Anyone using a Boss RC-505 Looper?

equalsql

Having got into looping with a Boss RC-2  I've thought about upgrading to an RC-300 with the 3 stereo loops, however the new RC-505 has 5 loops but is desktop based. I quite like the idea of not having to bend-down to make adjustments (cos of my bad back) but wonder if using a footpedal based system is really essential(?).

Have any of you guys tried to use one of these with a guitar and if so how have you found operating to be?

Fretwired

I'm a big user of loopers and I'd say it will depend on whether you want to play guitar at the same time. To be honest once the loopers set up I only ever use my feet to switch the looper function on/off or play a loop. I wouldn't be able to use a desktop based one.

Like the vid above .. talented lady.

steamabacus

I do a lot of looping with an old dl4.

I find it hard to imagine how you'd use a looper while playing guitar without foot control.

Maybe something like the EHX 48000 plus foot controller (or the discontinued 2880 secondhand) would suit you?

ToneControl

I think it's for keyboard/vocalists, Stick with foot control. The RC50 is pretty cool, and to be honest, you'd want to be up to this woman's level of practice before you could take full advantage of more than 3. the problem I have had is that "just" guitar gets too crowded, she's using more than 4 different sounds

I have a bad back, so similarly reticent, but would not expect to bend down once I'd found my settings

ChrisMusic

I have been wondering the same myself, getting the controls up where you can easily use them, having the extra song parts on the 505 too, and so much flexibility, but I think you have to have proper foot control,  the guitar is a two handed instrument so you need another way to drop in and out IMO.   Hope the videos help / clarify / inspire  

The sublime Alex Hutchings demos RC300

Ideas / lesson from Guitarist Magazine with Alex Hutchings  (basic) (starts coming alive around 6mins in)

an amazing one man performance / demo  with Tony Smiley  "The Loop Ninja"

ThePrettyDamned

Gay sons of lesbian lovers is a nice song for a synth and looper on a lap guitar.

Sorry, back on track. I'm shit with loopers.

Okay, that's not a help to anyone.

ChrisMusic

I know that I not only want, but I believe I need, a looper of some sort, and have been told as much, with good reason and by good people.

I really don't want to get into gear swapping with them though, so I haven't taken the plunge yet.

The RC3 is a bit restrictive and expensive enough, even used, to make you think about it.  The 300 is much more flexible, a bit large  and less than three times as much, which makes it better value all round, but falls in the considered purchase category for me, sharing the list with loads of other things I want / need.  The 300 is still a bit restrictive though, and three song parts aren't really enough IMO.

Remembering the adage buy right and buy once, I have been sitting on the fence for far too long procrastinating, so I'm glad equalsql started this discussion.  The 505 looks a much better proposition to me.  Are Roland going to launch a floor and pedal version of it though?  If not I recon the right foot switching and expression pedal combination would be the way to go.  I haven't researched the options for that yet though.  So I am very interested in what the rest of you guys think about this.

ToneControl

I'd suggest that if you need 5 tracks, you are getting into more complex arrangements, you might be better using Ableton with an APC20, have you considered this?

ToneControl

btw, I like this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMuonuvKmJo

 

steamabacus

ChrisMusic said:

I know that I not only want, but I believe I need, a looper of some sort, and have been told as much, with good reason and by good people.

I really don't want to get into gear swapping with them though, so I haven't taken the plunge yet.

The RC3 is a bit restrictive and expensive enough, even used, to make you think about it.  The 300 is much more flexible, a bit large  and less than three times as much, which makes it better value all round, but falls in the considered purchase category for me, sharing the list with loads of other things I want / need.  The 300 is still a bit restrictive though, and three song parts aren't really enough IMO.

Remembering the adage buy right and buy once, I have been sitting on the fence for far too long procrastinating, so I'm glad equalsql started this discussion.  The 505 looks a much better proposition to me.  Are Roland going to launch a floor and pedal version of it though?  If not I recon the right foot switching and expression pedal combination would be the way to go.  I haven't researched the options for that yet though.  So I am very interested in what the rest of you guys think about this.

I've been yearning after a more sophisticated looper for some time now and I must have checked out all the options - hardware and software.

The one that keeps drawing me back is the Pigtronix Infinity.

I've yet to take the plunge but the attraction refuses to go away. It just seems to have the most useable (and upgradable) functions.

equalsql

ChrisMusic said:

The 505 looks a much better proposition to me.  Are Roland going to launch a floor and pedal version of it though? 

I think this is the what I'm ideally wanting, or a desktop/floor split system like the EHX 48000 that steamabacus mentioned earlier (I'd not heard of this looper until today). 

midiglitch

Sorry...I know it can be annoying when people do this, but....

I have an ehx2880 with footswitch sitting in my box of toys that I haven't used for a long time.  Haven't brought myself to sell it...just in case I get back into looping ion a big way, but know in my heart of heart that prob won't happen.  Therefore....pm me if interested.

That said, my 2p on loopers is that they all have different strengths and weaknesses so I strongly recommend you try to get as clear an idea in your mind of how you are going to use it before you buy.  If you are going to integrate it with a band / other people / other machines (I used the 2880 with a drum machine, and later a kaossilator) you probably need midi synch, and that whittles it down.  Also if you want to run consecutive song sections verse/chorus/bridge, etc, that narrows the field too.

equalsql

midiglitch said:

Sorry...I know it can be annoying when people do this, but....

