BOSS RC-5 Loop Station — modern, compact looper with first-class sound quality, 99 phrase memories, 57 rhythms and optional MIDI control. Perfect for guitar, bass, electroacoustic

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There are more rhythym options & settings than I'll ever need or use, but that's a good thing. It means that anything I could possibly want is in there. Like its predecessor, the RC-5 comes with a built-in drum machine offering 57 different patterns; each of which is available as an A and a B version to reduce monotony. You can set the drum kit for each individual pattern yourself and choose from seven different drum kits. E. Install and operate counterfeit versions of Software (i.e. software provided by anyone other than Roland or an authorized representative of Roland) on Roland hardware;

These figures will vary depending on the actual conditions of use. Accessories Leaflet ("USING THE UNIT SAFELY,""IMPORTANT NOTES," and "Information")But it isn’t just “here’s a small looper for people who do slightly more than just annoy their families with endless looping” (let’s admit it, we’re all guilty of that from time to time). Now you could viably use the looper in a live situation as well. It might take a while to get used to performing some operations, but with a little practice it becomes intuitive. You can also always add an external footswitch later for easier control of the pedals features. There have been times in the past when I bought a lower model pedal to save some money, only to regret it later on. I’ve never bought a more expensive model and wished I had fewer features.

Also, the RC-5 has tons more control over how the loops function, how the display looks and functions, etc. It's surprisingly versatile and customizable. I've dug into some of the settings... Boss provides a QR code video link, but their tutorial barely scratches the surface. There are some YouTube videos that go into way more depth and have really helped me learn how to navigate the sub-menus more efficiently. But, don't get me wrong; it's pretty easy to master the basic functions within just a few minutes, if that's all you want to do. Btw, mine came without a manual, for some reason, (an oversight at the factory and not Sweetwater's fault). I had no trouble figuring out the basics and was looping within minutes. That being said, I am amazed with the RC-5 and its' capabilities. The 32-bit sound quality alone makes this pedal worth the money, imo (the RC-1 is 16-bit). The pristine, crystal clear recordings I'm getting have wowed me from the first time I used it. You can flip through all the different grooves available under the ‘Pattern’ setting. I personally liked the ‘Shuffle4’ groove a lot. Each pattern has an A/B variation that you can select in the next menu.

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The basic idea is that you can play an entire verse-chorus style song from start to finish using this pedal to build your loops and play rhythm parts. in-built drum grooves are the icing on the looper pedal cake here – allowing you home players to jam along until the cows come home. There are two variations for each groove, as well as customized patterns and seven kit types to choose from, making the RC-5 significantly more convenient (and significantly less annoying) than an actual human drummer. We jest, but at least the RC-5 won’t spend all its money on beer. You may find that the three footswitches on the RC-500 are more than enough to give you adequate control over your loops and you may prefer the other modern features such as the color-coded screen. You can use this to import loop phrases stored on your PC. Use them for anything you want really. What’s cool about this is that you can save a lot of loops. There’s no reason to delete things. The screen changes color to let you know what mode it is in. Here are the different screen colors used and what they mean:

Another great addition is that the display now shows you a visual representation of your progress through the loop. This is especially useful if you’re coming in part-way through a loop for an overdub and forget where you are. It Sounds Much Better! Expected battery life under continuous use: (Alkaline) Approx. 2 hours *These figures will vary depending on the actual conditions of use. There’s clearly a big difference between the RC-3 and RC-30. The RC-30 is also almost twice the price of the RC-3. So the big question for you is whether the extra control and features built into the RC-30 are worth it to you. While the RC-1 is a great pedal, it’s bare-bones compared to the RC-3. Being able to save up to 99 recordings on your pedal will be worth the extra price for most guitarists. Controls - MEMORY/LOOP LEVEL knob, MEMORY button, SETUP button, RHYTHM ON/OFF button, RHYTHM TEMPO button, Pedal switch

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Next to the display of the RC-5, there is a large knob to change the settings and adjust the volume of the loop. Below that, there are four small, illuminated buttons that you can use to switch the integrated drum machine on or off and manage the memory. Along with the sound quality, we particularly enjoyed the simplified handling compared to the predecessor model, which should not be a hurdle for most guitarists. The device is small and light, what makes it great to take with you wherever you go. Very unusual for such a small device and therefore worthy of praise is the incorporation of a MIDI input and output and in consequence the opportunity of a much more versatile use of the RC-5 even in more extensive setups. How the battery goes in your Loop Station. It’s surprising how pedal manufacturers haven’t figured out a better way to connect their batteries yet. External footswitch support: the number of footswitches plays a big role in how flexible a looper can be. While there’s a lot you can do with one footswitch, adding an extra footswitch can make a big difference.