday, And that unit has constantly worked. I have a/b’d it, And the preamp in it is pretty decent especially if you run it up a little past 12 o’clock it can be hard to tell the original from the recorded. I also have the NUX Loop core deluxe, and it’s decent I wouldn’t say it’s at the level of the Digitech but it’s definitely a fun Looper and does well for busking. Depending on your gear you may want to chase a looper that offers amp simulation or sound compensation or whatever they call it-So it can be run through Home stereo or boombox or pa without sounding tinny. I did own the boss I think it’s RC 10 or it’s a red unit that’s about $300 the newer one with circle dials that does two parts like a verse and chorus, And thought that that was probably the best sounding, Nice and crispy , but I didn’t get along with the user interface, and ultimately returned it.

 

[TwoBear]

I have no idea why this answer to a forum member became it’s own trip...rise of the machines...play on Bobba’ oh I see I never saw a new post Section before maybe it’s the new phone scrolling down to where I never was before ha ha darn not as nefarious as I thought... maybe they’re not out to get me...

 

[jamesepowell]

I am waiting for the Ditto+ because so many people raved about it.

But the shipping date keeps getting pushed back, no doubt due to corona.

 

[burntfrijoles]

I have the cheap Donner looper. It works fine for what I want to do.

 

[Obsessed]

I have the Jamman Stereo and the Trio+ and very happy with both over a long period. The old Boss RC group seem find to my ears too. I think the important thing is find one with the feature set and human interface that suit your needs and desires. Some of the newer loopers have features like syncing that seem attractive to me. I don't my loopers for importing into DAW, but rather for capturing and developing ideas or performing, so maybe there is a misconception as to how to use the results of looping of a pedal.

 

[FenderLover]

I'd second the idea to focus on features instead of the sampling tech. Digital processors are so fast now that a low bandwidth guitar signal is no challenge. For those who complain about digital artifacts and 'dryness', nothing will ever make them happy. I'm sure there might be a bad one out there, but let's not look for the exception when everything else is right in front of us. I have Boomerang III and Ditto, both sound excellent.

 

[Tim S]

I bought a Lekato looper pedal on Amazon for under $50. 9 slots, USB drag-n-drop file transfer and a visual loop of LEDs. Best new pedal bargain I’ve found.
image removed

 

[ndcaster]

Does anyone's looper cut highs when you turn down its volume?

 

[DougM]

I like one that has a lot of memory slots, so I can load a bunch of progressions in to have fun jamming with and soloing over, instead of the ones with a single memory location where I have to reload every time I want to change songs. The ones that have that are the Boss RC3 (just replaced by the RC5), the Nux Loopcore (also sold under the Hartke name), then new Ditto Plus (not yet available), and of course the larger and more expensive ones from EHX, Boss, and others. I have the Digitech Jamman Solo XT, because it was the least expensive one with 99 slots and a decent amount of memory (35 min., and ability to use a micro SD card for more space), when I got it. It sounds great and works flawlessly. But, since the shakeup at Digitech when Harman was bought by Samsung, they only make the Trio now. The EHX 360 and 720 have too few slots and too little memory time for the asking price. There are probably more ones that have the capabilities that I like from the Chinese companies that I don't know about. I also have the Nano size Rowin which sounds great, but the latest Rowin software to upload and download saved loops to PC doesn't work right. I can't even get it to install on my laptop without failing.
If I was going to buy another it would be the Boss, Nux, or TC Ditto Plus.

 

[DougM]

Does anyone's looper cut highs when you turn down its volume?

I haven't noticed that, but the Jamman Solo does inhibit tone and dynamics from the live guitar passing thru to a slight degree. But, it's so minimal that it isn't an issue to me.

 

[BobbyJames]

I have a Ditto x2 looper and I agree with others that the fidelity of the loop isn’t as good as I’ve previously experienced with my Boss RC3 and RC30 - I only use it for jamming, so I’m not too fussed

 

[Junkyard Dog]

I think the name brands are all the same as far as quality of reproducing the signal, but you can check the specifications. It’s anybody’s guess on the chinese copies. Obviously any digital processing will introduce some amount of latency.

 

[quadtele]

The "older" devices are lower quality/16 bit which can have some artifacts, but varies quite a bit. Digitech Jamman is pretty dated. The low end of the market is hit or miss. The high end (e.g., Aeros) is impeccable but expensive.

 

[Mojohand40]

I have a few, but now in days only use a Ditto.
The thing to remember is your amp. The looper will absolutely reproduce the guitar signal going in....But....when it plays back through the amp, it may be playing back at a lower volume (depending on how you set your looper, or want it set) and depending on your amp; the lower volume may not sound the same.

The best way to use a looper is into a squeaky clean amp.
You can use dirt pedals before the looper, but you want a really clean setting on your amp.