How delay pedals are made

Errant Tiger · Post by **Errant Tiger** » Mon Jul 06, 2020 9:09 pm

Here's a question: why do some delay pedals have subdivisions on their length/time knobs/switches? Why not just a clean sweep from like 10-2000 or whatever?

I'm sure there's a perfectly reasonable answer, but I have no idea what it is.

ratrod · Post by **ratrod** » Mon Jul 06, 2020 11:23 pm

I think it’s just to make tapping in a rhythmic delay easier; you tap a quarter note and the echos play back at the selected rhythmic rate

coldbrightsunlight · Post by **coldbrightsunlight** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 3:53 am

That is why.

Errant Tiger · Post by **Errant Tiger** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 6:39 am

I'm confused - what about pedals without tap? Like a DE7, with the Range selector switch split up into 30-160, 120-550, 480-2600, etc?

coldbrightsunlight · Post by **coldbrightsunlight** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 7:35 am

Oh sorry when you said subdivisions I thought you meant musical subdivisions rather than switches between the separate delay time ranges. What you are talking about is a totally different thing to what ratrod and I were talking about.

I would imagine it's to make the sweep of the knob more usable to do certain common things in each mode e.g. I guess it might be harder to tweak for the exact right 'slapback' sound on a knob that goes all the way to 2seconds max.

Each of those ranges corresponds to a certain "style" of delay. So I think it's an easy way of giving maximum control within a certain zone. Like, I want slapback so I put it on the shorter setting. I want long so I put it on the long setting.

qersty · Post by **qersty** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 8:36 am

It may have to do with fidelity too. i.e you trade time for resolution

chromandre · Post by **chromandre** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 8:51 am

qersty wrote:It may have to do with fidelity too. i.e you trade time for resolution

yeah that's why at least BOSS pedals saw it as an improvement. The smooth delay knob times on vintage DD-3 are all at different sampling rates. you might notice it gets a touch grungier at the max delay time. (you'll definitely notice it on the PS-2!!!) whereas every single delay time available on DD-5 is CD quality, and it does not warble.

Errant Tiger · Post by **Errant Tiger** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 9:25 am

Yeah, I realize now I could've been clearer. That all makes sense. I guess as someone who almost always uses the max delay time (or at least the max 25% of delay time) I never really thought about it.

Thanks, all! You're great.

coldbrightsunlight · Post by **coldbrightsunlight** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 11:14 am

retinal orbita · Post by **retinal orbita** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 1:02 pm

I don’t WANT to know how delay pedals are made. It’s magic!! A witch stirs a boiling cauldron and a delay pedal comes out after they throw a frogs liver in.....

mathias · Post by **mathias** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 1:42 pm

One little cat tells the other little cat what to play to match your input signal, and the other little cat plays it on a tiny guitar.

Errant Tiger · Post by **Errant Tiger** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 4:52 pm

mathias wrote:One little cat tells the other little cat what to play to match your input signal, and the other little cat plays it on a tiny guitar.

Cats. Does their cunning know no bounds?

mcatano · Post by **mcatano** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 5:00 pm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75WFTHpOw8Y

This is perhaps the most succinct explanation of hybrid BBD-digital circuit topography I've ever heard.

Errant Tiger · Post by **Errant Tiger** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 5:40 pm

mcatano wrote:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75WFTHpOw8Y

This is perhaps the most succinct explanation of hybrid BBD-digital circuit topography I've ever heard.

I have sampled that last line so many times. In my head.

friendship · Post by **friendship** » Tue Jul 07, 2020 6:39 pm

mathias wrote:One little cat tells the other little cat what to play to match your input signal, and the other little cat plays it on a tiny guitar.

this is canon now

ilovefuzz.com

How delay pedals are made

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