The Empty Loop Technique (how to make seamless soundscapes loops)

[@tylerlee549]

On your bigSky set your “HOLD” setting to “Infinite” then hold down the foot switch to sustain a note or chord. Once it starts sustaining Turn off the volume on your guitar and start recording your loop. It’s perfectly seamless.

[@GrootsieTheDog]

Exactly what I was looking for because I want to make ambient electronic synth music with a looper. I have a sp404mk2 buf it has no overdubbing so nearly impossible in a live situation to get seamless pads and drones.

[@RickySweum]

Great tip. Getting rid of that obvious loop point is challenging, but I think this tip will help! Thanks.

[@kristopherdetar4346]

Brilliant ! Having watched many other channels including countless videos on loopers I believe you are the first to address this technique.

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching, Kristopher :-)

[@kristopherdetar4346]

Your a bloody genius. Thanks so much mate!!

[@KeenanCrow]

Alternatively, if you have a looper like the Ditto X4 that has the option of Rec>Overdub>Play rather than the standard Rec>Play>Overdub, you can also get the seamless effect.

[@RobFlaxMusic]

Even better: Boomerang has this built in as well! You can just hit "stack" before you close the loop, and it goes directly into overdubbing seamlessly. It's an extra button press though, so for short master loops you might want to do the empty loop trick instead. :-)

[@baileytaldrich]

I’ve tried this but I find that there is still a tiny little clip between the start and the end of the loop

[@KeenanCrow]

@@baileytaldrich what kind of looper are you using? I find some models are better than others about the seamless transitions

[@baileytaldrich]

@@KeenanCrow I have a Ditto X4. In Rec>Overdub>Play mode it’s almost seamless, but I can still hear a very tiny clipping noise at the loop point.

[@KeenanCrow]

@@baileytaldrich which version of firmware? I find that they all had strengths and weaknesses. I know I was able to get it seamless in one version but now I’m struggling to remember which one. I think 1.1.

[@JimNavarro]

Basic but very, very helpful, this loop gap old mystery

[@niaralosusa]

I will run two amps, one signal leads to the looper with effects after, and the other to another set of effects and the second amp. I then create the drone/pad with the looper, switch to the other amp and play solos or melodies.

[@martinvankessel6040]

Super cool tip. Really like your fresh demos and tutorials! Got the boomerang too, and do experimental stuff with flute and sax with it. IMO still the best looper on the market! Best wishes, take care 🪐🖖

[@jonnylikertrommer]

this is why I love midi controllable loopers, I use my daw as a midi clock!

[@johnbeasley1168]

What looper are you using for that?

[@jonnylikertrommer]

John Beasley im using 2 pedals actually , The strymon Timeline and the Chase Bliss Blooper 🙂

[@Micky-yo3ng]

Same here, I use Ableton Live and a midi controller

[@jonnylikertrommer]

Micky 2112 same here, im using a Keith mcmillen 12 step and a novation Launchpad pro for my live looping 🙂

[@jonnylikertrommer]

Ruan Wayney yep🙂 Using a disaster area midibox4 and a Bluetooth midi cable 🙂

[@calyptratus187]

thanks for this trick. I was struggling for hours thinking it was my timing. It was this all along haha! Subscribed

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Welcome aboard! :-)

[@calyptratus187]

@@AntoineMichaudGuitar Do you know any tricks on how to freeze a note or chord indefinitely without decay using only delays, reverbs and a looper pedal?

[@ThePedalboardOrchestra]

A very helpful and essential tutorial for looping!

[@ourworld215]

How strange, right before watching this I had pulled out my RC-20xl boss after setting up an older Roland electric drum kit. I quickly remembered why I stopped using it with my keys. Because the gap noise, I actually attempted to do just what you suggested but still was not happy. I watched your video turned to my left and did it again and perfect. I've never seen one of your videos and I didn't search for loop video. Crazy but I'm happy i did see it. adding drums while playing is so much more enjoyable and productive. I have a tendency to drift. Now to try adding the drone noise. Thank you kind sir.

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

We love a good coincidence! thanks :-)

[@stewmcleod7315]

Of course you do. Thanks.

[@fredmorgan996]

Thank you. This is exactly the kind of tutorial I am looking for to understand ambient guitar

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

You're very welcome!

[@scottcortez1313]

nice work, i definitely need to start making tutorials now.

[@chadb1176]

Exactly what I needed!

[@Apopheniomind]

Que truco más bueno! The best trick ever!

[@bartjanc]

Please do more keyboard tutorials 🙂

[@actonezero]

Hi Antoine, in your videos are you using the optional behavior to remove the 10ms ramps at boundaries ? (P19 of the boomerang manual, light 0) I am currious to have your opinion because from my experience it makes a difference for drones, as long as you stack after you close the loop . unfortunately the ramps are still here when you close the initial loop even if you press stack before closing the loop or do hold to stack (which is great! it is way easier than press loop then bonus then loop to assign and loop again to close and stack ...you just hold 1-2s when opening the loop and stack is activated and assigned). anyway thanks for sharing, your videos are always very clear and helpfull !

[@jrwardle1]

Thanks Antoine, super useful as always !

[@benjaminsherman9525]

Thank you, that was so helpful!

[@davidsummerville351]

Thanks, and I'll subscribe.

[@marioreyes1603]

Excelente. Muchas gracias, maestro!!! 🙌

[@BarryGrueter]

Just found your channel and really enjoy your content. I’m a beginner with ambient guitar so I will check out your tutorials. I also subscribed and hit the bell 🔔. Thanks for sharing 🙏

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Welcome aboard! :-)

[@andrewmvenegas]

Brilliant! 🙏🏼

[@jamujesperandersen8699]

Great tip!

