So its time for a delay. All i really care about is a nice slapback and maybe a even a shorter than normal slapback like brian connelly uses in the Shadowy men. The pedals ive been considering are the boss dd-3,danelectro fab echo/blt,mxr cabon copy and ehx #1 echo. Things are a little more expensive here in canada so the prices ive seen are dd-3 $160, blt $60, CC $180 and #1 echo $120 any comments or suggestions would be very helpful.
Help me pick a delay
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- Rated: 20 ↑
May 16, 2008 11:03 a.m. TwangOmatic:
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- Rated: 23 ↑
May 16, 2008 12:38 p.m. johnnyringo:
I got a DD3 that was used as a demo at GC.It took a while to get settings that I was comfortable with,but it fits my needs pretty good with longer delays and slapback/echo sounds.The one thing that was a pain was that it ate batteries very very fast.I don't know if the fact that it was a demo may had played a role in that or not.I got a adapter and that solved and saved a lot of money.I had previously got a danelectro echo pedal that was the $20.00 cheap one and it wound up just sitting in a drawer.I doubt that is the model your talking about,but if it is you would probably want something better for the long run.I probably would not have gotten the dd3 if I would have did some comparisons,but I like it fine for my needs...Goodluck
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- Rated: 29 ↑
May 16, 2008 1:32 p.m. mark t:
dmanlow has the BLT, i believe, and it sounded great for slapback and slightly longer echo. Danelectros are, in my experience, notorious for chewing batteries though, so best to get yoself an adaptor.
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- Rated: 8 ↑
May 16, 2008 1:39 p.m. BrianBlaut:
Its not on your list, but should be:
-Danelectro Danecho (not their expensive delay, not their cheap one) the Danecho is around $45 on ebay, about $90 new. Strudy metal casing, not the cheaper plasic ones johnny ring is talking about. This thing excels at slapback. It has a high rolloff knob which is the key to this thing. You can make the repeats very warm and analog like, or you can dial back a little more edge.
I own it and I love it, BUT I don't own the others you've mentioned so I can't compare.
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- Rated: 115 ↑
May 16, 2008 1:44 p.m. wenzel:
Danecho would be a good cheap choice, but I'd like to recommend splurging and getting a Boss RE-20. There's nothing else like it other than a real RE-201 tape echo. Good luck with whatever you choose!
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- Rated: 9 ↑
May 16, 2008 2:40 p.m. Space Jase:
You can pick your friends, and you can pick your delay, but you cant pick your friend's delay.
I use the little Danelectro PB&J. The best parts about it are the low price and the foot-switchable long/short mode. The worst thing about it is the teeny-tiny knobs. You would not want to adjust them on stage. These pedals should come with a magnifying glass.
If this little thing were to break, I would get a better one. I may have to step on it a little harder.
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- Rated: 20 ↑
May 16, 2008 2:48 p.m. TwangOmatic:
For some reason the danelectro stuff is pretty expensive in canada one of the local shops has a old dust covered danecho but it's between $150-200 the same shop sells the blt for $70 it is also dust covered :P I had thought about the re-20 but alot of the online demo's i heared were nothing like the style of music i like so im not sure how usefull it's other features would be to me. I wish i could take some of these pedals home for a day, playing them in the store doesn't really work for me. thanks for the advise guys. btw anyone know any U.S. shops that ship to canada? i know musicians friend won't
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- Rated: 25 ↑
May 16, 2008 4:20 p.m. Scott:
The RE-20 (in my opinion) can cover any base you wanna cover, not just what you may hear in an online demo. I agree with Chris; go ahead, drop some scratch and get one. I liked it so much I got an extra one!
