Loop any part of a YouTube video
Paste a link and it repeats. Drag two handles to keep just the part you are working on, slow it down, and copy a link that opens on the same loop.
An example: the finger position for an A chord, on repeat. Paste your own link above, or press Start loop anywhere in this one.
Start1:54.0
0:00.0a 14.0s loop · example, muted
End--
Fine tune
Keys: L starts and ends the loop, Space pauses, R restarts, S is slow-mo, N opens the note. I and O set the start and end on their own, [ and ] change the speed by 0.05, M mirrors, Z zooms the bar, and the arrows move a second (Shift for a tenth). You can also drag the two red handles, or anywhere else on the bar to scrub.
Quicker still: on any YouTube video, replace youtube.com in the address with playback.tv and press Enter.
How to repeat part of a video
- 1
Paste the link
The whole video starts repeating at once. There is nothing to set up and nothing to sign in to.
- 2
Press Start loop, then End loop
One button does both. Press it where your part begins, let the video run, and press it again where the part ends. It goes back to the start and repeats. To adjust, drag the red handles: the picture follows your finger, and letting go of the end handle plays the last two seconds into the repeat so you can hear whether the cut is right.
- 3
Slow it down, add a note, share it
Slow-mo takes it to three-quarter and half speed. Add a note saying what the loop is for, and Copy the link: the loop, the speed and the note all open for whoever you send it to.
What people loop
- A riff, a lick, a fill. Loop four bars at 0.7x until your hands have it, then bring the speed back up a step at a time. Music practice on Playback
- Eight counts of choreography. Mirror the picture so their left is your left, and repeat the eight counts you keep losing. Dance on Playback
- One sentence in another language. Hear it again and again at 0.85x, say it back, and move on to the next. Language learning on Playback
- One play, one swing, one step of a tutorial. Watch the same three seconds until you see what actually happened. Sports analysis on Playback
Questions
How do I repeat just one part of a YouTube video?
Paste the link above and the whole video starts looping. Play it to where your part begins and press Start loop. Let it run to where the part ends and press the same button, which now says End loop. It jumps back to the start and keeps repeating that part until you stop it. You can also drag the two red handles on the bar.
Can I slow the loop down?
Yes. Slow-mo drops it to 0.75x, then 0.5x, then back to normal. If you need something in between, open Fine tune: the speed moves in steps of 0.05 from 0.25x to 2x, and the number shown is the speed YouTube's player reports back, so it is always the speed you are really hearing. YouTube keeps the pitch the same when it slows down.
Can I share a loop or come back to it later?
The loop lives in the link: the video, the start, the end, the speed and your note. Press Copy the link and whoever opens it lands on the same loop and reads the note first. There is nothing to sign up for. Your recent loops are also remembered on this device, and never leave it.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. The Restart and Play buttons are sized for a thumb and the handles are easy to grab. On Android you can install Playback from the browser menu and then use Share in the YouTube app to send a video straight here. Some phones need one tap on the video itself before sound is allowed to start; that rule is the browser's.
Is there a faster way than pasting a link?
On any YouTube video, change youtube.com in the address to playback.tv and press Enter. The video opens here with its time kept.
Does it keep looping if I switch tabs?
Yes. The loop is held by a timer as well as by the screen clock, so it carries on behind a chord chart or a set of notes. In a hidden tab the browser lets timers run about once a second, so the wrap can land a fraction late there and is exact again when you come back.
How exact are the start and end?
You can set them to a tenth of a second. YouTube's player then starts from the nearest point it can, which is usually within a fraction of a second. If a loop clips the first note or word, open Fine tune and move the start a little earlier.
Is the video copied or downloaded?
No. It plays through YouTube's own player, with YouTube's own controls, captions and fullscreen all working. Playback only tells that player where to start and where to go back to. The video stays on YouTube and stays its uploader's.
What can I do with a loop besides repeat it?
Three things a bare loop cannot do. Make it a Playback: give it a name, say what to notice, and it gets a page of its own. Start a Cut: add more loops, from this video or from others, and one link plays them back to back. Or Compare it: put two takes side by side and play them together.