What's the deal with Delay pedals.. (also using 2 delays)

[burntfrijoles]

I've had at least 5 delay pedals in the last 5-7 years. I can recall having. DM-2W, TC Flashback, Carbon Copy and Wampler Echo among others. I currently only have a Donner Yellow Fall which I initially bought for a small pedal board of mine. Honestly I'm just as pleased with it as any of the others mentioned.

I have considered many others from JHS, Catalinbread etc but I just don't get it. None of them to me really distinguish themselves. It seems a delay has a simple purpose for most uses. I just don't get it. Why the incredibly expensive prices and why almost any will do unless you are extremely creative and exacting with the parameters.

I blame it on the two lumps of broccoli that sit where my ears should be. If Roberto Duran and "hands of stone", then I must have "ears of stone".

On another topic regarding delays, does anyone use two delays, especially to achieve those galloping like tones? I was watching a video of Gilmourish and he spoke of how Gilmour had two delays set differently at 380 ms with repeats and a longer 520 ms single delay (or something similar). I also had read that Hank Marvin has used multiple delays for things like Apache.

 

[8trackmind]

I use two Boss DD-3 on my gig board.
I rarely use them both at the same time. One is set up for slap and the other is set up for long delays. For live use, less is more effective overall.

 

[stormsedge]

$37...works great, lots of options. Haven't tried multiple delays, but have a Donner Alpha Cruncher (~$67) with a delay I could use should I want to give it a try.

 

[RetroTeleRod]

I only set mine for a single repeat Rockabilly slap so the Carbon Copy suits me fine. Although...I would love to have a Boss DM-2W.

 

[schmee]

I cant seem to bond with a delay much. Or reverb. Sounds great at home, in a band mix it just makes everything muddy.
I've tried most everything, including an Echoplex. It was as good or better than most, but too much junk and wiring to bring to gigs.

 

[BorderRadio]

It’s addicting, the ways to manipulate sound. Seems like most guitar players around here only play conventional guitar music, so the delay is merely a way to add ‘space’ to the sound, which is all about the guitar sound staying intact. Slapback and a simple repeat to decay. All delay pedals can do this, and in that way, especially live, anything will do.

You already nailed it in the OP: creative use and exacting parameters. That’s the distinguishing characteristic, and some hype on that to allure kids into the delay dark side, uh, so to speak. Don’t forget recording as well.

I’ve gone from no delay to now stacking a Stereo Memory Man, Boss DM-3, into a Strymon Volante, and there is another delay option in the reverb pedal I use. A favorite setting of mine is the reverse decay, multi tap setting on the SMM (a digital delay), into the a longer slapback I use the DM-3 exclusively for, then the Volante with all the heads on, in the drum setting, with a golden ratio head spacing. Thats fed into a stack of Timmy-Prince of Tone.. Overkill? Yes. Usable? For the noise I play, yes. Fun? Absolutely. The delay setup is the instrument at that point, as I can manipulate the sound with the Volante’s controls.

I can break my board down, it’s actually two. For a live situation, I’d only need the SMM and the DM-3, space and slapback.

 

[burntfrijoles]

I think I’m sticking with the Donner for now. It does all I need it to do. I might even add a second. My music doesn’t involve of a of spacial variation.

I’m sure there can quality issues with less expensive pedals like Donner but I can’t determine any real sonic differences. $200, $250 or greater are not out of my comfort zone but I can’t see it.

 

[beyer160]

You could say the same about dirt pedals- a Big Muff and a TS9 both make your guitar sound distorted, but they do it in different ways.

I've settled on a Belle Epoch delay, because I like the way it sounds. A Boss DD-6 delays your sound too, but it sounds totally different doing it. In the end, it's all about what works in your particular paradigm.

As for Gilmour, he used a Binson Echorec delay until 1977, when he switched to digital delays. The Echorec is an insane piece of gear that uses a magnetic drum and multiple record/playback heads, allowing for multiple delays simultaneously.

 

[41144]

Couple of years ago I'd agree "why bother with Delay"

Now, 'cos I need the effects for the songs we're doing now... Loving my Flashback2 for echoey/chorus delay and a GaussEcho for longer/modulated delay and repeats.... and even combining the two!

ie The decision is surely dependant on the songs you're trying to do?

 

[burntfrijoles]

The decision is surely dependant on the songs you're trying to do

That's what it boils down to. I use it only occasionally unless I'm in a Pink Floyd mood. Even so, I have no idea why folks spend so much for delays.

 

[NateD81]

You can do what I did and get an Empress Echosystem. It has about every type of delay you could want, but what’s great is you can run two different delays, with their own settings and the same time, parallel or serial mode, or just run one at a time. It’s kind of pricey but it’s a wonderful tool.

 

[MrCairo46]

The Westminster effects Chick- delay pedal. A two stage analog delay pedal that serves me well

 

[Fretting out]

I use two Boss DD-3 on my gig board.
I rarely use them both at the same time. One is set up for slap and the other is set up for long delays. For live use, less is more effective overall.

I pretty much have the same setup except I use a DM-2W for slapback and a DM-2 for longer delays

 

[8trackmind]

I pretty much have the same setup except I use a DM-2W for slapback and a DM-2 for longer delays

I have analog delays including the dm-2w and I love them. However, I have a rather dark sounding rig and while they sound great in isolation, they just end up getting lost in my particular rig with a band. (68 Princeton custom with a British style speaker, usually dirty)
DD-3s can sound sterile on a bright setup but they work well for my situation.

 

[wulfenganck]

Well, it's one thing if you don't hear any difference between delays - which I find....odd (I don't want to sound snobby, but I find distinct differences with all my delays). #
But anyway, the more important question is: does it really bother you? Do you like your sound and are you satisfied with your playing?
If yes, where's the problem?

I have a Red Panda Raster and a Strymon El Capistan on my board and i have a couple of songs where I use both. I would miss them. But again, that's suitable for me, if something different works for you - perfect!

 

[24 track]

2 alesis midiverbs set to 2 different settings , long repears and tight doumling , I also have an Eventide H9 Max ( one monster beastie) as it does so much more than delay