Blackbox Quicksilver delay review...

Smokin' Joe Picante · June 26th, 2006, 09:08 PM

After sitting on the fence for awhile I recently pulled the trigger on a Blackbox Quicksilver delay and thought I'd post my thoughts and compare notes with anyone else who may have one or tried one.

It's very analog in vibe and it's very "organic" feeling to play it. It's strange, because you can have both the digital delay "distinctness" out of the repeats or the repeats can have varying degrees of "analog" type warmth depending on how much you roll off the high end with the tone control. I also dig the fact that you have two independant delay times you can select between AND an expression pedal jack for on the fly tempo adjustment.

The delay also has some built in modulation control. A "wobble" and "speed" control to add subtle almost chorus/phase type effects to the repeats, or whacked out modulation insanity can be added to the repeats. Lots 'o' fun!

It's not going to (or meant to) replace a tape echo, but for someone looking to sort of bridge the gap between typical digital and analog sounds this thing is truly awesome.They're not cheap, but I highly recommend checking it out if (like me) you're a delay junkie!

Has anyone else given these a spin?

Jean-Baptiste · July 3rd, 2006, 12:07 AM

Yo, Smokin' Joe! BlackBox effects are pretty rare in la belle province, but I've heard that the QS modulation circuitry's really *over-the-top* (in a good way!) and if you could do a clip for us, that'd be nice.

Don't understand why Lorren doesn't have any sound samples on his site. Every pedal maker really should, even tho' they're rarely useful determining how they'd sound with your own rig.

I seem to recall hearing they're out of production, but I've no idea if there's any truth to that rumor.

Have you tried hooking it up to an expression pedal yet??

I've got one of his fuzzes, and it's also capable of some very radical & random tones.

I think it's safe to say his FX are definitely in the *extreme* category. Not for the faint of heart.

Smokin' Joe Picante · July 3rd, 2006, 03:20 PM

Hey Jean!

Yeah, they Blackbox stuff is pretty much non-existent up here. I bought mine used from a U.S. dealer listed at the Blackbox site. I tried to get one new, but every dealer I called was in the process of waiting for new stock on the Quicksilver. Then I found a dealer that was expecting one to come in for trade. The trade actually fell through, but the dealer himself owned two and was kind enough to sell me one of his.

I don't think they're discontinued or out of production. In the process of compiling info to make an informed purchase, I called Loren with some questions about the Quicksilver and he was quite generous with his time and info. He mentioned they were a little back ordered.

You're right about the modulation controls, they can make some seriously whacked out noises! The thing I love about the delay is that it's extremely easy to dial in something really subtle or something completely nutty. I've ben getting on real well with utilizing just the two pre-settable delay times, one set to a dotted eight type delay and the other to a longer "ambient" setting. I have'nt hooked up the expression pedal yet but that's next. When you quickly adjust the rate knob while a delay is trailing all h*ll breaks loose until the delay settles into it's next time! So, you can glide gently into another tempo, or make the pedal freak out and make all kinds of squirrely noises while you get there.

I'll see if I can hook something up to make some clips.

I'll tell you Jean, we need more real boutique joints north of the border. The only retailer outside of, say, Songbird in Ottawa/T.O. that I know of that seem to regularly stock stuff off the beaten path is Scott Hager in Calgary ( "Axe and you shall recieve" ), and he's pretty cool because he does a lot of trades, but that's about it that I know of. Do you have any leads for places up here Jean?

Jean-Baptiste · July 4th, 2006, 01:01 PM

Yes, I've done some deals w/Scott, but almost everything else I buy comes straight from USA or europe.

I did find this cool audio shop in Montreal called Moog and was shocked to see the whole line of ZVex, some Roger Mayer and HBE pedals, but they're not really set up to demo them, and they were overpriced, as well..

