What’s the Best Reverb or Delay Pedal for Me? |
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Reverb and delay pedals are popular bits of kit for giving the sound of a guitar more depth and atmosphere - these pedals basically bring the vibe. Here, we explain the difference between these two essential effects and how to pick your way through the hundreds upon hundreds of reverbs and delays that are out there so you can find the right spacious or echoing sound to fit your style. Want to know more? Feel free to reach out. Differences | Reverb | Reverb Settings | Delays | Analogue/Digital | Delay Settings | Reverb + Delay? | Power | More 1. What’s the Difference Between a Reverb and Delay?You might not always hear it, but when any sound is made, it hits and bounces back off any surface in the room or environment. This ‘bouncing back’ is referred to as echo and is always heard a little bit later or even much later than the original sound. This echoing effect is used a lot in recording studios to make instruments or vocals sound bigger and more spacious and to give the music a specific atmosphere. Basically, reverb and delay are both a form of this echo effect. The difference between delay and reverb is that, with a delay, perfect repeats of the original sound are echoed back. The repeats get quieter and quieter, just like the echo you would hear back in a big cave when you yell: ‘Hello… lo… lo… lo!’ With a reverb, the repeats are less separated and sort of smudged together, giving the sound a ‘tail’ or trail. A reverb can sound anything like the short echoing you hear when you’re singing in the shower or the grand, overwhelming echoes you hear when you sing in a gigantic cathedral.
2. What Kind of Reverb Effects Are There?The term ‘reverb’ is simply a shortening of the word ‘reverberation’. To create the effect, musicians used to have to play in a room that naturally reverberated the sound - which wasn’t always very practical. Fender was the first company to try to make an electronic reverb effect. The first design featured metal springs that vibrated in response to sound, hence the name ‘spring reverb’. Later, metal plates were used to replace the springs, resulting in the ‘plate reverb’. While these types of reverb never sounded all that realistic, they’re still popular today because they both have their own unique sound. You can hear spring and plate reverb all over surf and rockabilly music from back in the day. In the ‘80s, digital reverbs became popular, which were a little bit better at creating a more realistic reverb sound. Now, a lot of modern reverbs will include settings like room, hall and church, so you can even dictate the ‘size’ of the reverb space. A lot of ambient guitarists love the sound of shimmer reverbs, which also warp the pitch of the reverberated sound to create a more dreamy effect.
3. How Do You Set Up a Reverb Pedal?Using the decay or time controls, you can set how long your reverb trails on for. Then you can make the reverb sound louder or quieter using the mix or balance control. These controls set the level of the original (dry) sound compared to the reverb (wet) sound. Most reverb pedals will also have some kind of EQ or tone control for raising or reducing the higher and lower frequencies, resulting in a deeper and warmer or brighter and more sparkling reverb sound. Almost all reverb pedals will also feature a level control, so you can adjust the total volume of the pedal.
4. What Kind of Delay Effects Are There?There are three main versions of the delay effect: tape, analogue and digital. The first ever delays were physical tape delays that used actual spools of tape, so the original guitar sound was recorded onto the tape and looped round, playing back again and again with a short delay, recreating the echo effect. Tape delays weren’t exactly practical so, in the ‘70s, BBDs (Bucket Brigade Devices) were developed, which made it possible to design an analogue delay that came in a smaller and more user-friendly box. In the ‘80s, alongside digital reverb, the first digital delays appeared which, among other things, made it possible to pack various different kinds of delay into one pedal.
5. What’s Better? Analogue or Digital Delay?Real tape delays, so delays that use physical tape, have a really warm and unique sound - especially because they don’t actually sound perfect. As the tape continuously re-records and loops, every echo sounds a little different and degraded from the last, so it’s a really special effect. Real tape delays are also really expensive. More modern analogue delays, while a little less special than tape-delays, also have a really warm sound and are generally a bit more expensive than digital delays. The main criticism of analogue delays is that the delay time is really short and the setup options are quite limited. Digital delays are generally cheaper and come with more controls, but are maybe not the best choice if you’re looking for something special. However, modern digital delay pedals are so good at imitating older equipment now, you can barely hear any difference from the original.
6. How Do You Set Up a Delay Pedal?With the delay time, or time control, you can set the duration between echoes. Some pedals also feature a tap-tempo switch that you can literally tap along to a beat to match the timing of the repeats to the tempo which makes it much easier to match the rhythm of the delay to the music without having to set and reset the controls. The number of repeats (the length of the delay) is dictated by the feedback or regen (short for regeneration) control. Then you have a level control for setting the total volume of the delay and a mix control for balancing the effect sound with the original sound of your guitar. There are also some really extensive delay pedals, some of which can mix the delay with modulation effects to make the sound even more atmospheric. There are also pedals that have an on-board memory so you can save your favourite settings and call them up later.
7. Can You Use Reverb and Delay at the Same Time?Reverb and delay go really well together. While the delay adds a rhythmic effect, the reverb adds a spacial effects. Most guitarists prefer to place the delay before the reverb, so that the reverb effect is actually applied to the delay, giving them more control over the sound. You can also set them up the other way around and, by placing the reverb before the delay, you get a fuller sound. Just make sure to check the settings for both pedals, because things can quickly get a bit too much. Tip: try using a subtle reverb setting at first before filling it out with the delay. The echoes of delay pedals tend to be less intense than those of reverb pedals, so you can get the atmosphere you want but still hear the individual notes of guitar chords clearly.
8. What Kind of Power Supply Do You Need for a Reverb or Delay Pedal?Most effect pedals don’t come including a power supply, because manufacturers know that they’ll be mounted onto a pedalboard where a number of pedals are all fed from one power supply. You can find out more about pedal power supplies in our dedicated Buyer’s Guide:
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