Eventide Timefactor or Empress Super Delay?

[LeeSympathetic]

I was looking for a real nice digital/tape delay and I came across the Eventide Timefactor and the Empress Effects Super Delay.

(For analog I'll probably get the Diamond Memory Lane or the Deluxe Memory Man)

Anyway;
Both the TF and the SD are very similar, and the have similar effects.
The TF seems to be a bit more complicated for me, and it has more options that I may end up not using.

I tried studying and listening to these two pedals as much as I could but I was also wondering if any of these two pedals offer a .8th tap setting... If not then I may end up not choosing any of these pedals. The tap tempo is VERY important for me. Both of these two pedals have tap tempo, but from my knowledge I only heard tapping with regular quarter notes.
So if anyone can clarify this for me, that would be great.

Anyways;
I'd like to hear you guys commenting on both of the pedals;
Which one I should go for.
Both are similar, and around the same price range.
The Super Delay seems to be a bit more rare...
But the Tape Echo sounds better in my opinion for the SD.

The TF is pretty easy to get, and it has more options.
A bit overwhelming if you ask me..

Size is kindof important too.
Since I'm gonna get a DMM or a Memory Lane, room in the pedalboard is highly limited!

So would like to hear you guy's opinions on these two awesome pedals :)
And if any of these offer .8th...
Thanks!

[lifeinsong]

I'm a huge fan of Steve and his Empress effects and I'm sure the Empress Super Delay is a great pedal, but with that being said, there's never been a delay pedal that comes anywhere close to the Eventide Timefactor. Amazing delay sounds, built in looper/recorder, very user-friendly, and the best thing about it is that Eventide is constantly working on improvements and those improvements/updates are available to you through their website. Read the Guitar Player Mag article/review...they said it's far and away the best delay pedal they've ever heard! For the same price as the SD, you get much more from the TF. Ask around here a bit, most will agree.

[soli528]

I for one will agree, though I do find myself on the lookout for a SD during my weaker moments...

[markom89]

I'll "+1" everything that has been said.
TF is the new king of delays, methinks!

[NewarkWilder]

the SD is a beautiful piece of gear but whats been said above is true... the TF is just a beast, and w/ the upgradeability it could be twice as functional in a year... the double delays are incredible, and the foot pedal & exp controls are awesome and user friendly (once you get past the learning curve, which is there but worth it)

personally its not the empress but the skreddy echo i am kinda lusting after right now but i just can't justify it w/ the TF on my board.

[LeeSympathetic]

Yeah,
The TF seems more flexible due to the unlimted sounds you can get.
It is a BIT overwhelming for me though. But I can handle it.

Can you achieve a .8th tap setting with it though? Like said, .8th is really important for me.
If I can't with the TF I might grab the SD... If it has .8th tap of course.

Thanks for the responses guys;
Really appreciate it. :)

[mild]

Both will do .8th.

I sold the Timefactor, and now have the Superdelay.

I hate digging through menus for things. I prefer the analog layout of the SD. "What you see is what you get".

Both are great pedals however. The TF sounded far too digital/pristine to me, for my usage, though.

[coolhand78]

I have both the TF and memory lane on my board...

the TF is truly fantastic... i use the tape delay setting and it kills everything else i've tried... i previously had a H&K replex, which is nice but very expensive and just not in the same ball park as the TF...

i use the ML for a slapback type thing... it was too mushy for my lead sounds... it is a great delay and very warm...

[LeeSympathetic]

Hmm.. May I ask how you can get .8th by tapping quarter notes?
I think I know how for the SD, you adjust the delay time knob in tap mode, like the DL4's rythmic delay;

But I'm not sure if the TF can do such thing.
Can it? How so?

And I agree with Jono.
Going through large amounts of features in a menu is just... Overwhelming.
I just want a simple, BAM delay.
But I'm leaning towards the TF a bit more because I saw more vids and the Tape Delay in the TF sounds better than the one in the SD in my opinion.
Both replicate the tape sound great however.

[Seditious]

I've owned the TF for a few months now and finally got to play a Superdelay over the weekend. They're both great units, and you can't go wrong with either.

If you don't like menu's and you just want to jump in and sound great, the SD is the way to go. It has all the essential features, and all laid out beautifully. The delays are clear but warm, and I really liked it.

I'm keeping the TF though. It has more variety and I love menu's and upgradability. And it's still the best sounding IMO.

That said, I do have a Skreddy Echo on order. :jo:banana Mainly for the loop. I love delay.

[lv]

I've owned all the delays mentioned, in addition to the Cornish TES, Fulltone TTE, many others - the Empress works best for me. Quieter, smoother, clearer than the Timefactor, and imo nothing does a better tape delay than the super delay, which is the only one to capture some of the feel and compression of a tape unit.

