Boss RC-300 Loop Pedal Demo with Keyboard/Piano, Drum Machine, and Vocals/Singing

Purchase anything on Amazon through this link and I will receive a small commission with no additional cost to you:
Boss RC-600 (replaces the RC-300): amzn.to/3icqTCN
Other pedals/loop stations:
Boss RC-1 (goes for around $100): amzn.to/2SQ3drl
Boss RC-3 (goes for around $172): amzn.to/3dRqwbL
Boss RC-30 (goes for around $255): amzn.to/3hiIBS8
Other equipment used in the video:
Steinberg UR22mkII USB 2.0 Audio Interface: amzn.to/3yoaf5M
Sennheiser E835 Dynamic Cardioid Vocal Microphone: amzn.to/3hG35mJ
A 3-pack of Sennheiser E835 mics: amzn.to/3yroYgo
The Boss RC-300 Loop Station is frequently used for guitar and beatboxing, but can it be used for digital piano/keyboard and singing? YES! In this product review/demo, I show how you can plug your digital piano/keyboard into your Macbook via USB and using the 1000s of sounds from GarageBand (plus the Vocal presets for singing which include Compression and Reverb) make some really awesome music with the Boss RC-300 loop station (including pop music of today!). They call it a loop station because it's not just one pedal, it's 9 pedals! If this review helps you, please use this link to purchase it on Amazon (or purchase anything on Amazon) and I will receive a small commission with no additional cost to you. Thanks! amzn.to/3icqTCN

[@lildoodie2004]

One of the chiller and better tutorials out there without a lot of fluff. Thanks!

[@tommypirone]

Glad to hear it! You're welcome!

[@Ronin42069]

i wish you showed how to wire it up.

[@timjoseph887]

Nice job showing how to do this. No other videos are so quick to jump in and demo!

[@DavidBruno]

Thanks man I am looking into how to get started for my son (he is 10 and making his own music) so this was really helpful

[@mfuendofseptember]

You're the coolest dad for being supportive enough to learn this stuff for him, dude!

[@alexandr2137]

Keep up the good work.✌️🎧(Daniel here👌)

[@pazypoder]

Thank you Tommy! Love it!

[@tommypirone]

I'm glad to hear! You're welcome!

[@jeremycrisostomo3576]

cool vid! i’m looking into doing some loops with a keyboard

[@patricksnavely5850]

I like what you're doing, I loop with my guitar and since I don't know crap about keyboard it's basically my drum machine. Instead of tr snare, I love the hand clap, it sounds bad ass with a little reverb.

[@tommypirone]

Patrick Snavely Thanks Patrick! There's lots of great sounds on my current keyboard, the Roland FA-08 👍

[@seventomlinson7846]

Dang you're everywhere. You are awesome

[@repentherry5505]

Awesome....Thanks for sharing

[@calebmiller3896]

Good shit! I learned hella in this video

[@DanWilliamRooney]

Great tutorial thanks mate

[@ReligionAndMaterialismDebunked]

I first thought of, NOFX, the band. Haha.

[@tommypirone]

Haha! I can hear that!

[@lavenderbirdmusic]

Great video!

[@Gumby6699]

All is working well, thanks boss.

[@tommypirone]

Rightobearms Great to hear man! My pleasure!

[@tommypirone]

Also....no pun intended? :-b

[@nabelalsulaiman8948]

Hallo, it,s really nice what you do, can you maybe make a video about to connect the interface, keyboard, microphone , garage band and the mac and the loop station togather that would be really nice

[@alphasxsignal]

Nice I like my RC-300 looper

[@imi4774]

I would like to know,how to use this looper in live audience ,with classic piano and vocal ?

[@claycoley1313]

This guy has a great face!

[@Gumby6699]

Hey nice setup, I was wondering how you connected your keyboard using garageband instruments on your rc-300. I can hear my garageband sounds on the rc-300, but can't record any sound. Did you use the l/mono r to connect to your midi interface to the rc-300 separately?

