# Best Digital Delay?



## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

I'm never really in the market for one, but think it's time.

What are known as the best?


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## Guest (Nov 8, 2014)

So subjective. There is no best, only shades of delay.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Floor, or rack? What sort of delay range and feature set do you need?


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

Definitely floor.

The best way I could explain it would be a DD-7 style without the boss enclosure and upgraded components (almost as though Keeley or similar modded one). I checked Keeley's site and didn't see any mods. Keeley has a new delay, but I haven't heard much about it.

I've had issues with T-Rex and Empress having volume drops and really want to avoid that. 

reverse, and other fluff would be a bonus to the above (but totally not necessary). 

I also looked at the Line 6 DL-4 - not sure what to make of that. I know keeley has done mods for these, but it's an expensive unit, cause it's rare. These are the mods he did:

this is what I found on the line 6 forum:

_1) Replacing all the input/output buffer components with high quality parts for clarity of signal. Remove the electrolytic caps (C4 and C8), replace with Nichicon and WIMA; Remove TL072 op-amps (U3 and U22) and replace with Burr Brown hi-fi OPA2134UA. 

2) Removing RF filter caps from pre-relay inputs and post-relay outputs (C1, C36, C23, C24) in order to make the pedal TRULY true bypass and eliminate tone sucking. 

3) Reduce R36 and R37 from 36k to roughly 22k for increased gain of output buffers. This will fix the "volume-drop" problem some people experience. 

In my experience, #2 and #3 are crucial to do. #1 is just for tone snobs, as far as im concerned. furthermore, #2 was caught pretty early in the revision history so pedals built after 2001 already have this implemented. that leaves #3 for volume increase. now, i've never had a noticable problem with volume loss on my DL4. i think the delay repeats reinforce the signal enough to where my ears are tricked into hearing no volume loss. but i HAVE noticed the volume drop on my MM4. so, i would DEFINITELY recommend #3 for MM4's. _


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## keto (May 23, 2006)

You know what's a really nice delay with some added 'fluff', readily available, and not too spendy? The Hardwire http://digitech.com/en/products/dl-8 Is it the best? Oh, I have no strong opinion on that, it's certainly not boutiquey. I had a Carbon Copy, it's more a 1-trick pony but a nice trick. Son has a DD-5 I've messed around with a bit, I'm not a Boss fan outside of my SD-1.


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## NB_Terry (Feb 2, 2006)

I have used dozens of different delay pedals and my 3 favourite are the Diamond ML Jr, TC Flashback and the Way Huge Aqua Puss.

All of them offer great bang for the buck.


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## pattste (Dec 30, 2007)

The TC Flashback, as suggested by NB_Terry, is a great digital delay for the price.


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## LydianGuitars (Apr 18, 2013)

I've used many delay pedals and the BEST, IMO is the TC Nova delay.


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## cheezyridr (Jun 8, 2009)

what no love for the strymon timeline or the eventide timefactor?


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

keto said:


> You know what's a really nice delay with some added 'fluff', readily available, and not too spendy? The Hardwire http://digitech.com/en/products/dl-8 Is it the best? Oh, I have no strong opinion on that, it's certainly not boutiquey. I had a Carbon Copy, it's more a 1-trick pony but a nice trick. Son has a DD-5 I've messed around with a bit, I'm not a Boss fan outside of my SD-1.


Wow, these guys are pricey...

I just through out an offer to someone on CL, since I prefer a local deal. I'll see what happens.

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NB_Terry said:


> I have used dozens of different delay pedals and my 3 favourite are the Diamond ML Jr, TC Flashback and the Way Huge Aqua Puss.
> 
> All of them offer great bang for the buck.


I thought the aqua puss was analog. If its digital, I'll look into this ine. I heard the first ones are highly sought after.

TC flashback is also being considered. They are cheap. I used to have the G System and thought the delay was pretty good.

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LydianGuitars said:


> I've used many delay pedals and the BEST, IMO is the TC Nova delay.


That's good to hear. I'm starting to lean towards this one. Someone on the forum is selling one that is modded. If the digitech falls through, this may be the one.

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cheezyridr said:


> what no love for the strymon timeline or the eventide timefactor?


I loved the modfactor, but got rid of it, cause it was a pain in the ass to remember what preset was what (and where). I actually had a piece of paper nearby to help. sucked.

The timeline is another one of the overwhelming effects. I also didn't like their reverb (even though it was raved about), so probably won't buy anything from them again.


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## Luke (Jul 31, 2014)

The Delay Pedal is often the most expensive effect on one's pedalboard. That respective thread has quite a few at $500. Well, at least $300+.

