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Looper's Delight
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(Sorry for long post. I left out the details to keep it down) I have no fancy studio pix, since I'm trying to keep a small portable set-up. The recording gear is normally set up in the room were I live and work. It's based around an Apple G5 computer with an RME Multiface audio interface. I have four Genelec 8030A and a sub woofer. Only using all speakers when doing surround mixes. I sometimes pack two of the Genlecs in a trunk to use in the field for recording, performing, teaching or working as a producer coach. I recently sold some of my hardware, now getting more into combining both studio production and playing out as a live looping artist in portable laptop set-ups (five years ago I was using EDP, Repeater + mixer etc etc in a gigantic rack but thank god we're moving on...). Anyway, although I'm always experimenting with different set-ups I mainly use three laptop systems for live-looping. One is a Windows XP PC running Mobius VST under Bidule. This machine uses a RME FireFace400. Three physical inputs are used, each one trimmed to match the signal level for the instruments I play: Tenor sax, Alto Traverse Flute, Akai EWI 4000s, Stratocaster with floating whammy bar and Fretless Telecaster with Sustainiac Model C mechanic/ acoustic feedback system. The Bidule setup has 16 alternative effect chains that I play through PRE looper. This is my primary acoustic input looping setup. A schematic can be studied here: http://www.looproom.com/bilder/bidule2007ff400.JPG When playing live concerts I bring out one stereo output through a NiceNoice compressor box and into the PA. For studio recording I pipe four ADAT stereo channels into Logic Pro, carrying my live instrument input and the separated Mobius tracks (I rarely use more than three tracks when looping in Mobius, so it's quite sufficient). Another acoustic input looping system I use is based on the AU plug- in Augustus Loop and runs on a Apple Powerbook with either the RME FF400 or a Echo AudioFire2 interface. It has two loopers and can do most trick I also manage with the EDP and Mobius. But since Augustus Looper is a tape delay simulator by heart it doesn't have the same tightness as the other two loopes. But that's not all bad if you ask me :-) I do more wobbly music with this looping setup and it also sounds differently because I only use Live's built-in effects for sound shaping. This rig can be studied on two screenshots: http://www.looproom.com/bilder/AugustusLoop_Live1.png http://www.looproom.com/bilder/AugustusLoop_Live2.png If you read the headlines on the Master Track to the right you get a fair picture of the functions I have implemented so far. The clips in the chart are MIDI files or MIDI loops that control the loopers and I trig each horizontal row ("scene") from pedals while playing. My third setup is for MIDI input (i.e. playing the EWI only) and runs on two laptops. The Mobius PC as looper and a MIDI Clock synced Powerbook with Logic Pro as the softsynth/sampler and effect rig. 100 different patches to call up from the EWI by MIDI Program Change, each patch utilizing one software instrument and loads of effects. A reverb and filtered delay system globally applied as Aux effect sends. My live audio from the Mac is piped digitally by SPDIF into the looper PC. In Logic I have set up all kind of dynamic "MIDI plug- ins" that I can play trhough (or not): chord harmonizer for any key, arpeggiators etc. Also using different global micro tonal tunings for the software instruments. Screenshot of the Logic screen here: http://www.looproom.com/bilder/LogicPro_MIDI_slave.png Some live recorded sounding examples of the different looping setups: ---> Real-time, live: Two laptop MIDI EWI looping: http://www.looproom.com/audio/mistwood.mp3 Mobius PC Bidule fretless guitar looping: http://www.looproom.com/ audio/b.mp3 ---> Studio, ADAT multi channel pipe: Mobius PC Bidule analog EWI looping: http://www.looproom.com/audio/ wip/glitch01wip2k7.mp3 Oh, I almost forgot that I have a fourth looping setup on the Mac based on Augustus Loop in AU host Numerology. This is drawing on the same technique as the Ableton setup - triggering sequences of MIDI control data for the loopers - but since Numerology is such a open system of inter modulating step sequence modular system the music that comes out of this looping tends to be somewhat more bizarre. Audio except: http://www.looproom.com/audio/Numerology_Augustus_Looping2.mp3 Not using this setup at the moment while waiting for Numerology 2.0 to be released. With ReWire support it will then be a funny looping system to run in sync with other applications. Eh... just an old clip from playing Echoplex, Stratocater and drumloop: http://www.looproom.com/audio/edp_strat_01.mp3 This crazy Substitute technique is something I still have not found a working software platform for doing. Mobius is closest by now. Maybe it would work on Mobius, but I just have not felt motivated to dig that deep into old directions... I also think MetaSynth is a good tool for creating funny post prod stuff, but I have not used it for a while because I'm getting drawn more into real-time processing as part of the improvisational playing. Greetings from Sweden Per Boysen www.boysen.se (Swedish) www.looproom.com (international)
