Bright Analog Delay pedals?

markv

You asked about the MXR CC Deluxe. I had one - great feature set but the sound was nowhere near as good as the original CC to my ears. Also it had a very narrow range of usable sounds between audible and out of control. I didn't keep it.

Keefy

lukemark said:

Maxon AD999 is great for this - as far as I understand it uses 8 chips to get its 900ms of delay so doesn't need as much filtering of the treble to reduce noise.

Yeah I have one of these too (I'm an analog day whore!) and it is nice and clear, but does darken up at longer repeats. Bear in mind the Maxon chips are their own, so not necessarily equivalent to an MN3005 or whatever.monquixote said:

The deep blue isn't actually analog but sounds very much like it is.

This is one of many pedals that use the PT2399 chip. IIRC it was originally developed for karaokes and the like, and has a baked-in filter that makes it sound a lot like analog - I'd probably struggle to tell the difference.

WiresDreamDisasters

Malekko used to make the Echo300 and Echo600. Each of them came in bright and dark variations. Don't know if they are easy to get anymore. I miss mine!

JezWynd

markv said:

You asked about the MXR CC Deluxe. I had one - great feature set but the sound was nowhere near as good as the original CC to my ears. Also it had a very narrow range of usable sounds between audible and out of control. I didn't keep it.

That’s an interesting take on the Deluxe, I wondered whether the standard CC would work with longer delay times. Sounds like if I decide to go the CC route, it’s either the Bright model or the mini which has the bright switch.

ICBM said:

JezWynd said:

Anything else I should try?

A DD-2 or earlier DD-3.

Really. Although it's a digital delay, only the delay line itself is digital (and only 12-bit as well) - the whole feedback loop and mixing section is analogue - and it sounds more like a very clean analogue delay than it does like a modern digital. Delay time is up to 800mS.

Modern DD-3s don't sound quite as good to me, but still less bland than the later versions.

I’ve had the Long Chip DD-2 and it’s variants in the past, it was my fave delay for a long time and definitely has an analog vibe but I’m keen to get a more genuine analog sound. 

Keefy said:

lukemark said:

Maxon AD999 is great for this - as far as I understand it uses 8 chips to get its 900ms of delay so doesn't need as much filtering of the treble to reduce noise.

Yeah I have one of these too (I'm an analog day whore!) and it is nice and clear, but does darken up at longer repeats. Bear in mind the Maxon chips are their own, so not necessarily equivalent to an MN3005 or whatever.monquixote said:

The deep blue isn't actually analog but sounds very much like it is.

This is one of many pedals that use the PT2399 chip. IIRC it was originally developed for karaokes and the like, and has a baked-in filter that makes it sound a lot like analog - I'd probably struggle to tell the difference.

I found the Maxon delays, AD900, 999 very dark. They’re beautiful delays, very hi-fi sounding for analog but not really suitable for rhythmic bass repeats.

The PT2399 chip is a good call, I had a VFE Delay a couple of years ago which used that chip and it was an excellent analog voiced digital delay.

JezWynd

Keefy said:

I do this sort of thing with my EHX Memory Man 1100TT but using an MXR 6-band graphic in the loop - this should give you an idea of how EQ affects analog delay:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xjh_rnylAJ0

Am I right in thinking that the eq pedal in the loop only affects the repeats and not the initiating note? It sounds that way from the video but not certain. If so, it sounds an ideal solution, if a bit complicated.

WiresDreamDisasters

JezWynd said:

Keefy said:

I do this sort of thing with my EHX Memory Man 1100TT but using an MXR 6-band graphic in the loop - this should give you an idea of how EQ affects analog delay:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xjh_rnylAJ0

Am I right in thinking that the eq pedal in the loop only affects the repeats and not the initiating note? It sounds that way from the video but not certain. If so, it sounds an ideal solution, if a bit complicated.

It will only effect the feedback path.

Keefy

I found the Maxon delays, AD900, 999 very dark. They’re beautiful delays, very hi-fi sounding for analog but not really suitable for rhythmic bass repeats.

The AD900 used a couple of MN3005 chips, whereas the AD999 use eight MC4107 chips. I expect the circuits are quite different?

Fwiw I once briefly owned the AD999-Pro, which has little switches for tapping the signal after different BBD chips. It was so dark that as a source of rhythmic delays, it was useless. I've also had the AD9-Pro, and that was very dark indeed - you could whack the delay level up full and it still wouldn't stand out next to the dry signal!

Keefy

JezWynd said:

Keefy said:

I do this sort of thing with my EHX Memory Man 1100TT but using an MXR 6-band graphic in the loop - this should give you an idea of how EQ affects analog delay:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xjh_rnylAJ0

Am I right in thinking that the eq pedal in the loop only affects the repeats and not the initiating note? It sounds that way from the video but not certain. If so, it sounds an ideal solution, if a bit complicated.

It affects all the repeats but not the dry signal.

Zoolooter

Brigadier is the best analog voice delay. You can control very aspect of its sound - tone, volume, mix, degradation, etc. It does one thing, but it’s the best of the lot by a country mile. I’ve had two in the past, currently looking for a third.

