It’s always fun to play with another guitarist. But what if you have the urge to jam but can’t find anyone to jam with? Sometimes when you are writing songs you need someone to play the rhythm part so you figure out a solo. Have you ever been the guy who has to play that rhythm over and over again?

The DigiTech JamMan Looper Phrase pedal is the solution to all of those problems. The JamMan is a 24-minute looper that allows you to record and play back up to 99 tracks. You can record your rhythm, record a lead, and then record a harmonizing solo on top of that.

This isn’t your ordinary looper though, it’s packed with tones of exciting features. The pedal supports compact flash cards up to 2GB to allow for 6 and a half hours of loops. It comes complete with a USB port for downloading your tracks to a computer. To help you get those loops just right it also has an auto record function to start when you start playing.

The pedal is a standard stomp box style floor unit. It has two switches, one to control playing and recording, and another to control the built-in rhythm and tempo features. If you have difficulty keeping your timing without a beat track the JamMan is for you. It has a simple percussion function that will have listening to a bass and cymbal track with a few simple toe taps. The JamMan isn’t limited to just 4/4 timing either.

In addition to the compact flash and USB ports the JamMan includes a mic Input, aux Input, and a port for an auxiliary footswitch for added live control.

ature Overview

• Compact Flash Slot supports up to 2GB of storage (128MB Included)
• 99 Loop Banks
• USB Port for downloading loops to a computer
• 44.1k Sampling rate
• Rhythm function with tap-tempo and multiple time signatures
• Sturdy stomp box metal casing
• Included power supply

For any guitarist who loves jamming this is the one pedal they should have in their setup. It is also an essential tool for the songwriter.

I had a buddy when I went to college who used to rip all of his music to his computer and pass it through a BBE Sonic Maximizer plug-in before he would listen to it. He said after listening to the optimized sound he couldn’t go back.

BBE Has introduced their popular rack sound processor in a stomp box format. Naturally through every connection and wire that sound travels between your guitar and your amp it looses quality. The BBE Sonic Stomp is put right before the amp to regenerate that lost sound. It is there to create more fullness, clarity, and presence to the sound of your guitar.

Guitar World reviewed it in their 2006 Holiday Guitar Review Guide and said “The BBE Sonic Maximizer’s patented BBE High Definition Sound process – which helps correct the effects of phase and amplitude distortion, improving music’s punch, presence, definition, and harmonics – is now available in a compact and gig-friendly pedal; the BBE Sonic Stomp. Powered by a nine-volt battery, the sonic stomp packs the same processing chip found in the more expensive, AC-powered units.

The Sonic Stomp gives its biggest and ballsiest performance in the effect loop of a modern channel-switching head. Used in front of the amp (and placed last in the chain, as BBE recommends), the Sonic Stomp adds crunch, crispness and an extra dose of harmonic sparkle to a Fuzz Face, and makes chorus and phasing effects more shimmering and multidimensional. Like its top-of-the-line siblings, the BBE Sonic Stomp makes your guitar sound better, countering the negative impact of amps and long pedal chains.”

The POD XT Live is the newest member of the Line 6 POD family. The XT Live is an extension of the popular POD XT but made with the live performer in mind. It is a multi-effect floor processor with a bite. It can be used for any guitar amp or can plug into any Line 6 Spider amp to become a full control unit. The XT includes many features such as stomp boxes, effects, amplifier, and different amp models. Best of all, the unit comes complete with a variax input and is USB ready.

Musicians Friend reviews the Line 6 PODXT Live and writes “For relatively minimal cost, a POD provides a world of guitar tones-models of all the major amps, high-quality cab emulation, plus a whole slew of effects. All this in a compact, easy-to-use unit with all the right connections and pro quality sound. In short, a POD makes it possible for the average-joe guitarist to record really pro-sounding tracks, even on a family-PC-based recording setup.”