I use mostly Akai Professional's Analog Delay Pedal. Simple, crisp, clear, and clean sound. Easy to attain The Edge of U2 sound. Love this one especially for the low price.

I also use the Vox Time Machine Pedal (Joe Satriani's sig) at times. And no, I don't like his work at all, never mind even play remotely close to his style but people tend to think you do because you bought a signature model. Decent pedal though.

(Have a couple other Echo FX but there's a thin line separating them with Delays so will keep them out).


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

(BAH! Did it *again*! Ressa-fressa!! How come when I go to tap "Reply to thread" on my tablet I only get accidental Dislikes? Why do I never get accidental Likes?)

In any event, on a desktop now, so it's safe, and any apparent aggression on my part will, by definition, have to be interpreted as deliberate.

Just to clarify, though, the Way Huge and Diamond delays ARE analog. THat's no fatal flaw, nor does it detract from the strong allegiance they both have among many musicians. But it does limit what they can do. On top of delay range (generally can't do more than 700-800msec without seriously detracting from the recognizability of the signal), analogs don't do reverse, and they don't do infinite repeat.

I don't think anyone here has tried one yet, but the new floor-model Korg SDD-3000 seems to pack a whole lotta cool into a convenient floor package. Can't imagine it's cheap, but I don't recall you ever being a hound for the $30 bargain bin. http://www.korg.com/us/products/effects/sdd3000_pedal/


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## georgemg (Jul 17, 2011)

The two delay pedals I have are the Empress tape delay and the Diamond Memory Lane Jr. If you're concerned about volume drop, the Empress has an overall level to compensate and even boost the signal when it's on. It's promoted as a tape-style delay, but if you turn the tape emulation and the modulation off, it's a gives a good digital delay a well. The Memory Lane Jr doesn't have a level, but it seems to stay at unity (no volume drop as far as I can tell). Both are great and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend either. 

I haven't tried the Digitech Hardwire delay but I've heard good things about it (FWIW Steve Lukather uses two). 

I had the TC Flashback, Nova and Aqua Puss delays and got rid of them all. Lots of people seem to like those three, but I swear I was getting some tone suck with them.


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## bzrkrage (Mar 20, 2011)

Wow Ad, opening the can of worms?
So, S/H market, under $100?
Boss RV-3 is great, the Carbon copy is nice.
Just sold the Ibanez EM-5 Echomachine (which was based in a distortion circuit......very nice)
For digital cleans DD-7.

Why digital? No love for the tick-toc analog clock?


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

Luke said:


> The Delay Pedal is often the most expensive effect on one's pedalboard. That respective thread has quite a few at $500. Well, at least $300+.
> 
> I use mostly Akai Professional's Analog Delay Pedal. Simple, crisp, clear, and clean sound. Easy to attain The Edge of U2 sound. Love this one especially for the low price.
> 
> ...


That's interesting. I never considered the time machine. I'll check into used pricing. I'll steer clear of the Akai for now.


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

mhammer said:


> (BAH! Did it *again*! Ressa-fressa!! How come when I go to tap "Reply to thread" on my tablet I only get accidental Dislikes? Why do I never get accidental Likes?)
> 
> In any event, on a desktop now, so it's safe, and any apparent aggression on my part will, by definition, have to be interpreted as deliberate.
> 
> ...


It's ok, Mark. I've learned to overlook the passive aggression (I think this is my third dislike and counting).

I followed that link. Thanks.

That pedal does look/sound amazing - again pretty over whelming. My fear is that I spend that amount of money and not use it to it's fullest.

That said, if I choose to go higher end, it'll probably be the SDD-3000 over the timeline, timefactor, echolution, etc.

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bzrkrage said:


> Wow Ad, opening the can of worms?
> So, S/H market, under $100?
> Boss RV-3 is great, the Carbon copy is nice.
> Just sold the Ibanez EM-5 Echomachine (which was based in a distortion circuit......very nice)
> ...



Haha, we're all adults here, right? So far, so good...

No, I love analog. My ad999 is a permanent part of my pedalboard due to the incredible warmth and overall tone. I'm just wanting some really nice crisp repeats to mingle with the EX Pitchfork and other modulation.

Hi had the DD-7 (or DD-6 - can't remember) and moved it along. It was nice, but there must be better


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## Moosehead (Jan 6, 2011)

I have a trex replica housed in a black enclosure with tc elec. branding. I like it a lot. There is a sub-division button that gets you 3x the repeats or something to that effect. The tc Nova delay does this as well. Gets you that brian may thing going on with the harmonies. level knob so no worries about volume drop. simple pedal that sounds analog but is actually digital.

Got mine for a song but new they were around 300+. I still have my carbon copy though very rarley use it, great cheap delay.


