Having trouble with a feature or function of your Sheeran Looper+? If so, this guide is your first stop to ascertain the source. In this article, we will review some common troubleshooting methods applicable to the functions of your Sheeran Looper+.



Contents


Day-One Firmware Update


Prior to engaging in further troubleshooting, please be sure you have installed the essential day-one firmware update to your Looper+ to ensure optimal performance and stability. Please follow the steps outlined in the firmware update guide to complete the process. 




Power


My Sheeran Looper+ is failing to power on!

The Looper+ is capable of being powered via two means: 4 AA Alkaline batteries, or a 9V 500mA pin-negative power supply (sold separately).


If you are powering your Looper+ with batteries, confirm that they are oriented correctly and securely in the battery bay. The proper orientation for the batteries is printed at the bottom of the battery bay. As well, be sure that you are using 4 matched and fresh batteries. If one or more of your cells is not charged, there may not be enough available power to sufficiently operate the device. 


If you are powering your Looper+ with a DC adapter, be sure that it matches the required specifications exactly. As well, it is advisable to test an alternate, identical power supply to confirm that the original supply's cable has not been compromised.


If you are unable to power your Looper+ after testing all of the above, it's possible that a hardware issue may be at play. If this is the case, please contact technical support for assistance. 


My Sheeran Looper+ is powering off in the middle of use!

If you are powering your Looper+ via batteries, be mindful of the "Low Battery Warning" status message. This will appear as a lightning bolt icon on the bottom-right of your display. If your batteries become depleted during use, the unit will power off until fresh cells or a compatible DC adapter are installed. 


If you are powering your Looper+ via a compatible DC adapter, check an alternate adapter and battery power to see if the behavior can be replicated. If you are unable to replicate the behavior with new batteries or a new adapter, it is likely that the original adapter is to blame.


As well, be sure that the DC input jack is securely affixed to the input and is placed in an area not subject to heavy foot traffic, as rough contact with the input jack may cause damage to the jack/port and possibly cause the unit to lose power.


If your Looper+ is powering off on its own via all power sources after testing the above, please contact technical support for assistance. 



Audio I/O and Routing


I'm having trouble getting audio input from the Instrument Input(s)!

First and foremost, be sure you are connecting via a 1/4" TS Instrument cable, checking alternate cables to ensure the cable itself is not to blame. After that, check the volume parameter your INST Knob is dialed to an appropriate level of gain.


When an instrument is connected and being played with the INST Input Gain configured appropriately, you will see the volume of your play reflected in the vU meter just below the INST knob. It is best practice to configure your gain such that your volume peaks at -3db. 

 


I'm having trouble getting audio input from the Mic Input!

If you are connecting a dynamic microphone, or any other microphone that does not require Phantom Power (+48v), the troubleshooting process for the mic input is more-or-less the same as the instrument input (see above): Check an alternate cable to ensure a bad cable is not to blame and ensure that the MIC Input gain is configured appropriately.


Lastly, be advised that the Sheeran Looper+ does not feature onboard Phantom Power (+48v), so condenser microphones, or other microphones that may require phantom power, will not function as intended when connected directly to the Looper+. For microphones of this nature, you'll need to implement a preamp in between the microphone and Looper+ that does feature Phantom Power (+48V)



I'm having trouble with no/low audio output from the 1/4" outputs!

Regardless of your output source, the Looper+'s output levels are controlled by the MAIN volume knob. Ensure that this knob is configured appropriately in respect to your input gain levels to achieve proper gain staging in your Looper+'s I/O. 


Next, confirm your OUTPUT mode as listed in the Looper+'s OUTPUT menu. See below for a quick reference on the varieties of OUTPUT modes of which the Looper+ is capable:


If you are outputting via a single cable from one (1) of the outputs, ensure that your cable is connected to the correct output in respect to the OUTPUT configuration you've specified. 


