Canadian Musician - November/December 2018

ROAD TEST Electro-Harmonix 95000 Performance Loop Laboratory By Kevin Young I f you’ve been on the hunt for a high- functioning, user-friendly looping device, you may want to pull the trigger on the Electro- Harmonix 95000 Performance Loop Laboratory. Overview The 95000 allows the user to record six mono or three stereo loops (or any combination in be- tween) and one stereo mix-down track per loop number. The provided 16 GB microSDHS Card will hold 100 loops or roughly 375 minutes of audio in WAV format, so there’s a fair bit of space to play with, though the unit’s rear slot accepts cards from 4-32 GB. For backup, the unit’s USB port allows you to transfer and store loops on a computer easily and restore selected loops to the 95000 as needed. In Use About 10 minutes after unpacking the 95000 and cracking the manual, I’d mixed down my first six- track loop and was moving on to see what else it could do. From there, time – as it does with any device that inspires creativity with a minimal learning curve – passed very quickly. Plug your instrument of choice into the com- bination 1/4-in./XLR inputs (phantom power is provided), adjust your input level using the in- dividual L/R knobs (each has its own clip meter), and set your dry output level for playback via the stereo outs and/or headphone jack and you’re set to record. Each dry out has a dedicated pan knob, as does each of the individual/stereo tracks. Click level, headphone/monitoring, and master out are all controlled via individual knobs. You can record in quantize mode to a click track (CLIX) or free form. Click tempo is set using a tap button or slider. Also handy are two LEDs just above the tempo controls, the right displaying beats and the left lighting up at the beginning of each bar. Hitting record in quantize provides various options for count-ins, which are set using the LED display in one of the 95000’s three primary page modes, so if you want a loop with a non- standard time signature, no problem. In quantize, if you finish recording within the first half of the next bar, the 95000 will round down to the previous bar; if you finish within the last half, it will round up to the end of that bar. If quantize isn’t enabled, recording begins and ends when the record stomp switch is released. Only the monitor and headphone outs reproduce click; W W W. C A N A D I A N M U S I C I A N . CO M the L/R master outs do not. Individual tracks or full loops can be erased simply and permanently, but there’s also an undo/redo stomp switch that will allow you to erase or restore one layer of recording, whether it’s a mono, stereo, or mix down track. Additional stomp switches are as follows: the track switch (to advance through tracks and mix down), a play/ stop switch, and dedicated loop up/loop down switches. These switches, in addition to their main func- tions, may be used singly or in combination to erase an individual track or entire loop. Individual tracks (or stereo tracks) and the mixdown track can be selected via the footswitch or dedicated buttons above the corresponding track level fader. If you hit record after pressing the new loop but- ton, all pre-existing information will also be erased. While capturing your performance, once you hit record after first recording a new loop, you can overdub on the same track (or the others) simply by hitting record again. This is ideal for creating complex textures or just working out which sonic, harmonic, and melodic elements you want for a given track. As an example, for a quick drum loop, record your bass drum on track one, drop out and then back into record, and layer up the rest of the kit. Utilizing the 95000’s entire feature set is extremely easy primarily because there’s noth- ing arcane or tricky about interpreting the LED screen’s messages or the page layout in general. The default display (LOOP/DUB) indicates (from left to right) loop number and the overdub feed- back level of the chosen track. A dot between the two numbers indicates a loop exists in the location already. Cycle between this and the other two primary modes – BARS/BEATS and MIDI CH/ SYNC – by pressing the page button. To enter the secondary modes, hold the page button down until it blinks, then use the VALUE knob/button to select either CX (click), TM (tempo), CT (count-in), FD (loop fadeout), and to adjust the parameters in each mode. While there is a learning curve to adopting a fluent and seamless workflow, it’s not terribly steep, and each step along the way makes perfect sense after you’ve run through it once. In addition to the previously mentioned tem- po fader/button, there are other useful onboard controls: punch-in; octave switching (allowing for speed/tuning up/down in a two-octave range); and reverse (which affects the entire loop, not individual tracks) – each with a dedicated button. As a practice tool for fleshing out or learning tricky bits, say by looping a section of a record- ing, or for composition, choosing instrumentation and crafting hooks and solos,the process is pretty much hands-free. Granted, you can accomplish the same things in your DAW of choice, but unless you’re blessed with a high degree of “toe dexterity,” not by stepping on your computer. In MIDI CH/SYNC mode with the two rear MIDI ports (IN and OUT/THRU) you can also operate the 95000 by using or syncing to an external MIDI device. Additional control can be applied via a rear pedal-in jack. Summary User-friendly, heavy on features, compact, and sturdy, the 95000 is an extremely useful device regardless of your past experience with loop boxes or the sheer amount of duty you need it to handle. All that said, you could easily find a cheaper looping solution, but unlikely one as easy to use and feature rich as the EHX 95000. Given its ver- satility, at approximately $700 CAD, the 95000 is worth every penny and then some. Kevin Young is a Toronto-based musician and freelance writer. C A N A D I A N M U S I C I A N • 23

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