For reference, here are the other delays I've owned (note the clips were done under differing conditions and are not meant for a/b purposes, just to give an idea of some of the tones they are capable of)

empress superdelay http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6795596 http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6563591 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6563591)
skreddy echo http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6777167 http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6777159
cornish t.e.s. (first set of repeats are a stock dd-2, all other are t.e.s. http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5231146 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5231146)
boss dd-2 w/ analogman hi-cut mod http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6396523 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6396523)
damage control timeline http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6495267 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6495267)
damage control glass nexus http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6473876 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6473876)
eventide timefactor http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5667208 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5667208)
t.c. electronics nova delay http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5685455 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5685455)
eventide vs tc nova http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5677877 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5677877)
stereo mem man w/ hazarai http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5813906 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5813906)
lexicon pcm 41 http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6300299 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6300299)
retroman kopykat http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5939301 (http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5939301)

[lv]

But I'm leaning towards the TF a bit more because I saw more vids and the Tape Delay in the TF sounds better than the one in the SD in my opinion.
Both replicate the tape sound great however.

Before you make a decision based on clips, I've owned the Fulltone Tube Tape Echo, and the Empress Superdelay comes much closer to sounding like that unit than the Timefactor does. The Tf is also much nosier compared to the Superdelay.

Musician's Friend carries the TimeFactor and has a 45 day return policy: http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/Eventide-TimeFactor-Twin-Delay-Stompbox-Pedal?sku=150251

If you order the Empress Superdelay thru the Empress website, you also get 45 days: http://empresseffects.com/order.php#guarantee

Get both and keep the one you like :dude

[javahut]

Hmm.. May I ask how you can get .8th by tapping quarter notes?

But I'm not sure if the TF can do such thing.
Can it? How so?

Time Factor can be basic and you can just tweak the knobs if you want. Or you can really tweak and set up multiple specific types of delays in the programs. It's as easy or as deep as you choose to make it.

It gets dotted eighths by setting the delay time to dotted eighths. Then you tap in 1/4 notes... it spits out dotted eighths. Save that in a program and move on to another delay/sound. Piece of cake!

I have one of the early Time Factors and have never had any noise problem with it whatsoever.

[NewarkWilder]

I have one of the early Time Factors and have never had any noise problem with it whatsoever.

Same here. Its a fair debate between the TF & SD but I know noise wouldnt be a factor in the decision for me.

which makes me think... they need to take the ModFactor another step and make it nothing but crazy out of this world sounds... & call it the NoiseFactor. I'd buy :Devil

[LeeSympathetic]

Ah thanks for clarifying that for me.
I guess .8th can be achieved easily with the two units.

And to lv:
Thanks for showing me all those vids.
But just be on the safe side I'll look at a couple of those just so I won't get even more confused, haha!
But thanks so much for the advise.
I will buy both and see what happens.
In the end I'm pretty sure I'll keep the one that sounds better to my ears; Because that's definitely worth it even if it's overwhelming and menu-scrolling.

[Malekko]

i would go super delay, although i havent had one, i thought the Eventide was meh sounding and sold it

[agentcooper2001]

i like the layout of the super delay and it sounds much better than the timefactor, especially the tape setting & reverse.

[soli528]

i would go super delay, although i havent had one, i thought the Eventide was meh sounding and sold it
So without having played a SD, you would recommend it while taking the opportunity to knock another product? I guess you'd choose your own over both? ;)

[Andre357]

I'm sure either will sound great, especially in a live setting.

I own the TF ( many other delays as well, like the nova, dl4, echoczar, dd7, analogman delay, carbon copy, etc,etc. ).....I do not own the Superdelay

i can tell you the TF sounds fantastic. The newest version of software ( 2.03 I think )..that you can get easily over the interent really takes the TF into legendary delay status IMHO, anything from pristine to lo fi and grungy is now available. The TF does great analog sounding Chorus sounds and beautiful reverb as well ( sort of a bonus you dont hear much about ).


The one thing about the Superdelay that would bother me a bit live is that you always have to cycle through all eight presets. So if you want to go from sound two back to sound one....there's a bit of tapdancing and cycling through all the presets......thats the only reason I decided against it. It's easier to get to your saved patches on the TF and to limit how many you scroll through, if that matters to you.

The superdelay sounds fantastic on the clips I've heard, but I'm telling you you'll be very , very happy with the TF. You would be happy with either one I'm sure.....

I completley disagree with the poster above that said the timefactor was " meh "....as the owner of many , many delays, both analog and digital I can say with confidence the TF is one of the best sounding delays ever made....

IMHO and YMMV and all that ;):D

[lv]

The one thing about the Superdelay that would bother me a bit live is that you always have to cycle through all eight presets. So if you want to go from sound two back to sound one....there's a bit of tapdancing and cycling through all the presets......thats the only reason I decided against it. It's easier to get to your saved patches on the TF and to limit how many you scroll through, if that matters to you.



One possible solution (similar to limiting the bank sin the TF) assuming you don't need all 8 presets is to duplicate a number of them so you don't have to cycle through so many.

[lv]

And to lv:
Thanks for showing me all those vids.


No problem Lee - you can't go wrong with any of these units, have fun trying all of them out.