[@tommypirone]

Hey, thanks a lot man! I actually just used a 3.5mm male to male stereo cord (something like this: amzn.to/2lkjotP) to go straight out of my Macbook headphone port (my Macbook is late 2012) and then into the "Aux" In port on the back of the Boss RC-300. That way I'm able to record EVERYTHING coming out of my Macbook including vocals. The vocals are going into the Macbook via the Steinberg UR22MKII audio interface (amzn.to/2lkhfhF) and then coming out of the headphone jack and into the Boss RC-300 to be recorded. I'm using a USB cord to plug my piano into my computer and trigger the MIDI in Garageband. The Garageband MIDI sounds are then coming out of the headphone jack (the same cord mentioned earlier) and into the Boss RC-300. Sounds kind of confusing, but let me know if this helped! Maybe I can draw a diagram. Thanks!

[@Gumby6699]

Awesome, thank you for the quick reply and the amazing info! It seems that in order to fix my recording issue I just need that 3.5mm cord, great! Once again appreciate the help, I'll let ya know if s'all is well.

[@swilhelm3180]

His rhythm is a little off sometimes. Easy to do. Can software correct this and sync up the beats?

[@Ronin42069]

I wish this included how to wire it up. I’m so lost on how to set it up

[@tommypirone]

This would be a good video to do! Thanks for the recommendation 👍 -Tommy

[@violetflame5290]

Great video! I have a question. How can I use this machine live to loop say a verse, prechorus & chorus individually and in realtime if the rhythm & bass arrangement changes in the prechorus/chorus? Will I have to record each section separately before the song even starts? Or should I pre-record the drum & bass? I'm really stuck on this. I have the RC-30 but looking into upgrading to the 300 since I'm singer/songwriter and I'm interested in this unit's ability to go from verse to chorus in a live setting. How is this done? If again, the rhythm & bass section changes from the prechorus to the chorus. Thank you.

[@tommypirone]

Hey Violet! Sorry I didn't see this earlier. IMO, the loop station works best with songs that have the same chord progression throughout. However, it's still possible to do what you want to do, but it requires recording the rhythm and bass ahead of time and saving the recordings to a preset in the loop station. You could record the chorus on pedal 2 and the bridge on pedal 3 and then save it. Then when it comes time to perform, record a loop on Pedal 1 to show the audience what you're doing and then go to your pre-recorded tracks for the chorus and bridge.....This is one way to do it...Another is to record all 3 parts live, but this would be time consuming and you may lose your audience's attention. The loop station has 99 presets and can save up to 3 hours of recording. I hope this helps. -Tommy

[@matthiaspiaux7909]

Hey! Thanks for the video, helped me out a lot. Now I'm trying to actually record my performance into Logic (I use Logic instead of GarageBand), how do I do that? Everything sounds good, I loop the piano, the mic.. Just need to record the whole performance now. Maybe I missed something simple sorry if my question is dumb! Thanks for your time.

[@tommypirone]

Hey Matthias! Good question! That gets a little tricky because the loop station is the final place where your performance ends up. To record your performance, one way is to plug a cable into the headphone or L & R output jacks of the LOOP STATION and send that signal to another computer with the recording software on it. The reason I say another computer is because you're already using your keyboard to trigger midi notes in Logic so if you add in recording on top of that, you may run into some problems. It still might be possible though. The main thing to know is that your final, mixed performance will be coming out of the Loop Station headphone jack and the L & R output jacks, and that's the source you want to be recording. I hope this helps.

[@matthiaspiaux7909]

@@tommypirone Thanks for your time! Will look into this. I'm thinking of getting a "standalone" keyboard instead of my midi one. If all my sounds are in the keyboard already, I'll be able to use Logic to record only right?

[@tommypirone]

@@matthiaspiaux7909 My pleasure :-) Yes, that's correct! You'll be able to record your performance coming from the Boss RC-300 to Logic on your computer with a stand-alone keyboard 👍 It will be one mixed track that gets recorded.