It's funny, what all is being said about the Danelectro stuff. I had a Dan-Echo when it first came out. Kept it a year or two...underwhelming to me. I've had two Reel Echos(have one now...for sale if anyone is interested)...interesting toy, but since I got an RE-20 it "sits in a drawer". Then a few years ago I bought a PB&J(an impulse buy) and was quite surprised at how good it sounded. Granted I don't like the setup; when you first turn it on it's set to a long delay...you have to step on the other button to get a short delay. Sounds good, I just wish it was the other way around. The BLT slap echo has been an excellent piece of equipment...it sounds good enough to gig with(in fact I have a few times). Only about 20-25 bucks US. You get a slapback, period. You can't mess with the time, it's set around 60-70ms. All you can adjust is the mix and the amount of repeats. Great little slapback unit. I ended up buying three of 'em in case I did break one on stage(hasn't happened yet). I highly recommend this one for ease of use and great sound.
I'm a Boss user mostly however. I have a Keeley-modded DD-3, which was adequate...again, until I got the RE-20. I also have 3 old DM-2s and a DM-3; hard to beat an old analog delay. But for current product, and easy on the wallet product, you can't go wrong with the Dan-o BLT.
But again, I'd spend the extra dough and get an RE-20.
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- Rated: 52 ↑
May 16, 2008 6:07 p.m. ADR:
I've got about 9 or 10 echo units, from real space echoes to the little dano boxes.
1 x Roland RE-301 Chorus Echo.
1 x Roland RE-150 Space Echo.
1 x Boss RE-20.
3 x Rockman stereo echoes.
1 x Danelectro PB&J.
1 x Arion Stereo Delay (SAD-1).
1 x Danelectro FAB echo
I'm sure I'm forgetting one somewhere.
Nothing beats the Roland space echoes for guitar effects.
The Boss RE-20 comes pretty close (but with less of the mucho-desirable 'tape warble'), and is quieter than either of my space echoes. I bring the RE-20 when I can't bring a real space echo. One thing I've noticed with the RE-20 is that there is less hiss when the echo is engaged than when it's bypassed. Weird. There are a couple of things that piss me off about the RE-20.
The dorky swirling happy face LED-grin. Absolutely useless, and actually distracting. Black electrical tape over this.
The tap tempo... If you dial in a slap back, and then use the tap tempo for a longer delay, good luck trying to tap back in that slapback. Just can't tap that quick. A much better option in my mind is to have an option for a long/short ability than the tap tempo, like the PB&J. Or even better, be able to toggle between a couple of the modes. i.e. Go from mode 1 (set for slap) to mode 4 for sleepwalk type of echo.
The Danelectro PB&J is a fantastic sounding little unit. I was so surprised. A very natural slapback and very smooth long settings. Bad interface though, as noted earlier. It sits on my ultra compact danelectro-only pedalboard. Fun!
The Rockman stereo echoes (1/2 rack format) sound awesome for vocals slapback, and bring one with me for gigs and patch into the insert loop of the mix board for my vocals.
The FAB echo, it's fine, but not exceptional.
The Arion SAD-1. Sounds like one of them Ibanez Ad-9's. I'm not thrilled by it, meh. The wee dano PB&J easily bests it for sound.
What would I recommend? An RE-20. Price is good ~$200, sound is fantastic, and is a tank. Not as cool as the real tape echo, but hey, it's quieter, more portable, and can cover all bases.
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- Rated: 47 ↑
May 16, 2008 6:48 p.m. Timthom62:
Another vote for the RE-20. Like many here, I went through quite a few delay/echo units over the years before getting the RE-20. Short of having an RE-201 or RE-301 fall into my lap, I see no reason to change. It's more expensive up front, but you'll probably save money from all the units you won't be buying first.
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May 16, 2008 9:34 p.m. jetbunny:
Another RE-20 user here also. I echo everyone said about it plus twice of ADR's comment. If money isn't an issue, I'd say go for it!
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May 16, 2008 10:40 p.m. noelweller:
I am a fan of anolog... so I say the MXR Carbon copy, that is what I have
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May 17, 2008 7:48 a.m. ruger9:
Can the RE-20 stay CLEAN ENOUGH to do U2/Edge "Streets Have No Name" type delays, or is it too warm/distorted/etc.?