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## Louis (Apr 26, 2008)

adcandour said:


> Definitely floor.
> 
> The best way I could explain it would be a DD-7 style without the boss enclosure and upgraded components (almost as though Keeley or similar modded one). I checked Keeley's site and didn't see any mods. Keeley has a new delay, but I haven't heard much about it.
> 
> ...


Awesome Post !!!


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## the5chord (Oct 7, 2011)

I would be careful about the sdd 3000. I recently got one and I love it. I think it sounds great. There are some volume drop issues in sdd3000 mode. The other delay algorithms on the pedal do not have this issue. 

Check the out the new free the tone flight time delay as we'll.


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## Axe Dragon (Aug 21, 2013)

georgemg said:


> The two delay pedals I have are the Empress tape delay and the Diamond Memory Lane Jr. If you're concerned about volume drop, the Empress has an overall level to compensate and even boost the signal when it's on. It's promoted as a tape-style delay, but if you turn the tape emulation and the modulation off, it's a gives a good digital delay a well. The Memory Lane Jr doesn't have a level, but it seems to stay at unity (no volume drop as far as I can tell). Both are great and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend either.
> 
> I haven't tried the Digitech Hardwire delay but I've heard good things about it (FWIW Steve Lukather uses two).
> 
> I had the TC Flashback, Nova and Aqua Puss delays and got rid of them all. Lots of people seem to like those three, but I swear I was getting some tone suck with them.


Agreed!! Gotta go diamond memory lane. I Also love the empress.


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## Axe Dragon (Aug 21, 2013)

mhammer said:


> (BAH! Did it *again*! Ressa-fressa!! How come when I go to tap "Reply to thread" on my tablet I only get accidental Dislikes? Why do I never get accidental Likes?)
> 
> In any event, on a desktop now, so it's safe, and any apparent aggression on my part will, by definition, have to be interpreted as deliberate.
> 
> ...


Diamond MLJr is digital.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

I had the mljr and sold it because i wanted the digital sound as well. Sold the empress vintage modified tape delay because the save button is smack dab next to another button.

When a line 6 DL4 is working, it's sweet. Just sometimes, they dont work haha. Theres one for $100 here or in TO, they go for $200. 

I am probably going to get a dd3 for my other band. It's reliable.


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## zdogma (Mar 21, 2006)

I think my favorite digital was the strymon brigadier. You can turn the brightness up and the bucket loss off for a pristine repeat, or tune it back for a nice dark dirty repeat. It does both styles very well.


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

I'm leaning towards picking up a Hardwire from TGP for $95. (Hope it's still around at the end of the day - my son has me on play duty all day).

My nephew is getting into guitar, so if I don't like it, I can sell it to him. He was also looking for a looper, so this would really help him out.

My only concern with this pedal is that I'm hoping it doesn't sound too thin.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Axe Dragon said:


> Diamond MLJr is digital.


Really? I'm not challenging you. I just thought those folks were resolutely analog. Go figure. I guess everybody is migrating there eventually.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

The MLJr is an analog delay, the tap tempo section is digital.
It's in the first line of the description...http://www.diamondpedals.com/products/memory-lane-jr/

Hey Chuck, I have a DL4 that I got a while ago from the forum.
It's in good shape, I've yet to use it as I haven't picked up a power supply for it.
The looper was my attraction to the unit.

I could ship it out to you to check out, if you'd like.


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## zdogma (Mar 21, 2006)

mhammer said:


> Really? I'm not challenging you. I just thought those folks were resolutely analog. Go figure. I guess everybody is migrating there eventually.


Yes, this and the quantum leap are both digital. The original ML/ML2 was analog


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## Guest (Nov 9, 2014)

zdogma said:


> Yes, this and the quantum leap are both digital. The original ML/ML2 was analog


Huh? From http://www.diamondpedals.com/products/memory-lane-jr/



> The Memory Lane Junior is a digital evolution of our original Memory Lane concept, *the world’s first analog delay with tap tempo*.


Edit: WAIT! You're 100% correct! The lede for that copy is totally misleading. They're saying the ML was analog, not that _this_ is ananalog. It says it's digital just a little further down:



> The the MLJr digital sampling engine’s sole function is to copy, delay and reproduce the delay path signal with no mathematical manipulation at all – and unlike standard digital designs, there are no digital anti-aliasing and reconstruction filters.


LOL. That's a lot of shitty ad copy in that whole page.

Sorry about that.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

From Diamond...

"The Memory Lane Junior is a digital evolution of our original Memory Lane concept, the world’s first analog delay with tap tempo."


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

sulphur said:


> The MLJr is an analog delay, the tap tempo section is digital.
> It's in the first line of the description...http://www.diamondpedals.com/products/memory-lane-jr/
> 
> Hey Chuck, I have a DL4 that I got a while ago from the forum.
> ...


