looper or band creator for acoustic practice

[JimmyJeff1]

I don't have much opportunity to play with other musicians and am wanting to practice hard at soloing over chord changes, etc. I'm looking at getting either a TC Ditto x2 or a Digitech Trio Plus. Anybody have experience using these with an acoustic and for practice rather than gigging? I'd like input regarding which approach to take (and I'm also open to recommendations regarding other brands or approaches).

Thanks in advance.

JJ1

(Mods, if this should be in Play or Acoustic Amplification, I understand). I thought I would at least start here since threads in this section seem to get more traffic).

[roylor4]

Hi Jimmy,

I don't have any experience with the Ditto x2 or Trio +, but I do own a Ditto Mic looper and the regular Trio. I have also owned the EH 720 looper and sold it.

IMO, a plain looper or Jamtracks would be just as good as an alternative for practice. I am assuming that you want to play a chord progression and then be able to solo or vamp to the chord progression?

FWIW, I have very good timing and I am mostly a rhythm player. i could never get the EH720 to play seamlessly, and I have looper experience.

I am enjoying the Trio, but without a chord progression to follow, it can be hard to follow - especially at the turnaround. The bass & drums can make for a fun practice when I plug something in that works, but without the chord progression this is often difficult to achieve.

I'm sure the Trio+ is a great learning tool and I would prefer it myself, but mine was a gift.

There are free backing tracks online that you can burn to CD and these are a great place to start.

Good but simple loopers are 100 bills.

The good thing about a simple looper is that you have to be mindful of your rhythm when you lay down the progression and then you can focus on other stuff, so it really makes you work on more than one thing.

I hope this input is helpful.

BTW, the mic looper is a LOT of fun too!

[Rmz76]

Originally Posted by JimmyJeff1

I don't have much opportunity to play with other musicians and am wanting to practice hard at soloing over chord changes, etc. I'm looking at getting either a TC Ditto x2 or a Digitech Trio Plus. Anybody have experience using these with an acoustic and for practice rather than gigging? I'd like input regarding which approach to take (and I'm also open to recommendations regarding other brands or approaches).

Thanks in advance.

JJ1

(Mods, if this should be in Play or Acoustic Amplification, I understand). I thought I would at least start here since threads in this section seem to get more traffic).

Digitech Trio Plus is a fun toy. More entertaining than a metronome but will help full-fill the same purpose. The Plus version comes with a built in looper. Only downside is it sounds pretty generic and you have no control of fills, etc... It's algorithms generate everything. But sounding generic may not be something you care about when practicing.

Another device to look at is the Beat Buddy. It gives you more control (with the optional foot switch), better sound quality but lacks the auto train feature and automatic bass. I wrote a review of the beat buddy in the Open Mic section. I've been using the Beat Buddy for the past month and I've noticed it makes practicing my originals more enjoyable and has helped me work out some timing issues. Zero buyers remorse and if it got damaged I'd probably sell a guitar to replace it if I had to.

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=461957

[hornrocker]

Trio +, got it, love it....

[bil]

Ditto on the Beat Buddy. I got one a few weeks ago and use it a lot. If it's done nothing else, it has helped me improve my timing. I also have a basic TC Looper, but not a lot of experience with it yet.

[RevRuss]

I have an app on my iPhone and iPad called "Ireal Pro".....I like it because you can play along with a full band or just select the instruments you want to play along with.
You can download songs with the cords or make your own songs as well as change the key or tempo.
Plug your phone into a good powered speaker and you are set to have some fun!

Russ

[tonyo]

I've just bought the ditto x2. It's helped me already. I was working on the riff for werewolves of london and wasn't sure if I had the timing quite right. So I recorded me playing the 3 chords as rhythm, then played the riff over the top and it showed me exactly where I had the riff wrong.

I wasn't sure how I'd find recording the rhythm loop as I'd read lots of reviews / comments about loopers and many said it was hard to get the start / stop of the loop timed just right.

It didn't take me that many attempts.

I'm also working on my theory though the mel bay method books. It's clear the Mel Bay examples are meant for a guitar teacher to take their student through the exercises. Where I can see the looper helping is the accompaniment exercises where a rhythm is laid down for the teacher and the student plays a melody on top, the ditto will certainly help for me there.

[JimmyJeff1]

Thanks to all for the input thus far. Very helpful. JJ1

[tonyo]

I chose the ditto x2 based on posts here and elsewhere about the challenges of getting the start / stop timing right with a single pedal looper.

[paulp1960]

Band In A Box 2016 for Mac is my weapon of choice. You just type a chord sequence into the grid and choose a style from hundreds and off it goes and creates some great backing tracks.

I'm familiar with the Trio Plus as 2 of my mates got them for Christmas but I prefer Biab although the version I use cost a lot more than a Trio Plus.

[JakeStone]

I've had a few loopers.. they are great practice tools. Or they can be used for performing too. But they were uninspiring..

I got to use a Trio+ over the summer... It was really cool! It sounded great and was relatively easy to master. It did take a little while... but worth it.

You can build a whole song with the intro, verses, bridge, ending .. plus it has a nice looper too...if the price is not too much ... I highly recommend it.

[Rmz76]

Originally Posted by paulp1960

Band In A Box 2016 for Mac is my weapon of choice. You just type a chord sequence into the grid and choose a style from hundreds and off it goes and creates some great backing tracks.

I'm familiar with the Trio Plus as 2 of my mates got them for Christmas but I prefer Biab although the version I use cost a lot more than a Trio Plus.

DigiTech actually licensed the "Band In a Box" software and embedded it into the Digitech Trio.

[JMFingerstyle]

I've got a Digitech Trio + and like it a lot. It's a little bit of a learning curve, since it can do so much, but once you've got it figured out you can create some pretty good backing tracks to solo over.

You always have the option of just using the looper functions as well.

[MikeBmusic]

Unless you plan on doing the "live performing with a band in a pedal" the Ditto X2 will be your best choice for practicing AND give you some extra live ability.