[@Dan_TheMedic]

@@matthiaspiaux7909 Did you ever get a standalone keyboard, if so which one did you go for? And, did you sort the recording issue out? I've been meaning to transition to LogicProX from GB for some years as the platform is the same as FCPX (video editing software) and more industry-standard, whereas GB tends to be more home-user end, despite being way better to music than iMovie was to video. If you're still on the hunt for a decent keyboard with awesome sounds, check out something old like the KORG M1 - I've had one of these since the early 90s (yeah, giving my age away now) and will never part with it. It has some of the best sounds still, especially piano sounds, and you can pick them up for for a couple of hundred £/$ in decent condition.

[@imi4774]

How to use RC Boss 300 with classic piano I can not connect it to loop station ,so from microphone is that possible ? If yes , how and with what kind of devices ?

[@tommypirone]

Hi there! I would recommend getting a mixer and plugging two or more microphones into the mixer. One or two microphones will pick up your acoustic piano and the other microphone will pick up your voice. Then, from the mixer, run a cable into the Boss RC-300's input (either the 1/4" line in or the XLR input). The Boss Loop Station only has one XLR input for a microphone so that is why I recommend running your microphone cables into a mixer first and then go to the Boss RC-300 input. This will allow you to use more than one microphone for your performance. I hope this helps.

[@AnthonyElsetinow]

Why do you need a looper with garage band when you can loop it in there

[@inkgloriousbastards4947]

How to you hook up multiple instruments to it like and piano and guitar?

[@Niven42]

Unfortunately, if you have a MacBook and GarageBand you don't need a Loop Station.

[@maciejsmycz9340]

Hey, man. How you recorded this? If you just using the sounds form garageband where and what is your recording software? Please, help. Thanks.

[@Ky2x1]

Hey Tommy, I seem to be having sorta the same issue that Rightobeararms was having. So I believe I already have a male to male stereo cord (an extra from a beats by dre purchase) is that the type of cord you're using? Only difference is I have an allen&heath mixer/interface & a Focusrite interface. And I can't seem to get the midi sounds to loop onto the rc-300. I have garage band but prefer logic Any advice as to how to get it funky like you've accomplished?

[@tommypirone]

Kylle Thomasson Hey Kylle! Wherever the sound is being output from your computer, that's where you want to plug the cord in and then to the "Aux" input on the back of the RC 300. Sometimes, when you plug an interface in, the output of your computer is automatically switched to outputting through the interface. You can do that, but you'll need to plug the cord into your interface's output instead of the headphone jack on your computer. Let me know if this helps.

[@Ky2x1]

I've got it to loop but now its giving me a really bad phased/distorted sound. I'm using a scarlett 2i2 you think that might be why?

[@tommypirone]

Are you getting the phasing and distortion while you're playing or only when you play the loop back? Phasing and distortion usually have 2 main causes. For phasing, if the sound is playing back from 2 sources at the same time, you'll get phasing. Also, a cable can cause phasing/distortion. When the left and right channels of a cable (red & white) are combined into one mono channel, they increase the signal and cause distortion and phasing. Make sure you're only using one channel (the left or right side) for a mono output. Or if you have a stereo cable, make sure whatever device the signal ends up at has a stereo input (left & right IN). For distortion, make sure your signal isn't too hot. If you see the level meter maxing out and going in the red, you need to turn down the gain and/or volume on your instrument, mixer, or within Garageband. Let me know if this helps! I'm thinking of doing a setup video to explain this more in detail!

[@benthepianist3102]

Love this! You are seriously talented dude! I've just started using a loop pedal, would love to know what you think of my attempt! Liked and subscribed :-)

[@tommypirone]

I'm talented? Haha! You're the talented one! Awesome loop video you made. Subscribing now.

[@mikkelyt9420]

Hi. Could you explain how the connection goes? Is the keyboard connected to the looper and then the looper goes into the sound interface? Thanks

[@februar252]

how do you plug in all the stuff to the computer? Do you need a sound interface?

[@tommypirone]

I'm sorry for just now seeing this. Yes, I use the Steinberg UR22mkII usb audio interface to plug everything into the computer.

[@Dan_TheMedic]

@@tommypirone Sorry mate, I'm hijacking your video here. :) I have the dame set up as you, minus the loop pedal (so yeah, a synth and a MacBook). The best interface I've found, and most cost-effective and versatile, is the BOSS DUE-CAPTURE EX. Some viewers might find this a good product.

