Subject:Opinions On Loop Libraries(pleeez)

Posted by: luces

Date:1/7/2003 12:14:10 PM

I was wondering if some of you might sound off on what guitar loop libraries you have used and would recommend? I obviously would like the most useful ones(most cross platform of musical styles). I am looking to purchase some, but $$$ is a bit tight so I can't get all or most, just one or two and I would REALLY APPRECIATE some knowledgeable opinions!!!!!

Thanks, luces

Subject:RE: Opinions On Loop Libraries(pleeez)

Reply by: donkerce

Date:1/7/2003 8:46:07 PM

My humble opinion......do NOT spend your money on the Lou Cavallo acoustic guitar disc. You will spend a lot of time trying to figure out where all the hi-hat is coming from when you are listening to your project only to find out it's in the guitar loops.

Subject:RE: Opinions On Loop Libraries(pleeez)

Reply by: msorrels

Date:1/8/2003 4:38:27 AM

Well I'm not sure I'm knowledgeable, but I have the Paul Black cd, Total Spanish Guitar and the Jade Hill collections. I also have Metarock Visions, which has a nice collection of Guitars. And the Ronnie Rock Guitar Loops. To be really honest, all of them are very, very hard to use. TSG and The Jade Hill collection both are similar as far as the types of loops (mostly a bunchs of loops on one of a dozne common theme/songs) as a result those loops tend to make songs that sound like that theme/song. Paul Black's CD is the same way but a bit more riff/key oriented, but being all blues lines it's very hard to "drop in" None of these CD's are very good as building blocks, like drums and bass loops can be. That doesn't mean you can't get good stuff out of them, but they aren't very flexible about "fitting" into a song. They tend to take the song and make it that loop. None of them are very flexible as far as other music styles either.

If your doing rock work, I'd recommend the Metarock Visions CD. Guitars are only a small part of it, but there is a lot there. Plus the rest of it is very, very good.

If your doing blues, the Paul Black Whisky, Cigarettes and Gumbo might be for you. I LOVE how it sounds. But the usability has been rather low. Blues lead lines don't work so well in other styles.

Total Spanish Guitar is in the same boat as WCG. I know there was a lot of people complaining about it when it came out. I've had some fun with it(feeding some of them through amp-sim's to make it sound more like rock) but they don't just drop in well either.

I've only had Jade Hill a little while. I like the selection and the sound. But everything I do ends up sounding like Mad Iba or Lazy Day (the names of two of the loop directories). There are a lot of loops though and some aren't so song specific. And even the song specific ones aren't that bad(TSG is worse). If you already have a lot of other rock/pop basics(the drums and bass) this wouldn't be a bad choice, but it's not easy to just use guitar loops anywhere you want. Metarock is better as a collection all around.

Ronnie Rock's collection is a whole other story. The loops aren't that bad, but the mastering and EQ'ing are somewhat weak. More than once I've had to fiddle the loop to get rid of a pop that was preventing it from seamlessly looping. All the loops claim to be in the key of A, which isn't true. Plus all of them are mastered at really low volumes. But I love the Punk riffs and the price was really good. I wished it had gotten the same kind of care and attention real Sonic Foundry releases do, since the selection is really nice(though a bit rock/electric guitar oriented).

I was planning to buy the new Acoustic Guitar Collection, but the comments here are making me think that's not so smart. Which is a shame since I love Leo Cavallo's Bass Taster and Groundloops CD's. I may pick this up anyway. Not like I'm much of a musician, doubt I'd even hear the click track. :-)

I'd love to hear more talented musician's advice on using guitar loops. I must be missing something with my inability to really use these libraries. They all sound great, but I can't for the life of me add them to songs without basically making the song that loop.

Subject:RE: Opinions On Loop Libraries(pleeez)

Reply by: luces

Date:1/8/2003 11:09:37 AM

Thanks a LOT! This is exactly the info I was looking for ! luces

Subject:RE: Opinions On Loop Libraries(pleeez)

Reply by: DKeenum

Date:1/8/2003 1:40:55 PM

Has anyone used World Pop. How did it work?

Subject:RE: Opinions On Loop Libraries(pleeez)

Reply by: Iacobus

Date:1/8/2003 1:49:36 PM

Probably the best thing I can think of is maybe to try the Chopper on guitar loops to arrange them in a way that you like. For example, if there's a rhythm going on that has one 8th note followed by two 16th notes, you can arrange the loop with the Chopper so that the two 16th notes play first followed by the one 8th note instead.

Better yet, if you only like to use a portion of the loop, take only that part using the Chopper and then copy and paste as you see fit.

HTH,
Iacobus

Subject:RE: Opinions On Loop Libraries(pleeez)

Reply by: David_Kuznicki

Date:1/8/2003 7:00:36 PM

I have a lot of fun with World Pop, actually-- although as memory serves, it's a little short on loops. I tend to mix some of World Pop and Ethnicity in with some of the more ambient stuff (ie: Vir Unis, Numina, Spektral Minimalism), and have come up with some pretty cool stuff...

As for as guitar libraries go:

Metarock is still king in my book. It's fun for Rock & Industrial, and there's enough distorted stuff on there to layer into the (again) more ambient tracks...

Acid Rock was really dissapointing. I still kick myself over that one.

I'm a big fan of the Total Spanish set, but it's really specialized, no doubt about it. I remember someone (can't remember who, I'm afraid) bitching about the lack of steel stringed, but hey, I still adore this library...

Can't comment on the new stuff, but I've REALLY liked what I've heard of Friendly Fire, and I'd love to hear from anyone that has it. It's a shame that Christmas and the new semester have bankrupted me for the time being... otherwise, I'd be able to (hopefully) sing its praises, too.

I hope this helps.

David.