delay stacking tips?

[Dororo]

Anyone have any tips when it comes to stacking delays? Did a search and only came up with people saying what they stack together,but no spicifics.

Short into long?
Analog into digital?

Using a ibanez ad9 reissue and a Moore reecho if that helps.

 

[ThinPaperWings]

The best answer is to experiment with everything and see what you like. You will probably discover cool sounds and textures that you didn't know where there.

That said, the most conventional way to stack would be short into long, and perhaps analog into digital. There are different variations here - light slapback into a subdivision (e.g. dotted eighth or quarter) or subdivision into a long delay (not-synched).

My go-to combo is dotted eighth into eighth, it's rhythmic and reverb-ish at the same time, great for a spacey sound.

 

[Dororo]

Thanks for the quick reply. This is the sort of detailed response I was looking for.
Much appreciated.

 

[flatulentmatt]

And I do kind of the opposite to ThinPaperWings!

I run an analog delay set to 8th notes (or quarter notes if it's a faster tempo song) into my DD-500, typically set to Vintage Digital dotted 8th (though sometimes do Analog quarter notes, or multihead tape etc).

 

[ThinPaperWings]

I should also add that the relation of the times of the delays to each other has a big effect on the texture you get. If they are synched in a 'normal' way (eighths plus dotted eighths, in any order) they will either fall in even intervals from each other and/or hit directly on top of each other. This is different from delay times that have less 'even' relationships from each other, say a 300ms and a 340 ms delay.

 

[bigjon]

I tend to go DD-3 (digital/long) into DMM (analog/short) which modulates rather nicely without getting too washed out.

 

[Drak]

Thank me later.
Check out his other videos as well, really helpful and useful information.
I have 3 boards, all have more than 1 delay on them.
This guy really helped me sort it out when I was first organizing everything.
I even opened up a word .doc and took copious notes for myself based on what he says and what I saw in the videos.

 

[Squatch57]

I wanted to try stacking 3 or 4 delays, but daisychaining them from the ' wet only' output
In particular the Vox Time Machine 'cos it has wet only out, user friendly controls and 3 seconds to play with
Anyone tried this? I figured you'd get some interesting delays this way, with 3 separate delay settings in line

 

[Mark.B]

I don't tempo set the first short digital delay, set very low for texture. It's always on.

It feeds into a ep3 type which is longer and more prominent and tap tempoed.

 

[Black_Label]

1) Make sure one of them has tap tempo

2) don't set them for the exact same rate/division

3) be aware of the load going into the next delay (i.e., don't set your DMM after something like an EP-3 that could overload it)

 

[Gibs210]

No rules for this, mostly personal taste. But yes, setting them to different times that are musically complimentary to each other is a good starting point, 2 tap tempo units that can be synced up by external means and possesses subdivisions Will make this easy, but not necessary. Maybe best to set the feedback low on both units or at least one to avoid sounding like mush, unless that's your intent of course.

 

[ryandfl]

I say put the better sounding one at the end.

I use 3 for a lot of options. DMM, Alter Ego x4 and the Analogman delay. I set them all at medium mix levels. Each sounds good but reasonable on its own, but I generally have 2 on and add a 3rd for a lot of wash.

I play some kind of space rock, not ambient. You can retain clear notes.

Works well with vibe and tremelo.

 

[ogguitar]

Lots of good advice here. I'll add that tape delays will usually sound more similar to a digital delay than to an analog. Also, reverse delay and other effects (mod delay, filter delay, pitch delay, etc.) add a lot of texture when stacking. As noted previously, things should be at complimentary times (1/4 + dotted 1/8, 1/2 + 1/8, etc.) or out of sync, which means tap tempo usually isn't all that necessary on every device when stacking. My main delay has tap, my other two effect delays that I stack with it don't, and they usually stay at the same setting when I use them - no matter the song.

 

[Gibs210]

Lots of good advice here. I'll add that tape delays will usually sound more similar to a digital delay than to an analog. Also, reverse delay and other effects (mod delay, filter delay, pitch delay, etc.) add a lot of texture when stacking. As noted previously, things should be at complimentary times (1/4 + dotted 1/8, 1/2 + 1/8, etc.) or out of sync, which means tap tempo usually isn't all that necessary on every device when stacking. My main delay has tap, my other two effect delays that I stack with it don't, and they usually stay at the same setting when I use them - no matter the song.

Yes! Totally forgot how cool it is to have one delay in reverse and the other in forwards.

 

[Dororo]

Thank me later.
Check out his other videos as well, really helpful and useful information.
I have 3 boards, all have more than 1 delay on them.
This guy really helped me sort it out when I was first organizing everything.
I even opened up a word .doc and took copious notes for myself based on what he says and what I saw in the videos.

I compleat forgot about Andy's vids on the topic. I seen them a while back but didn't have the other delay at the time. Looks like I'll be taking notes.

Thanks for reminding me of this series.

 

[BK Verbs]

I compleat forgot about Andy's vids on the topic. I seen them a while back but didn't have the other delay at the time. Looks like I'll be taking notes.

Thanks for reminding me of this series.

This series nails it.

 

[fab38]

As said before, the only rule is that there is no rule : a sound that is a mess for someone would be the best for the other, it dépends on what you need. The video above is delivering interesting informations for dreamy music, but other possibilities can be found, even for this kind of music. For instance, how does this stacking interact with dirt pedals?

The main question is : why different delay pedals?
If it's to have different sounds available one at a time, it doesn't matter which one is the first. But it could be interesting to replace all those devices by a pedal with several presets available (Némésis, Timeline, Echolution, etc...).
If it is to generate huge sounds, it's another story (and it's mine). By experience, I prefer creating huge reverb effect by stacking delays instead of having a reverb pedal (in fact, I also have one reverb pedal, 'cause I'm a complicated guy...).

In my pedalboard, I have 4 delay pedals, including the Disaster Transport SR that is a 2 delays box. So, in fact, I have 5.

Montavillian -> EHX Hazaraï -> Dis Trnsp. SR -> Dispatch Master.

The only one with tap tempo is the EHX, which is very cool thanks to its presets, and that I use mainly as long reverse delay (washy shoegaze sound), repeater (you know, this kind of The Kills thing), and... filter (yes, one preset delivers a strong filtered signal).
The Montavillian is very close to analog, with a slapback setup and a strong first repeat (louder than the dry signal) : it boosts the signal.
The Dis Transport SR is my shoegaze machin. Thanks to the expression pedal, it offers 4 possibilities : delay A, delay B, delay A + delay B (parallel), delay A in delay B. With or without modulation for delay A, with or without reverb for delay B. The fact is that this pedal offers a lo-fi sound, really dark for the delay A. Not very far from some kind of tape echoes.
And the SR is a proof that the shorter delay is not necessary the first in the chain : by design, the longer one is the first...
The Dispatch Master is at the end, and I use its delay to generate very long repeats at the ends of the tracks, the kind of sound that is swirling in the room, endlessly.

 

[Tri Pedal Reviews]

I role with this config... If you take any one of them out of the equation it just doesn't work.



Delay for days

 

[LordByron]

I role with this config... If you take any one of them out of the equation it just doesn't work.

Now THAT 's my kinda board!

 

[Super Locrian]

Wow, do tell us more, how do you use a setup like this? Any clips available?

I role with this config... If you take any one of them out of the equation it just doesn't work.



Delay for days