NAMM 2016: Maintenance-Free Tape-Echo by Dunlop
Lots of guitarists out there would love to experiment with an old-school tape echo. You know, those warm, analogue 60s-70s delays, brought about by a tape recorder with all sorts of fascinating controls. Unfortunately, there are no free rides in this world. The price of a (secondhand) tape recorder, if you can find one, is often astronomical, not to mention the costs of the cartridges and maintenance. So, Dunlop launched the EP103 Echoplex.
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Legendary tape-echo
The Dunlop Echoplex is not just any old imitation of the legendary EP-3 Echoplex. First of all, it features the same controls as the original - Sustain, Volume and Delay - but all compiled into one compact stompbox. Use Sustain to determine the number of echos, Volume to adjust the loudness, and Delay to alter the acceleration time. The latter ranges from 4 to 750 milliseconds, but can even get up to 4 seconds if you use the separately available MXR M199 Tap Tempo Switch, which functions with just about any delay pedal thanks to its adjustable tip/ring configuration.
Age mode
What lots of musicians want to avoid is an effects pedal that sounds too clean and clinical. With this pedal, you have nothing to fear. Simply push in the volume button to activate the Age function and enjoy the characteristic tape echo sounds of yesteryear! In this mode, you can use the volume control to determine the amount of aging in both the machine and the cassette. Incidentally, the dry signal is kept completely analogue with a relatively high amount of headroom (20 volts). All in all, this attractive Phase 90-size pedal that will reproduce those delectable echo tape sounds without the hassle and cost of an actual tape recorder.
Keep a close eye on the product pages for up-to-date information on availability and pricing.
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