Best Delay Pedals: 15 of our favourites
15th Mar 2012 | 16:30
DigiTech Hardwire DL8
Delay is one of the most versatile effects you can add to your pedal board. Here we feature 15 of the best delay pedals garnered from the archives, our playing experience and the boards of the pros.
From a straightforward echo to brain melting reverse psychedelia, you can use delay to add texture, depth and creativity to your playing. We reckon these stompboxes have all the bases covered, no-matter what style of music you play.
DigiTech Hardwire DL8
MSRP: £129
The Looper part of this pedal is a gas. Stomp on the pedal, play a riff or chord sequence and the DL8 will play it back to you while you solo over the top. We played with that for hours. We also loved the Beatle-esque reverse delay.
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Moog MF-104Z Analog Delay
Moog MF-104Z Analog Delay
MSRP: £449
The MF-104 makes use of ultra-rare Bucket Brigade chips that are no longer produced. TG was impressed with the awesome delay swells, and multiple signal outputs, but it comes at a price. Like other pedals in the MF range, the 104 can be controlled by an expression pedal.
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DigiTech TimeBender
DigiTech TimeBender
MSRP: £316
DigiTech has brought a truly innovative, musical delay processor into the arena. Regardless of the style of music you play, all of the delay sounds you need are present here, and the features housed within this sturdy metal box open up a world of possibilities to create exciting new sounds.
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Vox Satriani Time Machine
Vox Satriani Time Machine
MSRP: £149
If you crave creative uses of delay like reverse or dynamic modes, then the Time Machine might not cut it. But delay doesn’t have to be genre specific: shredders can give girth to their solos; post rock fans can get ethereal with some long lo-fi repeats; and techheads can create choppy rhythmical effects. The Time Machine does the lot.
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Electro Harmonix Deluxe Memory Boy
Electro Harmonix Deluxe Memory Boy
MSRP: £125
The Deluxe Memory Boy has all the features you could need from an analogue delay pedal, and then some. If you just want a straight echo effect with no added frills, you could save yourself some cash and go for the Memory Toy instead. However, the amount of experimentation and control that’s on offer from the Deluxe Memory Boy means that you can really get stuck in. We love it.
Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Memory Boy review
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Mad Professor Deep Blue
Mad Professor Deep Blue
MSRP: £179
The high-end Finnish manufacturer usually favours a hand-wired approach to pedal-building but, having switched to printed circuit board wiring in an attempt to reduce costs, it’s somehow succeeded in pairing down the price without jeopardising quality. With a vintage-style warmth, the Deep Blue is definitely one for the fans of classic tape-delays.
Mad Professor Deep Blue review
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Boss DD-3
Boss DD-3
MSRP: £99
You won’t mind repeating yourself with this cracking delay pedal. It can help you to play guitar with yourself, too: play a phrase, hit ‘hold’ and play over your own backing. From 50s rockabilly ‘slapback’ echo to U2-style soundscapes, the DD-3 can do it all.
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Line 6 DL-4
Line 6 DL-4
MSRP: £219
We’ve seen this stompbox on more famous-types' pedalboards than you can shake a Les Paul at. Nowadays Line 6 is by no means the only name in the guitar industry taking digital effects and modelling seriously, but it's still got a formidable reputation when it comes to stompbox emulation and the DL-4 certainly holds its own.
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MXR Carbon Copy
MXR Carbon Copy
MSRP: £195
Another ‘modern classic’ beloved by pros and amateurs alike, the Carbon Copy is an analogue delay pedal in the old school sense. Rather than just emulating the classic models, MXR gives you the tools to put your own twist on them.
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Boss RE-20 Space Echo
Boss RE-20 Space Echo
MSRP: £209
Mention Roland’s original RE-201 Space Echo in a recording studio and you’ll be met with hushed tones of respect and eyes cast to the sky in contemplative praise. Boss’ RE-20 digitally emulates that sizeable box of analogue tricks, but won’t put your back out when you’re unloading the van.
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DigiTech JamMan Delay
DigiTech JamMan Delay
MSRP: £387
There are a lot of delay pedals out there that dip a toe into the looping world, but DigiTech has neatly side-stepped the competition by creating a pedal that combines a full stereo looper with a full stereo delay.
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TC Electronic Flashback
TC Electronic Flashback
MSRP: £125
The Flashback brandishes 40 seconds delay time in mono and 20 seconds in stereo, you can overdub parts to your heart’s content and the Tone Print function lets you download artist presets from the TC Electronic website. It’s an impressive array of features – compact, high-spec’d and a joy to explore.
TC Electronic Flashback review
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Blackstar HT-Delay
Blackstar HT-Delay
MSRP: £199
The HT-Delay is a cracking bit of kit. It has all the delay capabilities to suit any guitar player from rockabilly effects to electro soundscapes, and the valve is likely to be a magnet for traditionalists. You should add the HT-Delay to your must-try list.
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T-Rex Reptile 2
T-Rex Reptile 2
MSRP: £230
T-Rex has developed a reputation for stompboxes as formidable as its namesake and the Reptile 2, its more affordable delay option (the Replica being the flagship), is no exception. True-bypass, an easy to use layout and a surprisingly versatile range of classic sounds.
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Way Huge Aqua Puss MK II
Way Huge Aqua Puss MK II
MSRP: £229
Another affordable ‘update’ of a classic design, the Aqua Puss MK II is more faithful than most reproductions, mainly thanks to its use of the original’s circuitry and the involvement of company founder Jeorge Tripps. Audio pioneers may find the 300ms delay a tad limited, but analogue purists will love what it does to their tone.
