Hi all,
I have a question about using the OP-1 live.
I perform with a guitar looper (Boss RC 500) that has midi in / out. Wondering if anyone has experience in working with OP-1 and having the two units sync. What I want to do is create a loop with guitar, bass etc… AND then the OP-1 as well.
Doesn’t matter if the OP-1 is controlling tempo or is receiving Midi from the Boss.
Anyone have a clue if this kind of thing can be done?
Peter
You can definitely midi sync the OP-1, but I’d try it first, if possible, to see if it works with your setup.
Hi, have you had any luck with your Op-1 RC-500 setup? I’m waiting for my unit now and i’m wondering the same. How do you use your guitar with your Op-1? Thanks in advance.
OP1 sends and receives MIDI over USB so you’ll need to connect via a MIDI host, e.g. a computer running a DAW, an app on phone or tablet, or a hardware host like the Kenton box.
If i use the midi port that way will the op1 still be affected by my effect pedals?
I’m new to recording music, been preforming live for about 5 years.
I’m trying to find the best way to loop and manipulate the sounds i can get with the Op-1 field.
So i plan on hooking up to my rc-500 and other pedals, would that work? any propitiatory cables or stuff i would need? The midi box seems like the best idea, but does that just record your inputs or does it record sound as well. I’m trying to look for a video that explains this in great detail, but no luck so far.
Thanks for the good answer 
midi and audio are two completely separate things
Very helpful Keep the tips coming. Could you explain it in a quick way?
Midi is signaling data to other equipment, audio is noise.
You can still send the audio out of the op-1 into your effects loop if you’re triggering midi thru it’s USB port. I am not sure if you can simultaneously do audio out and midi in on just the USB port, if that’s what you are asking.
What’s your goal? Control the op1f with an external midi signal, and process it’s audio out with a pedal board into audacity/ DAW of choice?
MIDI is purely for sending control signals. If you connect OP1 and looper via a host then you can use one device to set the tempo and be the master clock for the other. Then your loops will be synced to beats and tape on OP1.
Simplest approach for audio is to take audio out of OP1 headphone socket and into the RC500 to record loops. If you want to loop guitar as well you might need a mixer to mix the two audio sources (OP1 and guitar) down to one. Unless RC500 is stereo, then you could send OP1 audio to one channel and guitar to the other.
Other effects pedals go wherever you want them in the audio path.
If you have other effects that use MIDI just daisy chain them using MIDI in/out ports and make sure each device is configured to receive clock as appropriate (depending on which device you want to be the master).
Thank you very much, this was extremely helpful! This is just the approach I’m going for as the rc-500 is stereo. Do you have any examples of effects that need midi box? I ordered an empress reverb, and they sell these midi boxes. Thanks again! Oh i see what you mean now.!
that’s one thing i was wondering about. If its not possible now, maybe in the future idk, both at the same time? I wanna play and be creative with my op1f and loop station. When I’m done with that, get all the files and stuff and then use a daw. Being able to insert any other instrument or mic and get that into the loop station or the op1, making it easy to send between devices, or too and from. I just got this Op1f so I’m not very familiar with teenage engineering or midi. I’ve been in isolation for 15 years so sorry for my incoherent writing.
Most effects don’t support MIDI, and usually there is no need. Typically you would use MIDI as a clock for effects, e.g. to time-sync a delay repeats or some other time-based modulation. Some effects units allow you to control the parameters using MIDI—like an automated expression pedal. I’ve done this with the Chase Bliss Blooper and Mood pedals.
It tends to be the more expensive, higher end pedals that support MIDI—manufacturers like Strymon, Eventide and so on. Try searching for MIDI enabled pedals.
I don’t know what the Empress Reverb can do. You could probably modulate its parameters with MIDI signals—it would be like someone was twiddling the controls back and forth for you while you play your guitar. The Empress Reverb doesn’t seem to have a standard MIDI port or USB, just their proprietary “control port”. So you might need their MIDI box to hook it up to everything else.
The Empress control port might just be standard MIDI over a TRS jack socket—you would have to do more research on that. From what I have seen, most MIDI connection boxes from pedal manufacturers are proprietary boxes, specifically to connect their brand of pedal to the MIDI chain, rather than a general purpose MIDI interface like the Kenton box and others.
Yeah i see now that empress sells something called a Midibox2, so i would need one of these to even use my rc-500 with the op1f? Also i was gonna get the blooper as a looper but i choose the rc-500 because i want to have a clean guitar signal. I have been preforming for 5 years now and I’m completely new to recording audio, and I’m completely new to midi. Same with the terminology and such. Really happy for your help, means a lot! I’m planing to use the effects pedals/boss with my op1f and make patches, then either record that into the rc600 or put the loops back into the op1f.
You would only need the Empress MIDI box if you want the Empress Reverb pedal to send/receive MIDI signals to another device. It is irrelevant if you only want a MIDI connection between OP1 and RC500.
To be honest, you probably only need to MIDI connect the OP1 and RC500 if you want to tempo lock your guitar loops to OP1 beats and tape. You can still get a long way without the technical and financial overhead of setting up MIDI. Don’t let GAS get in the way of having fun experimenting.
If you just want a conventional looper then there are better devices for less money than Blooper. However if you want something quirky and creative then Blooper is awesome—I love it.