M303 Clone Looper

113
JANUARY 2020 GUITARIST
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Tech Spec
ORIGIN: China
TYPE: Looper pedal
FEATURES: Selectable true or
buffered bypass, 6 minutes’
recording time (3 at double-
speed, 12 at half-speed)
CONTROLS: Volume,
Rec/Dub footswitch,
Play/Stop footswitch
CONNECTIONS:
Standard input, standard
output, CTR, EXP
POWER: Supplied 9V DC
adaptor, 225mA
DIMENSIONS: 110 (w) x
61 (d) x 50mm (h)
9
whether you just want to lay down a chord
sequence to practise soloing over or you’re
interested in building multiple layers. But
there’s more if you want to spice things up.
Besides setting the output volume,
that black knob in the centre of the pedal
also offers several creative possibilities.
A single push on it will get your loop
playing at half-speed while a double press
will take it to double-speed. If you want
the loop to play backwards, a press and
a short hold will reverse it. You can have
altered speed and reverse at the same time.
These can be musically useful features.
Recording single guitar notes at double-
speed with playback at normal (an octave
down) will give you a bassline and a layer
of reversed guitar for, say, chord swells,
which can add texture and ear-candy
interest to the music. The knob doesn’t
sit as high as the two footswitches, which
makes using it like a footswitch a little bit
tricky, but if you’re pretty nifty with your
feet then you may be able to press it with
your toe without accidentally hitting the
footswitches either side.
If the functions are something you’d be
inclined to use quite a lot in a live situation,
it would be worth investing in MXR’s
matching M199 Tap Tempo Switch (£42),
which can plug into the CTR input to take
remote (and more robust) charge of the
knob’s switching functions. A tap switch
can also be used plugged into the EXP
input and can then initiate the Play Loop
Once mode where a tap on the switch will
set the loop playing from start to finish
unless you tap it again, which will retrigger
the loop from the start. This gives you
options to keep retriggering for a stutter
effect. The EXP input’s other use would
be to plug in an actual expression pedal
for controlling loop volume.
VERDICT
Combining all the necessary layering
facilities with a few creative extras in a
compact footprint, MXR’s pedal offers
practicality at a decent price for anyone
who wants a looper in their locker.
PROS Great sound quality; compact size;
ease of operation; reverse and speed-
changing facilities
CONS MXR used to supply rubber caps to fit
over knobs for foot control and a particularly
tall one could be useful here
01. REC/DUB
FOOTSWITCH
Press this to initiate
recording or add another
layer. The red LED fl ashes
when recording. Hold down
the switch to clear the
entire loop
02. PLAY/STOP
FOOTSWITCH
Press this to stop recording
and start playback. Hold
down the switch to clear
the most recent layer
03. VOLUME
KNOB & LEDS
The Volume knob also
doubles as a switch
to bring in half-speed
(blue lit LED) or double-
speed (blue fl ashing LED)
playback, or to reverse
the loop (amber lit LED)
04. CTR INPUT
Plug in an MXR Tap Tempo
Switch here to take over
the switching functions
of the volume knob
05. EXP INPUT
An expression pedal
can control output level.
Alternatively, a tap switch
can be plugged in to initiate
Play Loop Once mode
allowing stuttering effects
for the fl eet of foot
GIT454.peds_mxr.indd 113 27/11/2019 14:48