As well, if you are outputting via two (2) cables from both 1/4" outputs, be advised that, as these are balanced outputs, your cables must be phase-matched if you are using 1/4" TRS cables at the outputs. If your cables are not phase matched, the audio output will be reduced or even fully eliminated due to phase cancellation.



I'm having trouble recording to my computer via USB!

When connected to your computer via USB, the Looper+ acts as a 2-channel audio interface that can record directly to your DAW. If you are not receiving signal to your DAW, ensure that "Sheeran Looper+" is configured as your DAW's audio input device and you've set your track channel input to channel 1 and/or 2. The audio that is sent to each channel depends on the Output configuration selected in the Looper+'s Output Menu. In Mono Mode, both the dry audio input and loop audio input are summed and sent individually to channels 1 & 2. In Stereo Mode, the dry audio input and loop audio are sent to channels 1 & 2 as a stereo signal. In Split Mode, the loop audio input is sent to channel 1, and the dry audio input is sent to channel 2. 


If the Looper+ fails to show as an available USB audio device, please restart your computer, then try alternate USB ports and cables to rule out those accessories as the issue source. If the issue persists, please contact technical support for assistance. 



MIDI and Footswitch Control


My Looper+ is not synching to my drum machine via MIDI Clock Receive!

There are two key parameters to check to ensure proper control and connectivity in respect to tempo and time from your drum machine: CHANNEL, and CLOCK. These parameters can be navigated to using your Looper+'s encoder.


First, ensure that CLOCK is ENABLED within the CLOCK menu, then ensure that your Looper+ is receiving input from the appropriate MIDI channel. By default, the channel setting is assigned to OMNI, but you may need to adjust this setting if your drum machine outputs via a specific MIDI channel.


Once those parameters have been configured, your Looper+ will cede time control to your Drum Machine via MIDI Clock Receive. 


My Looper+ is not responding to control changes from my MIDI controller!

Similarly to the configuration of MIDI Clock Receive, we must first ensure that two parameters within the Looper+ are configured correctly: CHANNEL and EXTERNAL CONTROL. You must ensure that the CHANNEL matches the channel at which your MIDI controller is outputting, and that EXTERNAL CONTROL is enabled. 


As well, please be advised that any MIDI devices used to control the Looper+ must be class-compliant and not require any specific software drivers. MIDI devices that are not class-compliant are unable to control the Looper+.


For specific guidelines regarding MIDI command numbers and other specifics, please reference your User Guide and the Looper+ FAQ.


My Looper+ is not responding to control changes from my external footswitch!

First, ensure that you are using the appropriate variety of footswitch. The Sheeran Looper+ supports dual-function 1/4" TRS footswitches to control the unit when connected to the EXT FS port on the rear panel. 


Next, ensure that the function you're intending to send has been correctly figured via the ASSIGN menu. 

To configure your footswitch and encoder assignments, use the encoder to navigate to the ASSIGN menu. Then, turn the encoder to select ENCODER PUSH, FS1, or FS2, and then push the encoder to access the following assignment options: 


  • Track: Switch between Tracks A and B. 
  • Solo Current: Solo the current track (while muting the other track). 
  • Solo A: Solo Track A (while muting Track B). 
  • Solo B: Solo Track B (while muting Track A). 
  • R/P/D B: Cycle between recording, playback, and overdubbing of Track B.
  • Speed: Cycle between 1/2 Speed and Normal speed for the currently selected track. 
  • Reverse: Cycle between reverse audio and normal audio for the currently selected track. 
  • Fade All: Apply a fade in or fade out to both tracks at the same time. 
  • Clear: Clear the currently selected track. 
  • Clear All: Clear both tracks at the same time.
  • Undo/Redo: Undo (temporarily clear) audio recorded since the last overdubbing began, then redo (bring back) that audio. 


To select an assignment, push the encoder.



Storage and USB Features


I'm unable to save loops to my Looper+'s internal memory!

The Looper+ features ~4.1Gb of internal memory over 128 loop slots, which equates to approximately 3 hours of total audio. When you have approached the limit of this storage, or have met the total number of internal loop slots, you will receive a MEMORY LOW warning. If you receive this warning, you must either delete loops from your internal memory or back them up to your computer via USB. 


