Analogue delays: can any stay musical and clearish at high feedback levels?

mixolyd

I only got into delay this year with the acquisition of an Obscura and have been learning a bit about tape vs analog etc using it, as well as different ways of using delay.

One limitation of the analogue delay on the Obscura is that it can't really do clear repeats that last for very long without going into self oscillation.  Because it s very dark (compared to "tape" and "lo fi" modes) the tone control has to be cranked for the later repeats to be harmonically meaningful but then I can't get the feedback up without oscillation kicking in.  The best long delayed wash of sound seems to be a dark, boomy thing that sounds kinda awesome but is of little musical value to me.

I'm wondering if this is a problem with all analogue and analogue-voiced delays or if some can do the "harmonic wash" thing without going crazy/incoherent.  I'd like to get into real analogue because there is a great sound in there but maybe they're not suited for this purpose.

Here's an example of the kind of wash I'm talking about, made using the "lo fi" mode on the Obscura.  Notice that the tails of delay/oscillation are well defined and add to the harmony rather than being just texture.

EricTheWeary

TBH what you see as the problem is what I like about analogue delays ( I have a small pedalboard but it has two analogue delays on it) I have an expression pedal I can use to control the feedback on my Minifooger. You can find a sweet spot where it gives a wash without going crazy but you have to ride it a bit, I'm not sure I could dial it in from the pedal itself without being able to adjust it on the fly.

mixolyd

EricTheWeary said:

TBH what you see as the problem is what I like about analogue delays ( I have a small pedalboard but it has two analogue delays on it) I have an expression pedal I can use to control the feedback on my Minifooger. You can find a sweet spot where it gives a wash without going crazy but you have to ride it a bit, I'm not sure I could dial it in from the pedal itself without being able to adjust it on the fly.

The minifooger does have an amazing sound on the delays - sweetest of all the analogues I've heard on YouTube.  Definitely too dark for the wash thing but the real time control sounds great.  It seems the issue is clock noise in bbd's: manufacturers lop off the top end of the signal in order to avoid the noise which gives rise to the progressively darker repeats.

ill keep playing with the analogue model to see if there's another use for it that I like.  For the long, detailed washes it looks like either stay in the digital realm or buy an old tape machine(!).

musteatbrain

Have you tried an El Capistan as an alternative?

meltedbuzzbox

Sounds like you want a digital pedal that has a tape mode/lo-fi

You will always get those clear precise repeats with the mush underneath

The ardx20 gets close in the analog world.
The moogerfooger mf104m can be good too but it's very prone to embracing chaos (in a good way) 

mixolyd

musteatbrain said:

Have you tried an El Capistan as an alternative?

Based in what I've seen I'm sure it could do it but I was hoping to get into analogue since I already have a digital sim in the Obscura.

mixolyd

meltedbuzzbox said:

Sounds like you want a digital pedal that has a tape mode/lo-fi

You will always get those clear precise repeats with the much underneath

The ardx20 gets close in the analog world.
The moogerfooger mf104m can be good too but it's very prone to embracing chaos (in a good way) 

I've listened to a few ardx20 vids and been pretty unmoved by the tone.  AD999 seems a bit nicer to my ear and almost stays clear long enough.

Drew_TNBD

You want a digital delay with a high-cut parameter.

meltedbuzzbox

mixolyd said:

meltedbuzzbox said:

Sounds like you want a digital pedal that has a tape mode/lo-fi

You will always get those clear precise repeats with the much underneath

The ardx20 gets close in the analog world.
The moogerfooger mf104m can be good too but it's very prone to embracing chaos (in a good way) 

I've listened to a few ardx20 vids and been pretty unmoved by the tone.  AD999 seems a bit nicer to my ear and almost stays clear long enough.

You can't make an informed decision off of videos

mixolyd

meltedbuzzbox 

You can't make an informed decision off of videos

That's a good point, though there are delays out there that sound great through £5 speakers and 260p video. 

ruoma

I would check out the boss Dm-2w or hungry robot the wash if you want analogue. But they will have that bottom end. If you want to shave off that bottom end, I think you'll need to go tape.