TC-Helicon Play Acoustic

I've been using this unit for about two years now as a one man band. I used it in different venues, form big and small, and different systems.

I would definitely say the pros of the product is that it has a lot of options in general in a relatively small unit and it seems very well built.

But, even tough there are a lot of option for a unit small like this, there are also some essential features that should be there but aren't, as for example vocal compression and limiter.


I found the LOOPER totally useless, it has a problem with keeping being in the rhythm, you have to be very very precise to get something usable out of it, and I've been using RC-3 looper for years and now I'm using EHX 22500, so I'm not a beginner in looping.

I'm very disappointed in the VOCAL EFFECTS, especially the reverb. I couldn't get a nice direct normal reverb like you have on every basic available DAV in your laptop or computer, it is like it's always "somewhere in the background", whatever I do with the parameters.

The BODY REZ function doesn't necessarily improve the sound of the guitar that it sounds more natural to me, especially not in the grasp as it is marketed. It is ok to add compression to the guitar but you have to really play with it or it can even make the sound worse.


I think that since this is a digital unit, TC should maybe consider updating some of the effects and their computability, especially vocal reverb, add compression to the vocal because this should be a must on a VOCAL processor unit.
I use the unit as a travelling musician and would much more prefer that TC offers a unit as this in even smaller size, maybe without the looper option.

So in general I'm not very satisfied with the unit. Reason I use it is because I need to have something as a traveling musician when I end up on different gear without any reverb or compression etc. which is better than nothing. But I'm stil considering just buying my own mixer because I don't have compression and good reverb on this unit, but the problem then is switching the effects for different songs or during a song.

The problem is there are not many other alternatives to something that offers at least some effects for acoustic playing in one unit and it is relatively ok for transport.

So I could recommend the unit if you really need it, but in general I think it could be much much more purposeful.

Use it live all the time. Lasted through years of really really hard gigging almost every weekend (I mostly use it as just an vocal pedal for the rock band I'm in... some of the shows we play don't have stages and the crowds get really wild... the pedal gets jumped on, beers spilt on it... all the above) And it still works great!

Sounds great! lots of options for different harmonies ect... Won't do a show without the pedal anymore.

Makes the acoustic guitar shine as well when I do acoustic shows. The looper is just as good as any other one, and the chord tracking works just as promised. There is some eqing that puts the guitar behind the vocals in the mix, so it sounds wayyyyyyyy better than if you were to plug your guitar and vocals into a PA and hope for the best.

Giving 4 starts for quality just because there is a knob in the center of the pedal that can be broken... Mine went through an unreasonable amount of damage, I'm sure... However, there could have been a more durable option considering how well the rest of the pedal is put together. I've found other consumers of this pedal that had the same central knob break. You can still use the pedal, but you can't create custom effects. You can still download presets from the TC helicon website (which is pretty cool) but, if that knob breaks, the only way to make additional presets is to find a friend who has one of these pedals, create the preset on theirs, save it to your computer and then upload it to your pedal... However, the rest of this pedal can really really take a beating.

But, when it finally breaks, I will buy the exact same product immediately. Really impressed with it!

This pedal was originally bought for doing acoustic gigs where I just wanted backing vocals. Having played with the unit for a week and realising the amount of pre-sets you can download from the manufacturers website (listed by artist, song and genre!!) I haven't even needed to get into programming this thing yet. I also didn't realise that it had other functions such as looping, and the guitar effects I am now using as my go to pedal when recording acoustic guitar (and sometimes amp mic'ing) in the studio.

As the unit takes an audio input from the guitar to work out the harmonies, the unit is now setup as an aux effect (along with my other rack effects) to my mixer, so when a client comes in wanting harmonies to go along with any instrument, it works a dream. I've used it for creating harmonies when recording anything from dance tracks to basic acoustic set ups. This seems to get faster results than any plugin I've used. The only slight let down, was that the unit came with a US and EU plug adapter for the power supply, but no UK plug - so I am having to use an ugly adapter, as the manufacturers won't replace or sell me one!!!! All in all, this has definitely been a good purchase.

It's a very durable, sturdy piece of gear. The sound quality is great and I have no complains whatsoever about this. There is also an incredible amount of parameters to tweak. But the one thing I have to point out is the little control over compression that the user have. I find this very strange as there are so many parameters one can change, but such an important one as compression for the vocals is very poorly managed. There are only a few general options such as "no compression", "normal compression", and "extra compression", and this setting then applies to every preset at once (not individually). I find this strange. As for the rest, really no complains at all!

I've been using the device for over two months now, did over 30 gigs with it (both small restaurant gigs and large festival stages) and it performed very well overall.
Due to somewhat limited options in terms of EQ and difficult navigation through menus, this pedal is not really optimal for big stage use, as sound engineers freak out once you tell them you need to hook the microphone up through it and in that way limit their ability to tailor the sound for you :)
For small restaurants and bars, it's a very good product and it really helps your voice stand out with the harmonies. They aren't always on spot and sometimes you'll get mixed results, but as you practice, you learn from experience when to apply them and when to avoid using them.

Pros: - lightweight, portable (carrying it in a guitar case)
- great quality harmonies and effects

Cons: - somewhat difficult to navigate and get a good set up
- doesn't come with battery option which would be SUPER convenient for busking.

I'd recommend this product!