simulated tape delays

Discussion in 'Soundgear' started by rhythmatist, Nov 28, 2013.

  1. rhythmatist

    rhythmatist Audiosexual

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    I miss Echoplex. Real vintage ones are expensive. Behringer FX2000 Virtualizer 3D Digital Effects Processor----anybody have any experience with this product? I have a hate/love thing with Behringer. Some of their products are amazing for the money, and some I have issues with. Doesn't have to be too road worthy, but some. Will probably bounce between my live piano trio gig and my home studio. I cannot find what the maximum delay time it is capable of in the Tape Echo section. Would like to have at least a second, with the ability to control the repeat loop down to almost nothing. Here is the set up I want: vocal channel with reverb added goes to about a .7 sec tape delay with the barest smidgeon of repeat, and that signal goes back through the reverb again and out. One of my favorite live vocal effects set ups.
     
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  3. don_questo

    don_questo Noisemaker

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    Echo Boy has great presets that emulate vintage delay units, echoplex included. You also have great control to do exactly what you described
     
  4. GangamStyle

    GangamStyle Ultrasonic

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  5. doktor

    doktor Newbie

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    I recently got a TC Electronic Flashback pedal (after my primary laptop died the night before a gig) and it's tape echo is fantastic, even to my snobbish ears (I've worked with lots of vintage tape delays, Space Echos, stringing tape across the studio between reel-to-reels, BBDs, etc).

    The build quality is hella robust, too. Just don't expect it to stay powered up too long if run off batteries!
     
  6. rhythmatist

    rhythmatist Audiosexual

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    Thanks, I did look through the PDF download manual, and did not see that. That is exactly what I needed to know before I bought one of these, although it does a lot for the price, and looks fun for that reason. But I really want access to longer delay times in something that sounds "tape-ish". And I don't want a guitar stomp box, but it doesn't have to be rack mount.
     
  7. coolbeanz

    coolbeanz Platinum Record

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    IK Multimedia T-Racks Tape Echo

    V Plugs Echo Trip

    SoundToys Echo Boy
     
  8. Pm5

    Pm5 Ultrasonic

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    TC electronics and Roland guitar pedals will actually work much better than a Berhinger multi-fx.
    If you work with a computer, Echoboy is a better option.
     
  9. SineWave

    SineWave Audiosexual

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    Can I make a little suggestion? How about your favourite delay plugin through some of your favourite saturation plugins? ;) Liiike... Fabfilter Timeless through Fabfilter Saturn or Toneboosters Reelbus, Timemachine, Ferox, Klanghelm IVGI or SDRR?

    Food for thought... people don't think about combinations of plugins and what they do. You can achieve remarkable things just by combining two simple plugins instead of using one. It actually gives you far more freedom to choose different "colours" or "hues"... In this context just about any delay will do, actually, provided that it has LPF and HPF. Then saturate its output with something that you think sounds like your favourite tape delay. ;)

    People can't understand why I usually like simple and mostly GUIless plugins... it's because they're easy to combine. Combining is the key. A simple delay can become a tape-delay. A simple phaser can become a "bigrock" phaser without having to use the latest 50MB "do-it-all" plugin that actually gives you less choice. ;)

    VST is a modular environment. Use its modularity. Combine. You will be surprised by the results and see why you actually don't need that new 50MB "do-it-all" delay like IK tape delay for example. I personally didn't like it at all. It's too streamlined, restrictive and "one trick pony".

    Cheers!
     
  10. ( . ) ( . )

    ( . ) ( . ) Audiosexual

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    Fabfilter Timeless 2...u mad? :bleh:
     
  11. Moonlight

    Moonlight Audiosexual

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    I am the prowd owner of a Line 6 Echo Pro which delivers the perfect Echoplex emulation.

