Comping and Multi-Take Loop Recording with Take Selection and Layer-Based Overdubs
planned
ultracello
Description:
Enable advanced comping and multi-take recording workflows by allowing users to record loops in continuous overdub mode, where each overdub is treated as a separate "take". Provide an interface to select, preview, and combine takes after recording. Useful for songwriting, refining loops, and selecting the best performance.
Problem:
Currently, Loopy Pro doesn’t offer a dedicated take management system. Users cannot easily select from past overdubs or compile a composite loop from multiple takes. There's no support for comping workflows as seen in DAWs, which limits its use in detailed arrangement or songwriting sessions.
Proposed Solution:
– Allow continuous overdubbing where each layer is saved as an individual take
– Provide a “loop re-record until tap” mode with last-take selection
– Add a clip context menu or hold gesture to open a “Take Selection” window
– Integrate zoom and grid snap for precise part selection (similar to AudioShare)
– Enable MIDI-assignable switching between takes or random playback of takes
– Allow replacing or inserting specific takes with velocity/FX presets (e.g., fade, stutter, LFO)
– Option to play newly recorded overdubs in reverse
– Quantized insert/replace options
– Add support for slice-based comping (e.g., select bar 1 from take A, bar 2 from take B...)
– MIDI long/short press behavior to control insert/replace start and stop
– Append-before/after actions for looping logic
– Temporal “takes” timeline overlay or pop-up to drag/select preferred versions
– Enable randomized take playback for generative loop evolution
Benefits:
✅ Unlocks powerful songwriting and loop refinement workflows
✅ Makes Loopy Pro more DAW-like for structured clip editing
✅ Adds creative options like reversed overdubs and stuttered inserts
✅ Great for live performance and recording multiple takes without stopping
✅ Brings best of “multitaking” and “comping” to Loopy Pro in an intuitive way
✅ Enables precise control and creative decision-making post-recording
✅ Makes Loopy Pro more competitive with DAWs like Logic and Cubasis for clip-based workflows
This summary was automatically generated by ChatGPT-4 on April 30, 2025.
S
Smund
Gary Williams ultracello Hi Gary and Ultracello! I was just going to reply to your post G, but I wanted it make sure it could get caught.
ABOUT IF SKIPPING BACK THROUGH OVERDUBS COULD REPLACE MULTITAKING:
Kind of! Kind of! I want a worlflow that is slow and meticulous, for organizing your clips in horizontal mode and building a song. I guess scrolling through takes would be fine if you are able to move backwards and forward.
-An option to keep only this clip in the stack if you want to commit. Is this already available as swipe actions in «Doughnut view»?
I want scrolling through takes to be accessible from Timeline/Horizontal view. How «easy» would it be to add a traditional drop down menu from Horizontal view where you hold the clip and all the takes drop down? I’m aware I’m having a fantasy here but if we got a drop down menu like that it could be done simple no?
-Holding the clip opens the drop down
-Slide your finger down, the clip gets selected when you let go, the menu closes and new clip takes the place in timeline
—>Next time you open this menu it keeps chronological order and highlights Clip 5 in the row that you selected.
Set the limit of viewable takes to 10 so it doses not break the screen.
I guess you would need to be able to record from Horizontal view to minimize hassle. Loop length could be edited with toggling a button, selecting the clip and dragging it, and it would change the loop length of that clip in doughnut view aswell. All other settings remain in Doughnut view and Settings.
I don’t mean to be complicated, I just need to make an outline of what I’m thinking about, iOS simplicity with complex features.
Josh darn maybe should I write this up again? I think my favorite feature is seriously at risk for staying here forever at it has grown a bit «complicated». I would like comping as well but I dident mean to mix them up. It’s been a while :) Have a great day
S
Smund
Hi! I’m thinking about it for songbuilding like in Horizontal mode. For comparison Cubasis multitaking is a drag, Loopys should work better. This is just theory crafting, but maybe something like
MULTITAKING
-In both horizontal and clip wiev, holding a clip opens up a window where your last 10-20 takes on that are stashed.
-It can use the same «window/graphics» as doughnut clip view, smaller window that fills up with loops
-When it fills with takes it adds clips and rescales them smaller. May have a max limit of saving so many of your last takes.
COMPING
-Holding a clip in the opened “new window” may let you ZOOM IN and select parts, not unlike the editor in Audioshare, but with beats/snap to grid
/Tap clips on and off
/X out of window
-Unused space filled with silence & crossfade, able to be recorded over in a new take.
I don’t know the official difference between Multitaking and Comping, but maybe MULTI could come first and expand to Comping, or we get lucky.
Loopy is great for building songs! There is nothing more relaxing for squeezing the creativity than «multi taking» for a while and selecting after, also for co-op songbuilder, «Just play».
Noah Sommer
Would be incredibly useful to have this function.
Michael Tyson
Merged in a post:
Loop Re-Record until tap / Fixed Clip length for Loops
ultracello
For loops i would like to be able to record a loop, over and over again, until I got it played tight. Then I would touch the loop again and Loopie picks the last take. Maybe for this feature it would be necessary to add a fixed loop length per clip.
ultracello
For example, after I have recorded 8x the same clip (yes, that’s 1x rec, 7x overdub), I want to play (e.g. randomly or certain preset patterns) a grid (1/8, 1/16 and so on) of all eight recordings. For organic natural and glitchy clips. Having this as automatically following action would be awesome. And I want to switch (on next clip cycle OR immediately) to one of the specific (in this case 8) records – ideally via MIDI assignable action button. Let's say I have a MIDI controller with 8x buttons. I switch button #6 and this will make play record 6 of the clip. Later I want to switch another MIDI controller button to switch back again for replay the previous played Comping version.
This is also related to "Comping".
Josh Porter
What you are asking for is basically 'Comping'.
Gary Williams
Can I just correct/clarify the terminology here. Comping means swapping between different takes during playback (eg take 5 started best and take 7 finished best, so select an edit point to swap playback mid clip). I would call what's been discussed so far 'take selection' (selecting the best entire take) to not confuse this with the more advanced concept of 'comping'...
Correct me if I'm wrong - if you're just going back on or two takes before the last one you recorded - in a lot of cases you could undo/redo back and forth through overdubs until you heard one of those takes playing back just right? If the undo redo button doesn't support this... is this the easiest thing to do - make an existing feature more robust?
ultracello
ultracello
marked this post as
planned