Welcome to the Maple Street Guitars July Newsletter

My Love Affair with the Looper

L. Petsch

Getting in to my Way-Back machine, I recall a time when cell phones were a novel luxury, the internet was a curiosity to many (and a nuisance to most parents, who had to contend with their teenagers commandeering some strange thing called a landline), and anything digital was, well, very expensive.  In our industry, this period in the early nineties marked the dawn of features like Digital Signal Processing (or DSP) in solid-state amps, as well as cool things like outboard digital phrase recorders, otherwise known as loopers.   It was during this time that an employee here acquired a rack-mounted looper that boasted an astonishing two and a half minute recording capacity.  This device far exceeded what could be readily accomplished with delay pedals, and it was certainly much more convenient than the conventional process of making tape loops.  Of course, this impressive machine was quite costly—I think it was close to $1000 per minute of recording time—and thus it was not something most people would consider a practical tool.   

Fortunately, Moore’s Law applies to loopers!  By the turn of the 21^st century, loopers were affordable enough that the benevolent owners of Maple Street Guitars could afford to give each member of the sales staff a BOSS RC20 for Christmas one year.   With a five and a half minute memory and eleven storage banks, this particular looper was a game changer, as one could conceivably play and store an entire song without exhausting memory for overdubbing.  It was at this point that I first caught a glimmer of the true value of the looper as a practice tool, as opposed to a recording tool or a means for producing deep layered soundscapes in a live setting (as seen with the likes of Ed Sheeran, Keller Williams, etc.).   

Unfortunately, it would be some time before I truly embraced the looper and unlocked its potential.   Yet, on a fateful day about five years ago, I fired up my trusty CARR Mercury, strapped on my Tele, took a sip of a frosty barley pop, and powered up my old BOSS RC20.  My objective was simple:  After years of occassionally messing around with the looper, I was finally going to dedicate whatever time was necessary to figure out how to make the damn thing really work for me!   Thanks to my prior experience with the device, understanding the pedal’s functions was not the challenge—actually, I find that most folks can get a handle on operating the pedal quickly.  I quickly discovered, however, that making a seamless loop (i.e., a loop that has no gaps or apparent start/stopping point) requires some diligent practice and thus represents the true learning curve of looping. That said, armed with the RC20’s most convenient (but once dreaded) integrated tap tempo metronome, I persevered, and I was soon making seamless loops with little difficulty.   

Having overcome the initial hurdle of making the seamless loop, I soon realized the manifold benefits, and, more importantly, the fun of looping! (I then cursed my stupidity and laziness for not taking the time to learn and make use of this wonderful tool over the preceding decade.)   The looper is a practice buddy who never gets drunk or bored with the fact that he is relegated to strumming all the rhythm and chords while you self indulgently take all the solos.   This alone makes a looper indispensable for any student who is eager to learn how to play leads, in that one must practice licks, scales, phrasing, and alternate chord voicings to become a proficient soloist.  

Some of the more sophisticated loopers have a built in metronome that functions as a click track, where the first beat of each measure is emphasized, as well as a basic drum track  (e.g., the BOSS RC20, RC20XL, the new RC30, Digitech Jam Man series).   From my experience, the drum beat feature of these more expensive loopers is absolutely worth the premium!!!   Like it or not, rhythm is a fundamental musical skill that is often overlooked, or perhaps under-prioritized, amidst a player’s zeal to learn chords and melodies.  Most folks find the discipline of practicing to a metronome completely unromantic and beyond tedious; yet, any serious musician will tell you that the use of a metronome is essential.   I suppose that one could always use a separate metronome in conjunction with a basic looper; but, by using a looper with a tap-tempo metronome/click, it is much easier to start and stop the loop as desired, as well as establish a loop tempo that is based on your actual intuited groove.  That aside, by selecting drum tracks instead of a simple metronomic click, you get the added benefit of having a drummer of sorts playing along with you—this is a lot more fun and gives you all the growth potential of playing to a metronome without the monotony!   My transformation in the recording process is a testament to the practical applications of a looper.  Thanks to my consistent use of the RC30’s metronome, I’ve gone from a player who was incapable of playing along to a click when recording (which made me timid and profoundly frustrated!) to a player who could play with confidence in the studio.   

Today, there are many loopers to choose from—we stock four excellent options that you can compare in the links below—but, based on personal experience, I highly recommend the BOSS RC30.  The RC30 has myriad attractive features: three hours of looping time, ninety-nine storage banks, a drum/click track, a USB port for exporting or importing your files, an XLR and AUX input (you can loop a mic and/or audio from a device like an mp3 player), and a stereo breakout.  Regardless of the looper you choose, I can promise you that you will most assuredly  become a better player by using your looper, and that you will have a great deal of fun in the process!