Latest
Build Your Own Clone AB True Bypass Looper Pedal by Kenny Butcher
The Build Your Own Clone AB true bypass looper pedal is the heart of my pedal board.
If you have a pedal board and use FX on stage or jamming with friends you should look into this great pedal.
Why do I use it?
Tone – I am blessed to have some of the best bass gear on the market and I’ve spent many years honing my tone. You can read a lot of different things on the Internet regarding pedal chains and sucking tone; some say it does other say it doesn’t. I’m going to tell you that I hear a definite difference having pedals in my signal chain verses having my bass directly into an amp. The best way to avoid the degradation of tone is to buy “true bypass” pedals, which will make a substantial difference; but it can get expensive. If you do enough google searches, you’ll also find arguments where people hate having contact points in their signal chain… I guess there is a little merit when it comes to dirty or corroded 1/4 plugs/jacks, but I would be more concerned with pedals causing an issue.
Anyway, the loop pedal allows me to completely bypass the pedals all together and in essence go directly to my amplifier with out any signal loss. If you’ve read up on how to design a pedal board, you’ll know that I also designed mine around being used for guitar as well; so I only had to bring one board on the road. It’s really simple, my “B Loop” is my Bass FX and my “A Loop” is my guitar FX loop, however, I normally leave the A Loop for my Korg tuner pedal.
Bypass – The second and probably most important reason I have a the loop pedal is that it also acts as a bypass in the event that I run into problems. If you’ve used any sort of electronic unit when playing, you’ll know it always seems to screw up during sound check or 5 minutes before you play… Always! That one reason I like running directly into an amp with a cord, but the bypass is my little piece of insurance. One time I was playing a gig and my sound suddenly stopped. I was in such a fit that I didn’t notice the lights on my board were out, but I couldn’t pin point the cable problem… As it turned out, the circuit I was using for my pedal board had a tripped breaker part way through the performance. My amp was on a different circuit all together so I didn’t realize what the issue was. What saved the gig for me was that I was able to bypass my board with one stomp.
Favourite Feature
There really aren’t a lot of “features” to be spoken of in regards to this pedal, but after using it for a while I came the realization of the best part of having this pedal. No more tap dancing! As a guitar player and a bass player in a prog metal band, I’ve always hated the sound of clicking effects on. You know when you get the delay in trying to stomp on multiple FX in sequence because you only have one foot? With the loop portion of the pedal I am able to turn on the necessary effect pedals without rushing with two beats to spare. With my FX engaged long before I need them, it’s a simple case of stomping the loop button or un-bypassing the pedal board and everyone is on at once. Simple and fantastic!
Conclusion
– If you’re using pedals, you’ll want some kind of bypass if something fails in the middle of a set, or before it.
– If you don’t like your tone to be altered or lifeless, this will fix the problem without spending a fortune on true bypass pedals
– No more tap-dancing on stage to engaged multiple pedals. Engage each one at your leisure and then STOMP ON!
Building it – If you know how to solder, this is simple. All you have to do is follow the instructions which you can download on the BYOC website. I painted mine white, but I didn’t have any white pedals and I liked the colour. I added a DC power jack to mine so I don’t have to mess around with a 9V. Easy to build, took me about 30 minutes.
Quality – Scott’s a great guy, he won’t sell you junk, but don’t take my word for it (or LeVar Burton) take a risk and try building one.
Remember, let the groove inspire. Thanks for reading!
Check out our top 10 favorite basses on Instagram this week…
Click to follow Bass Musician on Instagram @bassmusicianmag
FEATURED @kilianduartebass @meridian_guitars @adamovicbasses @marleaux_bassguitars @jcrluthier @sandbergguitars @ibanezuk_official @dingwallguitars @torzalguitars @ariaguitars
Check out our top 10 favorite basses on Instagram this week…
Click to follow Bass Musician on Instagram @bassmusicianmag
FEATURED @bacchusguitars @franz.bassguitars @mendesluthieria @ramabass.ok @meridian_guitars @adamovicbasses @shukerbassguitars @fantabass.it @andys_vintage_guitars @valdesbasses
Check out our top 10 favorite basses on Instagram this week…
Click to follow Bass Musician on Instagram @bassmusicianmag
FEATURED @murraykuun_guitars @ja.guitars @combe_luthier @overloadguitars @kevinhidebass @franz.bassguitars @indra_guitars @petercrowdesign @baboomin_bass @jcrluthier
Check out our top 10 favorite basses on Instagram this week…
Click to follow Bass Musician on Instagram @bassmusicianmag
FEATURED @sandbergguitars @benevolent_basses @rayriendeau @olintobass @wonkorbasses @bite.guitars @adamovicbasses @maruszczyk_instruments @skervesenguitars @ramabass.ok
Photo: Self-portrait by Melissa Auf Der Maur
Melissa Auf Der Maur is a Canadian bassist who played with Tinker, Hole, and The Smashing Pumpkins. She released her own work and is a photographer with photos published in Nylon, Bust, and National Geographic. She released her ‘90s Rock Memoir “Even The Good Girls Will Cry” on 17 March 2026.
