Looping devices

[phillip!]

I was wondering if you guys could help me out with something. I'm looking for a looper. I've had an Akai Headrush E1 and a Boss DD20 in the past, but now I'm looking for something better.

By better, I mean more phrase recording time, higher playback quality (I'm not sure if there's anything better than 16 bit/44.1 khz), and less excessive feedback when I overdub a lot of times.

$$ is not really that much of a factor (<$800 though [unless there is really something out there that is worth spending that much money on])

Thanks a lot,
Phill

[phillip!]

maybe I'll just get another Akai

[phillip!]

I think you should just go with the akai phillip. You said you know how to use it and it really does have a spectacular sound.

[phillip!]

Alright man. Thanks a lot for the help.

[rockonn91]

um, just wondering.... what happened here? i see one person talking...

[phillip!]

no man i think maybe all of those guys just happen to have the same name. maybe theyre brothers. I've got a brother named phil myself.

[bigbuda]

check out the Jam Man by Digitech. It's their newest looping device and it's pretty sweet from what I understand.

[phillip!]

yeah thanks man people do seem to like that a lot. I like that and then I like the akai, the boss dd 20, and the thing called the boomerang phrase sampler. I know this is a long shot but if anyone has had more than one of these and wants to let me know which one they liked better (or the best), that would be spectacular.

[Andrew Sa]

dude, I have a jam man and it is awesome...I have got the 2gb flashcard and can record and loop up to 6 and a half hours...and I can overdub and everything...you can also change the tempo of the loops with the tap tempo footswitch,so if you drummer starts the song too fast/slow...just tap along in time before hitting the loop...change the tempo, but not the pitch...this thing is amazing...even with the supplied memory card you have 25 minutes recording time...I cant believe I played guitar for so many years without one

[phillip!]

Alright. 2 for the JamMan. Did the flashcard come with yours?

[Andrew Sa]

yea, on the supplied flashcard(128mb) you can get up to 24 and a half mins recorded, but if you upgrade your compact flash, you can get up six and a half hours...which is monstrous...I absolutley love mine....

[snisbet375]

Have you ever seen a Gibson TGE05 Echoplex Digital Pro Plus? These are remakes of the originals that Eddie Van Halen used to use in the late 70s. Pretty sure that he used it on the recording of Eruption for some of the Delay parts. There are very expensive but wow. Do a search for one. Echoplex is an enormously powerful 19" rack mountable effects unit that encompasses digital recording, sampling and digital delay. With a total of 198 seconds of memory time on-board (16mb), the capability to layer up to nine loops at once, Tap Tempo and a host of other features, the Echoplex is limited only by imagination. As a live performance tool for the creative instrumentalist, or a ingenious device in the studio, the Echoplex opens up all manner of sonic opportunities, allowing you to explore ambient soundscapes, reversed loops and rhythmic drones to your heart's content.
It is a professional effect that might be a little to much for some. But once you use on you'll never leave home without it.

[phillip!]

Yeah I've actually played with one of those Echoplexes. I was pretty hard for me to figure out, but I did figure a lot of it out and ended up liking it a lot. What I really want though is just something simpler. I can figure things out but most of the time I play I drink and something that's as unfathomable as that just isn't much fun.

The Echoplex seems eloqent-like and all, and I know it can do a lot more, but it is expensive. I know I said that if it was really good I could spend upwards of $800, but when I compare the Echoplex to the Akai, it isn't as valuable proportionately (considering that I could probably get the Akai for about 3 times less money).

The Jamman is better for a lot of things, but the Akai has only the features I like. Plus, with the Jamman, I had some problems getting the timing perfect, more so than everything else I've tried. The sound quality is fine. The Akai, the Jamman, and the Echoplex all have the same 16-bit splendor, but the Jamman seemed to lack some tone.

So, I bought the Akai Headrush. Thanks a lot for the suggestions. I really wasn't trying to come off as a stubborn asshole by deciding to get what I said I was getting from the beginning. I definietly didn't ignore anything any of you guys said.


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If someone looking for a looper finds this forum, you can e-mail me (p_harmonic@yahoo.com) if you want to find out more about why I decided on the Akai Headrush.



-Phillp