Need Recommendations - Chorus & Delay

[MarkF786]

I'm looking for pedal recommendations for chorus and delay. For years I went through the whole amp modeling & multi-effects thing, but I never was really happy about the tone, and though I enjoy programming new sounds I spent more time tweaking then playing. Now I'm going back to something simple.

The guitars I play are in my signature but I mainly use my D'Pergo AVC strat and my Teuffel Tesla, both single-coil guitars. I'm playing into an Allen Sweet Spot amp (like a Princeton Reverb clone).

For me the must have effects are:
- volume pedal (currently using an Ernie Ball Jr.)
- distortion for Fripp-like lead sounds (currently using a Rat 2 though I'm thinking of getting the Keeley mods)
- overdrive (currently using a Tube Blower but the sound is only ok)
- chorus - this is where I need some advice
- delay - again, this is where I need some advice
- reverb (I'm using my amp for this)

I think I'd prefer to stick with analog, especially for the chorus. I don't want tone-sucking pedals, and I'd want something with true bypass. I'm currently using a Nova System but it doesn't impress me. The Eventide pedals seem cool, but then I'd be getting back into the whole digital thing which I'd like to avoid.

So what are some good quality chorus & delay pedals?

Thanks for any recommendation or advice!

Mark

[rsm]

Check out Damage Control. I have the multi effect Glass Nexus which has a great delay though limited features. However, several people I know have the delay, Timeline http://damagecontrolusa.com/products/timeline/

These are big pedals, heavy as they look, but sound great, easy to dial in, and have MIDI control, preset storage.

Worth a look. :AOK

[big mike]

HBE THC Chorus. Awesome pedal.

THey have a nice analog delay as well.

[myTakamine]

Depending on price...

Two of the best are the Analogman Chorus and the Red Witch Empress. The RW offers a wide range of sounds, but you might not need that much versatility. Both are true bypass.

For delay... way too many options to choose from without knowing what you're looking for specifically. Do you want modulated repeats, tap tempo, ...?

[Rock72]

Many good options out there. For chorus, I have tried and liked:

- Analogman Clone Chorus (with depth toggle switch)
- TC Electronics Stereo Chorus Flanger
- Diamond Halo Chorus

For delay, again quite a few options depending on price range. These are analog:

- Diamond Memory Lane 1 and 2
- EH Deluxe Memory Man

The new Seymour Duncan Deja Vu looks interesting. A hybrid where you can go between all analog bucket brigade delay to digital delay twisting the knob. Modulation is analog as well on this one. Haven't tried it, but there's a few good demo's of most of these products on ProGuitarShop's site on YouTube.

[MarkF786]

Thanks for the feedback so far. To clarify what kinda delay I'm looking for, I mostly just use a basic delay (amongst the digital delays I've used, I often choose the tape delay or analog delay setting). I don't have the delay mixed in too much, maybe around 250ms of time, only a couple or repeats.

I've had many digital delay multi-effects that have all the common delay variants (short of Eventide-level of stuff) but I rarely use any of the more complex delays; they just "get in the way".

I play clean more than 75% of the time with the rest of the time divided between overdrive or distortion. The type of music includes prog rock, classic rock, and some more obscure styles like slowcore, shoe gazer, etc.

Regarding price range, I'd say somewhere around $400 is the max I'd pay for a pedal.

[mad dog]

For chorus, red witch empress. For delay, Retrosonic is the best I've heard.

[montavillasteve]

Chorus and delay in ONE pedal. Visual sound H20. The chorus alone is worth the price of admission. There are better delays out there, but I use two delays, so the H20 works just fine for one of them.

[Eagle1]

Chorus and delay? TC2290 G Force.

[cjs42079]

+1 on the Visual Sound H2O if you want chorus and delay in one box

I can't believe no one has mentioned the Carbon Copy delay yet. small footprint, good price, great analog sound...whats the matter, not corksniffery enough?

[forum_crawler]

+1 on the Glass Nexus. Yes it is digital, but we are talking about one of the best tube-based digital pedals out there.

+1 on the Visual Sound H2O, I have one and I love it. The chorus is 100% analog and the echo is analog voiced, though you would never know it is digital, especially for the type of use you are describing. It isn't true bypass I will give you that, however, Visual Sound is known for having some of the best buffers out there. In fact, I would suggest you checkout their pedal shootout demos, they have one where they show you the difference between true bypass and their very own buffer...

If you still need individual pedals I would suggest:
Voodoo Lab Analog Chorus
Diamond Chorus
Retro-Sonic Chorus
MXR Carbon Copy
Retro-Sonic Analog Delay

Oh, and you won't have to put yourself in any waiting lists to get any of the above.

[deke99]

My favorite chorus is still the old blue Boss CE-2. Classic Chorus! They don't make them anymore but they're definitely available on eBay. Not true bypass, but I experience no tone suck, never really have with any boss pedal really.

For delay I use an old Ibanez AD-9. Now that they've been reissued, the originals are cheaper (on eBay) and it sounds great. Again, not true bypass, but no tone suck. If you're using more than 1 or 2 pedals, you really want a buffer somewhere in your chain to retain the high end, especially if you're using long cords.

You could get both for well under $300.

Good luck in your quest.

[Big Boss Man]

I would check out both the Retro-sonic Delay and Retro-sonic Chorus. The delay is based on the DM-2 but can be switched between a short/long delay (up to 600 ms). It also has a tone control for the echo. The chorus is basically a clone of the CE-1. Both are true bypass.