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Ambient/Loopers get in here!


inscho

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so I'm thinking about doing a looping project, something I can do by myself and play some local coffee shops/bars/etc....just in case I can't ever find bandmates. Its also something I could work on when I decide to go back to college.

 

what are you ambient/looping folks running these days? I like the thought of running 2 dl4's for looping, a verbzilla, memory man, and fuzz.

 

also, what are some techniques when looping to keep things interesting? do you use a drummer or a beat machine or no beat at all?

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If I had the ultimate setup, I'd own either a Gibson EDP or a Looperlative LP-1. But they're both spendy, so right now I'm making due with a single DL-4.

Currently, the way I have it set up is I've got my rack gear in the FX loop and the DL-4 goes at the end of the chain. That way anything that gets run through the rack gets recorded in the DL-4. What I'd like to eventually do is get another DL-4 to put earlier in the chain, so that I could then get a loop going and tweak the loop while I'm not playing.

Also, my loops are very ambient and drone oriented. No beats or verse/chorus/verse in my stuff.

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Well are you wanting to play loops and samples to accompany your guitar? I have 2 Loop Junkies that I use for my guitar and I use an AKAI MPC1000 for my ambient loops and samples to be played in the background. I'm a one man show, so samples are the rest of the band for me.

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Headrush user here. If I were going to do live stuff I would want to have at least one more available. I second the EDP as the ultimate live looper, but you can mimic some of its power by using multiple loopers and volume pedals for fading loops in and out.

The hard part about looping live is getting smooth transitions between parts of a song where you need to switch loops or cut off the loop and then move on to another one. If you practice your ass off and don't go too over the top with your arrangements its not that bad...and probably a lot easier than trying to keep things tight with a full band. Thats the biggest upside to the one man band thing, you can do whatever you want and don't have to worry about other people keeping up.

Check out Keller Williams to see a good example of live looping. He uses drums, tubes, spoons, whistles, several guitars and a bass to set up some pretty crazy songs and jams.

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If you want to stick with the DL-4, then it really depends on what kind of music you're looking to play. For me, I can get by with one but I know that I could do so much more with two.

You should definitely check out the new Boomerang whenever it finally comes out. It looks like it's got a lot of potential.

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i've played shows using a single dl-4, and a dl-4 and headrush.

a word to the wise... unless you're windy and carl or stars of the lid or growing and have four full stacks, no one wants to hear you play live ambient music. it's awkward, repetitive, and just doesn't really fit anything but art openings. YMMV in your state/city/scene though. if you're going to do it, at least get some synced drums going with it.

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Originally posted by inscho

I'd need a looper thats a bit more user friendly than the rc2...and I'm pretty comfortable with the dl4's looper.



and I don't want to venture in to rack gear and whatnot...I'd like to keep it as simple as possible.

 

 

If you like the looper on the dl-4 either stick with that or get a couple of Headrushes. The Boss switching system is somewhat different so if you're already somewhat used to the dl-4's no reason to bother learning something different unless you have to have the small size.

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im in a space/jazz/drone duo at the moment and i bought a DD-20 for looping. i also have a moog ring and phase, DMM and a fuzz factory set for oscillation. the DD is first in the chain. it does have its draw backs. like, cant stop/start a loop. but guyaguy told me about a trick to get around that. cant save a loop but the way im generating the sounds on the fly i guess i dont really need to save any. the presets on the DD-20 that i made are kinda long delay times so theyre almost looper'ish.

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Originally posted by The Tortoise

i've played shows using a single dl-4, and a dl-4 and headrush.


a word to the wise... unless you're windy and carl or stars of the lid or growing and have four full stacks, no one wants to hear you play live ambient music. it's awkward, repetitive, and just doesn't really fit anything but art openings. YMMV in your state/city/scene though. if you're going to do it, at least get some synced drums going with it.

this duo im in first show is at an art gallery;) im very excited about it. playing music like this should never be expected to be in a "rock" venue aspect.

most people dont have the love/patience for the visual side of the performance. film, painters, lights should be used for the audience to also foucs on.

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Originally posted by inscho

I was definitely thinking off running 2 DL4s....and I don't care much about it being popular...just looking for a bit of fun.



Thats definitely going to be the best cheap option unless you already have a nice laptop that you don't mind taking to gigs and are willing to risk computer failure in the middle of a gig just to use free looping software. :thu:

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Originally posted by inscho

I was definitely thinking off running 2 DL4s....and I don't care much about it being popular...just looking for a bit of fun.



you should have some fun with one dl-4, but with 2 you should have twice as much fun :wave:

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Originally posted by Wilbo26

{censored} I almost want a DL-4 to pair up with my E1. Why have one when you can have two for twice the price!
:idea:



hell might as well go 3.........ok I've gone to far now. That world clearly destroy the world with awesomeness :eek:

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