Positive Grid has teased the arrival of the Spark 2, confirming that the followup to its wildly successful modeling amp is imminent – and it will have a built-in looper.
The Spark is the unit that secured Positive Grid’s rise from startup to makers of one of the world’s best-selling amps in the space of a decade.
It’s no exaggeration to say it changed the game when it came to home use of modeling amps – offering a seamless interface with its accompanying smartphone app and a host of smart practice features that seemed light years ahead of the competition.
Since then, it’s had multiple form factors – from the diminutive Spark Mini and Spark Go to the 4-in-1 PA/band-in-a-box solution that is the Spark LIVE. However, the original Spark has faded just a little over the past year or two, as rival brands have got their acts together in the practice modeler space.
In particular, the Achilles heel of the original Spark – as it has been for other big players in the modeler market – has been the lack of a looper.
It is by some margin the most requested feature from Spark users and something the firm has long been conscious of, as is clear from Positive Grid’s recent Instagram teasers.
While the likes of Neural DSP’s higher-end Quad Cortex unit launched without a looper, it was able to add the functionality with a later firmware update. In contrast, Positive Grid has maintained that the limitations of the Spark hardware prevent it from adding a proper looper to Spark.
So, although some third-party developers have developed workarounds via apps – namely, XSonic’s AIRSTEP Spark Loopy – that augment the Spark’s own smartphone interface, it’s not been offered by Positive Grid directly.
All of which explains why – as Positive Grid launches the anticipated Spark 2, revealing – in torturous fashion, one feature a day – it has chosen to start the campaign with news of the looper.
A look at the early video shows there is now a record/dub button on the Spark 2’s control panel – and the clip shows app integration with the groove backing tracks/drum machine for its new ’Groove Looper’ function. We also see an option for ‘Creative Looper’ in the image above.
“The evolution of the revolution is here,” reads the Instagram post. “Elevate your playing sessions with Spark 2’s all-new Groove Looper; Packed with 100s of hyper-realistic drum tracks to build your ultimate jam and unlock new musical possibilities.”
We don’t yet know what sort of memory it will have, or how many layers you can dub. For that we’ll have to wait.
While welcome news, for the reasons above, it’s not the silver bullet existing Spark players might have been hoping for – that is a free looper firmware update – so how it will play with the Positive Grid faithful remains to be seen.
But suffice to say: Spark 2 is a thing. And it will have a looper. This much we know. And, for now, that’s about it...
The full premiere of the amp will take place in a livestream with none other than Nuno Bettencourt on August 1. Until then, for more information on the Spark 2, keep an eye on Positive Grid.
