Delay ?

[Andy Schick]

Analog or Digital
Preferences and why.
Thanks
Andy

[Cliff Kane]

Tape! It does what it wants to do, it don't need no stinkin' chip to tell it what to say!

[Jim Sliff]

Tape IS essentially an "analog" type of delay, but usually considered its own category.

Digital is generally a fairly exact reproduction of your original signal - for effects sounding like you're playing twice as fast it's the most effective. It also has less noise than analog or tape.

Analog delays also tend to be shorter in duration than digital, a limitation of the type of chip used. However, analog is considered to be much "warmer" sounding, with more of an organic-sounding quality; it seems to sort of "breath" with the note rather than spit it back at you. With analog you have signal degradation as the repeats increase - the signal distorts more and becomes less distinct. Most musicians consider this a far more musical sound than digital delay, and some digital units have been produced with what's called the "crap factor" to introduce distortion and some wavering of pitch (tape-like wow and flutter) as the signal fades.

Tape is very warm sounding and a good tape unit sounds incredible - but they are also far harder to maintain (it's a mechanical delay) and are much noisier than the digital or even analog stompboxes.

I have all types - my preference is the SIB Mr. Echo analog delay and the H$K Replex, a tape-delay emulator with a single 12AX7 preamp tube. It has a vintage control that varies the amount of noise, wow and flutter in the signal, sounds as close to a vintage echoplex as anything I've found, and is FAR more reliable.

Hope that helps -

[Loren Claypool]

As is often the case, "it depends" on what you're after. For that lucious, soft, short delay, analog is tough to beat. For more complex applications such as rhythmic syncing, digital becomes the tool of choice. Another variation on digital is the use of plug-ins in a DAW.

Where the real fun happens for me is using all of the above. I recently recorded three looping sessions with a fretless guitar where I used an MXR green analog delay set short with a single repeat, a Boss DD-5 in Eivind Aarset mode (feedback up all the way, volume down all the way, fade in the madness as required), a Boss DD-20 Giga-Delay, a Boss RC-50 Loop Station, and the Reverb plug-in in Pro Tools. The MXR was used to round the fundamental tone, the DD-5 was used as a pad creator, the DD-20 was used for long delays, the RC-50 was looping away, and the plug-in was used for ambience. Sonic madness ensued.

So, it's all good, different tools for different jobs.

[Ben Jones]

mxr just reissued the old green analog delay.
Its now called the "carbon copy". pretty good.

I love the one I built from Build Your Own Clone. Digital but with high end roll off and self oscillating.

I also have the space echo pictured above but no foot switch for it (and the one i bought for it didnt work) so wehile it sounds fantastic it seldom gets used because there is no way to turn it off.

The Maxon Analog delay is highly regarded, but expensive.

The Boss just has too many bells and whistles for me.

I hear some of those old rack delays have alot going for em and can be had for cheap. Supposedly some of em are crammed full of the fancy sought after chips.
I think thes may be the old Ibanez ones? dont know too much about em but remember em from the 80's and remember they had some good sounds.

can you tell I like delays?

anyway, to answer the question:
I prefer analog due to the less sterile sounding repeats. I can live without the hude delay times and tap tempos of modern digital delays (tho they certainly have their uses as well)

[John Billings]

I have an Echoplex, and a Roland Space Echo. But the one I really miss is the rackmount Korg SDD-2000. It did all time-based effects, was easily programable, and, for some reason, it sounded terrific. I got sick of hauling a rack around, and foolishly sold the Korg. Found occasionally on the bay.
Edit: Just looked on ebay. This could actually be mine! I sold it in the next town over from Kent!
http://tinyurl.com/4we23e

[Giorgio Robino]

My music is composed mainly using digital delays; not because I prefer the digital sound ... but for economical reasons ... and because Iuse these as manyseconds loopers ... please listen result at

http://solyaris.altervista.org

giorgio

[Giorgio Robino]

the DD-5 was used as a pad creator

yes, I have a DD-6: this is the delay more allow me to make drones ( = pads)...

giorgio

[tomsteel]

I ,ve been searching for a yamaha E1005 delay/chorus for awhile now.I finally got one on ebay.....It is the bomb.. lol....I have no need for any other delay/chorus other than this one.It sounds like heaven.It does have a few quirks. It will distort if you have the input level turned up too high,,,but the sound BY FAR outweighs anything else.I am using a 70,s model bassman 100 head and an old peavey classic 15e spk cab/w1501sb. Thomas Malugin Columbia.Tn

[Jim Sliff]

My new favorite is my Maestro Sireko - the Echoplex without sound-on-sound. I just got mine working a couple of weeks ago (finally got a schematic and found the hidden trim pot) and it's absolutely wonderful. re-taped the two carts I have, and it has little noise (they always have SOME) but what it does have is more than worth the warmth and tonal qualities of the preamp - one of the few solid-state preamps NOT designed specifically as an effects pedal that warms up the signal and gives you a fat, juicy tone.

I use NO reverb, ever (unless I'm playing surf music or using my Holland, which has the 3-knob Fender-type circuit built into it; BF/SF reverb only affects the highs and I really dislike it), and will set the Sireko on about 200ms with a light mix and about 5 seconds of repeat (which degrades quickly). It sounds unreal. I'll even combine it with the MR. Echo set at a different speed to get a really strange but usable sound - clear and very distinctive.