It is best practice to keep your Looper+'s internal memory below 90% utilization for best performance across all features.



Some or all of my external audio files are failing to upload to my Looper+!

Prior to uploading external loop audio to your Looper+, the files must be processed by the Sheeran File Converter to assure best performance and compatibility with your Looper+.

Please feel free to use the following step-by-step tutorial video for assistance in using the Sheeran File Converter: Sheeran Loopers - Using the Sheeran Loopers File Converter - YouTube

The Sheeran File Converter can be downloaded for MacOS and Windows via the links below:


My computer is not recognizing the Looper+ as a storage device when attempting to back up my loops!

In order to initiate a USB data transfer between the Looper+ and your Mac/PC, you must enable USB transfer mode on the Looper+. To do so, follow these steps:

Please note: If you are a Windows user, you must download and install the Looper+ PC Driver to enable communication between your Looper+ and your PC. First, navigate to the Looper+'s product page on sheeranloopers.com. Then, under LOOPER+, click FIND OUT MORE to arrive at the SUPPORT & DOWNLOADS page for the Looper+. You can download the driver from this repository.

  1. While connected to a computer, navigate to the USB menu and push the encoder to select “START”. The screen will briefly show “SETUP” as it connects to your computer. 
  2. Once you are connected, Sheeran Looper + will appear as a removable mass-storage device called LOOPER. Inside this drive you will find folders for the 128 available loop slots, with any available recorded audio inside each folder.
  3. WARNING: When you are finished transferring contents, you must unmount/eject the LOOPER drive from your computer. File corruption may occur if the drive is not properly ejected before continuing. After unmounting, push the encoder again while EXIT is highlighted on the display. Sheeran Looper + will restart and return to normal operation.


Important: Do not disconnect or power off Sheeran Looper + during the process. 


Any unsupported files will be ignored. You cannot transfer a folder or .zip/archive folder to/from Sheeran Looper +. Instead, transfer any supported files directly.


If you continue to experience issues with USB connectivity for data transfer after performing the above procedure, please restart your computer, then try different USB cables and ports to rule out those accessories as the issue source. If issues persist after that, please contact technical support for assistance.



Hardware Issues

If your Looper+ is exhibiting a functional hardware issue, such as an onboard pedal/encoder failing to respond to any input, there are some key measures to take in remediation and assessment of the behavior:

1) Confirm functioning power supply: If you are powering via batteries, ensure that your Looper+ is not running low on power. A LOW BATTERY WARNING will show as a lightning bolt icon on the bottom-right of your display. If your Looper+ is critically low on power, certain functionalities may cease to perform as intended.

If you are powering via a power adapter, be sure that it matches the required specifications exactly. As well, it is advisable to test an alternate, identical power supply to confirm that the original supply's cable has not been compromised. The Looper+ can be powered by a 9V 500mA pin-negative power supply.


2) Factory Reset the Looper+: If you continue to experience issues with hardware response after confirming your power supply, it may be advisable to factory reset your Looper+. Be sure to back up your saved loops prior to performing the reset, as this will erase all internally stored user content. Steps below:


  1. Press and hold the right STOP footswitch and encoder at the same time, and while still holding both, power on Sheeran Looper+. 
  2. A screen will appear to warn you that resetting will erase all user content. Push the encoder to proceed. 
  3. A second screen will appear for confirmation. Turn the encoder to select YES, then push it to continue. 
  4. If you wish to cancel, turn the encoder to select NO and Sheeran Looper+ will restart and power on in normal operation. If you select YES, the factory reset will begin, and Sheeran Looper+ will restart once it has finished. All user content will be erased, and this action cannot be undone.


3) Contact Technical Support: If neither of the above measures restore responsiveness to your hardware control, it may be indicative of a hardware issue. If this is the case, please feel free to create a support ticket at www.sheeranloopers.com/support and we will be happy to assist!