If you are a guitarist and have never used a looper pedal before, you are missing out on a huge experience. And I say this out of the personal experience- when I was new to guitars, I didn’t know about the value that playing with friends could bring.
Even if you don’t have any friends (or friends who play instruments), you can just search for a track online and jam along to that. Doing this has a two-fold advantage. First- you are exposing yourself to music, and that will enhance your musical ear. Second, and this I believe is the more important advantage- is that your ability to improvise along to a beat will improve by many folds.
Having a looper pedal next to your guitar can also help you layer multiple melodies and bass parts on top of three-chord tracks, and over time, you will be able to work on your compositions so they are harmonically more complex. If you would like to experiment with different ideas of harmony and time signatures, you will find the looper pedal a huge help.
In this article, we take a look at what the looper pedal is, and how you can use a looper to improve your playing. After we go over that, I also provide a list of the best looper pedals available in the market so you can make an informed decision. Let’s get started, shall we?
Table of Contents
What exactly is a looper?
You may have been confused by the term looper being thrown about here and there. A looper is just an electronic circuit that lets you record certain parts of your playing and play them at a later time.
If you’re a walk around the street and see a musician busking on their guitar, chances are- they are pressing something with their feet, and if you keep watching them, you will notice that they first make a loop, record that by pressing the pedal, and play something over that.
This arrangement may look pretty simple to you, but with clever composition skills and a little bit of practice, anybody can make awesome layers of musical tracks. This is great for practicing to play in time or as a backing track to play lead lines over.
How Do You Use a Looper Pedal?
There are many different ways to use a looper pedal. The most common way to use a looper is to record some chords- say I am recording four bars of C, A-minor, F, and G each, and I would save that loop for later.
So, when I actually need the loop, I can play that exact recording with the help of the pedal and play something over it. It is very handy for practicing with every scale- as I am a firm believer that a musician should learn to play in every key.
You can try playing the I-vi-IV-V progression in every key and practice improvising over that. Not only does doing this open a vast new world of possibilities, but it also makes you a well-rounded player.
Personally, I use a looper to practice the hard parts of a song. Say you are having trouble learning the fast parts of some Dream Theater, it’s a great idea to learn the chords to the rhythm section and play that at a slower tempo so it acts like a backing track. Then, you just practice the part you are having trouble with till it becomes second nature. There’s a proverb that’s popular among guitarists- You don’t play something till you can play it perfectly, you practice till you cannot play it perfectly.
And a handy looper pedal is the perfect way to nail every improved session. If you do a quick search on the internet, you will find plenty of pros showing off their looper sessions- and for a very good reason.
What is the best looper pedal?
What We Think
You might expect a bright red panda aesthetic from the name of the pedal but what you are getting is an elegant look with convenient controls.
You may have heard of Red Panda is an impressive brand that packs innovation in its gear products. If you need a versatile looper pedal, the Red Panda Tensor has got you covered there.
Whether you are looking for features similar to the Digitech XP-300 space station or just want micro-sampling that only certain rare pedals provide, you will love the Red Panda Tensor.
This looper pedal is great if you want to play around with a lot of controls and effects but if you just want a budget looper and are just going to be saving and playing loops, this pedal might be a bit overkill.
There is also kind of a learning curve involved in actually learning to use this pedal efficiently, so be prepared to invest some time on this. It’s also probably due to the sheer number of features that you are getting on this pedal.
What We Think
I know that I mostly write reviews about budget products. This one is a bit different- if you’re looking for the best looper pedal like a professional guitarist, chances are- you’ve already heard about the Boss RC-300 looper.
The RC-300 looper is a premium looper that features an unbelievable 3 hours of recording time for stereo loops. This may not be a new thing for gears in the future but for the present day and age, it’s certainly a revolutionary piece of technology.
I find that this looper pedal is pretty much like having three loopers built into one- as you can easily save and play stuff for each of the three channels that you get.
You get a lot of bells and whistles, and it can take some time to familiarize yourself with the functionalities that this pedal provides. But it does get easier over time, and you will find that you can shape your loops any way you want if you practice with it for a while.
Talking of features, you get 16 different effects on this which you can apply to either the three individual channels or on all channels simultaneously.
You are also getting a memory bank that can save up to 99 different loops which you can use to record, change, and layer loops exactly like you want to. When I say loops, I mean any instrument that you can hook into this, as well as your vocals.
