Expand your synth rig without breaking the bank with legendary analog sounds and studio-quality effects. Synth Junky takes a look at the best of the best in analog and digital delays that you can add to your synth rig right now.

To DAW or Not to DAW

Many synth players are understanding the benefits of a DAW-less setup, preferring the tactile interactivity of real knobs and sliders. It’s a setup that inspires creativity. And there are those for whom a DAW still serves its purpose for recording, mixing, and sheer power, but they also like the idea of using effects pedals for synths, as effects can really be an integral part of the instrument sound, not just a post-processing afterthought.

Whether you have a DAW or not, analog delay can make a powerful addition to your sonic capabilities. You can also have a blast chaining several of them into any number of configurations. Imagine a true signal path with separate delays on each channel. Use some for a traditional, ambient echo effect, use others for time-sync rhythmic effects, and others for classic bucket brigade sounds or sweeping, warbling sci-fi weirdness.

Inspire Your Creativity

If you think it is fun and inspiring to turn a knob to sweep filter cutoff, LFO speed, or resonance during a synth performance, then you’re in for a treat when you hear what can be done by adjusting delay time on an analog echo, speed on a flanger or feedback on a chorus. As a synthesist, you may think of effects as something that comes “after” the sound source, or even something that should always be done during the mixing stage. But at the end of the day, you’re making sounds, and the listener doesn’t care or think about what aspect happened when. It’s all just a part of the sound.

Donner Yellow Fall Vintage Delay

The Donner Yellow Fall provides up to 620ms of classic, warm-sounding delay, with three knobs allowing you instant access to the delay time, feedback and mix controls. True bypass means you don’t have to worry about it having any impact on the integrity of your signal when the effect is not engaged.

While this effect is described as analog by the manufacturer, a member of our Facebook page has brought to our attention that it uses a pt2399 chip, which means it is actually digital. However, the sound is very much in the analog category, and many compare it to bucket-brigade style delays.

This unit does not offer tap or tempo-sync of any kind, so it is better suited for ambient and special effects that do not depend on tempo. Which brings us to…

Donner Tap Delay Guitar Delay Effect Pedal

If you want to use delay for rhythmic effects, and need instant and intuitive control over the tempo, Donner’s Tap Delay fits the bill nicely. Priced only slightly higher than the Yellow Fall above, it offers three delay types: Analog, Digital, and Reverse. It goes up to a whopping 2000ms – that’s two full seconds of delay time! And, it allows you to tap tempo so you can integrate the effect with your music’s rhythm. While this is not automated like an actual sync, we find that the interactivity of a tap control fits in nicely with DAW-less and live performance aesthetics.

Eventide EuroDDL Eurorack Delay

Any list of effects for a synth rig would be incomplete without including a Eurorack option for those with modular and semi-modular systems. Eventide is a legendary brand in digital effects, so you know the sound quality will be pristine. It’s easy to imagine the power at your disposal to use any of your system’s module parameters to modify aspects of your delay. We feel immediately tempted to send and LFO to the delay time for some serious hypersonic spaceship sci-fi wizardry. The sky is the limit in a setup like this.

BOSS DM-2W Waza Craft

Boss Waza Craft line replicates classic effects from the height of Boss’s tenure as a leader in classic effects. A true bucket brigade style analog, with a highly sought after sound. Rate input allows you to control the delay time with expression pedals or other external controllers. Direct out and regular output allows you to separate the dry and effect signals. We see a lot of great potential in this for synth producers.

BOSS DD-3T Digital Delay

No discussion of delay effects is complete without mentioning BOSS’s digital counterpart to the DM-2W, the DD3. Featuring the round, warm tone that made it famous, and the hold loop function that inspired so many loop devices that followed. Separate direct output, tempo input and tap tempo features round out this classic delay stomp.

NUX Atlantic Multi Delay and Reverb Effect Pedal

Delay and reverb are often used together, and this powerful beast lets us control the two together in useful ways. The NUX Atlantic Multi Delay and Reverb boasts some amazing features allowing interaction between the delay and reverb, such as inside routing-control between the effects so you can choose which effect comes first. On Serial Mode, you can create a deep-reflection reverb with wet or dry repeats, or you can split your signal, and add both effects in the parallel chain. Each effect will be mixed with separated dry signals.

We could easily fill a whole article on the amazing features of this device alone. Tap tempo and Hold for Shimmer features are noteworthy, as well as USB, mono and stereo output options. By plugging a TRS cable into the pedal’s input, you can add the Atlantic to any effect chain via Send/Return connection by using a “Y” cable or “Insert” cable.

Categories: Gear Reviews

J.P. Fontana