I’m in Idaho as I write this, and my rig in Idaho consists of a Digitech RP355, an Audix Fireball, and a Peavey KB2 amp. I was jamming on that rig a day or so ago, and I remembered that the RP355 has a looper. It’s not much of a looper–it only has 20 seconds of loop time, the ergonomics aren’t tops, and it won’t drop the latest layer of the loop in and out on command like the JamMan Stereo–but it does what it does, and I used it to make the piece you hear below.

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Digitech RP355–not Digitech’s latest, but it still sounds great
DigiTech RP355 Guitar Multi-Effects Pedal with USB

There are four layers in this loop. All the sounds used in the layers were created by me. The first layer is a beatboxed percussion part; the second is a double-octave-down bass part; the third is a tenor sax-ish lick that fills out the low midrange; and finally, a patch that’s designed to emulate a slide guitar, with a lot of distortion, and a whammy effect that drops the pitch by a whole step under footpedal control.

This basic configuration of sounds–beatboxed percussion, low bass, tenor sax, and some kind of lead and/or midrange ryhthm or pad–works very well for a wide range of loops, and I’m gradually developing a repertoire for it, as well as sets of sounds that fulfill these functions in different ways that represent different styles. For example, the set of patches that I use for “Key to the Highway” includes a bass, an organ sound with rotating speaker, and an amped Chicago-style harp, all very traditional and appropriate for blues. Some of my rock sound sets include much less traditional versions of these elements, for example, a patch in which an LFO rapidly shifts the pitch of the note back and forth between unaltered and an octave down, in the same role as the organ sound in the other set.

The performance was recorded via a Zoom H4, using the H4’s internal mics, from a distance of about 4 feet away. There’s more of the room sound in the recording than I’d like, but it’s plenty good enough for now.

Check out this loop, and stay tuned for more.

“Funky RP355 Loop”by Richard Hunter, copyright 2014, all rights reserved