Boss RC-505 Loopstation

Started by Zoppe, April 04, 2013, 02:51:27 AM

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Zoppe

http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetails.php?ProductId=1280
looks awesome, but seems to be dj/beatboxer oriented only...

aliensporebomb

#1
Agreed.  I wonder if it's footswitchable?  I guess the RC-300 would still be the looper for someone such as myself.

Have to say, this is a great demo:

My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

mbenigni

#2
QuoteI wonder if it's footswitchable?

According to the marketing bullets:  "External control via MIDI and optional footswitches or expression pedal"

Looks very promising.  I generally find myself wishing I had a UI on the tabletop, in addition to triggers at my feet, with these more sophisticated loopers.  I wonder what price and release date are looking like.

groovey1

#3
I haven't had my RC-300 all that long, but I have found myself wishing for more tracks. Now this one has 5! I wonder if the 300 and 505 can sync up?

Zoppe

#4


This performance is awesome, it actually has independent fx for each track!!! the accessible faders, everything at the palm of your hands... i didn't see a midi out, tough...

groovey1

#5
If you check out the "Image Gallery" in the link in your original post, you can see the connections on the back, including MIDI In and Out.

Elantric

#6
http://www.andertons.co.uk/blog/miscellaneous/boss-rc-505-loop-station

Andertons News
New Boss RC-505 Loop Station!

Originally posted on April 4th 2013 at 09:03 by Tim Brown
Boss RC-505

Sometimes a product comes to market with one intention and people see its potential in another.  The Original Boss Loop Station products were designed to be used by guitarists who wanted to record parts/phrases of songs and loop them into a performance. People saw the potential of this product and started to use it for other instruments including the singers and more interestingly beatboxers who were able to create amazing layered textures and warp their voice in news ways live. To get an idea of what can be done search Youtube for "Shlomo  Boss"

The Boss RC-505 is the evolution of the Loop Station and the first product designed for for beatboxers, singers, performers, and instrumentalists. Instead of controlling it with your feet you now use your hands and the interface is designed with singers in mind.

The Boss RC-505 is a table-top Loop Station that fits right into a busy DJ booth or club environment, making it ideal for beatboxers, singers, and club performers.

Just plug in a mic, instrument, smart phone or any other audio source and get started on the five stereo phrase tracks with up to three hours sampling time. Everything you need to control your performance is at your fingertips, with dedicated buttons on each track and powerful effects for a wide range of dynamic, real-time processing options.

The RC-505 also supports computer integration via USB and operation with external pedals and MIDI, opening a world of advanced looping possibilities for all types of musicians.


http://www.andertons.co.uk/dj-equipment/pid28508/cid727/boss-rc505-loop-station.asp





==
The Boss RC-505 Loop Station is designed from the ground up with the vocalist in mind. The Boss RC Loopstations have been really popular with beatboxers and singers but they wanted to control it with their hands not their feet.

So with the Boss RC-505 Pedals have been replaced with large buttons and everything has been refreshed with the singer in mind.

With 5 Stero Tracks and upto 3 hours of recording time the Boss RC-505 gives massive creative options. You have the ability to import samples and clips so you can use this in many ways, the key aim is a performance that is hands on creative.
Here's what Boss say about the RC-505

Although floor-based Boss Loop Stations are perfect for street performing or on stage, not everyone wants to use their feet to keep the show rolling. The Boss RC-505 is a table-top Loop Station that fits right into a busy DJ booth or club environment, making it ideal for beatboxers, singers, and club performers.

Just plug in a mic, instrument, smart phone or any other audio source and get started on the five stereo phrase tracks with up to three hours sampling time. Everything you need to control your performance is at your fingertips, with dedicated buttons on each track and powerful effects for a wide range of dynamic, real-time processing options.

The RC-505 also supports computer integration via USB and operation with external pedals and MIDI, opening a world of advanced looping possibilities for all types of musicians.

