Using Pro Tools live as a "Loop Station"

[Terrence3]

Hey everyone. I'm a solo music act with acoustic guitar and vocals. I was thinking that it's pretty cool to be able to use Pro Tools for live backing tracks and even going as far as utilizing it's various plug-ins for added effects to your sound.
However my only complaint is this: you are not able (as far as I can tell) to use Pro Tools as a "loop station" (which indeed would be way cooler). For those of you who don't know what a "loop station" is, I am referring to a device that enables both recording AND instantaneous automatic playback of that recorded material after 2 or maybe 4 bars (after that you can keep going; overdubbing and layering your sound until your heart so desires). I've seen many people do this with special guitar pedals that you can buy at almost any music store.
Just thought I'd see if anyone on here has any thoughts about it. Is it in fact impossible? According to the Reference Manual, Pro Tools ignores loop playback when loop record is enabled. I see no way around this.

[mhelm01]

Pro Tools is probably the wrong program for you. Try a Boss Loop Station.

[bfx]

I'd say PT was not built with that task in mind. Live can do what you want (I guess). Maybe you got a copy of Live lite with PT or with some piece of MIDI hardware?

Another way would be to program something dedicated with MaxMSP or PD or else. That's the way we do it, cause there's lots of possibilities and such programs grow with musicians' needs.

[Terrence3]

I like the idea of using Live lite. Are you saying that I can use Live in conjunction with PT? How does one do that?

Also, in terms of MIDI hardware, are you suggesting that I can program a MIDI device to record, playback AND layer loops? I've heard of MaxMSP where folks will program their video game controllers as MIDI devices. That's useful if all you use is MIDI, but my primary interest is to loop actual audio data (from an acoustic guitar or microphone) as I record it.

[bfx]

I haven't used Live lite in a long time so I am only assuming that you don't need PT to run. just open Live lite, you should have up to 8 "channels" available. Otherwise you'd have to open up PT, create an instrument track, open up the Live rewire plugin and that should fire up Live lite. But I would not do that, if you only need Live lite. "Standalone" Live should suffice your needs. It's not a plugin in the first place.

You can use a MIDI device to trigger record and playback but Live also knows assignable key commands. So you don't -need- another device, but maybe it's more convenient to trigger a MIDI pedal or similar – hands free, you know. There, also, Live offers freely assignable MIDI commands. Look it up in the manual and tutorials, they should be integrated within Live.

Other than that give Max a try. Maybe ask in the Cycling 74 forums. I guess there's hundreds of patches that do what you want. Maybe someone offers it for free so you could use the Max runtime instead of having to buy the full package.

[Terrence3]

Thanks I'll try this stuff out. :)

[bfx]

welcome. good luck!