Six loops built from the simplest open-string shapes on the guitar — nothing above the third fret, most chords two or three fingers, everything ringing wide open. The secret: easy chords in unexpected orders sound more interesting than hard chords in predictable ones. The Broadcast and the wet/dry split make them enormous.
Broadcast at 9 o'clock. These voicings are full of open strings ringing into each other — the Broadcast's germanium warmth makes those open-string interactions bloom rather than clash. BigSky on a hall or shimmer. Let everything ring. The open strings do the arranging.
Em7 → Cmaj7 → Am7 → D. Four shapes, all two fingers or fewer except the D. Every chord shares open B and high E strings — the top two strings never move, the bass and middle voices shift underneath. Loop it, let everything sustain, and it sounds like a record. The Cmaj7 is the money chord — one finger on the B string, everything else open.
| Over | Play | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|
| Whole loop | E minor pentatonic: E G A B D | One scale, four chords — the open strings in the chords ARE the scale tones, so everything belongs |
| D chord | Target the F♯ | The F♯ (3rd of D) is the one note that distinguishes this bar from the rest — lean on it |
Don't strum — arpeggiate. Pick each string individually, low to high, and let every note sustain into the next. The open strings create a harp effect without any effort. Through the BigSky the sustain tails overlap and the chord becomes a wash. The Broadcast adds warmth to the low strings and shimmer to the high ones because the germanium saturates the louder bass notes more than the quieter treble — natural compression from the circuit, not from a compressor.
(arpeggiate, let ALL notes ring into each other) Em7 Cmaj7 e|------0~~~~~~~~~~~~|------0~~~~~~~~~~~~| B|----0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|----0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| G|---0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|---0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| D|--2~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|--2~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| A|--------------------|-3~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| E|-0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|--------------------|TARGET · full loop arpeggiated with zero dead notes · every string ringing into the next chord
Cadd9 → Em → Dsus2 → Dsus2. Three shapes, maximum two fingers each. The Cadd9 and Dsus2 both have the open B and high E ringing, and the sus2 has no third — it floats between major and minor, which means the mood is yours to set with the lead. Two bars on the Dsus2 gives the loop a long exhale before it goes around.
| Over | Play | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|
| Whole loop | G major / E minor pentatonic — same notes | The loop sits in G major but the Em pulls it minor — your lead decides which one wins |
| Dsus2 | Float — no 3rd means anything goes | Play F♯ and it's D major. Play F and it's D minor. The sus2 accepts both. Experiment. |
Roll the guitar volume to zero, fret the chord, pick all six strings, then swell the volume in slowly. The attack vanishes and the chord blooms from silence like a synth pad. The dry Badger catches the swell's arrival; the wet Mesa's BigSky catches the sustain tail. Two different instruments from one volume knob. This is Session 03's swell bowing exercise applied to chords instead of single notes — and it's easier because you're not managing individual notes, just shapes.
(volume at 0, pick, swell in over 2 beats)
Cadd9 Em
e|--0 [vol 0→10]~~~~~~~~~~~~~|--0 [vol 0→10]~~~~~~~~~~~~~|
B|--3~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|--0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|
G|--0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|--0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|
D|--2~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|--2~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|
A|--3~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|--2~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|
E|----------------------------|-0~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|
swell from nothing swell from nothing
TARGET · zero audible pick attack on any chord · if the wet recording sounds like a guitar, it's wrong
Am → Fmaj7 → G → E. Three standard open shapes plus an E major — but the E major is the outsider. In the key of Am, the E chord should be Em. Making it E major introduces a G♯ into a key that wants G♮ — and that tension, that one note of wrongness, is what makes the loop hypnotic. It's the same major/minor rub as the Delta Blend from Session 02 and the trapdoor from Session 01. Different clothes, same skeleton.
| Over | Play | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|
| Am / Fmaj7 / G | A natural minor: A B C D E F G | Home territory — safe, open, melodic |
| E major | A harmonic minor: swap G for G♯ | One note changes. The G♯ is the trapdoor opening — your three-cell system from Session 01 plugs in right here over the simplest chord on the guitar |
Over the Am–Fmaj7–G bars, play phrases using G♮ (open G string). When the E major arrives, add one finger: fret 1 on the G string. That's G♯. The entire harmonic world shifts from natural minor to harmonic minor with one finger moving one fret. The Broadcast makes the G♯ glow because the germanium responds to the increased tension in the harmony — the same physics as the Delta G/G♯ rub but in a minor key.
over Am / Fmaj7 / G: over E major:
e|--0--------------------------|--0--------------------------|
B|--1--------------------------|--0--------------------------|
G|--0 (G natural)~~~~~~~~~~~~--|--1 (G♯ — one finger, new key)|
D|-----------------------------|-------------------------------|
A natural minor A harmonic minor — trapdoor open
TARGET · the G♯ arrives exactly with the E chord, not before — timing is the trick, not the fingering
Broadcast gain trim at noon — audible grit, cleans up with volume. Low-cut at 1 o'clock. TimeLine on slapback (80–120ms, one repeat). These loops want to groove, not float. Strum hard, mute harder, let the open strings bark through the germanium.