June 26th, 2006, 09:08 PM	#1 (permalink)
Smokin' Joe Picante Tele-Meister Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Winnipeg, Canada Posts: 499	Blackbox Quicksilver delay review... After sitting on the fence for awhile I recently pulled the trigger on a Blackbox Quicksilver delay and thought I'd post my thoughts and compare notes with anyone else who may have one or tried one. It's very analog in vibe and it's very "organic" feeling to play it. It's strange, because you can have both the digital delay "distinctness" out of the repeats or the repeats can have varying degrees of "analog" type warmth depending on how much you roll off the high end with the tone control. I also dig the fact that you have two independant delay times you can select between AND an expression pedal jack for on the fly tempo adjustment. The delay also has some built in modulation control. A "wobble" and "speed" control to add subtle almost chorus/phase type effects to the repeats, or whacked out modulation insanity can be added to the repeats. Lots 'o' fun! It's not going to (or meant to) replace a tape echo, but for someone looking to sort of bridge the gap between typical digital and analog sounds this thing is truly awesome.They're not cheap, but I highly recommend checking it out if (like me) you're a delay junkie! Has anyone else given these a spin? __________________ http://www.joecurtisband.com/ Overheard at a gig... "The guitar could be louder... I have no idea how, but I'm sure it can be done..." ;)

July 3rd, 2006, 03:20 PM	#3 (permalink)
Smokin' Joe Picante Tele-Meister Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Winnipeg, Canada Posts: 499	Hey Jean! Yeah, they Blackbox stuff is pretty much non-existent up here. I bought mine used from a U.S. dealer listed at the Blackbox site. I tried to get one new, but every dealer I called was in the process of waiting for new stock on the Quicksilver. Then I found a dealer that was expecting one to come in for trade. The trade actually fell through, but the dealer himself owned two and was kind enough to sell me one of his. I don't think they're discontinued or out of production. In the process of compiling info to make an informed purchase, I called Loren with some questions about the Quicksilver and he was quite generous with his time and info. He mentioned they were a little back ordered. You're right about the modulation controls, they can make some seriously whacked out noises! The thing I love about the delay is that it's extremely easy to dial in something really subtle or something completely nutty. I've ben getting on real well with utilizing just the two pre-settable delay times, one set to a dotted eight type delay and the other to a longer "ambient" setting. I have'nt hooked up the expression pedal yet but that's next. When you quickly adjust the rate knob while a delay is trailing all hll breaks loose until the delay settles into it's next time! So, you can glide gently into another tempo, or make the pedal freak out and make all kinds of squirrely noises while you get there. I'll see if I can hook something up to make some clips. I'll tell you Jean, we need* more real boutique joints north of the border. The only retailer outside of, say, Songbird in Ottawa/T.O. that I know of that seem to regularly stock stuff off the beaten path is Scott Hager in Calgary ( "Axe and you shall recieve" ), and he's pretty cool because he does a lot of trades, but that's about it that I know of. Do you have any leads for places up here Jean? __________________ http://www.joecurtisband.com/ Overheard at a gig... "The guitar could be louder... I have no idea how, but I'm sure it can be done..." ;)

July 3rd, 2006, 12:07 AM	#2 (permalink)
Jean-Baptiste Tele-Holic Join Date: Sep 2004 Posts: 633	Yo, Smokin' Joe! BlackBox effects are pretty rare in la belle province, but I've heard that the QS modulation circuitry's really over-the-top (in a good way!) and if you could do a clip for us, that'd be nice. Don't understand why Lorren doesn't have any sound samples on his site. Every pedal maker really should, even tho' they're rarely useful determining how they'd sound with your own rig. I seem to recall hearing they're out of production, but I've no idea if there's any truth to that rumor. Have you tried hooking it up to an expression pedal yet?? I've got one of his fuzzes, and it's also capable of some very radical & random tones. I think it's safe to say his FX are definitely in the extreme category. Not for the faint of heart.

July 4th, 2006, 01:01 PM	#4 (permalink)
Jean-Baptiste Tele-Holic Join Date: Sep 2004 Posts: 633	Yes, I've done some deals w/Scott, but almost everything else I buy comes straight from USA or europe. I did find this cool audio shop in Montreal called Moog and was shocked to see the whole line of ZVex, some Roger Mayer and HBE pedals, but they're not really set up to demo them, and they were overpriced, as well..