Recommend me a Delay in front of my amp -no fx loop

[cyndicate]

What would you guys use in the front end for delay if you don't have a FX loop? Looking for a Delay pedal to run in the front since there is no FX loop in my Variplex

 

[Capulin Overdrive]

maybe the Carbon Copy?


i kindda think that analog does a little better in front, atleast when the amp has some distortion onboard.

 

[cyndicate]

What if I am using pedals for my main distortion/od?

 

[Capulin Overdrive]

What if I am using pedals for my main distortion/od?

that should let you get along way better? distortion after delay is what gets funky sounding.



the best delay sound i've ever got myself, was fuzz pedal into a DD3 into an old Musicman which is pretty much clean.


when i'd mess around with stuff in front of my Rectifier, i figured out that the analog delay did better than the DD3 when the amp had some distortion.

 

[cyndicate]

What if I am using pedals for my main distortion/od?

Then you can use anything.
A GREAT delay is the T-Rex Replica

Cool, heard good things about that pedal, any others you would recommend?

 

[cyndicate]

What if I am using pedals for my main distortion/od?

that should let you get along way better? distortion after delay is what gets funky sounding.



the best delay sound i've ever got myself, was fuzz pedal into a DD3 into an old Musicman which is pretty much clean.


when i'd mess around with stuff in front of my Rectifier, i figured out that the analog delay did better than the DD3 when the amp had some distortion.

I see, I never tried a delay out front before since most of my previous amps had a FX loop

 

[lordriffenstein]

I really like my Boss DD20. Tried the TC Nova Delay, there were some phase issues, never really cared for the T-Rex, it just sounded weird to my ears.

 

[steve_k]

Analog Man modded Boss DD-3.

http://www.buyanalogman.com


Steve

 

[Zorran]

line 6 dl4. designed for front of amp, + 3 presets etc. plus heaps of delay models etc..including an outstanding analog delay.

 

[MARK1970]

Hey Wil, Tone Merchants has a pedalboard setup with delays only. Go down there with your amp and try them out. Delays are pretty expensive to buy and sell. Call before you go they may eve have one on hand or even a Custom 45.
I think that has a loop. Have Dave Friedman put a loop on yours and get a Time Factor.

 

[ratter]

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=36428

 

[stratotone]

DD20 is a great delay, and it will go line OR stompbox level, so if you ever want to use it with an amp that has a loop you're covered. Real clean sounding delay, can have four presets, tap tempo, and I have had no issues with mine.

Pete

 

[blackba]

I run my Maxon AD-80 analog delay in front of my Fender Bandmaster reverb. works fine for slapback. A Ibanez or Maxon AD-9 is pretty similar to the AD-80.

Those Ibanez DE-7's are supposed to be really nice too, and inexpensive....

 

[stratotone]

line 6 dl4. designed for front of amp, + 3 presets etc. plus heaps of delay models etc..including an outstanding analog delay.

What do they mean by designed for in front of amp? Other than line vs instrument level, it's bs.

If you run a delay in the front of a high gain amp, I don't care what the manufacturer tells you, the delays are going to smear all over the place because you're distorting the signal AND the delays.

Original poster is going to get the best results by putting an overdrive in front of the delay and not running much grind at all on his amp's preamp settings.

Pete

 

[RockStarNick]

I just got a digitech hardwire Delay, and so far, it rocks. $160 beans, built like a tank, true bypass OR buffered with trails, lots of old school analog sims on it, great sounding digital repeats...

 

[jonny toetags]

Carbon Copy works great, so does the Empress delay.
Depends on your budget

 

[Gainzilla]

What kind of stuff do you play?

 

[ratter]

What do they mean by designed for in front of amp? Other than line vs instrument level, it's bs.

If you run a delay in the front of a high gain amp, I don't care what the manufacturer tells you, the delays are going to smear all over the place because you're distorting the signal AND the delays.

Sorry Pete, but I'll disagree a little bit - there are a couple of other factors that come into play. (This has nothing to do with the Line6. I owned one but don't really know much about it and never an it into a dirty amp...but just talking in general.)

For example, if the delay is a ducking delay, you'll have less problem running into a dirty amp because they delay won't be piling on top of your 'live' playing as much. Something like an echoplex doesn't have a ducking feature per se, but the way it reacts to the input results in kind of a natural ducking. Also, IMO, a delay that puts out a narrower frequency range will smear less...for the same reason...less frequency overlap with your 'live' playing. So a tape, analog, or analog-sim type of delay with a narrower freq response will work better than a full-range digital delay. Again, IMO.

And last but not least, how your amp is set and how it reacts to the input will affect things too. If it's real sensitive to input, then as the delay trails off, it will clean up a LOT as if you were rolling the guitar volume way down.

Yeah, it will never be as 'clean' as running the echo in the loop or post-amp, but it isn't a totally lost cause. It all adds up and IMO, every guitar->delay->amp combination will be different. And that doesn't even take settings into consideration, really.

 

[cyndicate]

Hey Wil, Tone Merchants has a pedalboard setup with delays only. Go down there with your amp and try them out. Delays are pretty expensive to buy and sell. Call before you go they may eve have one on hand or even a Custom 45.
I think that has a loop. Have Dave Friedman put a loop on yours and get a Time Factor.

Guess I'll have to head over to Tone Merchants when im free. I've been interested in trying out a Time Factor and a few others.

 

[cyndicate]

What kind of stuff do you play?

Nothing ultra high gain. Some classic rock and some 80's metalish stuff