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- Rated: 20 ↑
May 17, 2008 8:04 a.m. TwangOmatic:
Does anyone have an mxr CC and a re-20 to compare? it still sorta seems like the re-20 might be wasted on me since ill only be using it for slapback(i think). I need to figure out what all the dials and foot switches do see if it might have other uses for me.
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- Rated: 20 ↑
May 17, 2008 8:07 a.m. TwangOmatic:
Ruger9 i would think from the demo's ive seen it would do "Streets have no name" very well, here is a demo with a similar riff from what i can recall of the song http://www.gearwire.com/roland-re20-demo.html
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- Rated: 6 ↑
May 18, 2008 8:00 a.m. ruger9:
I've seen that demo before. Here's the deal for me: I have a Maxon AD999 (superb for slapback) and an MXR Carbon Copy (cool pedal, but I don't like it as much as the AD999.) Neither will really do U2 repeats... they degrade to quickly. But that's what analog delays do.
Now, I also have an Echo Park- which is fantastic at the U2 thing. But what I was hoping for was replacing ALL my delays with the RE20... "dirty" and "vintage" enough to do slap, but also pristine enough to do the U2 thing. Just not sure if the RE20 is that versatile, or if a pedal like that even exists...
The EP is supposed to be that pedal, but as good as the analog/tape modeling is, it's NOT. It's a reasonable facsimile, but that's not good enough for me. I'll probably end up having to bit the bullet & just buy an RE20 and do my own shootout.
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May 19, 2008 1:49 a.m. david^5:
+1 for the Carbon Copy. I've had the RE20 and currently have the CC. The RE20 is good, but too much stuff that I never use. If you want a great sounding, simple, straight forward delay go with the CC.
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- Rated: 25 ↑
May 19, 2008 7:16 p.m. senojnad:
And another vote for the Boss RE-20.
Keep in mind, none of these are perfect for all possible delay applications. While I agree with ADR's observations about the RE-20's short comings, it is (IMO) the best on the market for most things we look for in a delay. I wish they would introduce a new version -- without some of the glitz, and without the reverb options. But with those "features" -- which I ignore -- it is still a fine pedal with great sounds.
For slapback -- forget Electro Harmonix (Deluxe Memory Man, etc.) I've had one for years, and it can do some interesting things. But slapback is not one of those things (in my opinion). I also owned a Maxxon AD999 -- slapback was pretty weak.
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- Rated: 17 ↑
May 19, 2008 10:29 p.m. arm1151:
I am happy with my Carl Martin Red Repeat. Any of you other players use one?I paid $95.00 off ebay including shipping. Still have an Ibanez Digatal Delay sound tank- cheap ass switch was giving me fits, so I replaced it.
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May 20, 2008 10:47 a.m. mothman:
Hi all-
I just got a Stereo Deluxe Memory Man, which is absolutely the wildest, most inspiring pedal I've ever played. But it's inspiring in more of a Radiohead way than a Sun Studios way, vibe-wise. It's better for full-on delay effects, and the backwards echo just KILLS. I've gotten an acceptable, not great, slap echo out of it. (Maybe I'm easier to please than senojnad.) If what you MOST wanted was that Sam Phillips sound, you might look at the Rocktron Short Timer. It does a great slap echo, with just the right amount of funk. And it's cheap. But it's big.
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- Rated: 19 ↑
May 20, 2008 4:44 p.m. The Shetland:
I've got a BLT and while i really like the slapback effect it is a battery hawg! Also seems like it would disentegrate on impact with my foot punching it.
I got a rocktron short timer a few months ago and it's pretty good, goes between short and mid length delay and it was pretty cheap...good luck on your quest!
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May 21, 2008 11:04 a.m. KuuKOO:
I use the Rocktron short timer and for the price, it's fantastic.
