Diamond - Memory Lane

[Plexihead]

Review to come late tonight after a few hours with what so far seems to be an excellent sounding/extremely well made unit.

[Boogie92801]

I can hardly wait. I really want this to be the one. I need another delay and I can not get to the point of actually selecting one because they almost all have something I don't like ... this has all of the basic wants; now all I need to hear about is the tone.

Is it fat and warm ala DMM or Maxon, can it also do the EDGE?

Inquiring minds need to know.

Tease.

[gkelm]

Oh goody. Give us some comparisons with other units if possible. Also, I'm particularly interested in how the effect-on, straight through singal sounds...hopefully untouched.
Thanks!
Greg

[Play by Tone]

Originally posted by Plexihead
Review to come late tonight after a few hours with what so far seems to be an excellent sounding/extremely well made unit.

Yes, please tell me what I should expect!

[Plexihead]

Just real quickly, I'll go more in depth later tonight . . . hopefully Alex will chime in hear later as he received his yesterday.

The tone knob works wonders . . . the echo's can be very warm or brighter (which is a big plus for me as I drive my Marshall pretty good and didn't want the delay to get too muddy). But even at a brighter setting the delays still sound very analog-ish.

The change in tone was also a major concern of mine from the outset of finding a replacement for my Replex. There was too much of a change with that unit and it definitely was not pedalboard friendly.

I'm very pleased so far with what I can only describe as only a very very slight change, almost to the point of really trying to be picky . . . but i'd say there is a slight change, not sure how to describe it at the moment as I find it so slight it's almost like my ears are playing tricks on me. Not sure how else to describe it at this time, I'll really try to get a better answer for you tonight.

For reference, my first delay was the old green MXR Analog Delay, I've also owned at some point of time an Ibanez AD80, a Boss DD3, an Alesis Quadraverb and the aforementioned H&K Replex. I've never owned, but have played on a DMM. I've never played a Maxon delay pedal, although I gather they're based on the old Ibanez's.

So far, it's one kickass pedal, the modulation feature is wicked! The tap tempo works perfectly. My only gripe so far, and I knew this going in so I was prepared, I would've preferred a slightly longer delay time, perhaps just up to 660ms. But with a max delay time of 550ms there's more than enough for most applications. I know that doesn't seem to be alot of difference, 660 vs 550, that's how close it is for me and why I decided to go with the Memory Lane anyway.

So far, I have absolutely no regrets on the purchase and I doubt I ever will. And a bonus, for me anyway . . . it's incredibly quiet for an analog delay and very light in weight.

[Alex Law]

Not much else to add just yet, I agree with all you said - and there is an initial review I posted to Harmony Central for anyone who is interested.

Oh, one thing I just realised a few moments ago (been playing with the ML a lot!) was that the "mix" knob works really well. It's easy to dial in very quiet echoes if required. Some units minimum mix setting always seemed too loud for me, whereas I can quickly set up the Memory Lane to get the volume of repeats I'm looking for - subtle or... not so subtle.

So far, this appears to be a "slam dunk" - about time too, as I've found the hunt for a proper boutique delay to be a frustrating one...

[gururyan]

I've been moving and plan to pick one up as soon as the dust settles. I think I am going to inquire about getting a custom color though and maybe a exp. pedal jack to control the time or mix.

My Maxon AD900 is going to have to fund this purchase, so if any are interested...pm me.

[DonneR]

great stuff ----- waiting for mine ---
Go into more detail on the modulaion if you can,,, thanks!

[gitpicker]

Thank God someone has posted concerning this pedal. I have been waiting on pins and needles...

What are the dimensions of the pedal (I had a DLS Echo-Tap, which I liked, but it was just too big for my pedalboard - I refuse to enlarge my pedalboard, it holds 8 pedals (which should be enough, don't you think!). The ML looks like it might just fit...

Also a big bump on info concerning the modulation. In the video on the web site the guy is playing with it, and then he hits a chord and lets it ring - now that sounded really cool!

Still old, bald, and fat - the gitpicker

[Plexihead]

The Memory Lane is basically 7 1/4" wide by 4 5/8" deep. So, it might be a little large for your application as you're probably more concerned with the width than depth. The casing (not including knobs/switches) is only 1 1/2" high and surprisingly light, which is nice when having alot of pedals to haul around.

- As mentioned previously the ML is amazingly quiet for an analog delay. Very little hiss/noise.

- The difference of the direct signal between the pedal on and off is almost negligible. I'm not sure how Diamond could've done a better job in retaining the original tone.

- The echo's themselves are awesome, which actually should be no surprise considering the NOS chips they're using were supposedly in a few of the more highly regarded analog delays from the past. Very analog-ish sounding echo's that suck you in. The tone knob has alot of range which is nice for different applications.

- The ML seems to get close to self oscillating range just past halfway on the level control. I haven't played with the self oscillation feature yet as the echo's were so nice while playing I just kept playing.

- I was pleased to find the adapter being very small and light. It's of a different type design than what I've been used to, such as the Boss adapters.

- Ok, the modulation . . . very nice feature. It can get pretty wacked out at extreme settings, something that is fun for a "wierd" echo effect at times. Mostly though, when set at a more conservative setting the modulation feature is a great addition. A nice "chorus-y" sound with a fairly wide range. I have a feeling I'll be using the modulation feature alot. The swell solo from Deep Purple's "Fools" sounded absolutely stunning with a little modulation on the echo's.

- I haven't played with the expression pedal jack yet, should be interesting. Overall though, at this point I'm really impressed with this delay pedal, Michael Knappe and everyone at Diamond did a super job!

Man, I live in the smae city as him and I havn't been able to try it out yet! Damn! I gota get my hands on one.

Alex

[aarondavis]

Man, I'd love for someone to be able to compare it to a Maxon AD-900! This pedal is cool, but I wish it had a tone control on the delays, it's a little to dark to me...

[Shakermaker]

Can you still use modulation while in tap-tempo mode? I presume it's only the delays that are modulated right?

Cheers,

Mike.

[Plexihead]

Yes, the modulation is only on the repeats, and it does also work in tap tempo mode but at less intensity, in other words less range of depth of modulation.

Longer delays give more depth of modulation than shorter delays, which I guess would be expected. Also, the depth control is a switching pot that switches the modulation completely off when turned fully counter-clockwise.

[Shakermaker]

Sounds great!

Now where to find the cash to buy one...