Anyone using A4 with a looper pedal via midi?

Elektron Gear Analog Keys/Four
#1

I’ve been eyeing the Pigtronix Infinity looper since getting my A4 as it seems I could send midi clock into the looper from the A4. So then I could be able to lay a beat, bass or some pads on the A4 sequencer and then lay some guitar and lap steel or op-1 on the looper, all while being synced up with tempo and start/stop on beat together.

I’m kinda a newbie with midi. Does this seem doable?

Anyone out there have a setup like this that’s using a hardware type looper besides the OT?

Would love to hear about some setups and different loopers that would do this with midi or even CV. Also any input or ideas are appreciated.

#2

hehe, thanks for the inspiration to test out my vintage analog looper, i’ve a Digitech Time Machine 7.6 which takes voltage signals to determine delay length etc :slight_smile: gonna be fun
syncing the midi unit will be easy, some may respond to transport commands, i’m not sure my original jamman does (the Lexicon one !) yours might, i’ve no idea, it may have a midi compatibility chart with the manual that should clear that up !

#3

You can do this. From what I have read the Infinity Looper only acts as a SLAVE for MIDI… so you can not use it to start and stop the A4. You will have to start and stop the A4 by hand.

Read pages 30-31ish in the Infinity manual… it will explain the midi options.

I don’t have the Infinity, but from what I am reading… it should work the way you are asking.

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#4

I have a newer Jamman stereo that I love looping in and has great features however no midi… Wish it did, its my favorite looper out of the ones I’ve had which include- both boomerangs, line6 m9, jamman solo, boss loopstation, lil vox, and even had an Infinity that I returned because of numerous quality issues. Now I’m considering it again since I have an A4 in my life and want to get synced with my guitar setup.

Anyone else using loopers?

#5

Any looper users out there?

I got the boss rc505 and it’s midi is working very well with the a4, but going to return it and maybe go for the Infinity looper…I just don’t like the large size and cheap plastic feel of the Boss and it’s cheesy fx. The Infinity cost a little less and is US built with better build quality.

Any opinions at least?

#6

The EHX 45000 or its predecessor (2880, for that matter) seems to allow MIDI sync; and it has 4 tracks with faders and pan.
http://www.ehx.com/products/ehx-45000

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#7

I have a Strymon Timeline. Is it possible to use the looper in combo with a four? Any users with experience?

#8

Just received a Flashback x4 today with this in mind. Hoping to try it out this week.

#9

Just to resurrect this.

I have a pigtronix infinity which i use with the MD no problem, good for looping synths and guitars etc…

Am planning to sell both for an A4 tho, seems like having a sequencer is more useful as you can tweak the sound later!

/t

#10

I’m using the Boomerang III Phrase Sampler looper pedal with my A4, works a treat.

#11

I use it with the dedicated pedal and it is a powerfull set up. Clock is tight and have 4 mono channels give a lot of way to work.

Just miss time streching and would be the best looper all time.

#12

Electrix repeater !
unfortunately it’s discontinued, but they pop up second hand sometimes…

#13

I finally picked up a Pigtronix Infinity with reverse/undo aux foot switch from a fellow Elektronaut last month.

Things I like:
-Midi quantize of commands Rec / Play / Start / Stop is very handy when you’re looping a beat-based instrument as the A4 can be (and of course AR)
-Overdub. I use the Infinity with my AR and A4 and a DJ mixer that has sends with pre/post switches. Overdub allows me to bring in more layers on the loop with the fader down and get creative and musical with loop creation.
-Reverse. A quick reverse + undo is great for techno fills.
-It loops in stereo. Surprisingly hard to find. Even many multi FX pedals with stereo input that have looping capability only loop in mono.

Things I don’t like:
-It doesn’t produce a perfect sonic copy of the input. The stereo image is subtly narrowed, and the high end isn’t as clear. I can make up for this somewhat on the DJ mixer, and for live use it’s good enough. If you’re not running it into a mixer with EQ, though it may be a deal breaker if you’re looping drums with high freq content like hats and cymbals.
-No OFF switch. I get it, it’s a pedal. No one wants to bump that on accident. The PSU lead is super firm as well, which is great for the stage. I’ll deal with the drawbacks of no OFF switch to enjoy the live stability.

Still worth the money, and it gives my live rig some freedom and insurance.
One Elektron, the Pigtronix, and a DJ mixer is all I need. So if one of my two Elektrons goes down for any reason, I’m covered.

#14

Hi

Im Considering a pig or 45000!! Wondering how’s the sound quality of the EH? The higher spec audio is the only reason I fancy the pig over the 45000… hmmm

Thanks

#15

too bad. Still using this pigtronix infinity?

I have DT & A4 mk2 and djm450
audio DT --> A4 mk2
audio A4MK2 (incl DT audio) --> master out --> djm 450 channel 1
audio A4MK2 (incl DT audio) --> headphone out --> looper --> djm 450 channel 2

Is this a good plan?
What loopers can be nice?
Pigtronix looks good, and strong… and not too flashy…
but audio quality decrease is not what I am looking for.

needs to have a tight Midi clock, stereo sampling (in and out) and a preset loop Lenght (like 4 bars, or 1 bar)

#16

Might be tricky to track down, but the Roland Aira Scooper is pretty awesome with the AK. You can do a lot of stuff beyond looping and control of all with the CV out.

#17

I also thought about the pigtronix infinity looper but the price was holding me back. So i tried the Ditto x4 (which arrived yesterday).

It’s built very solid and easy to use. In my first tests (never had a looper before) it seems to run stable. But you can not preset a loop length.

In terms of sound quality i had nothing to complain about.

#18

so you manually set the end of the loop?
like pressing exactly on the right moment
or the loop will be a little too long or too short

I am afraid of then running out of the sequence this way?

#19

Yes you have to start/stop manually but it works. If just tested it with a click track.

See also here around 3:20

#20

That’s surprising as Pigtronix did pride themselves on it being (probably) the best audio quality looper, at least at the time.