Loop

A device or function that records a passage, plays it back repeatedly, and layers further parts over the top.

Hardware loopers have a single footswitch to record and overdub and another to stop, and the difficulty is entirely in timing: a loop that is a fraction of a beat long will drift audibly out of time within a few repetitions. Longer, multi-track units allow separate verses and choruses with a rhythm section built up part by part. Looping is both a performance tool for solo players and a practice aid for working on a chord sequence.

Example: a solo performer can lay down a chord progression, then solo over it without a second musician present.

Loop

See also