Expanding PBC to add More Loops

stringtheorist

Well-Known Member
I'm gearing up to purchase a PBC but currently somewhat put off by the limit on the number of loops. If I find I need to add more FX to my rig, what's the best way to expand the loop capability?

I was thinking I could perhaps integrate a Mini FX Gizmo into the rig... How would I hook this up and manage it with regard to MIDI (especially if I'm primarily using the software editor which only caters for the PBC)? Is anyone already doing this?

Alternatively, I guess I'd be looking at the Effect Gizmo controlled with some other brand of foot-switcher.
 
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Great video here from Jay Rogers expanding the PBC with a MiniEffects Gizmo for his drive section. He also has a Dropbox link to show you his pbc editor settings.


Best,

Sam
 
The PBC can definitely work with one or more Mini Effect Gizmos. Using the on-board editing, you can easily make the Function button switch to a button page that controls a Mini Effect Gizmo, just like the Loops button switches to a page that controls the internal loops.
 
Can any of the disaster area loopers that have 8 loops be used with the pbc?

I can't tell by reading their product pages. It would need to be programmed to respond to external MIDI signals - enabling and bypassing loops based on the CC signals being sent to it. You might need to email Disaster Area to figure that out.
 
Heres a shot from the manual for a gen2 dpc ez8. It says that you have to send a cc message with a value corresponding to the midi channel you want to assign for the dp . Anyone know how to do that, in layman's terms?
 

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Can anyone help me with this? Trying to figure out how to set dpc ez8 gen2 to receive messages from pbc. In other words, connect doc to pbc via midi out on pbc to midi in on dpc. Then under devices, choose the midi channel I want to assign for dpc. Then...set up a button pages with 8 loops? I'm supposed to send a cc message 99 with the corresponding value equal to the midi channel I want to use. Can someone please talk me through in very simple terms how to do this?
 
You have it right so far. In Devices, select an unused device slot on the left. Set Manufacturer to Generic, set the name to DPC (or whatever you want). Set the MIDI Channel to a channel you're not using for any other of your devices.

Now, we need to assign a button temporarily to do what the device requires to set its MIDI channel. Go to the Buttons tab. Double click a button to open it up. Set Button Type to IA. Turn off all checkboxes. If there's an action in the action list (gray box, bottom left corner), select it. If there's nothing in there, press Add Action.

Now, in the bottom right, set Action Type to CC Toggle and Device to DPC. Set CC Number to 99. Off Value should be 0 and On Value 127. Click Done to finish. Send the settings to your PBC.

Now, power up the DPC while holding the 1 button. When it powers up, press the button on the PBC that you just edited. That should assign the MIDI channel on the DPC.

Now, select an unused button page in the Buttons tab. Start editing the buttons as you did before, but with these settings:
Set Button Type to IA. Turn off all checkboxes, except Send on Preset Change and Update on Preset Change, which should be turned on. Set Action Type to CC Toggle and Device to DPC. Set CC Number to 50. Off Value should be 0 and On Value 127.

The above will set up a button for Loop 1. For Loop 2, do the same but use CC number 51. Use one higher number for each subsequent loop button.

Now, you need to have a way to get from the main button page to the new page. On Page 1, edit the Function button (bottom right). Turn off all checkboxes, except turn on Momentary. Edit the action on the button to be type System, subtype Page. Set the page number to the page that you just created. Click Done.

One more step - click on the button you just edited, and in the Edit menu, select Copy. Now, switch to your new button page, click on an unused button, and in the Edit Menu, select Paste. Double click the button to edit it. Change the page number in the bottom right to page 1. This button will be what you use to return to the new button oage.

Now, send the settings back to the PBC and you can test it - the buttons should control the loops on the DPC
 
I was looking to add my DPC-8EZ to the insert between loops 6-7 as well, however I don't yet have the PBC and so your explanation went a bit over my head. To make sure I route all the cables correctly, I run out of 5-6 from the PBC into the input of the DPC, then connect the three pedals I want in the loops into their respective loops. Out of the DPC back to the in 7-10 on the PBC. Midi goes out of the PBC to the in of the DPC, then out of that on to the next midi pedal(in my case, the Quartz)?

Once properly programmed, I basically will have to create a button page that I can use to turn off the three pedals in the DPC, correct? Could I then use the mute, loop 4, bank down, and loop 5 buttons to scroll through the banks on my Timeline and Big Sky without having to create a third button page for them?

And then, lastly, I can save any combination of the loops I create on that button page to any preset in preset mode or to any preset on a song in a setlist, correct? And to change them mid-song I would just need to tap the loops button until I got to the page designated to controlling them to turn on-off?
 
The connections are correct. Yes, you will need another page to create buttons for the DPC, and other buttons not needed for DPC loops can be set to anything you like.

Your loop combinations can be saved to any preset and will be automatically recalled, and yes you can switch to your new page at any time and manually override loops.
 
Awesome! Also, if I also wanted to place a post-drive boost and a volume in the same circuit as the MEG, can I do that without tone or functionality issue? Just go out of 5-6, into boost, into volume, into MEG, back into PBC?

And lastly, can you swap the assignment of the bank down and function button so that the bank up is above bank down rather than to the right of it? In either case, can they be designated to bank up and down on momentary hold but do something else (like recall an on-the-fly preset) when tapped quickly?
 
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Yes, you can connect the PBC and MEG like that, and there should be no issues.

Any button can be configured for any function, so moving or swapping bank buttons is no problem.You can set a button's mode to Hold which then allows you to edit its main function (when it's pressed) and its hold function (when it's held). Move bank up/ bank down to the Hold Function and edit the main function to be whatever function you like.
 
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