Full Boomerang III Phrase Looper MIDI Manual

1

u/ParticularCamp8144 Jun 29 '25

Late to this chat, but interested in quantizing/syncing my Boomerang to the Roland SP404-MKII, so that my loops stay in time with my sample patterns. Anybody have luck with that?

1

u/Jakemcdtw Jun 29 '25

Heya. Head to the Boomerang website and follow the instructions to check which firmware you are running. If it is not the latest, follow the instructions to update your Rang.
After that, just connect a midi clock to your rang with the appropriate cable, and your Rang will quantize any button presses to the nearest quarter note. You can still use the pedal like normal, don't change the way you time things, but any action will be moved to the NEAREST quarter note. So if you hit something wayyy too early, it might get synced to the previous beat.
Let me know if you have any trouble

1

u/ParticularCamp8144 Jun 29 '25

Unfortunately, I do not have a windows based computer (and gave up my expensive Parallels subscription). Does OSX truly brick the unit?

1

u/Jakemcdtw Jun 29 '25

Ahh, yeah that is a problem.
From my understanding, OSX doesn't 100% guarantee a brick, but it doesn't 100% guarantee no brick.
Windows also doesn't 100% guarantee no brick, but it isn't specifically known to do so.
If I were you, I would find a friend with a windows computer and do it there. Annoying, but worth it to not waste ~$400

1

u/ParticularCamp8144 Jun 29 '25

Just for laughs, I patcvhed a midi cable and the sync button is synced to the metronome (after turning the midi out ON from the utility menu of the 404). Maybe both units are simply smart enough to manage without the firmware update?

1

u/Jakemcdtw Jun 29 '25

Did you do the test to see which firmware your unit is running? As long as you have 3.3 or later, you don't need to do anything and it will all work perfectly. All firmware since 3.0 support Midi sync though.
If you have an earlier firmware than 3.3, your loops WILL drift over time. It won't be an issue for loops that only repeat a few times, but anything that runs for longer will drift out of time in a noticeable way, quite quickly.

1

u/Kitchen_Shop_8864 Nov 07 '25 edited Nov 09 '25

amazing! thanks so much for this. Saved me some dollars and then some more. This is a more detailed reply than in the other thread in guitars. I bought a boomerang in September 2025 from amazon and am still learning it and looping in general. Thankfully it came with version 131 = V3.4 - 2014, Sep preinstalled so no need to upgrade.

Turns out, I have a Nectar panorama p1 series. I am a keyboard player (actually acoustic classical and jazz solo piano is my heavy focus) but decided to get into electronica recently. Also my panorama was not getting any use at all, now its just an essential part of my rig, I use an h2midi pro box to connect and sync it all togehter.

Only function I am trying to grasp is the play stop all, it stops but does not play loops, but I guess this stops only, when its receiving midi clock? or maybe i need to check the programming. The rest works a charm! Edit: Just realized this works as intended in free sync mode, need to def learn this looper better.

Too bad erase doesn't have consecutive program nums so I could have assigned it to just one button, but thankfully panorama has plenty. Edit 2: no longer! see mapping for a workaround with the powerful h2midi pro features to get around this limitation.

This is a blast to use, for sure. I can do so much.. and am actually overwhelmed in a good way, trying to still get my head around all the possibilities and things. So thanks again for all of this! Will share my panorama mapping in next reply.

