Which Looper Should I Buy? - How To Do Live Looping

For those who haven't started looping yet or who are thinking of upgrading, here is a crash course in the types of loopers and tricks of the trade that will help you decide which looper to get.
Playlist for the series
• How To Do Live Looping
More free lessons, tabs and tips on my website
jonmichaelswift...
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[@cellochill2857]

Word. I had an rc300 for over a year before I got ahold of an rc-3 and learning to be proficient at the rc3 taught me the basics of how to use the 300 effectively. Subscribed. This guy is probably a genius. The first concept he explained was 100% inline with my experience.

[@Flieder]

Hey Jon. Thanks for your video. We used Roland RC-20 and RC-50 for a long time. Then we started with ableton live. Of corse a software(like mobius or ableton) is cheapper than a normal looper, but the hardware you need to run these programm is costs a lot more 🧐

[@theinfinate]

Your very easy to listen to man! I’m loving my quantiloop setup, I use a MOTIV shure plus which connects onto my guitar, also on my guitar I have a magnetic phone holder thingo. Works and sounds great with a convolution reverb app and dub delay

[@bouthaynabelkacem6356]

I feel like i'm on loop watching this video cause i hear the word looper a lot hahah great content

[@babonneau]

Great presentation! Bravo!! Gotta dig deeper into the Loopy Pro (iOS) app set up on iPhone or iPad with the camera connector + powered USB hub and instruments connected through my sound card… and the wireless (Bluetooth) foot control pedal like M-Vave chocolate 😊 It’s a bit complex and all buttons have to be routed and programmed but yeah it’s super scalable and flexible! And cheaper than the expensive monster multitrack looper pedals. Definitely NOT going to buy the overpriced Ed Sheeran looper X. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with passion 🙏

[@kdakan]

See Kelsey Lu's live looping performances, she uses RC-30 which has just two tracks, and creates wonders. Her loops are 4 to 9 seconds long, not that long.

[@giantessmaria]

Thanks man, very thoughtful and energetic review!

[@davidhoward8951]

Yeah I'm just new to looping myself but I practice a lot and a Looper would help me especially with doing Blues and I can go learn more scale by looping gives me time to figure out what in my brain like if I'm making up a lick

[@Benjammin117]

Thank you, very informative. I also like how your head and arms appear to be floating in a sea of black :)

[@zippy0099]

Wow! Great insight. This helped a lot!🤘

[@kimohaito4416]

Really helpful breakdown, cheers man!

[@AvinashPandeyMusic]

Great video! I'd really like it if you made a comprehensive video on how to use a looper more effectively. Also, opinions on the Boss RC-30?

[@jonmichaelswift]

Avinash Pandey I am working on the rest of the looping series now, so it should be on the way soon! I can’t say I’m a huge fan of the 30, I’ve had more difficulty with it and any other hardware Looper, but I think I also messed with an older version of it. I am very partial to the 300 at this point, but you can make any of them work if you get to know the unit well enough.

[@AvinashPandeyMusic]

@@jonmichaelswift Alright. Thanks! What looper would you suggest me with similar features and in the same price range?

[@johnelich]

Boss rc30 0

[@rickkillian2378]

I dig what what yer sayin man. You mentioned somethin about sounding like a whole band. A (VERY) good example on that would be the band (Boston). Tom Scholz started that band in his basement just messin around on his electric guitar, keyboard, bass guitar and drums through a looper system. The whole first album was just him puttin all the instruments together. He later got band members later for live shows and tried makin albums together but I guess they just couldn't blend.

[@jonmichaelswift]

Yeah, being in a band is like being married. To four people...Poly is, IMHO, not a game of dice you play on the weekends X-D

[@SteveStockmalMusic]

That’s pretty close to the Boston story. If you’re interested, watch the “VH1 behind the music”, or a similar presentation, to see what actually happened to them, how Tom actually recorded, how legal woes dragged them through the mud for years, and more. ✌️😊✌️🎤🎶🎶🎶🎶

[@TavHooters]

Really helpful video...and right on time. I just bought the cheap Amoon one, and downloaded an app....I will let you know

[@jonmichaelswift]

thanks!

[@dariushrezaei7783]

I guess I go for a Looping software, They are amazing, cheap and controllable on the phone.

[@luapmartin]

Same here : group the loop + midi foot controller

[@gemmalaurencemusic]

Super informative, thank you!

[@dorkfilms4568]

Amasing vid dude, very helpful

[@Matywaller]

great vid bro, you speak very well.