KB: Did you always want to be a singer-musician growing up?
I’ve played music my whole life. In school, I played trumpet and sang in a children’s choir, so music was always within me. My mother was the first female disc jockey on the Montreal airwaves; her record collection played a huge role in my inspiration and love of music.
KB: When did you start playing bass, and why this instrument?
When I was 19, the early 90s music explosion began to percolate in tiny clubs around the world. I was lucky to be a ticket girl at Montreal’s underground music club. In one year, I saw Hole, Sonic Youth, Smashing Pumpkins, White Zombie, and The Breeders – all had female bass players. That’s when the seed was planted. By the age of 22, I was the bass player of Hole.
KB: Which brands of basses have you used in your career, and which one are you using now?
The first bass that I learned on was a vintage Squier Precision. Hole was sponsored by Fender guitars, so I upgraded to Fender Custom Shop Precisions. That is all I play, but I have a cool vintage 8-string Greco that I use on recordings to thicken up guitar parts.
KB: What equipment do you use or have you used with your basses?
Ampeg SVT amps and cabinets, a couple of Sans-Amp pedals, and that is it.
KB: How did you become a member of Hole, and what is your fondest memory of that time?
Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins was helping scout a replacement for (RIP) Kristen Pfaff, Hole’s bass player. My band, Tinker, opened for them on the Siamese Dream tour, so Billy had seen me play and could vouch for me. Courtney trusted her talented friend, and that was it. I initially said “no thank you” due to my commitment to my photographic studies and the drama and chaos surrounding the band during the “Live Through This” album release. Courtney took it as a good sign that I said no, so convinced me to reconsider, and soon after, I accepted their invitation, in the name of helping put females in the male-dominated landscape of rock music. My fondest memory is every show we played as a mostly female band, symbolizing what a woman could do in a rock band. Every show had a purpose: get more women to play music.
KB: You are a photographer as well. What makes a great picture? Do you shoot in color or b/w?
I started shooting photographs at age 15. Initially only shot black & white and worked in the art school darkroom. In university, I took a color photography course, and shifted mostly and forever to that, because it was easier to process film on the road when I joined a rock band. I experimented with many cameras, point and shoots, manual, polaroids, medium format, and vintage finds. The trick to a good photograph is to shoot many and all the time – the magic is in the edit and selection process.
KB: Are there artists you would love to collaborate with or wish you had?
??I’ve been lucky to collaborate with some of my favorite musicians in my career. I would still love to collaborate with a new generation heavy electronic artist on an analog bass, heavy electronic drums, and synths collaboration project. Take me out of my usual zone, merging the past and future: my love of 80s dark new wave and new artists exploring that genre. It was very futuristic back then, and we are now, after all, living in the future. I am in the mood to play bass to heavy beats I want to dance to.
KB: What are your 7 favorite bass lines in music across all genres? And why these 7?
“Mountain Song” – Jane’s Addiction (love a rambling, rolling bass line – feels like the ocean waves)
“Black Top – Helmet” (was the first bass line I taught myself)
“Gold Dust Woman” – Hole from “The Crow 2” Soundtrack (it was my first bass line contribution to the band)
“Get Ready” – The Temptations (Motown just feels so good, because of the bass)
“Lucretia My Reflection” – Sisters of Mercy (makes me want to hit the dance floor and play bass simultaneously)
“Be My Druidess” – Type O Negative (full chord bass playing at its best by iconic, demonic, Peter Steele, RIP)
“Romantic Rights” – Death from Above (1979 – unique distorted overdriven tone, combined dance rhythm and melodic intelligence, all in one shot – also! Shout out to a bass & drum only band, which is awesome, and we should have more of, but the bass player needs to be a killer to fill that role.
KB: What are you currently up to?
Releasing my ‘90s Rock Memoir “EVEN THE GOOD GIRLS WILL CRY”. Visceral healing process, it was to get it out of me and write it, but I suspect the real magic will begin by putting it into the world and reflecting with others on what the magic of the ‘90s was all about. Powerful music decade that carried us into what is now a brave new world of digital corporate weirdness – may the past shed a light on our future. That’s my hope for this book release and tour.
Visit online:
Official Website
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Spotify
Gear News: Fender Unveils Highly Anticipated Vintera III Series
New Music: Oteil Burbridge & Lamar Williams Jr. New Single, Hush
Interview With Bassist Virginia Franks
Nathan East, Echoes of a Lineage – April/May 2026 Issue
Gear Review: Italia Leather Straps
Mar 2 Edition – This Week’s Top 10 Basses on Instagram
Mar 9 Edition – This Week’s Top 10 Basses on Instagram
Mar 16 Edition – This Week’s Top 10 Basses on Instagram
Mar 23 Edition – This Week’s Top 10 Basses on Instagram