[@jen0906]

Can you use this with live performance? Meaning output to a speaker instead of to daw?

[@MarkCrotti]

Hey tom, Helpful video. Got a fellow looper question for you. I'm looking to upgrade to this loopstation (ill purchase via your link if i do it). The only thing all the loop stations lack is three inputs, I want to plug my guitar + keyboard + roland SPD SX drum pad into it. Any work arounds you can think of?

[@tommypirone]

Mark Crotti Hey, cool Mark! Glad it helped. The Boss RC 300 has three separate inputs on it so you can try something like this: One of the inputs has two, female 1/4” slots. Plug your keyboard into that using the appropriate cable. The second input is a stereo, 3/8” slot. Plug your drum pad into that using the appropriate cable. The 3rd input is a female XLR slot. Plug your guitar into that. You can go from a 1/4” cable into a Direct Box, which then goes to an XLR cable. Plug the XLR into the XLR input. That should work. I’ll try a similar combination and let you know if it works.

[@MarkCrotti]

ok I didn't think of running guitar to XLR, makes sense. Thanks mate really appreciate it!

[@tommypirone]

Sure thing! You got it!

[@6leafdom]

so how exactly do i hook everything up? i got a rc30 pedal. would that work?

[@tommypirone]

Hey man :-) I have one of those pedals as well. I'm looking to do a few videos to show how I set everything up 👍

[@raffaelecarboni744]

Is possible change the tempo of an imported loop with tha TAP tempo pedal?

[@artistm.5772]

HEY TOMMY! Thank you for your tutorial. do you know if I need audio interface if I use looper? I have the rc30 :)

[@tommypirone]

Hey! Sorry for the late reply. You'll only need an audio interface if you want to communicate with your computer first before inputting the sound into the looper. Otherwise, you can plug directly into the looper with whatever instrument, vocal mic, or aux cord you're using. I am using the Steinberg UR22MKII audio interface (amzn.to/2lkhfhF) because I want to communicate with GarageBand first and then take whatever audio GarageBand is producing and input it into the looper pedal. If you don't need GarageBand, you can plug directly into the looper pedal.

[@Justanotherguy39]

Is that how you made the keyboard sound like drum parts. Can you do that with any keyboard or does the keyboard need to have some extra features?

[@tommypirone]

Hey Satindar, to make the drum sounds, I used GarageBand. To do that, I plugged my keyboard into my computer using a USB cable so I can send midi information to the computer (your keyboard needs to have a USB plugin). Once in GarageBand, I created a software instrument track and selected a drum voice/sound. Then, when I play a key on the keyboard, GarageBand produces a drum sound instead of a piano sound. If you don't have a computer and GarageBand, there are keyboards that also produce drum sounds without the use of a computer. @@Justanotherguy39

[@siemenboucquez7502]

i have a boss rc1 and a yamaha DGX 650. How do I connext thes to eachoter?

[@tommypirone]

Hey Siemen! Do you want to connect only your keyboard and loop pedal together or are you trying to use sounds from your computer as well?

[@siemenboucquez7502]

Tommy Pirone only my (RC 1) loop pedal and my ( Yamaha dgx 650) keyboard

[@tommypirone]

Hey! Sorry, I didn't see your response. Using a standard guitar/instrument cable, plug one end into your keyboard's OUTPUT hole (1/4" jack) and then insert the other end of the cable into the Loop Pedal's INPUT A hole. After that, use another cable and plug it into the OUTPUT A hole on your loop pedal. Then the other end of the cable would plug into whatever sound system/amp/stereo you are using to amplify the sound. Make sure the power is on and the volumes are turned up for each device and you should be good to go. Let me know if this helps!

[@siemenboucquez7502]

Tommy Pirone thanks, my keyboard has a build-in speaker, how do I use those?

