Your main issue when getting started with looping will be timing, particularly if you’re playing with a band. On your own, it’s not quite as bad if you mess the timing up, but when there are multiple people following the loop it’s quite easy for things to get messy sounding. Multiply this further when playing live and the onstage sound isn’t great. The key here is to practice a lot before you take it on stage and make sure at the very least your drummer has good monitoring on stage. Where does my looper pedal go in the chain? The first thing I’ll say about the MXR Clone Looper is that it’s built like an aircraft carrier. I own a few MXR products now and they’re all extremely solid – but imperfect – devices that are built well but without a ton of extra features. A single push on it will get your loop playing at half-speed while a double press will take it to double-speed.

Not only does the LED on this pedal indicate when the looper is active, it also gives you a flashing 4 count at the beginning of the loop, allowing you to keep those overdrubs tight. To use the half-speed function on the Clone Looper, after you’ve recorded your loop and pressed the PLAY/STOP button, press down the volume knob once to bring your loop to half speed. You will see the blue “SPEED” light come on. How to Use The Double Speed Feature on the Clone Looper Pedal To keep your pre-loop signal intact, the MXR team also included an analog through-path. On top of that, the Clone Looper Pedal can be set for either buffered bypass or true bypass switching to accommodate your tone and signal needs.

It is also very well built and you can count on it lasting for a very long time, even if you are using it frequently. I have had mine for several years and it has never disappointed me in the slightest during practice, sessions and gigs. Minimalist Approach You may have the input and output 1/4” cables switched. Additionally, ensure that you’re using a proper cable. D’Addario makes great cables for pedals. 3) Make Sure You’re Using the Right Kind of Charger You can also keep a loop stored in the pedal’s memory. This will be indicated by a flashing green LED. I have found it significantly easier to use than most single channel loopers I have tried before, such as the Boss RC-1. Versatility With the Clone Looper at the end of our chain, we lay down a sparse open-note theme which comes through the amp exactly as played. A few layers later, we have a nice little groove cooking – even if we do say so ourselves! The first of two directly competing Lekato pedals on this list is one of the most futuristic pedals we’ve ever seen. It looks like it’s been taken straight out of a sci-fi film set a million years in the future, with an almost full-length LED screen telling you what your pedal is currently doing. Somehow, it manages to retain a relatively low price.

If you are a guitar teacher, you can also use the looper during your classes to help you explain a lot of concepts, and it is always fun for jamming too.The 720 Stereo Looper pedal features plenty of options for creating new sounds, such as stereo in and outputs for getting a wide sonic spectrum. Yes, you can use a looper with any guitar amplifier, just plug it in as we’ve mentioned in the questions previously, and away you go! We’ve yet to come across an amplifier that doesn’t work with a looper pedal. To record a seamless loop, you have to press the “REC/DUB” button at the exact same time you start playing your instrument. To stop the recording of the loop, you have to press the “REC/DUB” button at the exact moment you would like the loop to start playing again. Not everyone uses a looper for performance, of course, and the Clone Looper is also a very capable study tool, allowing you to work out solo or harmony ideas with a minimum of fuss. The half-speed function is particularly helpful here.

With the Clone Looper, you get up to six minutes of record time to share between unlimited overdubs, and the loops you record will remain in the pedal once you power it down. I’m going to show you my preferred method of putting the Clone Looper into your signal chain, which involves the amplifier’s Effects Loop (FX loop). To figure out which looper is the best for you, you have to define your priorities and decide which features you value the most. For instance, if you don’t need to have more than one channel while looping, you can already leave out lots of high end pedals and save a good amount of money. Closing Considerations about the TC Electronic Ditto Looper Strangely, Lekato are challenging themselves in a market they’re already a part of. This looper doesn’t have the same silky smooth, futuristic design as the one above, but it does have the advantage of a lower price tag. Instead of the complex (but cool) design of the above, this pedal gives you a simple LED to tell you when your loop is active. As ever, we start with a pedal from the most iconic brand to ever create guitar effects pedals: Boss. However, for now, we’re leaving what you might associate most to the brand to later and looking at a very high end, extremely complex loop station instead. This board is long, complex and gives you a lot of options that might seem overwhelming at first.This pedal can be used with mono and stereo signals, and can also accept line level signals. It has two knobs, one for the loop volume, and a decay knob. This one controls a fade out effect that can occur while you record overdubs. This allows you to have a more dynamic loop that does not get repetitive easily. Like I said earlier, the Clone Looper uses a 9VDC adapter and it has a current draw of 225mA. This means most chargers will work for it, however, it’s possible there are some out there that don’t have the ability to supply enough mA. The way that a signal chain usually works for a pedalboard starts with a volume -> utility (ex. a summing pedal) -> dynamics (ex. compression) -> effects (ex. reverb) then to your MXR Clone looper (or a tuner on the end). Loopers are also amazing tools for songwriting and composition. You can play a rhythm part with your acoustic electric, loop it, then add a melody without relying on anyone else and get an idea of what your song will sound like before taking it to the practice room. It also helps you improve your timing, as you’ll need to ensure your start and stop your loops on time. Where does a loop pedal go in the chain? This pedal gives you 6 minutes of looping, an analog through-path that ensures your sound is as pristine as possible, and you can even toggle between true bypass and buffered bypass.