I never thought I would make a delay, there are just so many of them out there but I just finished up modding and re-housing an Ibanez ADL and the results are nothing short of spectacular. It would be a while but I may have to design a delay in the next year.
It seems that there is no perfect analog delay, although the DM-2 and the Malekko are pretty close. So I set about to make myself a delay I would buy.
1. Increase the delay time past 350ms and still sound halfway decent.
2. Change the feedback control so you can easily find that balance between trailing off and self oscillation to lay down an ambient floor.
3. True bypass
4. Ability to adjust feedback and delay time with my feet and not use an expression pedal.
5. More precise control over the delay time between 200ms and 400ms.
So I got this delay that was damaged in shipping, I gutted it and put it in a 125B enclosure. If anyone else is thinking this is a good idea think again, the board is about 1mm too wide to fit so I took the belt sander to the board.
So after replacing all the caps in the audio path, new op-amp and messing around with the time and feedback controls, I got everything I was after. The delay time is way up there around 500ms but the fidelity drops after about 375ms. Re-capping and new op-amp helped a lot. With the feedback almost maxed and the delay time between 350-400ms it pretty much lays down an ambient floor without trying.
Here is what I put it in......, like all my other work the enclosure is etched. After doing the Starry Night for a customer I thought a bit if Edvard Munch would be perfect for an ambient echo.
Bottom Left pot - Delay Time
Bottom Right pot - Feedback
Top Right pot - effect level.
The eyes are the LED's I did a really cool treatment with them by making a reflector cone inside the pedal and used some clear silicone for aquariums. When I put the LED's in place it squished a bit of the silicone out and made the eyes bulge just a bit and they are squishy.
It seems that there is no perfect analog delay, although the DM-2 and the Malekko are pretty close. So I set about to make myself a delay I would buy.
1. Increase the delay time past 350ms and still sound halfway decent.
2. Change the feedback control so you can easily find that balance between trailing off and self oscillation to lay down an ambient floor.
3. True bypass
4. Ability to adjust feedback and delay time with my feet and not use an expression pedal.
5. More precise control over the delay time between 200ms and 400ms.
So I got this delay that was damaged in shipping, I gutted it and put it in a 125B enclosure. If anyone else is thinking this is a good idea think again, the board is about 1mm too wide to fit so I took the belt sander to the board.
So after replacing all the caps in the audio path, new op-amp and messing around with the time and feedback controls, I got everything I was after. The delay time is way up there around 500ms but the fidelity drops after about 375ms. Re-capping and new op-amp helped a lot. With the feedback almost maxed and the delay time between 350-400ms it pretty much lays down an ambient floor without trying.
Here is what I put it in......, like all my other work the enclosure is etched. After doing the Starry Night for a customer I thought a bit if Edvard Munch would be perfect for an ambient echo.
Bottom Left pot - Delay Time
Bottom Right pot - Feedback
Top Right pot - effect level.
The eyes are the LED's I did a really cool treatment with them by making a reflector cone inside the pedal and used some clear silicone for aquariums. When I put the LED's in place it squished a bit of the silicone out and made the eyes bulge just a bit and they are squishy.
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