Looper in the Axe FXIII

Looks like Mobius got stuck in 32 bit land.....

I tried using Ableton for looping but somehow that option almost always results in creativity suck (dunno why...) and best option for me so far remains RC-300 though even that has it's limitations.

A comprehensive looper inside the III would suit me very well - and include MIDI tempo sync if this is going to be developed please.
 
Looks like Mobius got stuck in 32 bit land.....

I tried using Ableton for looping but somehow that option almost always results in creativity suck (dunno why...) and best option for me so far remains RC-300 though even that has it's limitations.

A comprehensive looper inside the III would suit me very well - and include MIDI tempo sync if this is going to be developed please.
According to the website,latest Mobius is 64 or 32 bit
 
it'll run as a standalone in 64bit, but you need a bridge to run the plugin, like 32lives or Jbridge (on a mac, at least)
 
it'll run as a standalone in 64bit, but you need a bridge to run the plugin, like 32lives or Jbridge (on a mac, at least)
thanks as always for the clarification. ...i have mistrusted 32bit bridge apps out of general paranoia, so i dunno.. will the impending
complete disowning of 32,bit by Mac OS mean the end of these too?
 
yeah, I have jbridge & Mobius downloaded and it's a viable option but there is a good deal of initial setup to work through and its just not quite as slick as dedicated bit of hardware even tho it is much more flexible. I am sure many will be very happy with it assuming some proficiency with Live. Just me but when I see a DAW my creative head switches off which is a bummer.
 
I moved to the combination of Mobius as sync master in Ableton 8 years ago after trying lots of different pedals. Once you learn the basics it is far superior to anything else out there. I also trigger Steinberg's Groove Agent 2 VST at the same time because it is the only software or hardware drum machine that will work flawlessly for improvising with the looper that I have found. It is great because you can midi trigger fills and do glitch effects, etc. all with a few taps of your midi foot controller while playing your axe.
Ableton passes the clock sync onto The Axe Fx and any modulations and delays can all be timed if desired. All of this is routed outside of my multi channel audio interface into a mixer for mixing on the fly.
The next manufacturer who makes a multi channel looper, inside of a multi effects with built in drums, that can do this stuff, gets my money...if I live that long.
 
yeah, the amount of rack gear i used to have to achieve what i can do now inside a laptop is amazing. i do miss hardware though and wish i hadn't sold everything off, but there was no other way to afford the axe fx at the time. (and my back is grateful).
 
yeah, the amount of rack gear i used to have to achieve what i can do now inside a laptop is amazing. i do miss hardware though and wish i hadn't sold everything off, but there was no other way to afford the axe fx at the time. (and my back is grateful).
Isn't funny how one regrets selling older hardware a few years later when you realize it could still be useful. I sold a bunch of gear and a guitar to get my Axe Xl also and I sure miss that Schecter guitar.
 
I am planning to use mobius with axe fx III (until hopefully one day there is a big upgrade of the axe looper).
The good thing is that if I understand correctly with the axe III, no need to get an added interface, I can just plug the laptop via USB and put the laptop as an insert anywhere in the axe fx effect chain.
Can't wait to put my hands on a III and try that :).
 
1. There is no half speed at this time. The unit has an excellent pitch shifter. Use that to generate bass lines.
.

Pitch shift is no substitute for half speed. It can't slow down lines. Too bad it is left out and that the Axe fx looper is not having more looping functions like replace for example.
I was hoping the Axe fx III would expand the looping possibilities but apparently it is not.

Not everyone wants to carry a laptop and extra foot controller and possibly a sound card for looping. I have done that and used Mobius and Ableton but stopped doing so.
 
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Pitch shift is no substitute for half speed. It can't slow down lines. Too bad it is left out and that the Axe fx looper is not having more looping functions like replace for example.
I was hoping the Axe fx III would expand the looping possibilities but apparently it is not.

Not everyone wants to carry a laptop and extra foot controller and possibly a sound card for looping. I have done that and used Mobius and Ableton but stopped doing so.
So right....more junk to set up and get working right. The dream of one box to do all is still just a dream though. Any thoughts on the Boss RC-300? I can get a good deal on a used one. I think the drums are kind of basic sounding from the YouTube videos I have seen, but this could be remedied with Groove Agent 2 stand alone.
 
So right....more junk to set up and get working right. The dream of one box to do all is still just a dream though. Any thoughts on the Boss RC-300? I can get a good deal on a used one. I think the drums are kind of basic sounding from the YouTube videos I have seen, but this could be remedied with Groove Agent 2 stand alone.

The RC-300 is a pretty decent box. I would spend whatever it took (bit like buying a III) to get the best looper and although it has some minus points it is intuitive to use and gets results. Most annoying thing is lack of ability to slave to an incoming MIDI clock - it needs to be Master (unless its slaved to another RC-300). The built in rhythm unit is OK for very basic time keeping but it can be brought in / taken out with its own level control. For me the RC-300 is an essential bit of kit - at the moment. I looked at recent EHX and Pigtronix alternatives but still think this is the best option. However..... based on the advice here on using Mobius and Live I have started seeing whether I can get used to using that. Undoubtedly move flexible but I still have a big issue looking at a laptop screen and losing creative focus - maybe its just me but 25 years in IT was maybe enough. I have started with the built in Live Looper and hooked up a bunch of MIDI foot switches to organise a good startup working template and will see how it goes. Ultimately tho, if there were the ultimate hardware looper available I wouldn't hesitate and the the RC-300 isn't a million miles from being right. Just be aware of that Master / Slave MIDI issue.
 