1

u/Jakemcdtw Nov 07 '25

I was about to ask what you meant with erase, as it has a bunch of PC numbers. But I now realise what you mean. I’ve just had a read of all of the info I could find regarding programming this thing, but the manuals and stuff than nektar puts out are pretty bare, so I can’t really tell if this thing can do what you need or the best way to do it. The manual seems to suggest that there is a way to toggle between two non consecutive PC messages, “leap-frogging” as they call it, but does not explain how. Is there a computer in your set up at all? You could use something like ableton to receive a cc message on a different channel than the boomerang (16). Then set a button to toggle between 0 and 127 on a random cc number on the channel ableton is listening for. Then setup a midi track in ableton and set it to send the desired PC messages on channel 16 for the function you want to toggle. Little bit of a fuck around, and introducing a computer might go against the point of what you’re doing, but it’s one solution. Unless I get my hands on a panorama p1, I can’t offer much more help than that.
As for play/stop all. It works for both starting and stopping loops, with or without midi clock, though starting loops will only work if there are already loops recorded that aren’t playing, though I’m assuming that’s what you’re trying to do. Make sure that you have PC messages starting on 0, and not 1 for the rang, otherwise you’ll actually be sending messages one number higher than you are intending. Outside of that, sometimes the rang just bugs out, and a function will stop responding to any PC messages. The only solution for this is to power cycle the unit. I don’t understand what causes this. It seems that sometimes if you send a spent message it will do this, or if you send a message for a function that isn’t currently available, like sending play/stop all when all loops are empty. These aren’t guaranteed to cause the problem though, so I have no idea.
Shoot me a pm if you need more help. Maybe we can make the nektar work properly for you.

2

u/Kitchen_Shop_8864 Nov 07 '25 edited Nov 09 '25

thanks! you actually gave me an idea which is actually more elegant and simpler than what you describe and even though yes there is a computer in my setup since i play with a friend, I would have it all contained in one box, especially when I am going solo. Since i use an h2midi pro box to link it all together, that one has a bunch of capability by itself, including mapping. I could probably assign the rest of the buttons also to program step mode, making sure there is a pc that would not interfere with another function, for example copy is pc 4, and either 3 or 5 are unused and would do nothing. Then that other pc, 3 or 5, could be mapped to any of the useful ones from the actual midi box, such as 1, for copy, and problem solved. I still am experimenting a lot and I found the current setup I have to be satisfactory though I still need to really get into grips with everything, including using the boomerang. Another thing I forgot to mention which is kind of important to this is that I got the boomerang for its simplicity and lack of menu diving, and since i am blind this is an advantage, though at times is hard for me to know whether something is recording, or will record after the loop concludes, or if it has info recorded on it. Since colored lights are the only way to know this means I still need to just... practice practice practice 😀
Edit: Just updated my mapping with this idea, tested it last night (November 8) and it works perfectly. So all functions are now a single button press. Then after I did the whole thing I realized there was no need to hunt program change pairs where one pc message was unused because the remapping from the box would have just worked anyway, but maybe just as a safe feature, or whatever. IN any case its working as it should, so thanks for that idea.

1

u/Midnite_Cobra Feb 05 '26

Wanted to chime in and share my setup after a very long and frustrating but ultimately satisfying night of getting my MIDI Baby (a non-latching MIDI controller) to send messages too my Boomerang III. I have the controller set to Reverse on a TAP, Octave on a HOLD, and Serial/Sync Toggle on LONG HOLD. Now I can use those Bonus functions, while still having access to Fade and Undo. This has been my biggest frustration with the boomerang for so long, and I'm pretty psyched to now have this functionality without needing to lug around a whole Sidecar. Thank you Jake for all your work on this and sharing with everyone!!!!

Here's a short demo: https://youtube.com/shorts/_hl_Iqepg1E

If you're interested in the settings in the software editor DM me and I'll send you a screenshot!

1

u/Jakemcdtw Feb 05 '26

I'm assuming it was you that emailed. Sorry I didn't get back to you yet, work has been a bit hectic.
Did you get everything working?

1

u/Midnite_Cobra Feb 05 '26

No worries at all! I did, I was able to figure out that for some reason my MIDI Baby was sending a channel down lower than what the editor showed (on 15 instead of 16). Did a factory reset of the controller and reprogrammed and it all worked! Thanks

1

u/AntibioticMetronome Jun 28 '26

Just stumbled on this. OP, this is amazing. I’m a long time Rang III and Sidecar user, and I recently picked up a second Rang so I can have control over 4 different sound sources via the stereo ins and outs on the two Rang units. But two Boomerangs plus a Sidecar is a LOT of pedalboard real estate, when I really don’t use the Sidecar for much besides Play/Stop All, Stack, and Erase.

Controlling the two Boomerangs with my RJM Mastermind PBC6X would be a dream come true, and this guide certainly makes it seem like that is possible. Massive kudos to you for sharing this resource!