I have an ehx2880 with footswitch sitting in my box of toys that I haven't used for a long time.  Haven't brought myself to sell it...just in case I get back into looping ion a big way, but know in my heart of heart that prob won't happen.  Therefore....pm me if interested.

That said, my 2p on loopers is that they all have different strengths and weaknesses so I strongly recommend you try to get as clear an idea in your mind of how you are going to use it before you buy.  If you are going to integrate it with a band / other people / other machines (I used the 2880 with a drum machine, and later a kaossilator) you probably need midi synch, and that whittles it down.  Also if you want to run consecutive song sections verse/chorus/bridge, etc, that narrows the field too.

Thanks for that.. I'm starting to realise there is no perfect hardware-based solution as yet...

The midi sync is important as I have a DR-880 that I would like to sync up to (or from).

Having done some more research I've been impressed by the Boomerang (but the UK price is insane) and the the Pigtronix that seems to have really sorted out the midi (where Boss have failed) but of course it has only  the two tracks.  If the DR-880 can be slaved reliably off the RC-300 then this looper would be my preferred option.. but I'm still researching this. 

ToneControl

Sorry to repeat myself, no-one seemed to pick up on what I mentioned briefly:

I have an RC-50 and also Ableton, so I can give a balanced opinion, and you should bear in mind that many electronic artists play live with Ableton

Ableton with a control surface would be cheaper than the looper, and would be like comparing Protools with a pocket 4 track recorder

I looked for some guitar examples:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cmytmu4U1KI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5gW2tCTguE

  

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJ45syjitIE

 

 

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jan10/articles/livetech_0110.htm

http://avp.stackexchange.com/questions/71/setting-up-ableton-live-as-a-live-looper

 

A floor/desktop looper is nice for simple stuff, but Ableton is a large step up from that. you can download a free demo anyway

Just worth considering too I think, if you consider 3 channels is not enough

 

steamabacus

There is also the Mobius software looper which is free. It's an 8-chanel looper based on the old EDP rack unit and is compatible with Ableton as well. Adrian Belew uses it live, which is a pretty good recommendation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfNOnrqaYUA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAO6LogCZ-g

equalsql

ToneControl said:

Sorry to repeat myself, no-one seemed to pick up on what I mentioned briefly:

I have an RC-50 and also Ableton, so I can give a balanced opinion, and you should bear in mind that many electronic artists play live with Ableton

Ableton with a control surface would be cheaper than the looper, and would be like comparing Protools with a pocket 4 track recorder

Don't apologise

You made a  very good point,,, the trouble is that your solution requires the use of a pretty descent laptop (which I haven't got) which bumps the price up out of my personal ball park 

  

ToneControl

equalsql said:

ToneControl said:

Sorry to repeat myself, no-one seemed to pick up on what I mentioned briefly:

I have an RC-50 and also Ableton, so I can give a balanced opinion, and you should bear in mind that many electronic artists play live with Ableton

Ableton with a control surface would be cheaper than the looper, and would be like comparing Protools with a pocket 4 track recorder

Don't apologise

You made a  very good point,,, the trouble is that your solution requires the use of a pretty descent laptop (which I haven't got) which bumps the price up out of my personal ball park 

  

fair dos

I forget not everyone has laptops

 

there is another option, but it's only for some folk I think, but take a look at this video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJ6eKa9maHc

Maschine is designed as a performance interface, and I think needs no laptop, although you can plug it into your pc/mac when you want to

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jun09/articles/nimaschine.htm

http://www.native-instruments.com/en/products/maschine/production-systems/maschine-2.0/overview/maschine-details/

 

It all depends what it is you want to create, I'm just putting this up here to inform anyone reading - for someone, for a one person live performance, this would be a killer purchase. For others,. a looper will do fine

 

 

 

theinfinate

I'm pretty late to this thread and haven't read all comments but I can say that rc505's are the best looper out there, I play guitar and I find it works fine. Sometimes I use it on the floor as a foot pedal and take my shoes off to use it with my toes (sitting down) or I leave it on a desk and use the target track function to change which track it records on when I press a button on my fs6 optional foot controller. This is the best method really as a fs6 has two buttons which I assign one as record on target track and the other as undo. I can use one of the knobs on the rc505 to change the target track. It's not ultimate and can get a little confusing but it becomes quite usable when you get the hang of it. I just wish that the rc505 had a dedicated target track switch or knob as this function had to accessed through a menu. I hope this info can help, if anyone would like more info or a video, please pm me as I don't regularly revisit forum threads

ChrisMusic

@theinfinate good post, welcome on 'Board.

Do you know what the midi implementation is like ?   I am assuming not that comprehensive given previous comments about Roland's other loopers.   I am mainly wondering whether the RC505 is controllable by a midi floor unit such as the Roland FC300 which also has 2 expression pedals, and also whether it can work in a larger midi context.

From my perspective any other information would be fantastic.  I have still to take the plunge and commit to one.

equalsql

Yes, thanks @theinfinate, your post is extremely useful as I am in the same predicament as @ChrisMusic.

I use a Boss RC-2 at the moment which is indispensable as a practise tool, but also gives you an insight to what is possible.

I'm still in the RC-300 vs RC-505 camp at the moment.

menamestom

The thing that put me off the Boss Loopers was an RC3 I tried, there seemed to be a lot of background noise, the loops just did not sound great.  Perhaps I tried a bad one but I ended up going for an Infinity, which sounds excellent.

The functionality of the RC-300 and RC-505 looks great though, although I'm happy with my Infinity I would like to try one of the bigger Boss ones out.  The 5 loops of the RC-505 would open a lot of possibilities.