The RC-300 is a pretty decent box. I would spend whatever it took (bit like buying a III) to get the best looper and although it has some minus points it is intuitive to use and gets results. Most annoying thing is lack of ability to slave to an incoming MIDI clock - it needs to be Master (unless its slaved to another RC-300). The built in rhythm unit is OK for very basic time keeping but it can be brought in / taken out with its own level control. For me the RC-300 is an essential bit of kit - at the moment. I looked at recent EHX and Pigtronix alternatives but still think this is the best option. However..... based on the advice here on using Mobius and Live I have started seeing whether I can get used to using that. Undoubtedly move flexible but I still have a big issue looking at a laptop screen and losing creative focus - maybe its just me but 25 years in IT was maybe enough. I have started with the built in Live Looper and hooked up a bunch of MIDI foot switches to organise a good startup working template and will see how it goes. Ultimately tho, if there were the ultimate hardware looper available I wouldn't hesitate and the the RC-300 isn't a million miles from being right. Just be aware of that Master / Slave MIDI issue.
I looked into the RC-300 a bit more and came to the conclusion that I will stick to Mobius for the time being. It appears that the Boss box cannot do different song structures like how I have Mobius set up. The other pluses of Mobius are the abilities to use the same foot controller to control the Axe and Ableton. I have also considered the Sonnit pedal. http://www.sonnit.co.uk/ (it started out being built around Mobius) but it is seems like the software is not quite ready for prime time. I tried installing his software on windows 7 and it did not work. He said he had not tested it yet. Although... I would like to support the Developer. Maybe in the future I will. Right now I am holding off. I want to see what BeatBuddy comes up with in their next iteration which is supposed to have a built in looper. Something tells me it will probably only be a one channel looper and rather primitive though.
We will see.
 
It's not the same at all. It's totally different. You can not do the same sort of things with the pitch block. The pitch block just changes pitch. The Half function changes both speed and pitch. Adrian Belew, David Torn, Brian Eno, and Robert Fripp all understand the usefulness of the half speed function.

Agreed. Totally different. I’m not sure FAS understands the creative potential.

That being said, it’s probably a little unfair to think the Axe-Fx could ever truly replacement the functionality of purpose built loopers like the EDP, Looperlative, and Boomerang.
 
...and best option for me so far remains RC-300 though even that has it's limitations.

It’s the one I use. To me it’s main limitation is it’s size which they could cut in half if they started using those vertical double footswitches they came out with a few years ago. I’d also like to see a little mastering suite in it for making your saved loops fit better in your live mix...a multi-band comp and stuff.
 
2. There is no Overdub button. Overdub is a state that is automatically entered on subsequent presses of Record. The looper control is all done through the five buttons.

How do you overdub after you have gone out of record to check to make sure the loop is good & worth overdubbing on?
 
How do you overdub after you have gone out of record to check to make sure the loop is good & worth overdubbing on?
while it's playing, press Record.

from a performance angle, it's good to get to a point where you don't need to listen once, but instead immediately overdub. otherwise you spend

5 seconds recording
5 seconds listening
5 seconds re-recording (potentially)
5 seconds listening again
5 seconds overdubbing - repeat for each over dub

all that time going by gets tiresome as a listener, especially if you build a loop for each song you do. i see people stare at their pedal board for 30 seconds to a minute before looking back up and then singing the song.

take a song like Hotel California where each pass is 25 seconds for the whole progression

25 seconds recording chords
25 seconds recording a beatbox/drumbeat
25 seconds recording the bassline
25 seconds recording color/riffs

this is assuming you nail it each time, almost 2 minutes of looping before you even start singing, and people have already sung the song in their head each time haha.

just a thought, and a peeve of mine for loop performers.

i like that the 3 has a quick way to get to immediate Dub, or immediate play, or (soon) immediate close/stop the loop to play later, each with minimal button presses.
 
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while it's playing, press Record.

from a performance angle, it's good to get to a point where you don't need to listen once, but instead immediately overdub. otherwise you spend

5 seconds recording
5 seconds listening
5 seconds re-recording (potentially)
5 seconds listening again
5 seconds overdubbing - repeat for each over dub

all that time going by gets tiresome as a listener, especially if you build a loop for each song you do. i see people stare at their pedal board for 30 seconds to a minute before looking back up and then singing the song.

take a song like Hotel California where each pass is 25 seconds for the whole progression

25 seconds recording chords
25 seconds recording a beatbox/drumbeat
25 seconds recording the bassline
25 seconds recording color/riffs

this is assuming you nail it each time, almost 2 minutes of looping before you even start singing, and people have already sung the song in their head each time haha.

just a thought, and a peeve of mine for loop performers.

i like that the 3 has a quick way to get to immediate Dub, or immediate play, or (soon) immediate close/stop the loop to play later, each with minimal button presses.

That's all well & good but doesn't answer my question. I rarely use a looper & so far, never live. The actual answer is record the loop, hit record again twice to go in & out of overdub, check the loop (for me, short 2 to 4 bar grooves) then hit record again to actually over dub, then hit play when you are done. Would be sooooo much more straight forward (and MUCH easier live) to have a dedicated overdub button IMHO.
 
That's all well & good but doesn't answer my question. I rarely use a looper & so far, never live. The actual answer is record the loop, hit record again twice to go in & out of overdub, check the loop (for me, short 2 to 4 bar grooves) then hit record again to actually over dub, then hit play when you are done. Would be sooooo much more straight forward (and MUCH easier live) to have a dedicated overdub button IMHO.
Oh you’re asking from the beginning. I thought you were already listening to the loop.

Press Rec
Press Play to play the loop and listen
Press Rec to overdub at any point.

Simple.

Or just

Press Rec
Press Rec again to enter overdub mode but just don’t play anything; start overdubbing whenever you want.
 
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