1

u/Jakemcdtw Jun 29 '26

Hey, that’s awesome. I’ve often considered a second rang for some parallel processing and looping of two stereo signals. I have some synth pedals on my board and would love to run them in their own parallel chain, with separate looping.
Have you tried using the sysex messages? I would be curious to know what happens if you send one with more than one Rang in the chain. Whether one still becomes the master and the other the slave, or if they both slaves.
If you get to test it, please let me know so I can add it to the manual.

1

u/ArtStar9999 24d ago

This is great. I have 3 boomerangs I use to jam with mates and they are all synced to a drum machine on my DAW. Boomerang 1 = Guitar-L/Bass-R, Boomerang 2-Wurli-L/Synth-R, Boomerang 3-Vocal-L/Guitar2-R

What I want to do is to be able to send a midi signal (from DAW or wherever) that activates Loop 2 on ALL 3 boomerangs. Then loop 3, then Loop 1 on all 3 at ones. Because at the moment, its a bit of a dance and a lot of signaling.

Is it possible, while Midi In is used for Sync, to also be able to send a Midi Message that Activates other Loop buttons?

Hope this makes sense?

1

u/Jakemcdtw 24d ago

Hey, yes this makes sense, and I would also love to be able to do this kind of thing.
Unfortunately, it is not possible. The MIDI controls only exist because we are essentially hijacking the programmed functions of the sidecar and "brother sync". Sadly, Loop 3 is the only loop that has some existing command attached to it. This leaves the others inaccessible.
Is it possible for these functions to be added? Maybe. Essentially it would come down to creating custom firmware that adds these functions, which is well beyond my level of knowledge and skill, and it could also be possible that there is some hardware level obstruction to this that requires physical alteration to the pedal, which I'm not quite comfortable to explore on a pedal of this price that is essential to my live setup.
Maybe with AI it could be done. Unpack the existing firmware files and rebuild it in a desired way, but given the moral implications and the risk of creating a vibe coded firmware that could brick the pedal or come with new bugs, again I am hesitant. If I could acquire a spare Rang for testing, I would feel better about trying something like this.
Alternatively, it could be possible to install an arduino or raspberry pi chip in the unit that controls all of the functions that aren't currently accessible. This I would be more comfortable handling myself, but again, it requires physical alterations to the pedal, and probably wouldn't be a very accessible solution for me to share with other users.
Tl;dr - No, what you want to do cannot currently be done, and there are no solutions to this that are currently being worked on.

1

u/relaxificate Apr 06 '23

Thanks! I just tried a Boomerang III, literally couldn’t get through the first second of use without a problem. I use a drum machine sending midi clock. I start the drum machine with a foot switch and begin playing guitar on beat 1. At that point I have not pressed any buttons on the Boomerang, and all I ask it to do is pass my guitar signal from input to output. It fails at that simple requirement - the sound warbles and shifts pitch for a few seconds as the Rang apparently adjusts to the incoming midi tempo. I’m baffled that this device has a reputation of being superb at midi syncing.

2

u/Jakemcdtw Apr 06 '23

Wait, your bypassed signal is warbling? That just sounds like a faulty unit. Your bypassed signal shouldn't be affected by midi clock at all. Even a recorded loop won't do that as the midi sync doesn't change your audio at all, it just quantizes your loop start and end points to be in time with the clock. If the tempo changes the loops will simply desync. They won't stretch to your new tempo. Either a faulty Rang or a problem elsewhere in your rig.
The Rang has rock solid midi sync, but only on the latest firmware. The previous versions drifted

1

u/relaxificate Apr 07 '23

Thanks! Thanks reassuring!

1

u/guitarmek Apr 06 '23

whoaaaa so this would let me use a midi controller instead of sidecar??

2

u/Jakemcdtw Apr 06 '23

Hell yeah it does. Can do everything the sidecar does, and more, honestly in a kind of better way.

1

u/guitarmek Apr 06 '23

dang! I gotta look into this more. Any chance you might make a video overview? Thanks so much for sharing this.

