Effects Bay

So I just got an interesting email in my inbox via Boss. Looks like if you have some mad looping skills and own a Boss Loop Station, you can have a chance to win some serious prizes and a trip to Winter NAMM 2010!

Here is the quick rundown:

Los Angeles, CA, June 1, 2010 — Guitarists, bassists, keyboard players, beatboxers, looping musicians of all sorts: BOSS® wants you to bring it on. BOSS Corporation is pleased to launch the Loop Station World Championship. Start by submitting a video performance with any BOSS RC-Series looping product, and the result could be a trip to the U.S. Finals in Hollywood, California. Or, better yet, $3,000 in BOSS gear and a trip to the International Championship at Winter NAMM 2011 in Anaheim, California.

This is a open competition from June 1, 2010 to August 31, 2010. All you need to do is shoot a video (5 minutes or less), upload it to YouTube, and then fill out the entry form (http://www.BossUS.com/LoopStation). The entries will be judged and selected by Boss. They’ll be looking at creativity, musicianship, stage presence and technical skill of the looping performance.

After the finalists have been selected, the six entries will be flown in to compete at the Boss US Loop Station Finals at the Musician’s Institute in Hollywood, CA.

Performances will be judged by a panel of music industry insiders, including:
> Jeff Baxter (The Doobie Brothers, Steely Dan)
> Michael Molenda (Editorial Director — Guitar Player, Bass Player, EQ, Keyboard Magazines)
> Paul Youngblood (Vice-President of BOSS U.S., Director of BOSS Japan)

Prizes include:
> 1st Prize – $3,000 in BOSS Gear; trip to the International Championship
> 2nd Prize – $2,000 in BOSS Gear
> 3rd Prize – $1,000 in BOSS Gear

The winner of the US finals will represent the United States in the Boss International Loop Station Championship in Anaheim, CA.

Performances will be judged by a panel of music industry insiders and celebrities.
Prizes include:
> 1st Prize – $3,000 in BOSS Gear (2,500 EU)
> 2nd Prize – $2,000 in BOSS Gear (1,500 EU)
> 3rd Prize – $1,000 in BOSS Gear (750 EU)

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I’ve been doing some pretty heavy research on a new pedal board for me. Currently, my set up is all on the floor and in a line (no board). I sorta have a love/hate deal with ‘boards’ and how they feel, but I think I need to get over that. One of the big issues for me is that I sing in my band so looking at my feet is somewhat difficult. I can view my pedals without any problem, but if I had pedals in rows, I know that’ll be an issue for a bit. I also like to have mic stand fairly close to me, and at a position where it almost splits my pedal line in half. Again, this will be something I’ll need to adapt to after getting a pedal board.

One product that I’m really interested in is the Voodoo Labs pedal switcher. I have a main loop for lead set up and I control that with a Boss LS-2 at the moment. It’s a good pedal overall, but my particular pedal is having a few issues, so it might be time to upgrade. The Voodoo Labs switcher will allow me to group separate loops (with multiple pedals or single pedals in line). It also has the ability to be true bypass or buffered, and they can be linked. I think the way it can isolate the signal or bypass the signal is pretty great.

Now, I’ve been seeing the Commander and knew it interacted with up to pedal switchers, but I wasn’t 100% sure what it was all about. After seeing the demos below, I was blown away how you can group pedal combination (or loop combination) from both pedal switchers via the Commander. It’s gets a little pricey if you want the whole set up, but I’m thinking about getting a single switcher after my initial board purchase is paid for.

Here are three videos from voodoolabvid showing what the switcher and Commander can do.

Voodoo Lab – Pedal Switcher and Commander Demo 1

Voodoo Lab – Pedal Switcher and Commander Demo 2

Voodoo Lab – Pedal Switcher and Commander Demo 3

As you can see, these switches are pretty damn powerful. So how will this address my personal ‘issues’? Well, now I can have the strip in the front where I can manage the pedals, I’m not having to deal with rows. The Commander would be pretty cool so I’m not doing any *dances* while trying to sing and get the tone at the same time. Seems like a good thing. Anyway, it’s on my wish list for now.

If anyone has any personal experiences with this… please comment. I saw one negative review at Musician’s Friend, so I wanted to see what the general feedback is out there.

You can can pick up the Voodoo Lab Pedal Switcher for $219 at Musician’s Friend. You can also get the Voodoo Lab Pedal Commander for $219 as well at Musician’s Friend.

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