[@tommypirone]

I looked at your keyboard's manual. It looks like you have an "AUX IN" jack in the back. You would use a cable to go from the loop pedal's "OUTPUT A" into the "AUX IN" jack in the back of your keyboard so that the keyboard speakers can amplify the sound. Also, it looks like your keyboard turns the speakers off when you plug anything into the "Phones/Output" jack. This setting can be changed. Refer to the keyboard's manual on page 55 to learn how to keep the speakers "Always On".

[@hajo8334]

do you have the micro in the Aux box?

[@tommypirone]

Yeah, micro is going to the Aux box, then through Garageband, then an aux cable is sending the audio out from the computer to the back of the loop pedal.

[@haguitar]

could i use the iphone to replace the mac ？

[@tommypirone]

Yes, technically, you could do that. You can use a music app on your iphone and send midi signals to your iphone from the keyboard using a midi to usb cable. You would also need an adapter on the iphone to take the usb and it would probably have to have a power port on the adapter as well so you can keep it charging while using it.

[@tommypirone]

But you would also need a 3rd port that sends out the audio signal from the iphone to the looper pedal. With the newer iPhones, they took away the headphone jack so this may make it difficult to send the audio signal out. You would need an adapter that has 3 ports. One for usb, one for power, and one for a headphone jack. I'm not sure such an adapter exists.

[@haguitar]

​@@tommypirone okay！thank you！you are so patient！God bless u：）

[@haguitar]

@@tommypirone so did the rc-30 also work in the same way like rc-300？i am a looper-beginner，my friends told me rc-30 was easier than rc-300？

[@tommypirone]

@@haguitar The RC-30 only has 2 pedals on it instead of 9 like the RC-300, so it is much more limited in it's use. I find the RC-300 easier to use and more versatile than the RC-30. However, the simplicity of the RC-30 is great if you want to take it on the road and just need something smaller to fit into your travel bag. It does basic looping.

[@cameront1231]

how did you get so many sounds on garageband? does that cost something?

[@tommypirone]

If I remember correctly, I'm pretty sure it's because I have Logic Pro which included a bunch of sounds.

[@ameenapatel5319]

Can I use cubase? :/

[@ozmorse7250]

those flams lmaoooooo

[@februar252]

and where is the sound coming from

[@Dan_TheMedic]

I often look at my MacBook and think the same thing. I think the speakers are somewhere near the screen hinge.

[@ronnieroddyjr3756]

how do u plug in your regular keyboard to work on software like logic and or garageband

[@tommypirone]

Hey Ronnie! Check the back of your keyboard to see if you have "USB out" or "Midi Out". If you have "USB out", you can use a cable like this amzn.to/2BbWldR to send midi information from your keyboard to your computer and Logic/GarageBand. If you have "Midi out", you can use a cable like this: amzn.to/2B7W6k1 to send the information. Hope this helps!

[@Justanotherguy39]

It did help it answered the question I asked on the other comment here.

[@firstimpression9399]

A little better lol

[@summitsparrow]

Does it quantize notes? Thanks

[@tommypirone]

Joey Young Unfortunately, it doesn't quantize individual notes. It will only line up the beginning and end of tracks so they play together in sync, but the stuff in between won't quantize because it's just audio being recorded and not midi notes.

[@summitsparrow]

Oh ok. I guess that'll help me on my timing. Looking into getting started on looping and this device seemed like the most versatile so far. Thanks!

[@tommypirone]

Joey Young Glad I could help! If you wanted to add even more flexibility, you can connect two of these pedals together and sync them up! 6 separate loop tracks. Crazy!

[@jeremylavine]

Misleading title. This is not a review. It's a demo. And even as a demo, it doesn't explore the features of the device or the typical way you'd use it. You're not doing anything here with the RC-300 that you couldn't do with the much cheaper RC-1. And if you already have everything hooked up through a DAW on your laptop, you could just use that for looping and skip the loop pedal, save money, and get better audio quality and more control.

[@tommypirone]

Thank you for your feedback. There are many ways to loop. This is just one way to do it. I like having the ability to use my feet to loop instead of pressing a button with my hand while I'm trying to play piano.

[@rocknlord]

shoes very white

[@theacan565]

???AHHH

[@alexgaiy2939]

This guy ducks at singong

[@kras_mazov]

This is awful