overwhelmed by options for live looping

[digital eagle audio]

hi e'rbody!!
so i'm interested in doing some live vocal loops, and the range of products is pretty intimidating. something like a boss dd-20 would do everything, but it's expensive and has a pretty steep learning curve. something like a regular digital delay pedal is vastly more affordable and accessible, which makes me worry that the features will be lacking, and even if i did decide to go that route, i'd have to decide between like fifty models and brands. a dr sample seems like a good idea too, but i can't figure out exactly what can be done with it, outside of beatmaking stuff. ableton live seems like a good option (which i'm aware belongs in the software forum), but i'd like to avoid bringing a pc and interface into the equation.
maybe i should try to better explain what i need (want):
i'd like to be able to layer a few short repeating phrases and sing over it as well as tweak the loops (not edits, but effects). if possible, i'd like it to be fairly easy to understand, so that it can be used by many people.

sorry if this is a dumb question, but i didn't have any smart ones.

thanks!!!
jay

[wren]

Years ago, after trying to make live looping work for me with various delay pedals and multi-fx pedals, I broke down and bought a Boomerang Plus. Best decision I ever made (in that department, anyway).

It's super-fucking-stupidly-easy to use, everything is clearly labeled. It also has some interesting other delay options, but as a phrase sampler it's the simplest, most intuitive thing to use ever. It has a switchable mic/line/instrument in, a "bypass original signal" footswitch which makes using it with an aux or something on a mixing board much friendlier, a volume "roller" that's foot-controlled, and is definitely simple enough to be used by just about anyone. I've had the Boomerang (which I bought used) for at least 4 years; it's been consistently gigged (downright abused, actually! it's had more beers spilled on it from drunk audience members than the rest of my pedalboard combined) and it's never once even hiccuped.

The downside is that it's very expensive (although you can find it for much cheaper used). I know how aggravating it is when you ask for help finding something cheap and someone says, "Here's your answer! It's waaay more expensive then what you said you wanted to spend!" but from what I can tell, a Boomerang would be absolutely perfect for what you're looking for so I wanted to make sure it got thrown into the fray (even if it is too expensive).

For cheaper, I've heard very good things about the Akai E2 Headrush, and everyone has seen someone using their DL4 as a looper. The Boss RC2 might be worth looking into, although I've heard (possibly unsubstantiated) rumors that it tries to "automatically" quantize your loop a little bit. I have no experience with any of them, though, and quite frankly I don't care to. I'm happy with what I got.

[CarlWelden]

I was also going to suggest the Boomerang+
There a are a lot of looper pedals out there like the JamMan, with memory cards and programming modes, set-ups and so on and so forth...Next thing you know, it's not about live looping anymore.

But for LIVE playing, nothing is more straightforward than the Boomerang.
It's more about playing, exploring and creating than preserving. For me, that lends itself to more spontaneity. I bought mine a while back, cringing at the price, but its simplicity and utter lack of hassle practically pays for itself.

[Harry]

+3 on the boomerang!
Stupid easy and smooth live.

The Boss VE20 is cool too.

I use the boomerang for guitar loops and the boss for vocal loops.

Get em both going and it's so cool that people run screaming from the club:)

[digital eagle audio]

thanks guys! the boomerang is definitely nasty, but it's gonna take some discipline to save up for one.

[zmix]

I'm a big fan of the Electro Harmonix 2880 looper.. it's got physical faders, pan knobs and pitch controls, plus it's stereo in and out, and can operate like a "4 track recorder + 2-track mixdown deck". Audio is recorded as standard WAV files and it has a USB port, too.