Playing solo can be a lot of fun, but certain songs just need a little more oomph. When you go to the guitar store, however, there are tons of different pedals to choose from, many of which are quite pricey.
Although the most expensive guitar loop pedals often offer more than their budget-friendly competitors, you can find plenty of high-quality loop pedals at extremely affordable prices. In this article, we decided to cut through the noise and deliver our three favorite loop pedals.
Each best budget guitar loop pedal on our list works fluidly with guitarists and other instrumentalists in creating a full, attractive sound for live performance. Let’s get started!
Our Recommendation of Best Budget Guitar Loop Pedal
1. TC Electronic Guitar Ditto
Pros
- True bypass; analog-dry-through
- Easy to use
- Excellent sound quality
Cons
- You can’t undo the second to last dub without clearing the whole loop
- Very limited memory
The TC Electronic Electronic Guitar ditto looper is a lot of fun to use and is our number one best budget guitar loop pedal for several reasons.
For guitarists that are new to using looping pedals or for experienced veterans with limited looping pedal needs, the TC Electronic looper is perfect. Designed to be very slim and completely intuitive to use, the TC Electronic looper is a product that you can open up and begin looping with immediately.
The five-minute memory on this looper allows you to record with unlimited dubbing. In addition, undoing/redoing are both possible on this pedal. Furthermore, the TC Electronic looper has true bypass, meaning that high-end loss is nonexistent when the pedal is turned off.
Although this looping pedal can’t store different loops on its memory, it does have an Internal memory that retains the previous loop after shutdown. In the event of a sudden loss of power, this can be eminently helpful.
The TC Electronic looper does fall into a trap. With its minimalist and streamlined design comes some limitations. When you’re recording on the loop pedal and you create one layer, for example, it’s impossible to get rid of the previous layer. You’ll have to start over.
All told, the TC Electronic looper is a well-priced, high-powered, and fun looper pedal for solo songwriting or performance.
2. MXR Clone Looper M303
Pros
- High storage sample rates accommodate clean and grungy guitar riffing alike.
- Intuitive design with effects that aid in creativity.
- Optional true bypass or buffered bypass toggling depending on your needs
Cons
- The indicator lights are too far down near the foot pedals, making them hard to see during use.
- The loop does not immediately erase with footswitches.
If you’re looking for a looper with more features than the TC Electronic looper but that retains the compact design, look no further than the MXR Clone Looper. This powerful looper has excellent sound quality with six minutes of recording time and unlimited dubbing.
Though there are a few more features on the M303 than on the TC Electronic looper, we still found this looper to be highly intuitive (in fact, a manual isn’t included in the box – although you can download it online if you feel you need it).
There are two buttons on the MXR looper: Rec/Dub and Play/Stop. This fact allows you to have maximum control over your loops and layers. In addition, this pedal has storage sample rates of up to 88.2kHz, meaning that guitarists utilizing even heavy distortion will find a high-quality looper in the M303.
Furthermore, the M303 allows you to adjust the tempo on your loops, double the speed or slow it down to half-speed. This can all be controlled with the switches on the M303. In live performance, these functions can also be controlled externally by connecting the MXR Tap Tempo switch.
In short, whether all you need is a simple loop or a pedal that can accommodate full-on sonic exploration, the M303 is the pedal for you. There are some things to be aware of, though.
The footswitches on the M303 don’t immediately clear your loop. It takes a few seconds using the footswitches for the loop to go away. If you are looking for a loop pedal for live performance, you’ll want to clear audio immediately, which will be harder with the M303. The indicator lights are also so low on the pedal that it’s difficult to see the “record” light turn on when you begin recording a loop.
3. Boss RC-1 Loop Station
Pros
- Stereo recording and playback
- Loop indicator is nice to look at and extremely useful
- Unlimited dubbing and redubbing, undo, etc.
- 12 minutes of playback time
- Loop’s internal memory saves your loop even after power off
Cons
- Automatically begins stacking loops after recording.
You can’t write an article about the best budget guitar loop pedal without mentioning Boss. Boss is one of the most well-recognized brands in the world of loop pedals, and it’s not hard to see why. Their highly popular pedals are easy to use and feature-rich. Whatever you need with a foot pedal when playing guitar, Boss has a loop station for you.
The Boss RC-1 Loop Station is no different. Boss created the RC-1 as their number one user-friendliest pedal. This pedal is designed for buy-and-play but retains the quality of Boss so that even a touring musician oughtn’t to overlook the Boss RC-1.
Like the other pedals we’ve covered, the RC-1 includes unlimited dubbing and redubbing, with undo and redo features. Unlike many looping pedals on the market, however, Boss RC-1 allows for recording and playback in stereo. This is how music was meant to be enjoyed.
One thing we love about the RC-1 is its indicator light. Very big and at the very top of the pedal, the indicator light is a full light-up ring that shows you the progress of your loop. The speed at which the circle lights up exactly corresponds to the length of your loop. In other words, you’ll never get lost in the loop as you jam.
Finally, the RC-1 has unprecedented playback time for a loop of its price. You can expect 12 minutes of recording time with the RC-1.
Although there is plenty to love about the RC-1, there are some issues. Its straightforward design leaves a bit to be desired. The RC-1 automatically begins stacking loops after recording. In other words, there is no simple “playback” option during a live performance. That being said, you can buy the FS-7 footswitch for external control of the RC-1’s record/stop/play features.
Conclusion
We’ve looked at three of the best budget guitar loop pedal on the market today, and although these three highly reputable companies offer similar pedals, the differences are notable.
For those guitarists with very simple needs who are on a budget, the TC Electronic Guitar Ditto is the pedal we recommend the highest. This pedal, the cheapest on our list, is very easy to use with high-quality playback and unlimited dubbing.
The RC-1, meanwhile, is somewhat more expensive than the TC Electronic Ditto while retaining comparable features. At the same time, the RC-1 is manufactured by Boss and as such is made to work in synchronicity with other Boss pedals.
Finally, the MXR is the most feature-rich pedal on our list and as such will rack up the bill a little more than either the Ditto or the RC-1.
Thanks for reading — we hope you have all the information you need to start your looping journey. So get to it!
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