[@jonmichaelswift]

I try

[@blkleblanc]

I'm currently trying to figure out the Ditto x 4 Looper.

[@GuvernorDave]

super helpful, cheers!

[@LanzaMartineta]

Brilliant, so good

[@GrayContrast]

Really, really valuable! Great video :)

[@nazarenodadamante8703]

Feel very grateful..Great content!

[@louietesta3752]

Liked your video it was well done. I have been thinking about getting the RC-505 looper 5 tracks seems right for me. And $ 500 seems like a fair price. I would like to hear your take on it. Please let me know what you think about it. The only thing that I was not crazy about was that it uses a remote floor switch can’t Just set it on the floor and press on the control buttons I’m thinking it’s not built to do that, but I could be wrong about that, it just looks like they are plastic and won’t take pressing them with a foot. But even that is not a big deal it seems to be more like a desktop light weight looper. But it does look easy to run it. From what I have read. Thank You for your time Louie IL USA 🇺🇸

[@jonmichaelswift]

Hey, sorry I didn't get to this sooner. My settings have been a bit weird. The main issue with the 505 is that is is designed for hands, which is not practical for most people especially guitarists. The 505 is designed for vocal loopers. Another looper with the floor design and a lot of tracks is the electroharmonix 95000 loop lab. I'd go with that one if you want something comparable.

[@paureguantrido5013]

Congratulations for the post. It is really interesting! I'm thinking on getting a looper and I have three options that fit my budget: an old EHX 2880 with its footswitch, the Booss RC-30 or the Ditto x4 (both new). I want to use it combining keyboards and guitar/bass, so I thought that the MIDI option would be very useful. But it will be my first looper and some advice would be very grateful. Thanks!

[@MattWarb2]

Pau Reguant Ridó I’ve just bought an rc-202 👌🔥

[@cfire99]

for midi you really have 3 choices Pigtronix Infinity ,Boomerang, or Aeros

[@pyannaguy4361]

Don't get a TC-Helicon Voice Live 3, is my advice. There are some tutorials out there that make them look sort of learnable & useful, but mine turned out to be an $800 or whatever it was..doorstop. Yikes! What's the opposite of intuitive?

[@davidschaller7179]

Hi Jon, what is the best gadget to use for a duo, keyboard and drums, wanting to loop a baseline using the keyboard and jamming across it and being able to store recorded loops for future refinement?

[@osteri]

Hello, In the video you say that boss rc-300 does instant undo/redo. I could not find from any other source how it's done instantly. Would appreciate if you could shine the light on this one?

[@Thebigballoon22995]

I’m curious, I have a loop pedal I believe it’s digital. Anyways I can’t loop a progressions with certain effects , and switch and improv with other effects without changing to original loop? Do I need a switch pedal or different kind of looper?

[@pyannaguy4361]

Anybody know Reggie Watts' favorite(s)? He's great & always make it look like such a breeze when he loops in his act.

[@icebob8555]

Solo xt is what I got I want to sync to a drum machine but they speak different languages DR880 has midi out 5 pin Digitech has a 3.5 mini jack think I’m gonna get the sdrum

[@jonmichaelswift]

Sounds like a nice rig!

[@Geva555]

I'm kinda confused, I make electronic music and want to add my darbuka and Arabian flute and some other folk instruments in live performance. Which one do you think should I explore more?

[@jonmichaelswift]

Whichever has the inputs you need. RC-20 would be my choice, but anything that will take your mic inputs I think

[@user-fk2zf9fz1o]

Thankyou for your help, kinda remind me of shaggy from scooby doo or the actor that played him in the films.

[@olliedebhal7486]

Hi Jon, wdyt of the mxr clone looper? I have never used a loop pedal. Want to use it as a practice tool for improvising and compositional work. Maybe at a later stage for live performance. Ideally I would like a tape echo sound effect as well.

[@jonmichaelswift]

I haven't used the clone looper myself, but it looks like it's a got a lot of good features! If you want to practice and compose like you say, the long loop time is necessary. Also the speed change and multipedal funcionality looks like you could do a lot of creative stuff with it! I would tend to look up what some other artists do with it to get ideas, no?

[@ClarkBattle]

Take a look at ZenAud.io ALK. Its unlike all other loopers in that it sequences all of your actions so you just play your instrument.

[@usta028]

Reaper now has a looper addon made by some guy (just look on youtube for reaper nabla looper), it’s like a fully featured ALK but for free

[@MrKrasnox]

16:50 well, in the meantime Dovydas came along ;)

[@jonmichaelswift]

Yeah, I thought the history would catch up with me...can you link a video where he does this?