    Tabletop Loop Station that can be operated with the hands, perfect for beatboxers, vocalists, and club performers
    Five simultaneous stereo phrase tracks, with dedicated controls and independent volume faders
    Wide range of Input FX and Track FX for processing loops, including DJ and sampler-style effects
    Independent play mode and tempo sync settings enable a flexible combination of track behaviours and advanced performance options
    99 phrase memories, each containing five phrase tracks, custom effects/playback settings, and more
    85 onboard rhythm patterns, including odd-measure beats
    External control via MIDI and optional footswitches or expression pedal
    USB for phrase import/export with computers; USB audio/MIDI functionality for integration with DAW software
    XLR mic input with phantom power, mono/stereo instrument inputs, and stereo AUX input

Five stereo tracks with everything at your fingertips

Power without control is pointless. The RC-505 can play back five stereo tracks at once, making your performance easier to plan, build and control. You have everything you need at your fingertips: each of the five tracks has its own buttons to record, overdub, play and stop, giving complete control of your performance - no need to worry about pressing the wrong pedal with your foot. Each track has its own volume fader for fast adjustment, while the rhythm part can be sent via the headphones, giving a dedicated click track for monitoring and helping keep you in time. Each track also has its own playback mode (multi, single, one-shot, reverse, etc.) and tempo sync settings, providing even more flexibility once the performance has begun.

Powerful FX onboard

An effective performance Looper should be built around effects, so you can easily add colour to your sound during the gig. The RC-505 includes a wide variety of effects, split into two main types; Input FX and Track FX. Input FX such as ROBOT and VOCODER add unique textures when recording loops; Track FX, including VINYL FLICK and BEAT REPEAT provide dynamic DJ and sampler effects for real-time processing of phrase playback. Six dedicated buttons-three for Input FX and three for Track FX-can be loaded with your favourite effects, giving you one-touch on/off access while looping. In addition, effects parameters (filter cutoff, effect depth, etc.) can be tweaked in real time with the INPUT FX and TRACK FX knobs. Global compressor and reverb effects are also available for processing the overall sound output.

Four simultaneous audio inputs plus USB

The RC-505 has four inputs, so you can capture and mix a variety of different audio sources as you build your loops. There's an XLR microphone jack with phantom power, mono/stereo 1/4-inch inputs for guitars, synths, or other instruments, and an AUX mini-jack for connecting a music player or smart phone. Via USB, you can plug into your computer and import/export WAV audio phrases, for loop archiving or loading up RC-505 phrases with backing tracks or sounds for sampler-style triggering. You can also use optional foot switches to control the RC-505; one BOSS FS-6 or two FS-5Us; or a Roland EV-5 expression pedal can be connected via the rear-panel jack.

If you're working in the studio, the RC-505 offers extensive MIDI control options and you can also import WAV audio phrases via USB. This opens up a wealth of creative opportunities, especially with up to three hours of stereo recording on a single track. The RC-505's USB port also provides USB-Audio and USB-MIDI connections - ideal for connecting your favourite computer-based DAW software, syncing with other MIDI gear or backing up your recordings.

Customised looping: just how you like it

The RC-505 can be moulded to suit your performing style, rather than the other way round. The real-time controls can be customised to suit the way you like to loop. You can specify up to eight different functions and operate them in a variety of ways-with front-panel controls, an external expression pedal or foot switches, and/or various MIDI Control Change messages-extending your command of looping and many other operations. The eight control assignments are handily stored with phrase memories, allowing you to create and recall custom setups for different songs and performing situations.

Phrase Memories and Rhythms

When you power up your gear for a gig, you need to be sure that everything sounds just how you left it during rehearsal. This is where phrase memory comes in. The RC-505 has 99 phrase memories that provide onboard storage for phrase track data, and their various playback and effects settings. A combination of frequently used settings can be saved as a User Set, which you can easily load to quickly reconfigure any phrase memory, even in the heat of performing. Also included are 85 different onboard rhythms forming backings for loop recording, with a large selection of odd-measure beats for more advanced looping adventures.

Elantric

#7
The RC-505  interface reminds me of the free looper included with the Logidy UM-3
http://logidy.com/


Logidy Full circle (Free)



More here:
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=4153.msg28059#msg28059

Threeleggedyoyo

#8
Gosh darnit. Just when I finally got my hands on a 300.

