A couple years ago, I got to talk with Singular Sound’s BeatBuddy at NAMM, and found out about this great product. Now it’s in the shop, and I am playing around with all the great songs I can play solo using it.

What is BeatBuddy

This is a pedal that adds a drummer to your solo, duo, or practice. It uses real sounds, but also uses MIDI to create beats, and help control your pedal.

BeatBuddy simply adds more than a simple drum beat for your songs. The pedal can change the feel of the drums, tempo, and more.

The pedal fits right into you pedalboard, and has stereo input, stereo output, MIDI, footswitch, and headphone inputs.

The pedal does run on an external 9V power. It will work with your pedalboard’s power strip.

* One press to start the drum beat* One press to add a fill* Long press to change to a chorus or bridge* Double-tap to end the song

With the additional footswitch (sold separately), you can add drum hits (like cymbals), or stop the music altogether. All buttons are programmable to what works best for you.

Add in the MIDI Maestro if you need more buttons to control your sound.

Make Your Own Beats

With BeatBuddy, you can connect to a computer, and create your own beats. The editor allows you to re-arrange verses, choruses, and endings, along with add new songs and parts. You can go into the MIDI editor to create a beat, or import MIDI patterns from your favorite program.

All drums are real recorded sets. Switch from a rock sound to a jazz sound, alternate set, and more. You can also record the sounds of your drums, and put them into the pedal.

BeatBuddy is $299 and available now.

Get Beat Buddy