Delay and Fuzz

[bigbadbeach]

Hey, I'm designing a new board for my next album and I was wondering your guys opinions on a good delay pedal to use with fuzz. Or maybe a good fuzz to go with a delay pedal. Good combos you know. I have been using a BOSS DD3 for a long time and want to mix it up a bit. Digital, analog, it doesn't matter!

[adamajah]

The Tåken is always a solid choice. It's become my favorite delay, both clean and with dirt.

[frigid midget]

There's really too many variables here for me to start naming all the cool delay pedals I know...
But as far as fuzz goes, my rule of thumb, sorta...Analog delay through your amp's fx loop, digital after your fuzz.
Lots of fuzz seems to drown out the dark/gritty repeats of my analog delays in a live/rehearsel context. That's where digital delays work best imo.
Dirt before fuzz can be sweet too, as longs as we're talking overdrive and not loud menacing fuzz

But what works for me might not work for you

I guess it could make sense to test the waters with a beefy modeler like the Nemesis or DD500, which'll give you all kinds of delays, both digital as well as analog-ish. Something like a DD7 would be smaller/cheaper, but might not be far enough from your DD3...

Budget, any particular requirements...stereo, tap tempo, long delay times, modulation,...

[pothole]

+1000 on what frigid said. I hammer my DD7 hard with all kinds of gnarly fuzz in front of it and the repeats hold up fairly well on most all the modes that unit has. My old Skreddy Echo handled fuzz really well too.

[popvulture]

I just bought a Hungry Robot Dark Moby not too long ago and it's pretty lovely with fuzzier sounds. The Caroline Kilobyte is a very close relative, same PT2399 vibe.

[Benn Roe]

What amp are you using? What guitar? I feel like dirt pedals just sound so different when used with different rigs.

[chromandre]

DD500, which'll give you all kinds of delays, both digital as well as analog-ish.

I didnt want to be the first to mention this but I freaking LOVE the DD-500. I bought it for looper only, and had been using it for almost a year until I realized delay is usable at the same time as looper. All front panel controls work for the delay even when you are in looper mode. "vintage digital" and "analog" mode are wonderful.

[01010111]

My favorites with fuzz are the darker-voice analog delays with the mix cranked. Digital delays can be heard better, for sure. Analog delays, with darker voicings, can bring a more ambient feeling without drowning out your fuzzy signal

[frigid midget]

I'm just gonna throw it out there, for whatever it's worth...

Dod rubberneck and Ibanez ES2 are the shit. I wanted top jacks, tap tempo, long delay times and oscillation, on a tight budget. Didn't leave me with many options. Don't think I'll ever put the Rubberneck's main trick to good use, and I'm not big on build-in modulation in general...But otherwhise, the rubberneck is a lot of analog delay for the money, I highly recommend it.
The ES-2 isn't exactly buid like a tank, and the tap tempo is far from accurate...But the oscillation switch is awesome, and the color of the repeats sits nicely between mushydark and 'present'.

[tremolo3]

DD500, which'll give you all kinds of delays, both digital as well as analog-ish.

I didnt want to be the first to mention this but I freaking LOVE the DD-500. I bought it for looper only, and had been using it for almost a year until I realized delay is usable at the same time as looper. All front panel controls work for the delay even when you are in looper mode. "vintage digital" and "analog" mode are wonderful.

DD-500 plays nice with fuzzy friends.

If you are having issues with the mix, use the EQ and put it in the feedback loop, that will make some space for your fuzz.

[frigid midget]

Goddamn you mahfakkers now I want a DD-500 even harder than I already did

[tremolo3]

It's a machine full of surprises, and I really like the fuzz tones out of it

[rfurtkamp]

For after any gain, I want something with both a certain amount of clarity and delay time on tap.

My usual rule of thumb is I want 2-3x the available time for distinct repeats for fuzz or dirt-drenched stuff.

So MOST analog is out (Rubberneck does just fine, having 1.5s on tap and a reasonable amount of clarity), but I'm ultimately partial to the Space Echo like I always have been (whether my tape unit or the RE-20).

[misterstomach]

I use a disaster transport and it does great with all kinds of dirt. Great sounding delay in general. I’ve been happy with it for years. I went into the store ready to by an el capistan, tried a few pedals to make sure and went home with the disaster transport. For what I need, it just sounded better. I have a dmm for when I need that analog goodness, but honestly, for live use, the DT gets me pretty close to that and has foot switchable modulation.

[Seance]

If you have a fuzz that "cleans up" with volume knob adjustments on the guitar that doesn't mind being after buffers....
then you can put a fuzz on the repeats only of a delay so that you get an overdriven repeat that cleans up as it "decays".

Of course there are some delay pedals that sort of allow you to do this with the delay itself straight out the box.
But delays with an effects loop (DOD Rubberneck, etc.) can make for a fun time. All depends on what you're doing and
how you want to do it.