Loop pedal or Backing Tracks

[gdbird]

Does anyone use either...both? Thoughts...

[Pixelfergus]

as a beginner, using a loop pedal was beneficial to me because I could
hear what I sounded like, & play along with myself…..

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by gdbird

Does anyone use either...both? Thoughts...

Hi gdb...

I use a looper. I really don't get into people using prerecorded tracks (or lpre-recorded & stored loops).

Maybe that's just me, but I'd rather hear players play 'naked' than with backing tracks.

I recently revisited using a looper, but I use it very sparingly. I don't want to be a " looper" act, as I find even very good looper users kind of tedious after a few songs. I have no use for tracks at all, same for harmonizers.

[gdbird]

I was thinking looper....seems to me it would be good for practice of specific phrases...especially at tempo. Not interested in utilizing for performance... cause I don't!

[Yamaha Man]

I occasionally use my looper for jamming and coming up with new music...I haven't used mine a lot but I really like it. I've just been busy.

[Archtop Guy]

I've been a looper for home and recording for twenty years but still I'm with you guys: I never was attracted to a live act relying on backing tracks.

Now I'm reconsidering however. I've seen a couple of folks lately using backing tracks at winery, coffee shop, and restaurant gigs. The music was well received by the audience. I don't think most listeners notice or care. If they like the music, they just like it!

I've been building some customized backing tracks using Logic, and saving them to my RC-30 looper. We'll see what happens!

[amyFB]

they are fun to play with, adding layer after layer until you have a cacophony!
or a nice concept for an arrangement.

but, i think it takes great skill to use them effectively in live performance and not sound artificial after a while.

I like to practice to backing tracks, such as the ones that are in the iRealBook app on my smart phone.

but i would not incorporate them into a live performance on my own. I'm not much for stage gadgets and prefer a simple acoustic set.

yours in tune loops

[gdbird]

A lot of years ago, I booked Kenny Logins for an annual, local event. He had a drummer, a guitar player, a bass player...and a "computer" loaded with additional accompaniment. It kept popping 100 amp breakers. What a mess. I looked at his road manager and said "Really?".

[slewis]

Do you mean for gigging, or just playing at home? I perform regularly with a looper -- using it on maybe a quarter of my tunes over the course of a night -- and I think it adds a neat dynamic to a solo show. I don't really mind the use of technology as long as what the audience hears is or has been played live by a human being. Therefore I'm not a big fan of guitaraoke backing tracks. Yeah, some audiences couldn't care less but hopefully, IMO, the musician does! To each his or own, of course... And even if you're talking about just playing at home, loopers are really fun, pretty inexpensive, and very useful as a learning tool...

[gdbird]

Primarily for practice.... I'm not performance grade....yet.

[Turp]

Looper.I like to believe what I see and hear.
IMHO building a loop adds credibility to the music versus playing to backing tracks.

[gdbird]

Looper it most likely will be....Any recommendations.... and why?

[joeguam]

About 10 years ago, I used pre-recorded bass lines which I laid down in logic and played from a macbook at gigs while I played ukulele live. I did this successfully for years and never heard any bad comments from the audience on not playing completely "live" music. I guess it was because it was only simple bass lines and and nothing over the top or sounding like a karaoke track.

About 1-1/2 years ago, I started looping when I discovered the Boomerang Phase III looper (courtesy of AGF). I have to say, looping is much more fun. I use an acoustic guitar to loop rhythm, then bass lines, then percussion (kick/hat/stick). Then, I kick an ABY switch, quickly hang up the guitar and grab my ukulele to play uke rhythm, lead and solos. Oh, and I also kick a vocal harmony pedal on short phrases for color.

Here's the setup from a recent gig.


Here's my pedalboard...although it's constantly changing with effects.

[Turp]

Originally Posted by gdbird

Looper it most likely will be....Any recommendations.... and why?

If you're not concerned about recording and archiving songs, musical phrases or thoughts, I'd say a ditto x2 or similar.

For a little more you can get a 2 button looper from Digitech or Boss. 2 button loopers are usually preferred because it's easier to stop while still playing.