LoopDogg
An advanced loop station that uses a touchscreen
allows for the spatial distribution of sounds and the editing of individual audio tracks.
A project by Gunda Trickl, Emanuel John, Joshua Lehmann and David Hilkert. 3rd semester, 2020
Supervising lecturers: Prof. Dr Kyrill Fischer and Prof. Thorsten Greiner
LoopDogg – The Next Episode inLoop Stations
LoopDogg is the next evolution of standard loop stations. Using a touchscreen, you can adjust the panorama and depth of each individual sound. In addition to the standard functions found on conventional devices, LoopDogg offers several effects controls to further refine the sound of individual tracks or the entire composition.
Loopstations have long since established a firm place in the repertoire of performance artists and solo artists. Not least thanks to DubFX and Reggie Watts, looping and combining live-recorded sounds has gained greater recognition – and popularity.
The four-person project team wanted to harness and further develop the advantages of such devices in order to create even more interesting possibilities, particularly for live performances.
Conventional loop stations do not allow for the subsequent editing of individual tracks. If mistakes are made, everything often has to be deleted and started from scratch. Furthermore, artists have no further control over the recorded sounds once they have been captured. Volume and sound characteristics must be set in advance. Once all the sounds have been ‘stacked on top of one another’, there is no going back.
LoopDogg, on the other hand, offers greater flexibility. Firstly, there are eight slots for individual loops. The first loop automatically serves to synchronise the remaining seven. This allows the speed of the entire track to be increased or decreased. The playback speed of individual tracks can also be adjusted: synchronised to the main loop, individual tracks can, for example, be played back at double or four times the speed. This offers a wide range of creative possibilities for live performances.
The most exciting feature of LoopDogg is, of course, the touchscreen. Recorded loops immediately appear on the screen as small circles labelled with the corresponding loop number.
Standard loop stations often operate in mono. Sounds can only be combined in one dimension, which quickly imposes creative limitations, particularly during live performances. With a quick tap on our touchscreen, sounds can be positioned within the panorama. But that’s not all: the loops can also be moved in the other dimension – from front to back – within the sound space. This is achieved using the built-in reverb. The reverb allows for depth layering, which is particularly useful when layering different instruments. For example, the drums can be positioned at the back, the vocals at the front and melodic instruments at the sides. The size and proportion of the reverb space can also be adjusted.
Among DJs and in live electronic music performances, it is common practice to mute individual tracks, re-insert them one after the other, and thus create exciting compositions right in front of the audience. LoopDogg offers separate ‘mute’ and ‘solo’ switches for each of the eight loops. If, for example, you make a mistake during recording, the faulty track can be muted and deleted immediately. As loops can be deleted and re-recorded as often as you like, LoopDogg allows for virtually endless performances.
High-pass and low-pass filters for the individual tracks round off the effects section. In addition, a standard footswitch can be connected via a jack socket to control recording when both hands are needed on the instrument.
The prototype was produced using 3D printing and covered with foil for the colour scheme. A Teensy microcontroller powers the unit. LoopDogg connects to a computer via USB. The computer’s audio interface serves as the audio input and output. The loop station works in conjunction with a cross-platform app developed using Max software. The project concept envisages the possibility of further developing the loop station as a standalone solution. A PC would then no longer be required for audio interfaces or software.
