How to Choose a Delay Pedal
Delay effects have helped create some of the most memorable guitar tones ever recorded. David Gilmour’s soaring soloes in “Comfortably Numb”, Eddie Van Halen’s larger-than-life lead tone, and The Edge’s signature dotted delays are just a few examples, but listen closely and you’ll hear delay effects all over the place. And there seem to be just as many delay pedals available today as there are recordings that feature them — so if you’re new to the topic, how do you choose your first delay pedal?
Understanding Different Types of Delay Effects
The original delay effects were created using tape loops — old school magnetic tape. Analog technology progressed to the point that a basic delay circuit could be built using transistors, resistors, and capacitors. Technology progressed further, and digital delay devices were developed that removed the analog circuitry from the equation. Each of these three types of delay — tape, analog, and digital — have a distinct sonic character, each with their own musical strengths and weaknesses.
Tape and Tape Emulation Delay Pedals
The sound of tape delay has a lot of character, whether you’re using actual magnetic tape or a modern emulation of tape delay. How tape delay actually works is beyond the scope of this article, but there are three important things to know about tape-style delay effects.
First, delay repeats will lose high frequencies and overall fidelity — this is desirable, and is great if you want a subtle delay that gets out of the way of notes you’re currently playing.
Second, a property of tape delay when you “hit” the tape hard with a strong signal, new harmonic content is created similar to an overdrive effect, adding depth and dimension to your tone.
And third, tape delay can produce “wow” and “flutter”, minor pitch variations that add texture similar to a subtle chorus or vibrato effect. All of this makes tape delay a very characterful effect that will definitely make an impact on your overall tone.
Analog Bucket Brigade Delay Pedals
When you see a delay pedal marketed as a “BBD” delay pedal, that’s the standard type of circuit used when players talk about classic analog delay effects. BBD stands for Bucket Brigade Device, a type of circuit that uses capacitors (and other components) for create the delay effect.
Due to the capacitors, analog BBD delay loses high frequencies on each repeat, creating a darker delay trail that doesn’t compete with what you’re currently playing.
Analog BBD delay can be somewhat limited on the maximum delay time, so don’t expect long multi-second delays with an analog delay pedal. Analog delay excels in the under-500ms range, and is perfect for short slapback echo effects, lead-enhancing trails with just a few repeats, and vintage psychedelic effects when you start turning knobs in real time.
| Delay Type | Analog |
|---|---|
| Delay Modes | n/a |
| Tap Tempo | No |
| Trails | No |
| Extra Features | Modulation |
| Size | 4.8" x 2.8" x 1.3" |
| Delay Type | Analog |
|---|---|
| Delay Modes | n/a |
| Tap Tempo | No |
| Trails | No |
| Extra Features | n/a |
| Size | 3.7" x 2" x 1.7" |
Digital Delay Pedals
Digital delay effects pedals use some type of digital signal processing to create delay effects, and have some advantages if you’re looking for a transparent delay effect that won’t change your core tone.
With no analog circuitry to distort your signal, whatever you plug in is what you hear on the way out. And because digital delay doesn’t degrade or become darker as the repeats progress, the result is a crystal-clear delay trail.
A notable characteristic of digital delay pedals is that you can change the delay time in realtime as you play without changing the pitch. If you’re new to delay pedals, you may not realize that analog and tape delays will change in pitch if you manipulate the delay time.
We’ll admit it’s a niche application, but if you want to reach down while you’re playing and mess with the delay time, it’s important to know — choose a digital delay if you want to be able to tweak delay time without messing with pitch, or choose an analog or tape delay if you do want to introduce some pitch madness to your delay manipulation.
It’s also worth noting that many digital delay pedals feature emulations of analog and tape delays, too. If you’re curious about all of these types of delay, a digital delay pedal with selectable modes would be ideal for you.
| Delay Type | Digital |
|---|---|
| Delay Modes | Digital, Analog, Tape |
| Tap Tempo | Yes |
| Trails | Yes |
| Extra Features | Looper, MIDI, 30 delay types |
| Size | 9.3" x 4.5" x 2" |
Will the Delay Trail Continue When I Switch the Effect Off?
If you’re using your delay pedal for one specific section of a song, you may want the delay trail to decay naturally when you switch off the effect to transition to the next song part. Pedal manufacturers all seem to agree on calling this feature “Trails”, which is what you’ll want to look for.