I wonder how good the footswitch capabilities are.

Edit:

Brochure says up to 8 Assignments.

http://cms.rolandus.com/assets/media/pdf/rc-505_brochure.pdf

That could be a tight squeeze just to get the basic functions in on a footswitch depending on what the Target options are. I'd think this way would be good if it's available... similar to the 50's setup.

1) Select Next Loop
2) Select Previous Loop
3) Rec / Play / Dub Current Loop
4) Stop Current
5) Undo Current
6) Tap Tempo

Got a couple left to play with, anyway.

But all that assumes that Select Loop and Rec/Play/Dub are assignable (they weren't on the previous units).

I wonder why they always do exactly 8?

Weird to me that they didn't at least make the main buttons stompable.

Zymos

#9
Something new always comes along, what can you do...? :-\

This is also going to be considerably more expensive than the RC-300, around 700$ supposedly, and unless you are only using it for vocals, you are still going to need foot switches.

Elantric

#10
Quote
This is also going to be considerably more expensive than the RC-300, around 700$ supposedly, and unless you are only using it for vocals, you are still going to need foot switches.


Its listed as 449 British pounds here:
http://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/pedals_s_detail.asp?stock=13040212540332

http://gbp.fx-exchange.com/usd/449-exchange-rates.html

which is $684USD

But in typical Roland fashion, I expect $599 USD MSRP.

Zymos

And you needed to edit my post why??

Elantric

#12
QuoteAnd you needed to edit my post why??

Observe I had to edit all posts in this thread to update the thread title

Now "New Boss RC-505 Loopstation"

Was  "New Loopstation"


Which led to confusion!  I already deleted a few duplicate posts today, by folks making duplicate announcements about Boss RC-505 loopstation.

We want to contain information about the Boss RC-505 in a common thread for this .

--

The RC-505 can have the following features controlled from an external MIDI device.  For more detailed information please see pages 25 and 29 of the RC-505 Owner's Manual :

Syncing to an external MIDI device via MIDI clock.
Start/Stop of ALLTracks using the MIDI start command FA and the MIDI stop command FC. See pages 29 and 17 of the RC-505 Owner's Manual for the correct configuration of Controller Assignment and Control Sources to make this happen.
Switching Phrase Memory 1-99 via Program Change messages 1-99.
Receiving Control messages [CC#1 - #31, CC#64-#95].
More information on what CC#1-#31 & CC#64-#95 do please visit the MIDI Manufacturer's Association and download the MIDI Implementation Chart found under the Specifications button.
If you do not have the RC-505 Owner's Manual you can download it from the Roland product page found here:

http://www.roland.com/support/article/?q=manuals&p=RC-505

Zymos

That's cool, just gave me kind of a creepy feeling to know a mod can change the words that supposedly "I" posted, you know?

Thanks for keeping it all organized though-I do appreciate a tidy forum!

groovey1

Taking a closer look at the back of the RC-505, I see there's only one foot-switch connection -- CTL 1,2 / EXP.

I guess you really will have to use your hands to run this thing. Too bad, but maybe that will save me from spending money and just focus on getting to know the RC-300 better. I have to admit, the initial gas-attack when I saw the video with the 5 tracks and the flashing lights was pretty strong!

Elantric

#15
QuoteI guess you really will have to use your hands to run this thing.

Or a good sized MIDI foot pedal

Looks like there are several MIDI CC#  assignments available on the RC-505

QuoteThe RC-505 also supports computer integration via USB and operation with external pedals and MIDI, opening a world of advanced looping possibilities for all types of musicians.

http://www.roland.com/products/en/RC-505/

Specs
http://www.roland.com/products/en/RC-505/

If you can use google translate - much RC-505 info is at Roland Japan site
http://www.roland.co.jp/products/jp/RC-505/


(Japanese to English Translation below)
==

Performance can be equipped with a unique five-track loop.