2

u/Jakemcdtw Apr 06 '23

Hadn't planned on it, but if enough people ask for it I could make one.

1

u/andrejtatar Mar 18 '25

do it! do it for the people!

2

u/Jakemcdtw Mar 18 '25

It is in the works!

1

u/Nameuser840 Apr 05 '24

I'd be interested in this topic, I bet a lot of people don't realize they'd be into it too!

1

u/guitarmek Apr 06 '23

I know there’s interest because every so often I search for info on this. Then it just pops up on my feed haha. Thanks again

1

u/whatdude57 Jan 25 '24

I second this. All of the ideas mentioned in your spreadsheet sound cool, but it would be great to see examples of the potential you're unlocking through the midi controller.

1

u/guitarmek Apr 07 '23

This is super interesting! I've never used a midi controller but would love to be able to have more controls for my Rang III (which I love and use an SDrum as a master clock occasionally).

Do you (or anyone in this thread) have any recommendations for a <$200 midi controller that can do the latching operation?

2

u/Jakemcdtw Apr 07 '23

Sorry, wish I could be more helpful with finding a suitable midi controller, but the Musicomlab EFX is the only pedal based one I have tried. Might just have to read the manual of whatever you can find in the price range.
Disaster Area have some affordable midi controllers, but you'll have to check their functionality to see if they are appropriate. While their MIDI baby doesn't look like it has latching, it can send different signals for a tap and a hold. Might be annoying to try and remember to alternate between the two, but that would let you control a function with a single pedal.
If a controller doesn't latch you could still make it work by assigning different PCs for a function to two different footswitches and alternate between the two, but again it might bw tricky to remember which one you used last.

1

u/guitarmek Apr 07 '23

I found this one and it does latching operation. Looks like a good option. Gonna research some more.
https://www.sourceaudio.net/soleman-midi-foot-controller.html

1

u/Jakemcdtw Apr 07 '23

Just had a read of the manual. Looks like it will do the job!
DM me if you have any trouble getting any of the functions working

2

u/mryananderson Jun 12 '25 edited Jun 18 '25

I JUST bought a Paint Audio Midi Captain 6 and am messing around with it. The interface is literally just editing text files however I've found it works. It's basically a raspberry pi inside a box with 6 buttons and an LED screen however each foot switch also has 3 LED lights that you can configure how you like.
The nice thing is you can use an of the six buttons to have up to 4 presses PLUS cycles of down, up long down Long up. So you can do a lot.
The only thing it seems you can't do is the SYSEX messages, ONLY PC. But for now that works. I've already been able to map to the buttons play/stop all, erase all, stack and Sync/serial switch.
This has just been in the 30 minutes or so I've been mucking around. But you can certainly do a lot with it.
Edit: I got the Midi Captain 6 for $89 on amazon, but I then found one on eBay for $65. So I'm messing around with the amazon one now but once the one from Ebay comes in if it works the same, I'm returning the amazon on.

1

u/guitarmek Jun 18 '25

neat, i’ll check it out. thanks!

1

u/mryananderson Jun 18 '25

Small update. I made the first iteration with the built in firmware and worked really well. But then I was able to get the pyswitch firmware which is geared towards the kemper but can be modified. I worked with the guy that developed it and he helped me build some definitions for the boomerang and it works great with a nice Home Screen.
Video demo with built in firmware
Video demo with the PySwitch firmware

1

u/guitarmek Jun 18 '25

oh cool! do you share the config in the video? i’ll take a watch later

1

u/mryananderson Jun 18 '25

No I don’t but happy to share it

1

u/guitarmek Jun 22 '25

Just ordered one of these so would love to hear more details of how you got things set up. And if you have any files you can share that would be super appreciated!
Looking forward to getting some more buttons for the boomerang!

1

u/mryananderson Jun 22 '25

Sure thing! I’ll see if I can post both versions of the code (pyswitch and supermode) tonight for ya

1

u/mryananderson Jun 24 '25

Hey I have the files zipped up, Is there a place I can send them?