[@MrKrasnox]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/gqbEZneAjcyCrrs

[@MrKrasnox]

Reinhard Buhr also does some fancy stuff with this loop station: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hXOvgKduhNJpqNE

[@WysteriaGuitar]

What looper would you recommend to record several acoustic guitar parts, drums from beat buddy, and a few vocal layers? - For someone new to loopers... Thanks!

[@jonmichaelswift]

Probably the RC-300. It has enough of the inputs that you would need without too much added complication. Make sense?

[@WysteriaGuitar]

@@jonmichaelswift Yes, makes sense. Thank you!

[@amberprakash9422]

I think you should look at the Aeros loop station from singular sound... it syncs with the beatbuddy and can probably handle all things you listed!

[@WysteriaGuitar]

@@amberprakash9422 Thank you good advice I will do that.

[@prestonmiles8721]

I am trying some basic one man band stuff and am looking for a portable layered looper what would you suggest

[@jonmichaelswift]

RC 30 I think. It is possible to do one man band with a one track but really hard. The 30 is still portable but more flexible than more one track loopers.

[@cupx1749]

Hey man I want a looper for music cover like Imagine - believers What looper should I get

[@jonmichaelswift]

I would try any single-track looper and see how you like it. RC-3 is my go-to.

[@FinallFallen]

Niceman!

[@diegoo.3403]

1:17 Inversely means proportionaly? What a country! - Nick Riviera

[@marcmistermarc]

"Yeah I got you!" How much can I pay to make Mr MIDI Pack go away?

[@theghastlygamer5326]

I see way more people with rc1 than the 3

[@Grymt]

If you want to check out an artist that could not have made his music without digital looping, check Binkbeats, and see how he works at beatsunraveled.

[@pattip8110]

Great video....New follower! I've been researching loopers...glad I came across your video...I plan on playing around with a digitech jam man XT looper (10 min looping time) not too expensive...or Ditto Mic Looper by TC Helicon?(not sure of the looping time)* Hope you see this...would love to hear what u think!

[@jonmichaelswift]

Sorry this is late. Generally, I ask myself what I'm going to use it for. Are you going to make 10 minute loops? Most people don't, but it might be your stick. I often find the really short loops to be limiting, but a looper that long is probably not necessary. That being said, the on'es with only a 6 second looper tend to bug me out. I'd have to see the specific ones you mean in order to respond well.

[@anthonynicholson5523]

Keller williams looper god

[@lunanonexistent5056]

I want to loop my e drum as well as my guitar on the same looper. Is that even possible and if yes, what kind of looper can do that?

[@jonmichaelswift]

Aha! Depends on the outputs. It's inconvenient at times to add those stereo devices because they eat up inputs, but most of the hardware loopers have stereo 1/4 inch inputs. The RC-50 definitely does. I usually let those things loop in parallel after i synch them, but sometimes in a performance I'll plug something in, loop it, then unplug it and loop something else! Shoot me an email if you want to talk more.

[@bertrandmajorik6589]

Digitech JamMan XT has aux input.....

[@usta028]

If you have a laptop look for reaper nabla looper, you can try/use it for free

[@Geva555]

What do you mean that the boss pedals dont slave to other gear?

[@jonmichaelswift]

It means they won't take tempo data or synchronize with their timing

[@nicasio-debacaeco]

Check out FKJ man

[@gsykes]

What was Jacob Collier doing at his live shows before he got a band lol?

[@JDChicago]

I like you, but I learned nothing.

[@jonmichaelswift]

Not for everyone!

[@shawnmann]

The responsibility for that can only be placed upon ourselves.

[@shawnmann]

That is, if you learned nothing, that's your fault, either by not opening your mind to seeing something to learn, or by choosing the wrong material in relation to your level of experience. Right up front Jon said "For those who haven't started looping yet". So if you're past that, then you made the wrong choice, because Jon did a great job for the audience he was addressing with this video.

[@JDChicago]

@@shawnmann That's completely fair. He's so incredibly sincere and authentic, I was way off , and clearly in my own head space. I appreciate you bringing me back to correct this, I followed this gentleman as he's super passionate about music and the gear to create whatever it is that is 'your thing.' I owe him an apology.... but should I also remove my comment? Let me know. Thanks.

[@shawnmann]

JDChicago please don’t remove it, because someone admitting a mistake and correcting their own mindset with humility is a beautiful and rare thing. I’m proud of you.