Volume Button Seems like a Waste.

[John the Savage]

Nice rig setup, but 3 Boomerangs????

Wait there's a volume button? LOL
That's what the volume on the Argon is for.

Haha... Two Boomerangs, one SideCar.

I worked on the 'Rang III with Mike Nelson (the founder of Boomerang), much in the same capacity as I work with other developers: as a product consultant, beta tester, road tester, etc. Much of the functionality of the 'Rang III's current (and final) firmware (3.4) was developed on my suggestions, proud to say.

On top of being a recording and touring artist in my own right, I'm a hired gun, "utility" musician, audio engineer... I get hired to back up artists onstage, when the objective is to deliver greater arrangements (i.e. album cuts) than might otherwise be achieved with a smaller band, on the road; and I've been using live looping extensively, since the advent thereof, to facilitate that. The idea being to avoid having to play to track, and therefore maintain a certain freedom of performance. Of course, that requires that I be able to respond to impromptu changes in the arrangement; so, being able to capture audio and MIDI live, on-the-fly, and manipulate it in real time, is paramount. If there's a way to do so, I've probably used it.

Hence why I've ended up so involved with instruments and like the Boomerang, Tempest, LinnStrument, MPC, several Roland and Line 6 devices, countless iOS apps (though I vastly prefer hardware), and so on... I'm keenly interested in anything that can bridge the gap between tech and performance. It's a vested interest, to be sure, and a symbiotic relationship between myself and said developers.

As for the volume function on the LinnStrument, that was only a suggestion... I didn't start this thread. But, to be clear, if it were to be added to the LinnStrument's bag of tricks, I would not be using it to control the Argon (at least, not in this setup anyway), but rather the plugins that I'm using under-the-hood of the MPC (which I typically keep on the Drum Program for most of the show, if only to stay oriented).

Cheers!

[BobDog]

Yeah, my brain/coordination has enough trouble with one looper, you must need a super brain to use three!

[John the Savage]

Well, when it comes to a setup like this, it's all in how organized you are really.

In my rig, every audio source onstage (including vocals, and even other musician's instruments) can be sent to the loopers. So, in this case, having more than one looper (and the SideCar controller) actually simplifies operations, by making signal paths more direct: i.e. more loops means fewer overdubs, fewer live edits, fewer arrangement paradoxes; and having a dedicated footswitch for almost every function means (perhaps ironically) less tap-dancing.

But yes, it's a lot to manage, and certainly requires a level of concentration and Zen.

Hey, that's what I get paid for.

Cheers!

[zachaudioguy]

This sounds absolutely terrifying John. I would love to see it all unfold on stage.

[John the Savage]

Well, I am for hire, should you require such services.

I think it's worth noting that I didn't just wake up one morning and conceive of this monstrous setup all at once. It has been arrived at, over the span of years, on the basis of need, as technology has allowed. Hell, even ten years ago, the functionality of this particular rig would have been science-fiction. Necessity, as they say, is the mother of all invention, and this is simply what is possible now. Who knows what tomorrow will bring. I'm sure this is not the last incarnation of the rig.

Regardless, it has been a very gradual and natural progression to this point.

As with anything that involves a degree of multitasking, the more comfortable you get with operations X through Y, the more reflexes you develop, and the more bandwidth you then have to add operation Z, and so forth.

For instance, I lent a looper to one of my colleagues (an otherwise extremely proficient musician), a while back, and it was a comedy of errors just watching him try to capture a single loop at first. Never mind trying to do anything involving multiple loops, loop FX, live edits, or what-have-you. Fast forward a couple months though, and he was getting around on it pretty good, and already starting to aspire to more complex looping scenarios.

I've been considering adding another looper, and possibly an Octatrack end-of-chain.

To that end, there is a limit to what a single person can do; and one must not lose sight of the objective, which remains playing instruments, singing, and otherwise performing music. So, with every augmentation of the rig, comes a complete tear-down and rebuild, from the ground up, to ensure that the human interface is as efficient as possible. You don't want to be a slave to the hardware. It has to be performable, and moreover... Fun!

