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Like many others I have most of the delays mentioned however I find that the PSP 608 seems to have the longest delay times for use with vocal effect. I agree that the delays that are found in Dp can get the job done but the eventide sounds more natural and smooth and of course the are others but I have to say the Roland SDE Delay unit is my favorite(hardware).

mhschmieder wrote:Where are the delays in the Eventide plugs? I just checked their website and don't see any. I'll be launching DP shortly though, so I'll recheck Ultraverb. I don't remember it having Delays, and Ultrachannel looks like a channel strip.

There is a Delay module on the UltraReverb that can be toggled On or Off, or Pre, or Post

monkey man wrote:Oh, and I think the delay is in the UltraChannel plug. Haven't tried it yet, but I seem to recall someone's saying something about this. I'm probably wrong 'though, 'cause I'd expect a delay to typically be in a 'verb plug; I mean, it's "crude" 'verb after all, algorithmically speaking.

Then again, a precision delay is arguably a channel utility, and it could be an extension of that...

Yep, both the Eventide UltraChannel and UltraReverb have Delay modules included Monkster.

billf wrote:
There is a Delay module on the UltraReverb that can be toggled On or Off, or Pre, or Post

Interesting. I don't have the reverb, so I was unaware. As far as placement of the delay in UltraChannel, that entire plug is modular and the order of effects can be changed simply by dragging a module to another part of the interface (you probably know this already, but I thought I'd mention it in case it would help someone else).

Oh, thanks; I never realized the Delay Module could be effectively used as a standalone delay sans reverb! It's probably in the user manual, but I've bought so many plug-ins these past six months that I haven't had time to dig into all of the associated documentation except for a few of them so far.

Given how well the Delay Module of Ultraverb works in the context of their reverbs, it would not surprise me if it also serves as one of the best Delay plug-ins on its own. I find Ultraverb to be the easiest-to-mix reverb on the market right now. It's pretty hard to get bad results with it.

Interesting about Ultrachannel; I thought that delay was likely for correcting phase/timing issues. Sometimes I download manuals of products I don't own (when available) to study what they can do. This often helps me decide whether to buy a product. Looks like I may need to put that one on my list, for its interesting combination an d routine flexibility.

I corrected my post for "Replika" vs. "Reflektor". I easily get confused by Native Instruments produkt names.

mhschmieder wrote:Oh, thanks; I never realized the Delay Module could be effectively used as a standalone delay sans reverb! It's probably in the user manual, but I've bought so many plug-ins these past six months that I haven't had time to dig into all of the associated documentation except for a few of them so far.

Given how well the Delay Module of Ultraverb works in the context of their reverbs, it would not surprise me if it also serves as one of the best Delay plug-ins on its own. I find Ultraverb to be the easiest-to-mix reverb on the market right now. It's pretty hard to get bad results with it.

Here's the description of the Delay from the UltraReverb manual:

3.5 Delay Section
As mentioned previously, this plug-in offers two independent delay lines with filtering. Use them as straight delays or add filtering for use as echo effects. Delays can be routed pre-reverb, post-reverb, or completely bypassed using the on/off switch in the top right corner of the delay section. The 6 parameters are defined below in groups of two (left and right) to reduce redundancy.

3.5.1 Delay Pre/Post/Off
Pre or Post determines whether the delayed signal is added to the signal path before or after the reverb algorithm. It is never in series with the reverb, only added in parallel before or after (See Figure 3.2). Turning delay off is equivalent to setting Delay Level to -infinity.

I'll mention it since it hasn't been: I use Waves SuperTap a lot. It sounds good, has plenty of depth (individual EQ on each tap, feedback percentage, placement of each delay on a panning stage, etc), and runs lean on the CPU.

Again, to clarify, to get only Delay in the Ultrareverb, make sure the little power button is on and is set to 'Post'. I was a little confused on this the other day as I had it in 'Pre' and the Delay turned off when I turned off the Reverb. Played with it for quite a while yesterday. Quite versatile and lovely sounding.

I also put it at the end of a chain after the new Waves Butch Vig Vocals plug (no effects but extensive EQ, Distortion, and filtering) and the Manny Marroquin Delay (which also has Reverb, Doubler, Phaser, and Distortion). Pinning the processor with just a few more plugs and Stylus and Omnisphere, but wow what possibilities!

I'm not in front of the computer right now, but I am a delay nut, a few off the top of my head:

- Rob Papen delay (great sound and flexibility, but I hate their preset browsing)
- Fab Filter Timeless (takes some effort to understand their UI, but if you want complex delays...)
- U-He More Feedback Machine (the name says it all)
- Waves Super Tap (simple, yummy)
- Artificial Audio Obelisk and Quartz (not really 'delays' in the traditonal sense, but think multi-mode filter/delay/etc.)

Edit: Eventide Blackhole

I forgot about Eventide Blackhole. I think I downloaded a demo a few years ago and ran out of time before it expired. Their website is a bit intimidating at times, but I'll have another go at it, as I'm curious to get a better understanding of their product tiers.

mhschmieder wrote:I forgot about Eventide Blackhole. I think I downloaded a demo a few years ago and ran out of time before it expired. Their website is a bit intimidating at times, but I'll have another go at it, as I'm curious to get a better understanding of their product tiers.

Here's the link for Blackhole

http://www.eventide.com/AudioDivision/P ... khole.aspx

Eventide's Blackhole is a weird beast.

Great for long delays with long trails, not so much for rhythmic stuff.
(At least not compared to my other delays.)

I often put it on something, play around with it, then end up going with a 'verb instead.

If you want spacey, big cavernous sounds, then Blackhole is for you, simpler sounds don't seem to be its forte.

Of course, that could be just my own use so far...

I use Echoboy, Blue Tubes Oilcan delay, PSP 42 and UAD's Echoplex and Cooper Time Cube.

Hey, I'm just curious about the under-the-hood things that make these delays different, i.e., one better than another.

Setting aside the fact that all delays basically do one thing: i.e., repeat the input-- what are the other kinds of qualities that you look for in a delay?

For example, there are tape & tube saturation emulations which might bandpass and distort the taps and perhaps add some wow. And some offer smear/diffusion to blur transients. Some have various filters. Some offer feedback networks that can add taps to specific taps. And panning, to localize various taps (and taps of taps) in the panorama.

Other factors might include a nice UI, and ability to adjust in a range/resolution that is useful.

But with the sound itself, are there other factors that can be identified-- you know beyond, "warmth" "girth" "air" "shimmer" "sparkle" "envelopment" etc.?