What I'd really love to build...

[HamishR]

...is a delay with 3-4 presets I could program. It's probably beyond my capabilities but I always find that programmable delays are somehow lacking. The Boss DD500 has a thin sound and some (small amount of) tone suck. The Strymon Timeline is probably the best I have tried but strangely I find the sounds uninspiring and I want something smaller. Currently I have an EBS Retracer and it's not bad. I would prefer the sockets on top of course - and it would just be so cool to have something I had built myself, seeing as my dirt pedals and amp are all home-built.

How difficult would a delay with presets be to build? It's out of my league, isn't it??

 

[phi1]

I agree this would be awesome. I’m not up on my pic/attiny programming yet, but I imagine something like this could be accomplished with fv-1 and a pic or attiny controlling the modes and the parameter controls. One challenge off the top of my head with the fv-1 is there’s only 3 digital parameters. Of course mix, feedback, and filter could be done analog, but this means they’d be really tricky to preset. If we just did digital controls, you’d be limited to just time, feedback, and mix, so that wouldn’t be ideal

 

[HamishR]

I think I have to admit defeat on this one. I have rather a lot of delay pedals anyway - in fact I still have an Ibanez PDM-1 I bought new in Hong Kong in 1988 because you couldn't buy it where I live back then. It was the first programmable delay pedal that I know of - in a plastic casing with a LCD display. The plastic casing has lasted all these years and countless gigs.

 

[Robert]

It could happen... It's not impossible.

The build itself wouldn't be any worse than any other FV-1 based design, but there's a lot to consider on the development side.

 

[HamishR]

I don't need fancy. I don't need modulated echoes, don't care for the "shimmer" effect at all, don't need tape emulation or tap tempo... I just like a big fat clear sounding delay. If it had a bass and a treble cut as trimmers inside that could be a bonus.

With delay my main focus is that the original signal stays as true as possible. TC Electronic are very good at this which is why I like the Flashback Delays. I've tried loads of delays - Carbon Copy, the Dunlop Echoplex, Boss DM2 Waza (which sounds awesome!)... Actually I've tried most! But the key failing is that they all have tone-suck. I use only a couple of pedals so it's really noticeable.

I have been really impressed with the Pedal PCB delays and reverbs I have built.

Actually that's the other thing I'd love to build - A Pedal PCB delay which could fit in a 1590B with top-mounted jacks. Just a simple delay (ok, maybe with tone trimmers) but just one sound - a basic, clear delay, like the 2290 setting on the Flashback.

 

[BurntFingers]

That's pretty much the disaster transport jr clone they have available. Easy great sounding delay with a tone control to affect the repeats.

 

[HamishR]

Oh I meant to add using the FV-1. I've built a few PT2399 delays and they're cool but I like the sound of the FV-1 better.

 

[Nostradoomus]

I take one look at the effort this guy put it into this kinda thing and I am immediately checked out haha

Time Lord Programmable Delay

Time Lord Programmable Delay

www.diystompboxes.com

 

[HamishR]

Oh man! That's crazy! I like making Vero layouts but that would have made my head explode.