backing track for guitar

March 26, 2008 10:11 PM

whats the best hardware to use to set up a solo backing track when playing guitar?

on you tube there is a john mayer vid where he plays justin timberlake to his own backing, and this j mascis vid below shows him set it up then switch it back on a few mins later. what is the best hardware to set up this effect? and how does one ensure the sound integrity when playing through a single amp?

posted by edtut to science & nature (8 comments total)

I'm not sure I totally follow you, but I think what you're after is a mixer.
posted by pompomtom at 10:27 PM on March 26, 2008

If you're talking about this video, then it sounds like he's using a loop pedal
posted by eightball at 10:36 PM on March 26, 2008

That video's description says it's looped using a Boomerang pedal.
posted by nicwolff at 11:12 PM on March 26, 2008

Yeah, he's just using one loop and using the Boomerang's "stack" feature to add other parts on top. At the very end, he's holding the stack button down and playing the same riff over-and-over, until he kills the pedal entirely and adds the closing lick.

Holding the stack pedal causes the loop to decay a bit with each pass (the amount is configurable on newer 'rangs and a set amount on older ones). Nice playing, BTW. Thanks to eightball for the link.
posted by wheat at 6:13 AM on March 27, 2008

As for the 'best hardware' I am partial to the Digitech JamMan. The Boomerangs are really good, but they don't allow for permanent storage of loops. JamMan has a compact flash card and you can move the tracks to your computer if you choose. I recommend the foot controller if you're playing live.
posted by uaudio at 7:56 AM on March 27, 2008

The Boomerangs do have their limitations, though they are wonderfully intuitive. I have the original one, which only allows one loop (with infinite stacking). The JamMan's are powerful. I'm also curious about the Roland units, especially the RC-50 Loop Station.
posted by wheat at 9:36 AM on March 27, 2008

As yet another option, Line6 just came out with the JM4 Looper which has the same features as the others, but has some builtin modelling, and also 100 built in tracks to play along to.
posted by Mach5 at 10:10 AM on March 27, 2008

that john mayer clip is lovely, but i just noticed both links didnt work in my original post. the other link i posted is an aweseome rendition by j mascis. hopefully this time you can check it...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=dUgoU3J-nHo
(i wont put the hyperlink because they didnt work the first time)
good responses, the jam man looks really good but i'm fricken in china so i am not sure how i can get my hands on this stuff. there is a shop that seels all the zoom equipment but that's all i have seen so far.
on the side, i just bought a chinese solid top acoustic with pickup for around $150. i'm impressed by the sound, and the build seems good but the materials are a little flimsy (can just bend the head without trying too hard) so will be interesting to see how it wears.
posted by edtut at 3:43 AM on March 28, 2008