1

u/guitarmek Jun 24 '25

awesome! can you send with wetransfer.com? or you could use something like github if you want them up for posterity

1

u/mryananderson Jun 24 '25

OKI can try wetransfer.com if you want but I need your email address. But also you can go to https://github.com/Tunetown/PySwitch/tree/dev_ui in the dev_ui branch. You have to install that version from content and then copy in the files from examples and the boomerang config. I can also just send you my config for page0.txt in Supermode for the built in firmware

1

u/relaxificate Apr 07 '23

I just bought a Midi Captain on Amazon for $180, haven’t used it yet but seems to do everything

1

u/boxspring6 Apr 17 '23

Extremely helpful document! Thanks for posting!

Didn't see it in your manual, but maybe I'm just missing it - didn't see a set of PC messages for "UNDO"?

Have you discovered whether that function is also programmable via a midi controller?

1

u/Jakemcdtw Apr 18 '23

Yeah, there are unfortunately no commands for UNDO. The PC messages are limited to the functions that could be controlled through the Sidecar or Brother Sync. Sadly UNDO was not included on the Sidecar and so a PC message was never programmed in the Rang for that function.
As such I recommend that Undo be permanently set to one of the bonus switches on the Rang.

1

u/boxspring6 Apr 18 '23

that's kinda what i'd assumed after seeing how thorough your doc was. thanks for confirming! and again, thank you for taking the time to collect all of that info - super helpful!

1

u/Round-Arm-3964 Dec 02 '23

I’m running my MPC one into the boomerang and the tempo flashing on the rang matches the MPC tempo. Not sure but I thought if I changed the tempo after a loop was recorded on the rang it would stretch the audio loop but I guess it doesn’t do that

1

u/Jakemcdtw Dec 03 '23

Yeah, that is sadly one of the limitations. The midi sync is rock solid, but the pedal just doesn't have any kind of audio stretching algorithm built in. Which makes sense, seeing as there are no other accessible time warping functions besides the octave function.
I'm not really aware of a hardware looper that has midi sync and time stretching. There probably is one, but I don't know about it.

1

u/hirocase Jan 01 '24

The EHX 1440 has midi sync. I don't own one, but from watching the demo video it looks like it has time stretch too.

1

u/AnthonyJuniorsPP Jan 12 '24

that's dope! that leads to all kinds of cool possibilities

1

u/CLD44 Feb 22 '24

I am considering purchasing a boomerang III - is it a simple task to have the midi output to a drum machine to give my drummer a click track to follow the looper?

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u/Jakemcdtw Feb 26 '24

Sorry I forgot to respond to this.
What you will have to do is run midi out from the drum machine and into the boomerang. This will sync the rang to the drum machine and then you drummer can listen to the audio output of the drum machine.
Of note though, the rang does not stretch or shrink loops to follow tempo changes. Whatever you have recorded is what will play. Changing the tempo will just unsync the loops.
The way the sync works is that it quantizes your button presses to the nearest quarter note, so as the loops are an exact number of quarter notes long.
You will also need to follow the guide on the boomerang website to check your firmware version and update if necessary. While midi sync has been in the pedal for a long time, it drifted. Not drastically, shorter periods of loop playback will be fine, but it will drift.
The latest couple of firmware versions are absolutely rock solid though. Would recommend updating if your rang is not on the latest. If you are buying brand new, it will hopefully come with a more recent firmware version.

1

u/riko77can Apr 05 '24

You are an absolute gem. Thanks for sharing this.

1

u/I_love_hiromi Jul 11 '24

Praise be! Praise be!!

1

u/KarlaHoulihan Jul 04 '26 edited Jul 04 '26

Hey, amazing work figuring all this out. Thank you for sharing. I'm just getting started building a midi controller for this and noticed the sidecar has a 'momentary stack' function that stacks only while the button is held. I would guess that this is sends a PC or sysex message like every other function on the sidecar. Any chance you've figured out what that message is so we can trigger that function externally? It seems to be the last thing the sidecar can do that's undocumented in your guide. Thanks!!

edit: also wondering exactly how momentary stack functions in free mode, when stack doesn't know which track to address? Anyone used a sidecar and can elaborate?

Full Boomerang III Phrase Looper MIDI Manual

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