I am currently looking into getting a keyboard to use in jamming sessions. I have so far been partial to Roland GO:KEYS 5 (this over the 3 due to the additional inputs and an acceptable imo price difference). This (around 500 EUR) is around the max I want to give for it.

But, as far as I can tell, it does not have a proper loop function. It has a layered recording-function, but this would require me to play through the full song.

So I have two questions:

  1. Are there any keyboards anyone of you would recommend in roughly the same price range that has a looper?

  2. Could I use my Boss RC-5 for this, plug the keyboard into input A and plug it back into the keyboard from output A? I would like to avoid buying a new speaker for this, and tge loop pedal would also be connected to my guitar and to the amp.

  • cyberwolfie@lemmy.mlOP
    4·
    7 days ago

    I’d want to be able to use it without, yes. I also want to play via DAW, but I already have a more stationary 88-key setup where I would do that anyway. Maybe I would prefer to use a DAW for jam sessions when I get more experience with it, but right now I am very much a beginner (I want to learn Ardour)

    • trashcan@sh.itjust.worksM
      3·
      7 days ago

      I don’t have something to recommend unfortunately. I’m most comfortable in the DAW. I’ll be following this thread however.

      Edit: the DAW I know my way around doesn’t have a good solution.

      • cyberwolfie@lemmy.mlOP
        1·
        7 days ago

        Alright, cheers :) Which DAW is it that you are using, by the way?

        After some more research, I think my loop pedal idea with using the keyboard as a speaker will work. The GO:KEYS 5 has 1/4 in line im and out, and as I understand about the pedal I should be able to sepaeate L and R inputs and direct to different amps/speakers. So far I’ve only used it with guitar and amp, so need to make sure I’ve not misunderstood anything before buying.

          • cyberwolfie@lemmy.mlOP
            2·
            3 days ago

            I want to go FOSS, so I’ve tried LMMS and Ardour, both only briefly. Found out that Ardour is probably more what I am going for as I want to connect a guitar directly and record as well, and as far as I could tell, I would have to make guitar recordings outside of LMMS and bring them in after.

            I spent a little time trying to get my piano, guitar and MIDI-controller set up with Ardour, which I almost got working (just the control buttons on the MIDI controller (Nektar Impact LX25+) that I couldn’t get any response from). I struggled with plugins though, tried yabridge, couldn’t get it to work, and figured it was because I was running the flatpak version of Ardour. So I am planning on buying the precompiled binaries from Ardour to also support development, but I want to wait until I have some time to get properly going. My mistake might also have been to bite off a bit more than I could chew from the get-go, and that I should start by following some tutorials to get to know the software better before I start interfacing everything.

            • trashcan@sh.itjust.worksM
              1·
              2 days ago

              My mistake might also have been to bite off a bit more than I could chew from the get-go, and that I should start by following some tutorials to get to know the software better before I start interfacing everything.

              That could be it. Don’t forget limitations lead to creativity.

              I went with Bitwig because it’s natively Linux compatible, supports 32-bit and 64-bit VST2, VST3, and CLAP plugins with multiple sandboxing options making a plugin crash a nonissue.

              A DAW may be the one thing I am willing to go for proprietary. It’s the most expensive software I have purchased for hobbyist use and it’s rewarding every time I open it. I went with the simplicity of having things “just work” for once.

              But that said with all the options I do get lost in rabbit holes and would probably finish more tracks with fewer choices.

              • cyberwolfie@lemmy.mlOP
                1·
                2 days ago

                Maybe I’ll try Bitwig at some point, but this is (so far) not something I would want to spend a lot of money on. Maybe I can get some time in during the end of year holidays to try to get Ardour working again. I mostly want to be able to interface my instruments and run them through some nice plugins (I have not invested in some big suite already that would be difficult to play nicely, so I can start with whatever is easiest to get working - from before I’ve only ever briefly tried out Spitfire Audio through Garageband).

                I recently discovered that I would not be able to do hook up the keyboard I was looking at in the way I had planned. The output sends all audio, including whatever comes in through the input, so I would just cause a feedback loop. So I would need a new speaker, or have to run it through my DI box (and then I might as well use a DAW for this).

                • trashcan@sh.itjust.worksM
                  1·
                  2 days ago

                  I went for Rent-To-Own on Splice. It ended up being the best deal because I received all software and version updates for two years while I paid it off and now I own the software. That was a big selling point for me after Reason went subscription. I can stop paying now that’s its paid off and keep that version of Bitwig forever while on Reason if I stopped paying I would lose access entirely.

                  That and Bitwig’s stock devices and modules have made a lot of VSTs I used redundant.

                  Tbh I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t get an older version through means and fell in love with it.

        • trashcan@sh.itjust.worksM
          2·
          4 days ago

          I went from Reason to Bitwig Studio. It’s laid out similarly to Ableton Live but with some great QoL features and design paradigms like their open modulation system.