Echo Dream 2 Issues?

[weebles]

I'm not really sure how to explain what I'm dealing with, so here's a shot:

I have a love-hate relationship with my Echo Dream. There are sounds I can get out of it that are absolutely amazing, and I love it at the end of my chain as a sort of all-in-one signal destroyer.

But other times, it feels kind of - I don't know - super compressed, maybe? Like the levels are all off and when the pedal is on my signal sounds muffled and muddy. I've tried adjusting the different outputs for master, fuzz, and delay, but it seems like random chance whether those levels will equal the same sound from one session to the next.

Anyone experience this? Thoughts? Bueller?

[goroth]

I'm like this with my Meet Maude.

When I'm using it at gig volumes I cannot get it to gain stage right. I've even put rubber o-rings under the knobs to keep them in place when I think I've got it lit, but it never works. Always a noticeable jump in volume, or not quite enough volume, or the delay trails don't sit quite right. So fucking annoying - it is without a doubt my favourite analogue delay.

[Christophe]

Well I know the Meet Maude is super sensitive to where it sits in your chain. It can be a huge let down if placed too far down the chain. As for the ED2, I've been using mine for maybe 6 years and it's been fantastic, no matter what. So maybe it comes from the interaction with another pedal? Are you running a buffered pedal before it?

[weebles]

Chain is fuck, volume, somersault, tensor, dd5, supermoon chrome, echo dream.

[Christophe]

I'm also using a ED2 and DD5 on one of my boards. They're a great combination. Have you tried swapping places between the two? The DD5 is gorgeous after reverb (especially the reverse mode), and maybe the ED2 will stabilize...? And you keep the benefit of having delay both before and after reverb.
Otherwise, try the dd5 before tensor... A while ago I experienced a strange behavior from my 616 (huge volume drop mainly), I couldn't figure out why, till I realized there was a buffer in my compressor... the two pedals were too close from one another... so it's a wild guess, but maybe your dd5 is too close to the ED2 and the dd5's buffer is messin' with the Dba...?

[weebles]

So I think the issue is what I'm running my board into. If I'm going into my amp, I still have a little bit of volume fluctuation, but nothing that can't be fixed with my volume pedal.

But if I'm using my Iridium into headphones, that's where the issues come in. Iridium into any speaker or computer monitors doesn't have a problem. But using the headphone out is a 50/50 shot of the pedal sounding muddy and extra compressed. I'm wondering if that's just because so much of what I love about the Echo Dream is all of the artifacts and oscillation. That just doesn't transfer as easily without an amp. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Anyway, all of that to say, I guess nothing to see here, but maybe my experience will be helpful for anyone considering an Iridium and the way they want to use it with their rig.