Thanks for he offer, Jock. No worries - I wouldn't ask you to do that. I'll try the digitech route for now unless something pops up before then.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

adcandour said:


> Thanks for he offer, Jock. No worries - I wouldn't ask you to do that. I'll try the digitech route for now unless something pops up before then.


No problem man, the offer still stands if you're interested.


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

You guys lost me on the MLJr. 

Can we just say it's hermaphradigitic and loves analog? I think so.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

The Molten Voltage modules that so many boutique makers have been increasingly incorporating into their pedals as semi-plug-n-play solutions for implenting tap tempo, ARE most definitely digital, using little microcontrollers.

The original Memory Lane runs up against the same barrier that so many analog delays do, which is the degradation in sound quality, once you use more than 8192 stages of delay (i.e., a pair of V/MN3205 4096-stage chips). Keep in mind that having ANY feedback whatsoever means that the second repeat will have gone through 16,384 stages, the third repeat has been handed from bucket to bucket 24,576 times, and so on. If one is running the unit at a fairly short delay time, you tend not to exceed the chip's ability to hang onto an analog sample with some fidelity. But set it for longer delay times (where the sample sits in a single stage for a longer period before moving on), and the signal starts to leak out with every bucket-to-bucket handoff.

It appear Diamond took the leap, of necessity, to digital. Here's a gutshot. http://imageshack.com/f/685/img1193ot.jpg

You can see a complex surface mount chip underneath the output jack, towards the bottom of the pic. I realize that virtually all chips on the board are surface mount, including the analog ones, but the presence of pins on all 4 sides/edges of the chip (only two of which are visible in the photo), means it is far more complex than any analog chip. I'm guessing that is the primary delay-processing unit,


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## jimmythegeek (Apr 17, 2012)

I love the dl4 as it simulates the analog stuff and the digital is crisp and lovely. The volume drop is a small annoyance but I live with it. The Boss dd3 is a great compact digital delay too. Not fancy in any way but really reliable.


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

jimmythegeek said:


> I love the dl4 as it simulates the analog stuff and the digital is crisp and lovely. The volume drop is a small annoyance but I live with it. The Boss dd3 is a great compact digital delay too. Not fancy in any way but really reliable.


You couldn't be more right. I love this thing. What a great delay for just $100...

It seems that the dl4 will actually be my go-to delay when I'm on a clean setting. The ad999 ALWAYS wins when distortion comes into play.

I couldn't believe that korg digi delay came up for sale on the forum (especially after never hearing about it nor finding any anywhere for sale), so I wanted to not like the dl4. Good sound is good sound - the dl4 ain't moving.


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## davetcan (Feb 27, 2006)

Just get yourself a Skrecho and throw all that other junk out. You can thank me later :acigar:


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

davetcan said:


> Just get yourself a Skrecho and throw all that other junk out. You can thank me later :acigar:


I can't believe you just did that to me.


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## davetcan (Feb 27, 2006)

LOL, sorry, didn't realize you'd already decided, I just saw the thread 



adcandour said:


> I can't believe you just did that to me.


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## NtR Studios (Feb 28, 2008)

I've been thinking about this one. Has anyone tried the Visual Sound tap delay. Sounds great in this demo vid.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVeLV4bqoN0


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

NtR Studios said:


> I've been thinking about this one. Has anyone tried the Visual Sound tap delay. Sounds great in this demo vid.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVeLV4bqoN0


It does sound good. It has an analog signal path though, so not what I was looking for - I still prefer the muddy repeats from the ad999 (even though the dl8 does a very good job emulating them).

I may actually have an opportunity to try one out, since they carry the make at music pro in barrie.


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## Axe Dragon (Aug 21, 2013)

adcandour said:


> You guys lost me on the MLJr.
> 
> Can we just say it's hermaphradigitic and loves analog? I think so.


Nope, we should all say it's digital...




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## blam (Feb 18, 2011)

adcandour said:


> I'm leaning towards picking up a Hardwire from TGP for $95. (Hope it's still around at the end of the day - my son has me on play duty all day).
> 
> My nephew is getting into guitar, so if I don't like it, I can sell it to him. He was also looking for a looper, so this would really help him out.
> 
> My only concern with this pedal is that I'm hoping it doesn't sound too thin.


i had the hardwire. its a pretty good sounding delay. the looper is kind of hard to time right and really colors your tone.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

I guess it depends on what you need and how much delay you use.

As I use it only to give solos a little depth, and for one or two special rythmic effects, the Line 6 Delay modeler I have seems good. I only need three or four presets.

Really most good quality digital delays would work fine for me.


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