RC-505 is a new line-up of LOOP STATION RC series can play fast phrases that came up repeatedly. In the RC series adopts the tabletop will be the first, of course vocalist, voice, percussion, the human beat box, it can be used in wide range of players, regardless guitarist / bassist and musician musical instrument electric / acoustic, playing style and genre you.
RC-505 is equipped with a five-track loop body. By combining free loop length and tempo, and play mode, you can create a variety of solo performance. In addition, you can play in addition to the five tracks, while playing the rhythm tempo that is set in advance, and record. Built-in rhythm patterns and many other rock drums and Latin percussion. You can choose from a rich pattern to match the genre of the song you want to play.
Combination of five tracks and rhythm can be stored in the body up to a maximum of 99 types of memory as a phrase, to achieve stereo recording of up to about 3 hours.
Create a loop phrase Colorful FX input for recording.

RC-505, you can apply effects to the sound input, such as a guitar / bass and vocals. 21 built-in FX for the recording input type. And distortion for vocal effect wild "VOCODER" operating, the voice as a carrier sound, including "GUITAR TO BASS" varying the bass sound "SLICER" cut, the guitar continuously sound was recorded such as a robotic voice, is equipped with many effective vocal effects. In addition, you will be able to control the depth of the effect in real time knob "INPUT FX" of the body.
In addition, the set [A] ~ to [C] button, the effect frequently used to be called quickly even in effect at the touch of a button and you could be playing.
Track with FX to give accent to the song and deployment.

In addition to the input FX, RC-505 is equipped with a unique dedicated FX track playback track. Such as "VINYL FLICK" it is possible to freely control the speed of rotation of the turntable knob "TRACK FX" of the body, accented songs, real-time effects to liven up the live performance and standby. By combining the FX + Track input FX, can produce a sound never before this is possible.
User interface that can be controlled intuitively by hand.

RC-505 is equipped with a loop for each indicator to track. State of the track, the position of the loop to display the playback level. 1 rotates one indicator bar at the time of recording such as flashing tempo, play loop can be performed while visually checking the state of the track. In addition, the button record / playback button adopts a large easy to press with your fingertips. You can know the state of play / overdub / record instantly at any stage in the dark illuminated. In addition, also equipped with a dedicated slider on each track. You can adjust the volume of the track slider speedy operation.
Simultaneous stop start / all tracks can be operated simultaneously at the touch of a button. For example, create a break point in the performance, dynamic performance can be performed.
It can be also features undo / redo, redo the recording and overdubbing, increasing the degree of completion of the phrase is possible.
Rich input jacks that correspond to the various instrument input.

RC-505 is compatible with the microphone input, guitar / bass, keyboard, and audio players, a wide range of devices. INST jacks corresponding pin XLR phantom-powered mic input, stereo. Performance can also also includes AUX input terminal can be connected to MP3 players, while playing a backing track.
In addition, the headphone connection is also supported, external pedal. It is useful if you can also output to headphones only sound rhythm, used as a clicking sound rhythm sound. And foot switch: (Roland EV-5 sold separately) expression pedal CTL1, terminal 2/EXP: hitch (optional FS-5U, FS-6), controlled by the foot and features a variety of parameters can be .
Import / Export is possible with USB. Cooperation with external MIDI equipment.

You can connect the USB cable to a personal computer. In addition to exchanging data and PC audio in real time, you can also make sure you have loop phrases pre-loaded as backup and data, the WAV file on the PC.
In addition, that can be combined with an external MIDI device such as a foot controller, or synchronize a MIDI cable to connect the two RC-505, greatly expands the range of performance.
Loop recording cases




--

The RC-505 can have the following features controlled from an external MIDI device.  For more detailed information please see pages 25 and 29 of the RC-505 Owner's Manual :

Syncing to an external MIDI device via MIDI clock.
Start/Stop of ALLTracks using the MIDI start command FA and the MIDI stop command FC. See pages 29 and 17 of the RC-505 Owner's Manual for the correct configuration of Controller Assignment and Control Sources to make this happen.
Switching Phrase Memory 1-99 via Program Change messages 1-99.
Receiving Control messages [CC#1 - #31, CC#64-#95].
More information on what CC#1-#31 & CC#64-#95 do please visit the MIDI Manufacturer's Association and download the MIDI Implementation Chart found under the Specifications button.
If you do not have the RC-505 Owner's Manual you can download it from the Roland product page found here:

http://www.roland.com/support/article/?q=manuals&p=RC-505

Now_And_Then

#16
Quote from: groovey1 on April 04, 2013, 04:03:06 PM
Taking a closer look at the back of the RC-505, I see there's only one foot-switch connection -- CTL 1,2 / EXP.