E → A → E → B7. The simplest blues progression that exists. Three shapes, all open, all learned in week one. But here's the thing: run this through the Broadcast at noon with a slapback and it sounds like a record. The simplicity is the point — there's nothing to hide behind, so the groove, the dynamics, and the Broadcast's texture are the whole show.
| Over | Play | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|
| Whole loop | E minor pentatonic open position — Session 02's box | Everything from Mississippi Mud works here — the boogie, the turnaround, the drone |
| B7 | Target the D♯ (fret 1, D string) | The D♯ is the 3rd of B7 and the leading tone back to E — it pulls you home |
Strum the E chord at five different volumes without touching any knobs. Whisper. Talk. Shout. Scream. Then the volume knob rollback. The Broadcast at noon responds to all five differently — from warm clean to breaking up to full grit to woolly to clean-via-knob. This is the whole point of the pedal: five sounds from one setting. If all five sound the same, the gain is too high.
same chord, same setting, five dynamics: whisper talk shout scream knob-back e|--0~~~~~~~~~~|--0~~~~~~~~~~|--0~~~~~~~~~~|--0~~~~~~~~~~|--0~~~~~~~~~~| B|--0 |--0 |--0 |--0 |--0 | G|--1 |--1 |--1 |--1 |--1 | D|--2 |--2 |--2 |--2 |--2 | A|--2 |--2 |--2 |--2 |--2 | E|--0 |--0 |--0 |--0 |--0 | (ppp) (mf) (ff) (fff) (vol knob 4)TARGET · five distinct tones from one chord, one pedal, one setting · RECORD all five and compare
G → C → D → C. The most played chord progression in the world. Three shapes. Your gran knows them. But shuffle it at 66% swing, mute between strums, and run it through the Broadcast with slapback and it stops being a campfire and starts being a roadhouse. The lesson: the groove is the arrangement, not the chords.
| Over | Play | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|
| Whole loop | G major pentatonic: G A B D E | Five notes, zero wrong ones, pure country-rock lead territory |
| D chord | B→C bend on G string fret 4 | The Nashville pre-bend from Session 08's Loop 6 — same move, simpler chords |
Swung 8ths. The downbeat is the chord, voiced and ringing. The skip note is a fully muted scratch — left hand releases pressure so the strings buzz dead against the frets. Chord-scratch-chord-scratch. The scratches are the groove; the chords are the melody. The Broadcast's germanium makes the scratches percussive rather than silent — you hear the pick hitting dead strings through the transformer saturation, which turns the mutes into a snare ghost note. Through the dry Badger it's a rhythm guitar. Through the wet Mesa's slapback it's a rhythm section.
(66% shuffle · o = voiced chord · x = muted scratch)
G C D C
e|--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--|
B|--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--|
G|--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--|
D|--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--|
A|--o--x--o--x--o--x--o--x--x--x--x--x--o--x--o--x--|
E|--o--x--o--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--x--|
the scratches are LOUDER than you think they should be — that's correct
TARGET · full loop at 76 bpm, 66% swing, scratches audible in the recording
Em → G → D → Am. The open E and B strings ring through every chord change — they're common to all four shapes. The low E drones underneath Em and rings sympathetically under the others. This is the country-rock progression that Waylon Jennings, Neil Young, and Chris Stapleton all built careers on. It never gets old because the drone never lets it fully resolve — it just keeps rolling.
| Over | Play | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|
| Whole loop | E minor pentatonic OR G major pentatonic | Same five notes: E G A B D. Minor over the Em and Am, major over the G and D — same box, different gravity |
| Am | Let the open E ring under it | The E is the 5th of Am but also the root of the whole drone — it belongs everywhere |
Run Session 02's Burnside drone riff under these chord changes. The riff doesn't change — the chords change above it. Same principle as the Hill Country one-chord drone but the harmony now moves while the riff stays still. The Broadcast makes the riff's low E bloom into the chord changes rather than fighting them. This is where Sessions 02 and 09 meet, and the loop becomes something neither session could produce alone.
(Session 02 Riff 3, unchanged, under changing chords) Em G e|----------------------------|-----------------------------| B|----------------------------|-----------------------------| G|----------------------------|-----------------------------| D|-----------0--2-------------|-----------0--2--------------| A|--0--0h2---------2--0------|--0--0h2---------2--0--------| E|--0--0--------------------3--0|--0--0--------------------3--0| riff doesn't change chords change above itTARGET · 5 minutes, riff unchanged, all four chords comped on top by a looper or second player
Every loop in this session shares at least two open strings between every chord change. That's the design principle. Those shared open strings are the thread that holds the loop together — they ring through the changes and create a harmonic continuity that makes simple chords sound arranged. The Broadcast's germanium warms those shared open strings. The BigSky extends their sustain into the next chord. The wet/dry split lets the attack live in one amp and the sustain live in the other. The architecture is doing the work. The chords are doing nothing except being easy and staying out of the way.
Jazz side: gain at 9 o'clock, low-cut at noon. The open strings ring long and the germanium warmth is subtle — a colour, not a texture. You want to hear the chord, not the pedal.
Greasy side: gain at noon, low-cut at 1 o'clock. The open low E will get muddy if the bass isn't trimmed. The higher low-cut keeps the bass tight while the germanium adds grit to the mids and highs. You want to hear the pedal making the chord better.
Both sides: AC+ always on underneath. The AC+ pushes the Broadcast harder without adding its own character — transparent boost into characterful preamp. The Broadcast responds to the extra input level by saturating more, which is the same physics as turning up an amp. The AC+ is your volume knob for the Broadcast's behaviour.