What I love about this is the fact that you also get a USB output so you can hook it directly to your computer. There is also a feature on this that you won’t find on other effects pedals in the market- the Aux feature. It allows you to play mp3 files directly from your smartphone which just means that you’ve got even more versatility from the unit. If this doesn’t get your creative juices flowing, I don’t know what will!
There are also many rhythms on this which can be a great starting point for your original compositions. Personally, I prefer to write my own drum parts and play them out for a more natural feel, but if you’re in a hurry and just want something that you can improvise over and see what it leads to, you’ll find the included grooves pretty interesting.
I would have liked to get the power adapter included, but it’s not that expensive to get either. You can get any adapter you want but I recommend getting the one that Boss has suggested- which is the Boss PSA adapter so you don’t void the warranty.
What We Think
If you are looking for a looper pedal that’s super easy to use, you will find the TC Electronics Ditto looper pedal super intuitive to use. Not only does it come in a cool design, it also offers up to five minutes of looping time and you can layer as many parts as you want.
I used to have a cheap pedal back in the day- and while the sound quality was okay for just a loop, once I started adding parts, the quality would get crappier. That certainly isn’t the case with the Ditto Looper from what I’ve found using this.
The Ditto looper is packed with many features, but one of the things that I like best about this is the fact that the internal memory on this thing saves loops for you even if you turn the pedal off. It can be very handy when you need to turn it off- take it someplace else and continue from what you were making.
Most feature-packed pedals tend to be quite difficult to use. That’s where the Ditto looper pedal shines- it’s got a gentle learning curve and you will master all the things it offers in no time at all. You can get started recording your own loops by pressing once, and if you press it again it plays that loop for you. If you need to layer something over that, you just press it again.
After you’re done playing around with the loops or just want to start anew, you just need to press twice to stop the current loop and press and hold to reset.
The weight is a non-issue with this pedal as it’s lightweight and you can put it in tight spaces.
You do need to get the dc adapter separately which isn’t a big deal as the pedal is dirt cheap.
Whether you want a cheap looper for gigging or just want a budget looper that you can practice at home with, the TC Electronic pedal offers excellent value for you and you will be super happy with the purchase.
What We Think
Boss has got a reputation among guitarists for being a quality manufacturer of audio equipment. The RC1 loop station lives up to that name by providing a neat interface for you to easily record and play loops.
There are many pedals that Boss offers, and if you look around, you will find that Boss has got amazing models for gear-savvy players. I would suggest that you look at the RC1 loop station model first to see if it piques your interest.
The RC1 loop station is a very simple-to-use piece of gear that delivers exceptional value for the price. If you are looking for a pedal with a solid construction, this pedal is ideal for you. It can withstand rough handling as well, but I don’t really recommend taking poor care of the pedal. I believe that if you take good care of something, it can deliver more value in the long run.
What I like the most about this is the fact that it also supports keyboard input, so if you are somebody who plays both- you can use the same pedal for both instruments. There is also support for an external footswitch which is more of a necessary feature on most foot pedals as players should be able to control the pedal effects while actually playing.
There is one thing that I like more, and that’s the surprising fact that you can record up to 12 minutes at a time. If you are somebody who likes to layer complex melodies by adding harmonies, melodies as well as acapella, you will certainly find great use out of this budget looper.
Like any good pedal, you can easily control the dynamics, and additionally, you can also choose whether the output is mono or stereo.
I like the tiny indicator which tells you what loop you have currently selected, and you will also know if you are recording or playing thanks to the red indicator.
You also get the option to choose between a DC adapter or batteries, and I find that if I get rechargeable batteries as well as the DC adapter which does have to be purchased separately, I can get some awesome flexibility for practical uses.
If you are looking for a budget looper pedal to add to the effects in your pedalboard, the Boss RC1 loop station would be a great choice.
What We Think
Next up, we’ve got a premium looper with amazing features. If you are a songwriter and would like to try out what one of the best premium looper pedals has to offer, you cannot go wrong with the Pigtronix Infinity Looper 3 pedal.
What I like the most about the Pigtronix Infinity Looper 3 is the fact that you get to use three footswitches and you can also choose from series or parallel combinations which is great. You may be confused by what that actually means- it just means that you have the option to choose what starts when a certain section of the song ends.