    Waves H-Delay or PodFarm Platinum comes VERY Close
     
  12. Moonlight

    Moonlight Audiosexual

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    How do you feed the saturated output of you favourite delay, after applying a saturation plugin, back into the delay ? Thats how an Echoplex works :)
     
  13. doktor

    doktor Newbie

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    Hell yeah! :mates: Combining simple plug-ins/hardware into custom setups is a sure fire way to keep me entertained and swimming in lots of lovely deep sonic scapes, particularly if the devices in question each have their own dynamic non-linearities which interact to add motion, depth, and texture. It's why I'm a big proponent of the AirWindows plug-ins: lots of small, high quality, no cruft tone manipulation plugs that combine fantastically.

    Oh, and Algae, don't write off the TC Electronic stuff just 'cos it looks like a "guitar stomp box." Damn thing has better sound quality, impedance input/output flexibility (it just loves line levels) than half my "pro" rackmount effects units.
     
  14. rhythmatist

    rhythmatist Audiosexual

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    Mad as a hatter, but rarely angry. :mates: And VST plug ins are not an option. Need something I can use live without my computer. When home recording, I love running stuff through external devices before it goes to the interface or input. Sometimes I record a clean one and a processed one onto two different tracks, in case I decide I don't want that effect later. But I like recording along with effects in real time, because the effects you hear in the cans or monitors influence how you play. The effects on my old mixer mostly suck. There are a couple reverbs in there I use, that's about it. But I want a device that can do what I described, on top of all that other stuff. I have half a notion to find an old decent reel to reel, modify it, add some capstans, and see if I can build my own tape echo. That wouldn't be very portable, though.
     
  15. don_questo

    don_questo Noisemaker

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    you stick another delay after :wink:
     
  16. SineWave

    SineWave Audiosexual

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    You can create real feedback by feeding the send to itself in Reaper. Or sending the output of the send to another track and sending it back to the first track works even better. However, just a "touch" of it is enough. It is madness what you can create with Reaper's routing. :wink: But I don't think it's possible to do it this way in Cubase, for instance...

    I am actually interested in something like Echoplex in hardware, too, Algae. Maybe there is an easy to do DIY project somewhere? That TC pedal "Flashback" sounds interesting, too. Time to google... :wink:

    How about this: http://www.catalinbread.com/belle-features It costs about 280$ 80ms-800ms of delay. ;)

    This DIY project looks interesting, too: http://valvestorm.com/Project%20Parts/EP3%20Pedal

    Good page about Echoplex: http://www.regiscoyne.com/echoplex/

    Strymon makes nice and interesting pedals like "Timeline" and "Mobius" http://www.strymon.net/timeline/ But I think they're too expensive with each pedal costing 480$. But they surely look good.

    A rather elegant and very useful solution for some other FX, not just delay [it can do 5 sec delays!] that costs surprisingly only around 200$ is TC Electronic M350: http://www.tcelectronic.com/m350/ or D-Two or M-One XL that are a lttle more expensive or G-Major 2 that is a brilliant multi FX but it costs around 500-600$. I also noticed an interesting TC guitar pedal called Nova Repeater RPT-1 and it only costs around 150$: http://www.tcelectronic.com/rpt-1-nova-repeater/ And yeah, "Flashback" pedal, especially "Flashback X4" looks gorgeous! :P http://www.tcelectronic.com/flashback-x4-delay/

    Cheers!
     
  17. rhythmatist

    rhythmatist Audiosexual

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  18. rhythmatist

    rhythmatist Audiosexual

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    I repeat, VST plug ins are not an option. Looking for hardware. Live work requires 0 latency and instant control. Usually I am mixing from stage while I am playing drums (small club, and I have developed an extra appendage, so I now have five limbs. that wasn't easy). That Echo Boy looks like a nice plug in doo-dad, though.
     
  19. Gulliver

    Gulliver Member

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    The tape delay in the TC Flashback sounds great indeed, and is imo the highlight of that pedal (I used to own it).

    A friend of mine, who constantly buys and sells a lot of pedals, sweared to me that the best tape delay emulation on the market is this one:

    http://www.strymon.net/products/elcapistan/

    Never tried it myself, though.
     
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