JezWynd

Zoolooter said:

Brigadier is the best analog voice delay. You can control very aspect of its sound - tone, volume, mix, degradation, etc. It does one thing, but it’s the best of the lot by a country mile. I’ve had two in the past, currently looking for a third.

Yeah, been listening to a couple of demos, the Bucket Loss control is really useful. That led me on via YouTube recs to the El Cap, which also sounds excellent, reminds me of the Echoplex but much more flexible.

Zoolooter

Found the El Cap to be too wishy washy for  my tastes.

joetele

It's not analog but don't overlook the EQD Space Spiral if you want something a bit different. The modulation is quite lovely, with its own sway up and down. 

noisepolluter

I remember being extremely impressed with the Diamond Memory Lane junior when I was lent one. Not technically analogue but it absolutely nailed the clear-but-warm sound of a Deluxe Memory Man, but with a longer delay time, a tap tempo and no noise. 

Stratavarious

Get a digital with a tone control and dial it in.   DD200 or an old DD20. Or TC with toneprints as suggested.

i could not escape the murkiness and low fi sound with the MXR Carbon Copy deluxe I tried.  I had been in same boat.  

I still use the Low Pass Filter on my old Yamaha rack delay to get the right clarity and warmth without the mud.  All the DD7 is missing.

JezWynd

Thanks everyone for your suggestions, I’ve listened to clips of all the delays you’ve mentioned and have two that I’d like to try out. The Way Huge Supa Puss and the Strymon Brigadier. Both seem capable of producing crisp, clear analog style repeats with a bass guitar. I’m also still interested to try out the Carbon Copy Bright or Mini and also a DD-2 or similar long chip. I’m familiar with the DD-2 but haven’t used it with bass. Quite a list, so I’ll be keeping an eye on eBay etc to find used examples of each. Thanks again for your tips.

monquixote

JezWynd said:

Thanks everyone for your suggestions, I’ve listened to clips of all the delays you’ve mentioned and have two that I’d like to try out. The Way Huge Supa Puss and the Strymon Brigadier. Both seem capable of producing crisp, clear analog style repeats with a bass guitar. I’m also still interested to try out the Carbon Copy Bright or Mini and also a DD-2 or similar long chip. I’m familiar with the DD-2 but haven’t used it with bass. Quite a list, so I’ll be keeping an eye on eBay etc to find used examples of each. Thanks again for your tips.

I'd avoid the Sups Puss.

I love the echo puss and aqua puss but I hated the Supa Puss.

Iirc it had a load of weird issues like popping when you turned it on changing the dry tone and distorting the repeats.

ragingben

When I was looking I narrowed it down to 3 or 4 (at the time I owned a Malekko 616 and Hardwire DL8):

-Seymor Duncan Vapour Trail
-Way Huge Echo Puss
-Strymon El Capistan or Brigadier

I went with the Seymour Duncan to start with. That's an excellent analog delay, it stands out well but also sits nicely if you know what I mean. The repeats are warm but but quite clear to start with. The modulation works well and it is easy to add a subtle amount, unlike the 616.

I've since bought an El Capistan and I'm finding a lot of good sounds in there. I wouldn't say that I've been able to get it to sit so well yet though, but I haven't tried it in a band context yet. Different beast entirely. But it is very tweakable and can be set to sound a bit like an analog delay, although that does miss most of the best of what the El Cap offers.

Genuinely, I would look in to the Vapour Trail. It's not boutique cool but it is solid. (Sorry I might have missed some details as I skimmed a lot of the thread this time around).

markv

I'd been umm-ing and ahh-ing about getting a Brigadier for ages and this thread tipped me over. It arrived today.

So far, very impressed: it's a superb sounding, highly controllable, bucket brigade-style delay. I think it's going to replace the El Cap on my board as I prefer the sound - there's not much in it, but my preference is the Brig, particularly with modulation on.

As well as the visible "bucket loss" control, it has a hidden filter/tone control that can be set to darken or brighten the repeats, so it can be very bright without noise (to answer the OP's original question). In fact, this is a more useful control to my mind than the bucket loss control, which may be realistic (or not) but would be more of a set and forget for me. For some reason hardly any the online demos I've seen (e.g. comparing with things like EHX Memory Man) mention this.

JezWynd

Interesting write up @markv, thanks. I got a Carbon Copy Deluxe via Amazon but returned it inside 24hrs. The noise surrounding the repeats was the most intrusive I’ve encountered from an analog delay. Each repeat arrived wrapped in analog audio fluff; most unpleasant and didn’t resemble the standard CC. I wondered if I received a faulty one but wasn’t tempted to try another as the bright switch has minimal effect using with bass guitar. To be fair, it did sound epic when used with distortion, but I rarely use distortion, so just not the pedal for me.

Far more pleasing has been a Lovepedal Echophonic v1. One cropped up on eBay and the tone control tempted me to give it a shot. I can’t find much about it but I’m sure it’s not analog; it’s too quiet and the tone control brightens up the repeats nicely. 700ms max works well for me and it’s easy to operate, something that makes me wary of the Strymon pedals with their ‘keep x depressed to initiate y vibe.

Currently have a long chip DD-3 incoming, I’m hopeful that the combination of the Echophonic and DD-3 will suit my requirements. If not I’ll revisit the Brigadier.