Hmmm... on reviewing some of my previous posts, I catch myself having used the term "loop" quite casually.
In particular, in those posts, I have NOT maintained the careful distinction between "loop" and "delay", probably because I've used the Boomerang to switch back and forth between both (i.e., the decay can be halted by latching into "play" mode, and resumed by latching into "stack" mode), and so I've forgotten that some other devices out there might not perform both functions.
So, f'rinstance, when I described my reaction to hearing Pamelia Kurstin creating polyphony (with a DL-6, yes?),
[i]1) Wow! She's amazing!
2) So why is she using such a ridiculously short loop?[/i]
arguably I ought to have translated my original thought into, "So why is she using a sound-on-sound delay with such a ridiculously short periodicity?"
My apologies for any confusion. At the risk of nauseatingly pedantic redundancy, then:
The Boss GigaDelay (in its Sound-On-Sound mode), the Akai HeadRush*, or the Boomerang each can be used to perform either "loops" (material you record that repeats without decay as you perform other material that isn't added to the loop), or "delays" (material that decays slightly with each repetition, as the material you're playing is added to the repeating-and-decaying cycle).
The principal differences, then, lie in 1) maximum available delay time, 2) amount of information available in display, and 3) ease of use in live performance.
Item 2, by the way, is one point on which the GigaDelay beats out the Boomerang: The GigaDelay has an LCD screen, that graphically shows you when you're 1/4 of the way through a cycle, when you're halfway, when you're 3/4 of the way, and when you've reached the end = when you're starting anew. The Boomerang has only an LED that flashes at the beginning of each cycle. (I like to create rhythmically amorphous masses of sound, so I generally wind up ignoring the LED.)
* [afterthought: um, I THINK I remember doing this with the HeadRush... but I don't have it any more, so I can't verify it... and I don't recommend this pedal, period: anything it does, the GigaDelay does better, with a better interface.]
In particular, in those posts, I have NOT maintained the careful distinction between "loop" and "delay", probably because I've used the Boomerang to switch back and forth between both (i.e., the decay can be halted by latching into "play" mode, and resumed by latching into "stack" mode), and so I've forgotten that some other devices out there might not perform both functions.
So, f'rinstance, when I described my reaction to hearing Pamelia Kurstin creating polyphony (with a DL-6, yes?),
[i]1) Wow! She's amazing!
2) So why is she using such a ridiculously short loop?[/i]
arguably I ought to have translated my original thought into, "So why is she using a sound-on-sound delay with such a ridiculously short periodicity?"
My apologies for any confusion. At the risk of nauseatingly pedantic redundancy, then:
The Boss GigaDelay (in its Sound-On-Sound mode), the Akai HeadRush*, or the Boomerang each can be used to perform either "loops" (material you record that repeats without decay as you perform other material that isn't added to the loop), or "delays" (material that decays slightly with each repetition, as the material you're playing is added to the repeating-and-decaying cycle).
The principal differences, then, lie in 1) maximum available delay time, 2) amount of information available in display, and 3) ease of use in live performance.
Item 2, by the way, is one point on which the GigaDelay beats out the Boomerang: The GigaDelay has an LCD screen, that graphically shows you when you're 1/4 of the way through a cycle, when you're halfway, when you're 3/4 of the way, and when you've reached the end = when you're starting anew. The Boomerang has only an LED that flashes at the beginning of each cycle. (I like to create rhythmically amorphous masses of sound, so I generally wind up ignoring the LED.)
* [afterthought: um, I THINK I remember doing this with the HeadRush... but I don't have it any more, so I can't verify it... and I don't recommend this pedal, period: anything it does, the GigaDelay does better, with a better interface.]