If a pedal doesn’t feature Trails functionality, switching the effect off will completely cut off the delay trail too. If you’re using your delay as an “always on” pedal, Trails probably won’t matter to you.
| Delay Type | Analog |
|---|---|
| Delay Modes | n/a |
| Tap Tempo | Yes |
| Trails | Yes |
| Extra Features | FX loop, Modulation, Momentary Switches |
| Size | 5" x 4.7" x 2.2" |
Tap Tempo — Do You Need It?
Tap tempo is a feature on delay pedals that allows you to tap a button or footswitch to the beat of your music, so that the delays are synchronized with the tempo of the song.
If you want to tempo-sync your delay pedal, you may wonder why anyone wouldn’t want tap tempo. Well, if you’re a country player that needs slapback echo, you don’t need tempo sync. And if you use short delay with only a couple repeats to enhance leads and soloes, sometimes a non-synced delay will create more depth and interest than a synced delay.
In most cases, if you’re looking for your first delay pedal, tap tempo is a big benefit. It’s simply more fun to explore the potential of delay effects when they’re synced to what you’re playing. But just know that you can still create great delay effects without tap tempo — players did it for decades, after all.
| Delay Type | Digital |
|---|---|
| Delay Modes | Analog, Digital, Tape |
| Tap Tempo | Yes |
| Trails | Yes |
| Extra Features | TonePrint App, MASH footswitch |
| Size | 3.7" x 1.9" x 19" |
| Delay Type | Digital |
|---|---|
| Delay Modes | Digital, Analog, Reverse |
| Tap Tempo | Yes |
| Trails | Yes |
| Extra Features | Time Divisions |
| Size | 4.8" x 2.4" x 2.3" |
Delay Effects Pedals — What Do These Knobs Do?
There’s a wide range of delay pedals on the market, some with only a few knobs and some others that look like they could launch a rocket ship. Any delay pedal is going to have the same basic controls available (in addition to any interesting extras), so let’s look at the controls you’d expect to find on any delay pedal and what they do.
Pedal manufacturers use a wide range of terms for these, so we’ll try to include the most common examples you’ll run into.
- Delay (Time) — this controls the amount of time between repeats (if the pedal offers Tap Tempo, using it will override the Delay control, and vice versa).
- Feedback (Regeneration) — this controls how many repeats you hear. Minimum settings usually create only one repeat, maximum settings can sometimes reach self-oscillation, or a never-ending delay trail.
- Mix (Effect Level) — this controls the balance of your original guitar signal with the delays. Usually, setting this knob at the 12 o’clock position will result in a 50/50 blend of your dry signal and the delays.
- Modulation (Chorus/Vibrato) — some delay effects have a button or a knob that introduces modulation into your signal, adding a touch of shimmer that may or may not be appropriate for your music.
Tap Tempo — this allows you to tap to the beat of your music, syncing the delay time with the song. This is much faster (and more accurate) than trying to adjust the delay time control to manually sync to the tempo.
| Delay Type | Analog |
|---|---|
| Delay Modes | n/a |
| Tap Tempo | Yes |
| Trails | No |
| Extra Features | FX loop, Modulation, Time Divisions |
| Size | 5.8" x 4.8" x 2.5" |
Filters, Dynamic Delay, and Other Exotic Features
We’ve covered the basics of delay, and what you’ll find out in the wild is that a lot of manufacturers have gone well beyond the basics. We’ve already mentioned delay pedals that can create modulation like chorus and vibrato too. You’ll also find delay pedals with filters on the delay line, built-in step sequencers to change parameters as you play, and even built-in effects loops to apply other effects pedals to only the delay trail. In other words, there are a lot of exotic delay pedals out there, but at their core they will most likely offer basic workhorse delay effects too.
| Delay Type | Digital |
|---|---|
| Delay Modes | Digital, Analog, Tape |
| Tap Tempo | Yes |
| Trails | Yes |
| Extra Features | Looper, MIDI, 12 delay types, Filter, Grit |
| Size | 6.8" x 5.1" x 2.7" |
Wondering where you should place your delay pedal in your effects signal chain? Placement makes a huge difference in your overall sound — Check out our video Effect Pedal Order Explained.
- Introduction
- Understanding Different Types of Delay Effects
- Tape and Tape Emulation Delay Pedals
- Analog Bucket Brigade Delay Pedals
- Digital Delay Pedals
- Will the Delay Trail Continue When I Switch the Effect Off?
- Tap Tempo — Do You Need It?
- Delay Effects Pedals — What Do These Knobs Do?
- Filters, Dynamic Delay, and Other Exotic Features