[@sanjaychakravarty9289]

Fantastic bro 🙏.. keep it up 🙌

[@michaelmattson3515]

Cool trick.

[@savnac]

I’ve done this! But actually just overdubbed the reverb tail without an empty loop first.. probably just because my specific looper lets me do it that way.

[@softpillow9596]

Great tip! :)

[@MittensOnly]

I understand that this works, but I don't understand HOW it works... I'm kinda trying to do an Earth/Sunn style drone sound with my loop, I guess I'll give this a try

[@frodobaggins9129]

I never thought of it this way, thank you so much!

[@nickbag88]

Big sky is quite expensive. Is there a free plugin you are aware of that can have the same droning effect? Valhalla Supermassive is apparently a highly recommended plugin for big reverb and delay.

[@kayakchrispy]

I think in a live setting .. the empty track would be best utilized by starting with rhythm sounds … a drum track .. beatbox or guitar thumping or a drum pad or even a drum machine or I’ve seen a record on a record player to sample a drum beat off the record .. keep it interesting

[@qstaratma9096]

Soundscape…

[@pickerman6344]

could you do the same thing by recording on the first take, using the immediate stack function to continue at end of loop for a couple of seconds?

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Yes, that would be a good solution too!

[@krokus5714]

Hola Antoine, no entiendo cual es la explicación técnica por el motivo de grabar el bucle vacío. Me ayudas?

[@allforumboardr1]

Does anyone have a looper that lets you preload tracks? Have you tried just recording a track with a mic off, trimming it to the desired length and then loading it into the looper? I think this would work but haven't tried it.

[@sirius_li]

What sorcery is this?

[@tilleyroadaffairproduction6752]

Merci pour le video. I am trying to record my guitar through a pedal board and the boomerang into Logic Pro and it seems like my loop does not stay synchronized, I mean as I go along it will fall out of tempo. I would like to knoe what I am doing wrong and can't find any info. about this. Can you shed some light on this? Thank you and bon weekend!

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

You might use the Boomerang on free mode. If you use it on sync mode, it's not going to happen. You should watch my demo of the Boomerang to learn more: kzbin.info/www/bejne/j6TKhZqKhaqhg5o

[@shawnprzybilla6931]

Does this work with jamman stereo? I tried it and still get the harsh cut :(

[@oliverjanssen]

would this work with the Headrush Looperboard ????

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Yeah! Anything that can do a simple loop will work.

[@giantessmaria]

Sorry, I'm a bit confused of the function of the "empty loop" in your process. Why can't you just record it and go right into overdub when the loop ends, and go through it 2 or 3 times to assure there is no seam?

[@nikolauselsner2564]

many loopers go from rec to play, the dont have the function to go directly to overdub. The "empty loop" helps to deal with that.

[@musiceclipse]

I just signed up for your writing course and while I have a delay, looper and reverb, my reverb doesn’t have a mix control, so I can’t cut out the dry signal. Will that still work for your course?

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Hey, thanks for signing up to the full course, Peter! You have what you need, but since your reverb can't go 100% wet, you won't be able to create the drone texture that I teach. Aside from that, you can still follow the course as we talk about how to approach songwriting and the backbone of your songs, looping techniques, song structures, arrangement principles and creating a songwriting ''routine'' or process to follow, if you will. All of these things don't require specific pedals, so I'm sure you can get a lot from it. Hope that answers your question and thanks for being a student!

[@musiceclipse]

@@AntoineMichaudGuitar thanks. I have just listened to the first few lessons and it looks like a good approach for me. Most ideas so far are not specific to ambient style, which is good. My inclinations are pretty 19th Century and your input will help make it more current. I am planning to get a Mel9, which will make my “orchestra “ almost literal. The ambient approach will help me stretch out and give the symphonic ideas room to play.

[@musiceclipse]

Does the TC Electronics flourescence Shimmer allow for 100% wet signal? The description references Brian Eno soundscapes, so I suspect it is on track

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

I don't know specifically for this pedal, but my TC Electronic Skysurfer does go 100% wet, and it's the same collection of pedals, so I would guess the Fluorescence also does.

[@musiceclipse]

Thanks! I saw your video about top mistakes with reverbs. If shimmer can be cheesy, I will avoid it for now, and the sky surfer is cheaper as well. I have ordered it from Amazon and it should arrive in about a week. A year ago I had no pedals except for a tuner. I am enjoying many new cheap devices from Donner, and have just discovered Ambient music

[@andymartin8620]

Fast forward the first 3 mins

[@richardthelionheart01]

This in no way helps a looper. Unless ambient music is all you do, then sure. How would I apply this say, to Funk #49, or Superstition?

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

The title of the video is ''How To Make Seamless Soundscapes Loops''. 🤷 So yeah, it's only for ambient music, and I wasn't trying to say otherwise.

[@SaumBodhi]

Michaud represent osti

[@michaelmattson3515]

Do they still make your looper? Looks like they up dated it .

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

When the owner passed away, they stopped making it, but a few years ago, it was acquired by a new owner and they started production again!

[@brutallyremastered4255]

"Ethereal, expensive" Lol

[@ddrossel]

BOSS RC5 is the solution

[@lawrencedb]

In what way? I have the RC five but by default I will get a seam sound in droning loops. Is there a particular way that you eliminate that with your RC five?

[@noneexistent8103]

just use a metronome.

[@AntoineMichaudGuitar]

Ambient music doesn't have any tempo to it.

[@noneexistent8103]

@@AntoineMichaudGuitar just for the looper timing

[@oknotyet9630]

My moms last name is Michaud I wonder if we are related

[@biggersound]

Interesting video but why are you hiding your face.