Re: questions for loopers

[Rainer Straschill <moinsound@googlemail.com>]

1) what aspects of looping do you enjoy the most?
currently: recontextualizing sounds

2) what aspects of looping do you enjoy the least?
nobody (except for us loopnerds) gets what it is

3) what looping tools (including controllers) do you currently
use/have used in the past?

Current main looper:
Möbius (software), controlled by FCB1010 and BCR2000
for control, a next step will include a state-machine sequencer 
controlled by a bluetooth trackball

Other loopers I use:
Boss DD20, EH SMM w/Hazari, Line6 M9, Korg KP3

Loopers I have but don't use that much:
Line6 DL4, Lexicon Vortex, Eventide Eclipse, TC D2, Electrix Repeater

Loopers I used in the past and no longer have:
Akai E1 Headrush, Digitech RDS


4) what are the strengths of these tools?
Möbius:
extremely powerful, scripting engine makes it a one-of-its-kind

Boss DD20:
use that in delay mode - long delays, multiple delays, kinda-multiply 
possible

SMM w/Hazari:
Varispeed

M9:
undo/redo, integrated into a nice effects box

Korg KP3:
multitrack

The stompbox looper in the Eclipse allows for cool granular looping

5) what are the weaknesses of these tools?
Möbius:
mhmmm...runs on a computer?

DD20:
multi-delay implementation not perfect, user interface for delays not 
looping-optimized, SOS mode not useful

SMM w/Hazari:
stupid user interface, very short loops not possible

M9:
long press necessary to get into/out of looper mode

Korg KP3:
no overdub, no first loop capability


6) do you modify a loop once it's been created? if so, how?
I'd like to group that into three ways of modification:

a) modifications of the loop content per se (i.e. the recorded audio 
changes):
overdub and related techniques, multiply, overdub w/ external feedback 
loop, shuffle

b) transport control
varispeed (halfspeed etc.), reverse, retrigger, slip

c) post processing (i.e. stuff that you do in another effect post-looper)
the whole bunch, but mainly creative compression, delay, reverb, pitch 
shift (lofi)

7) how much planning do you do for a particular performance?
It depends on my setup.
First, there's the standard Möbius-based setup. In that case: none.

For any other setup (which are hardware setups), planning does go into 
how to organize the signal flow (e.g. effects
processing pre-/post-loop possible), but not into the performance itself.

8) what form does this planning take? (do you write it down, keep it
in your head, etc)
n/a

9) at what level of detail do you plan? (melody, harmony, timbres,
dynamics, instrumental techniques, etc.)
n/a

10) describe your general approach to loop performance.
I play and see what happens.

11) what would the ideal looping system look like? describe it in as
much detail as you can (and don't worry about practical concerns).
small but efficient package, good and configurable user interface, loads 
of functions, multiple tracks, sync options,
varispeed, granular stuff, big undo/redo buffer, frequency-split looping 
stuff, scripting engine...

Möbius does most of it.



12) any additional comments?
none

--
http://moinlabs.de
Follow me on twitter: http://twitter.com/moinlabs