Pedal & Looper Questions - Opinions

terryj47 · #1 02-15-2017, 06:43 AM

Hi all,

I have a Boss RC-3 looper and am starting to experiment with it. I play just for myself. When I record some chords to play lead on top of, when I turn the amp gain up to get some crunch, of course the recorded loop also distorts. I have a Yamaha THR10 and Fender Mustang III V2. So I'm stuck keeping things clean.

I'm looking at a Boss ME-80 multi-effects pedal. As I understand it, this pedal is designed to be fed into a clean amp or PA so the distortion and/or gain boost is done on the input signal so the background will be played as recorded. I also have a Fishman Loudbox Mini. It could serve as a mini PA system. I understand the looper in the ME-80 only records 38 seconds. That is a minus. I timed some patterns I might use. Hard but possible to record a full 12-bar blues background in 38 seconds.

I could probably accomplish the same thing with separate Wah and overdrive pedals but the cost of the two pedals with power supplies is at least 1/2 to 2/3 of the ME-80.

This is just for fun not "playing out".

Am I on the right track? Thoughts on this? And comments on the ME-80 vs. other M.E. pedals.

Thanks,

Terry

redir · #2 02-15-2017, 07:56 AM

Just daisy chain the looper in and then you have both.

KevWind · #3 02-15-2017, 08:29 AM

I just got the Boss RC3 three weeks ago and played with every day But unfortunately I am new to pedals and have no experience with anything like the ME 80.
That said standard gain staging would suggest that if you have the loop output knob set a little lower you should be able have a bit more output from your amp without distortion.
Now I am doing the exact same thing as you. I make a loop of the chords I want to practice playing leads over . I solved the problem of having the leads a bit more overdriven, more or less with your second option but without the WAH. I simply have a Soul Driven boost pedal I switch in for the leads after I get my chords looped. And I have not had a distortion problem (however I am also playing into a 50 w tube amp which may make a difference also)

terryj47 · #4 02-15-2017, 08:49 AM

Thanks guys. The ME-80 is probably the way to go for me. But at $300 I want to be as sure as I can be.
I welcome more comments and opinions.

terryj47 · #5 02-15-2017, 08:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by redir

Just daisy chain the looper in and then you have both.

Put the ME-80 ahead of the looper? That way I can record my backing loop and then for leads adding some crunch, for example, won't "crunch" the backing track. Basically the same thing as using an external OD and Wah pedal head of the looper with less complexity as far as cables and power.

redir · #6 02-15-2017, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by terryj47

Put the ME-80 ahead of the looper? That way I can record my backing loop and then for leads adding some crunch, for example, won't "crunch" the backing track. Basically the same thing as using an external OD and Wah pedal head of the looper with less complexity as far as cables and power.

Experiment and find out what you like. I put my looper at the end so that I can feed all my other effects into it.

AcouStickistNS · #7 02-15-2017, 06:17 PM

Zoom just released two upgraded versions of their G3 series MEpedals For about $200 you get an ME with about 80 seconds of looping. I used a G3 for a couple of years before upgrading to a L6 Helix.

Haven't tried the new one, but keep in mind Zoom rarely does a good job with overdriven or distorted presets. You have to modify or make your own to really see how they shine.

terryj47 · #8 02-15-2017, 06:25 PM

Thanks again. More food for thought.

Neonzapper · #9 02-22-2017, 04:36 PM

If you're open to another product before you buy, check out the Digitech Trio+ It has 5 tracks plus flashdrive for more. Also bass and drum sounds if you want. I got one for Christmas and I'm still learning how to do things on it, but I like it.

terryj47 · #10 02-22-2017, 05:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neonzapper

If you're open to another product before you buy, check out the Digitech Trio+ It has 5 tracks plus flashdrive for more. Also bass and drum sounds if you want. I got one for Christmas and I'm still learning how to do things on it, but I like it.

Thanks Neonzapper. I looked at the demos and decided it wasn't for me. Maybe the "demonstrator" didn't know how to work it yet

MikeBmusic · #11 02-23-2017, 08:12 AM

I think you already figured it out - a 'crunch' pedal in front of the looper: record your clean rhythm loop, play it back, add (whatever other) pedals you want for your lead sound between the guitar and looper and go for it.

terryj47 · #12 02-23-2017, 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeBmusic

I think you already figured it out - a 'crunch' pedal in front of the looper: record your clean rhythm loop, play it back, add (whatever other) pedals you want for your lead sound between the guitar and looper and go for it.

Thanks Mike. And you are correct. I'm obsessing right now over which multi pedal to go for. Boss ME-80 or DigiTech RP360-XP. I'd rather spend $200 for the RP than $300 for the ME but I like the fact that the ME can be operated "old school" with the knobs. It has about a zillion. Reviews are comparable.
Any thoughts anyone?

jim777 · #13 02-23-2017, 09:50 AM

If you are only going to be playing at home, I think you may do better with the GT-1 instead of the ME-80. I don't remember if the GT1 will do 4CM though, but I know sound quality wise it has a subset of the very latest of the Boss GT-100 sounds and it sounded fantastic when I demo'd it recently.

If you are not familiar with 4CM, there is a good description here: http://www.dawsons.co.uk/blog/4-cabl...guide-benefits

terryj47 · #14 02-23-2017, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jim777

If you are only going to be playing at home, I think you may do better with the GT-1 instead of the ME-80. I don't remember if the GT1 will do 4CM though, but I know sound quality wise it has a subset of the very latest of the Boss GT-100 sounds and it sounded fantastic when I demo'd it recently.

If you are not familiar with 4CM, there is a good description here: http://www.dawsons.co.uk/blog/4-cabl...guide-benefits

Oh boy, more to consider. Thanks Jim.

Pualee · #15 02-23-2017, 02:56 PM

With the Mustang III v2, you should run the looper through the effects loop, and change the setting in the utilities to looper.

Then when you record your rhythm, it will stay that way, no matter what settings you change on the amp.

The looper will record what is coming into the loop, and only play back what came in. Your amp settings will affect your current signal from the guitar. You can layer many different tones this way.

Try this before you spend more money on more gear! You can have clean and crunch any way you like it.