The retro aesthetics on this make it a bit more complex than it actually is. At its heart, the Infinity Looper 3 is an incredibly versatile looper pedal that also features a USB port so you can directly connect it to a pc. I find that most of the cheap pedals have trouble syncing to MIDI nicely, but this one doesn’t seem to share that shortcoming.
While the Infinity Looper 3 pedal is definitely not for beginners, it delivers amazing quality in terms of the build as well as sound. You can save and play up to nine loops on this, and I’m quite sure that the number of controls will take you a while to master.
What We Think
If you are looking for a pedal that provides a bit more looping time on a budget, you can get the Electro Harmonix 720 Stereo Looper which features 12 minutes of looping time.
The pedal also gives off space vibes which are pretty appealing. If you like blue and white shades, you will absolutely love this pedal.
Aesthetics aside, what I like most about the Electro Harmonix 720 Stereo Looper is probably the 10 loops feature. I like layering loops on top of each other, and so, I find that I quickly run out of memory on cheap looper pedals.
The controls you get on this looper pedal are very intuitive and you are getting level, reverse, and half-speed buttons that do exactly as their names suggest.
If there is one thing that I would like to change about this, it’s the fact that this looper pedal only has two footswitches. You will quickly find that the left footswitch does a good job at looping, layering, and undo/redo while the right footswitch handles starting or stopping the loops.
You can get the Electro Harmonix looper pedal at just about 230$ which isn’t much for a wonderful looper that will last you a long time.
What We Think
Looking for a cheap pedal that will satisfy your curiosity? You cannot go wrong with the Hotone Wally Plus looper pedal which not only comes at just under 130$ but also offers good features.
The best thing about this, and why this pedal has made it to the top of this list, is because it’s a simple looper with the features that you need- and what’s even better is its compact design.
You also get the ability to plug it into your computer with a USB connection which is something that I haven’t found on most budget pedals. If you have ever used this pedal, you will notice that the pedal also features an option to change the tempo of the loop. This comes in super handy if you want to bump up the tempo by a bit but don’t want to re-record the whole section again.
I am an advocate of using a metronome to learn to play at fast tempos. But to gain the speed and dexterity required to play fast, you actually need to be able to play stuff clean at a slower tempo. That’s where the Hotone Wally Plus can come in handy, and it’s also one of the reasons why I’ve put this pedal at the top.
The interface might look intimidating at first, but I assure you- it’s actually super easy to get used to. There are six knobs on this- tempo, genre, style, loop, bass, and drums. You also have the option to choose from 11 different phrase banks which are pretty impressive.
Buying Guide for a Looper Pedal
What looper pedal you should get depends on many factors- the most important ones being the price you are willing to pay for, what you expect to use the pedal for, and what features you expect from the pedal.
If you are thinking of doing live gigs with a looper pedal, it would actually be a great idea to get the Boss RC-300 which may be a bit pricy but it will certainly provide you with the features that you actually need on a performance gear. However, if you are looking for a pedal just to play along to, or to show your band how it’s done, getting a budget pedal would be a great option too.
For songwriters and musicians who just want to experience what a looper pedal is capable of, the TC Electronic Ditto pedal would be great.
You should get a pedal that’s in your budget- this is super important because while you may think that purchasing a decent looper pedal is fully justified when the time to invest in a good multi-fx pedal actually comes, you will come to realize that the looper you got for a thousand bucks can now be replaced by a single multi-fx.
It’s actually a great idea to get a budget looper and upgrade to a more expensive one if you feel like you actually need the features.
Final Thoughts
You can find many loopers in the market, and while some of them are budget-friendly, you also have the option of going for some pedals with more features. If you are on the search for a budget pedal, I would highly recommend getting the Boss RC-1 looper, and if you are looking for a beast that offers incredible value, go for the BossRC-300.
Whether you want a looper to perform as a one-man band or for bedroom practice, I hope that the list I have put together above provides some value to you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the best budget looper?
I would say the Boss RC-1 is the best budget looper as it does offer the features you need. You are getting a good construction, quality sound, and incredible value which is great. If you want to play something on top of the loops you’ve recorded, you will find the RC-1 pretty amazing.
Should I get a cheap or an expensive looper?
The thing with loopers, or any piece of gear really, is the fact that you are getting what you pay for. If you are looking for tons of features, an expensive looper would be a great idea but if you just want a looper to learn or improve your skills on the guitar, going for a budget option is fine.