Re: Boomerang survey - please respond

[Jason Fistner <jfis.lists@gmail.com>]

I’m so excited that Mike et al. are finally considering this!!!!

In sum:
Method #3

More detailed:
Let’s first look at some reasons for wanting to enter [STACK/ OVERDUB 
MODE] mode immediately at [LOOP END]:
a) Flow
- as us loopers know, it’s crucial to keep things moving and changing— 
especially at the beginning! most people do not have our tolerance for 
repetition. 
b) Signal Smoothness
- hard cuts on delay and reverb trails reveal the seams and can take a 
listener out of it
c) Volume/ dynamics smoothness
- sometimes by the end of the loop, especially in long loops, the volume 
of what is being played at the end doesn’t match what it was at the start 
(inadvertently, by some psychological magic :D ). going right into [STACK] 
mode can smooth this out.

So there are some real good reasons for entering [STACK MODE] at [LOOP 
END], which I will call [AUTO-STACK] henceforth.

[AUTO-STACK] is currently possible, but the [STACK BUTTON] must be pressed 
before [LOOP END]. 
This sounds easy in writing, and maybe it is easy for some, but I have 
terribly difficult time accomplishing this. 
My brain is focused on the music. Many times I don’t even know what I’m 
about to play beyond the initial note or chord. 
I consistently forget to hit [STACK] and even when I do remember, having 
to move my foot in some awkward, balancing act, tap dance often leads to 
screwing up the loop, either musically or temporally. 
And the initial loop is the most critical— musically and temporally. 

So I support Method #3
I think [AUTO-STACK] should be a 2-tap operation on the same button so 
that the foot can remain in the same location. 
And there should not be a hold function because some users (read: me :D) 
may wish to keep the foot down in-place until ready for the 2nd tap (a la 
drummers on the kick drum).
It’s the least physical and mental effort, which is the current problem.

Thanks all,
-Jason


On May 16, 2014, at 14:34, Mike <mnelson@boomerangmusic.com> wrote:

> 2 tap record & play with stacking active
> 
>       While the Rang™ III can go directly from recording a loop to 
> playing with stacking active, it is currently a 3 tap process involving 
> one of the Bonus Buttons. It goes like this:
> Tap loop button – recording starts
> Tap Bonus button to select Stack – Stack light blinks
> Tap loop button – recording concludes, playback begins and Stacking is 
> active
> 
>       Several customers have requested a more streamlined approach, so 
> I’m going to outline a few methods and ask that y’all let me know which 
> is the most appealing.
> 
> 1) Press a loop button to begin recording… if the button is held down 
> for 1 second then released, the second tap of that loop button will 
> conclude recording and begin playback with Stack active. If a loop 
> button is tapped and quickly released, the second tap will conclude 
> recording and begin playback without Stacking; this is identical to the 
> current behavior.
> 
> 2) Rather than being the permanent behavior of the III, number 1 would 
> be an Optional Behavior that the user can turn on and off.
> 
> 3) Tap a loop button to begin recording; the second tap will conclude 
> recording and begin playback with Stack active. With this design, 
> holding the loop button down does nothing. This will definitely be an 
> Optional Behavior that the user can turn on and off.
> 
> 4) We could change the Stack behavior so that the following would occur. 
> Tap a loop button to begin recording; tap Stack (Bonus button) to 
> conclude recording and begin playback with Stack active. Tapping the 
> loop button a second time would conclude recording and begin playback 
> without Stacking. This will definitely be an Optional Behavior that the 
> user can turn on and off.
> NOTE – for this to work well, one Bonus button would have to be assigned 
> to Stack only. It couldn’t rigger two functions as the Bonus buttons 
> normally do.
> 
> -- 
> 
> Mike Nelson
> Secretary/Treasurer, Boomerang Management, Inc.
> General Partner of Boomerang Musical Products, Ltd.
> 
> ----------
> 
> "Some products make you sound better;
> Boomerang(R) Phrase Samplers makes you play better."
> 
> ----------
> 
> 1-800-530-4699 * 1-817-421-2762, Outside USA * 1-817-251-8509, Fax
> 
> http://www.boomerangmusic.com
> 
> Contact for repairs:
> Lee Hardesty
> 1516 Victoria Drive
> Denton, TX  76209
> hardesty@mindspring.com
> 940-382-3253
> 
> Billing Address:
> Boomerang Musical Products, Ltd.
> PO Box 3788
> Grapevine, TX  76099-3788
>