This should probably all be moved to some thread about live looping, but whatever...

Cheers!

P.S. For fun, here are the last three incarnations of the rig, to show just how far the tech has come in the last 10-15 years. In order, from oldest to newest—though you can probably trace the lineage by weight alone—sufficed to say, the 14-space rack and 12-channel mixer is the dinosaur of the lot (it was dubbed the "demoralizing cube").

[John the Savage]

Here's a better look at the front of that rack setup...

While the footprint of each rig has remained roughly the same; all told, in the last ten years, advances in technology have shaved a near 300lbs and 40-odd cables out of the touring rig, while increasing functionality exponentially.

The new rig breaks down into 6 small flightcases, each weighing less than 30lbs...

Halle-freakin-lujah!

[Dirk Diggler]

Being a hardware guy, have you considered a rack looper?

I love my Looperlative, (8 stereo loopers) and had a pair of Oberheim EDP's back in the day.
Started with a regular Digitech delay 14 seconds woo hoo (lol), then Lexicon Jamman and Vortex (still have 2), then Repeater, then EDPs.

Msuperlooper is great for soft looping, I used to use Mobius since it felt like home because of the EDP based layout.

Live looping is a craft that requires practice for sure. And yes it's an always evolving setup here too.

Sorry to derail the thread.

[John the Savage]

Yes, I had an LP1 for years, and indeed it remains one the most comprehensive loopers on the market (especially the GenB). It's amazing, but (for now) I've moved on from the rack format. As a touring musician, it all comes down to footprint and weight: i.e. rack gear gets the brains off the floor, only to be replaced by MIDI controllers (in addition to the rack, and likely a mixer too).

The 'Rang III's do everything I need them to do (nearly as much as the LP1), only (arguably) more efficiently, with everything in one small box (or three in my case). With the Helix serving as the patchbay, mixer, and effects processor, it's a remarkably capable setup, that travels well. With most of the patching and signal routing being done internal to the devices themselves, and nearly every function on footswitches; it all adds up to fewer cables, adapters, power supplies, etc.

But, ya... Looperlative... Amazing looper!

Cheers!

[zachaudioguy]

Thanks for sharing the rig photos John as well as explaining the progression of it, it's really fascinating to see. I went to an Ableton meetup the other day where an artist demonstrated live looping, she was stacking vocal and synth harmonies, but all in the box.

When I told her I didn't think I could ever do that live, she explained exactly what you just did, you try X until you can do it, then you get bored and also start doing Y to keep yourself entertained. And on it goes I suppose. I entertain myself, thinking that someday I might actually be able to do this at a live gig.

[John the Savage]

Well, if you're a proficient musician or vocalist, it's truly astounding what can be done with even a single loop. So, it doesn't take much to get started. Grab a cheap guitar pedal looper, and go for it.

Cheers!

P.S. I wouldn't aspire to a setup like mine, unless you have a reason. Most of what you see in my rig, as I mentioned earlier, is about solving arrangement and routing paradoxes. It's rare that I'm using all 6-8 loops at once, with overdubs, in tandem with live sequences, within the context of any one given song. It's just about having options, because the job demands it. It's like being a mechanic: i.e. a giant toolbox, filled with every tool imaginable, just in case; when here, half the time, all you need is a screwdriver or wrench.

[Tj Shredder]

Setups grow. You begin with a minimum and start improvising. Then you get an idea while playing which you can’t do. Next time you add what was missing. Repeat…
My setup is much smaller, because I can add missing parts in software. My collection of controllers is still growing and my Max patch grew in 30 years to a monster. But since I got my LinnStrument I also have a growing Bitwig project…
I can fit the essential parts in a small backpack…

[OliverLSanz]

Also never used the volume setting myself, gonna try it right now!