That's exactly what I went and looked at too.

I have no idea why they didn't put a jack for a RCC cable so that one could buy and plug in an FC-300. It seems such an obvious thing to have done.

It seems that EHX is, (well, to the best of my knowledge, anyway,) the only company that has done this right: the main body of the device can be put on a tabletop, and has a footswitch with a fairly expansive array of controls that can be put on the floor.

On the other hand, if there is going to a an elaborate foot controller that will be connected via the DIN connnectors, that could make this a much more expensive looper than it already is...

The RC-505 is really not usable for me if its foot-switchable functions are as limited as they appear, judging by the single "CTL 1,2 / EXP" connector.

Threeleggedyoyo

You can connect a Midi foot controller such as the FC1010. I'd be more concerned about being limited to 8 Assignments. But the lack of CTL inputs is not the limiting factor.

pycraft

Quote from: Elantric on April 04, 2013, 03:06:40 PM

Its listed as 449 British pounds here:
http://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/pedals_s_detail.asp?stock=13040212540332

http://gbp.fx-exchange.com/usd/449-exchange-rates.html

which is $684USD

But in typical Roland fashion, I expect $599 USD MSRP.

It's not that different - UK prices include sales tax, US prices don't.

Ricoche

I live in Nagano-city, Japan.  The music shop nearby confirmed they'll initially be selling it on their floor for 54,999 yen.  That's about $550 USD.  They also said it "could" drop to 49,999 by the time they get it in May if allowed.  Thus I expect it to cost around $500 to $550.  Unless I change my mind, I'm on the list to acquire one when it's released in May here in Japan.

Bill Ruppert

Fantastic!
This just makes me wish I never played guitar and focused on mouth drums all these years!




aliensporebomb

#21
Amen.  My skill was finger drumming.  I was (allegedly) the best finger drummer at my elementary school though there were no head cuttin' duels to prove it. 

What a cool piece of kit, really.  5 loops versus the 3 in the RC-300.  If there's a way to use foot controls and perhaps a midi pedal to control the functions it might do the job.

So what advantages does this have over the RC-300?  What advantages does the RC-300 have over this?
My music projects online at http://www.aliensporebomb.com/

GK Devices:  Roland VG-99, Boss GP-10, Boss SY-1000.

Bill Ruppert

I was being sarcastic...
They should just add a turntable on both sides.

Elantric

#23
For todays generation, as Beck sang 15 years ago "Two turntables and microphone" is where its at.

In 2013, Roland would probably sell more RC-505's if they did include two phono preamps, probably nixed those by the bean counters for the final product release.
Must wait for RC-605 ;)

Hopkins

Looks good!  Impossible to say whether it will be better for guitarists until it can be properly tested - looking at the RC-300 Feature Requests thread is a reminder of how little that (admittedly very cool) demo addresses.  It is not even clear if there is a mic bypass which seems even more obvious for a DJ-focussed product.  Clear advantages though: five independent stereo tracks and visual feedback.  The cost and foot-switch disadvantages have already been pointed out - even though the street price is virtually the same as the RC-300 in the UK (£460 vs £430).  Perhaps we'll see the RC-300 drop in price slightly, but I expect that they will simply market them as similar products tailored for different requirements.

One thing that is clear (if not already from software products like Loopy): a foot-based interface is a massive limit.  Jabbing clumsily at widely spaced switches which have to be able to withstand 200kg of force is no match for five or even ten nimble digits.  Roll on mind control interfaces...