For one candidate to challenge the reigning BOSS Loop Station line, there’s rival VOX. While they’re both loopers with some things to stomp on, the designs are quite different. The BOSS units can store up to three hours and 99 phrases; the VOX VDL1 stores two loops with a total recorded time of 90 seconds. Nor do you get the utility of the BOSS’ USB storage transfer. And the Vox is mono, whereas the BOSS is stereo.

In place of those features, the VDL1 focuses more on live looping and effects:

• Live effects: Pedal/Wah (Clean/Comp/Crunch/Overdrive/Distortion), Mod (Chorus 1/Chorus 2/Flanger/Phaser/Tremolo), Bass (Electric 1-4/Synth 1/ Synth 2), Acoustic (four models). Pitch, stutter, EQ, delay, reverb, “sci-fi.”
• Loop effects: volume, crossfade, reverse, “loop in loop” (no idea on that one), pitch, speed, scrube, stutter, mod, filter, delay.
• Master limiter.
• Mono input jack, mic in (no phantom power)
• Undo and redo in overdubbing.
• Infinite layers.

In other words, looping is about all these two approaches have in common. BOSS makes what’s really a looping sampler with stereo recording, tons of storage, and connectivity via USB, all in a mobile form factor. VOX makes a bigger box that’s mono, uses only enough sample length as you’d need in a live performance, and does effects. The BOSS is a stereo looping sampler; the VOX a mono multi-effects looper.

I have to say, in terms of what I’d want to play with or hear someone else play with, I prefer the BOSS’ focus on sampling to another box with loads of built-in effects. But the fact that you can choose between two boxes says that you as the musician really get to choose what you want in looping in the first place.

And in an industry in which you often have to choose between two pieces of gear that are nearly identical, here are two pieces of gear that are totally different, but each appear to be pretty good at being what they are. Kudos on that to both BOSS (Roland) and VOX (Korg).

I’m curious to hear your take.

http://www.voxamps.com/us/pedals/vdl1/ [Note: Vox's site was very much up and down at press time]

A big surprise announcement from Livid, the VJ software / boutique A/V controller maker: Livid Looper is a new, free audio looping tool, built in Max 5.

Click through for the full image; it’s quite lovely with … um, butterflies and such. (Strap that solar panel to your MacBook and take it camping!)

Built around the Ohm hardware controller from Livid, but certainly adaptable to the interface of your choice, the Max 5-based software has some very nifty features for live performance:

• Audio looping, slicing, dicing, and scrambling
• Built-in audio effects, plus VST support – and a built-in Granulator for time-shift / scrambling effects
• Instant audio recording
• Interactive waveform display for selecting loops (or chop them up automatically)
• Beat-synced, sequenced gesture recording – meaning effects can be added in performance and locked to the loop
• MIDI learn (in case you don’t have an Ohm)
• OpenSoundControl support, for easy networking of data to other laptops, or multiple apps / VJ apps on one laptop

As you can see below, it is Ohm centric – making that already very sweet controller this much sweeter – but is likewise generic enough that you own preferred controller should work just fine. Livid also promises that this could work well with a cheap laptop like the Eee (though for now you will need Windows or, at the very least, Linux + WINE).

You’ll need the full version of Max 5 to edit it, but once you do the patch is fully open source, so you can hack it do your own thing. (Max 5 is great, but I wonder if anyone will port to Pd for an end-to-end open source experience? Or perhaps there are some similar Pd patches to consider, dear Pd community? Pd would also give you instant Linux compatibility – at least until Max is available on Linux, ahem, Cycling ‘74.)

It’s too bad Ableton Live doesn’t support OSC, as these two would go together quite nicely linked via OSC (though you should be able to sync them via MIDI, I’d imagine).

Available now for Mac and Windows, fully free as in beer and freedom and beer freedom:

Livid Looper

Let us know how you like it when you give it a try!