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RE: Foot controller for a dream looper



The little universe of sophisticated loopers is blessed by the efforts of Jeff Larson and Bob Amstadt. These fellows are not corporate types putting out products in order to make a lot of money…. in Jeff’s case, NONE. (Frankly, I find some of the salvos aimed at the corporations who make music gear misguided, too, but that is perhaps another topic).

 

Chris, I too have been so frustrated, at times, by attempts to stretch the hardware and software, that I’ve blamed someone else and been tempted to vent about it.  But I’m glad I haven’t, because it really comes down to “it’s a poor workman who blames his tools”. If sophisticated workflow scheme A doesn’t work, CHANGE THAT, and then write about how wonderful it would be if ________ (fill in blank), without attachment to results, and see how the community responds.

 

Hal Dean

 

From: Christopher Darrow [mailto:thedarrow@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, March 21, 2011 2:16 PM
To: Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com
Subject: Re: Foot controller for a dream looper

 

 

>  the price of admission to create unique and idiosyncratic art with a looper is often high.  

>  if you want to innovate performance workflows that facilitate your own compositional style

>  you may have to buck up the midnight oil in a very big way. 

 

 

Fuck that. (Not aimed at you Daniel, I understand and respect the spirit of your post, I only mean that...) I'm so tired of technology under performing, half-baked "solutions" with bull-shit editor/librarian software that excuses itself for POOR UI design under the FALSE notion that ease-of-use must be (entirely) thrown out the window to retain complexity-of-function.  

 

The original poster (aka the sophisticated looper)  must make his/her own only until $1000 pedals like the LG get their editors in order AND software DAW's/Hosts / Looping Plugins work past the billions of aggravating glitches that hold us back from realizing our dreams. 

 

I, for one, am pissed at this point.

 

 

 

On Mar 21, 2011, at 10:54 AM, Daniel Thomas wrote:



" It will require a lot of hard work on your part to get it all going the way you want, though.   That's the beautiful nature of the beast."

 

Ain't that the truth!  Wether it be HW or SW, looping remains the bleeding edge of media production workflow.  The great potential that it holds for music and for video is matched by a near total absence of standard workflows upon which to hang our hats. It makes it hard for to get a grip on a workflow that meets one's unique needs and, in the same stroke, it opens the field to endless workflow design possibilities.  IMO, Both LP-1 and Mobius live up to these statements.  Great potential-Great Challenge.   

 

No matter what your platform, (i prefer them all :)  the price of admission to create unique and idiosyncratic art with a looper is often high.  Thats not to say that you can't make great looping art with a delay pedal, but if you want to innovate performance workflows that facilitate your own compositional style, you may have to buck up the midnight oil in a very big way.  I certainly have had to pay a lot of dues to the "WTF-is-going-on-now-Gods" in order to break through on any looping platform...HW or SW.

 

See you in the wee hours.

 

Daniel   

 

 

On Mar 21, 2011, at 10:39 AM, Rick Walker wrote:



On 7/22/64 11:59 AM, Mark Hamburg wrote:

On Mar 20, 2011, at 5:10 PM, Simeon Harris wrote:

 

With mobius you wouldn't need to model the looper in the controller. You just write a script for each button that asks "if mobius is in this state, then do this. If not then do something else". You'd just need to script the behaviours you want depending on the current conditions. This is not possible with the lp1 and I'm not sure even the most sophisticated floor controller can model a looper within it.

However even as I resist a bit the rack aspect of the LP-1, a computer based solution seems to go even further in the wrong direction....

 

Mark

But you have very, very sophisticated and specific, idiosyncratic design/requests for a looper, Mark.
Honestly,  how could any dedicated hardware looper EVER accomplish what you want, specifically,
let alone what every single other sophisticated looper in the world wants.

You are going to have to go with a computer or else, design your own looper as Bob Amstadt did when
he was frustrated with the different paradigms that were available in hardware when he designed the
LP-1.

Given that the LP-1 is hardware,  it is by far, the most configurable piece of hardware looping gear
ever designed and manufactured.    Will it do everything,  no,  but it even has the potential to add new
functionality through continuing software design if there is a consensus in the user base.

Additionally,  it is sophisticated that you can get close, if not accomplish, a large amount of the things you want.
It just doesn't have long press capability.

Honestly,  it's okay if you don't use the LP-1 as I told you in my last private letter to you.
The LP-1 is not for everyone and Bob has been really clear about that from day one.

Mobius and a Laptop, with a good sound card and a sophisticated midi footpedal configuration
sound like it's the closest to what you want to do.    It will require a lot of hard work on your part
to get it all going the way you want, though.   That's the beautiful nature of the beast.

rick walker