Questions about delay pedals

I'm getting rid of my effects processor and going with all pedal effects and I'm currently in the market for a delay pedal.
Ideally, I'd like to find one with two foot switches that would enable me to program two presets.
If not, then what is good and reasonably priced?
Or is it even possible to get a good one at a reasonable price?

Also, is it best to run the pedals through the effects loop (mine is parallel) or in front of the amp?
And finally, in what order should I arrange my pedals? These are what I now have ...
EVH Phaser
MXR Chorus
Morley Wah
Digitech Whammy Pedal
Delay (coming soon)

Dino. said:

I'm getting rid of my effects processor and going with all pedal effects and I'm currently in the market for a delay pedal.
Ideally, I'd like to find one with two foot switches that would enable me to program two presets.
If not, then what is good and reasonably priced?
Or is it even possible to get a good one at a reasonable price?

Click to expand...

The first one that comes to my mind is the Boss DD-20. I don't have one, but I know it has 2 pedals. If it's anything like the DD-7 or better, it's a pretty awesome delay with lots of features.

Dino. said:

Also, is it best to run the pedals through the effects loop (mine is parallel) or in front of the amp?

Click to expand...

There are no hard and fast "rules". For example, it's generally accepted that OD/fuzz/distortion and wah pedals go up front, between the guitar and the amp, while most everything else goes in the loop. This is especially true with modulation/delay/reverb; most people prefer them in the loop with reverb last, delay in front of reverb. EQ is more of an even split it seems; I like my EQ in the loop, but lots of people like theirs up front, before their OD. These are just "accepted" practices, though. Lots of people "go against the grain" because they like how it sounds; some like their OD or fuzz after delay, etc.. The bottom line is to put them where you think they sound best.

Dino. said:

And finally, in what order should I arrange my pedals? These are what I now have ...
EVH Phaser
MXR Chorus
Morley Wah
Digitech Whammy Pedal
Delay (coming soon)

Click to expand...

I don't know what that Whammy pedal is/does, but I would put the wah up front, and then in the loop I would go Chorus-->Phaser-->Delay.

Thank you!

I don't know what that Whammy pedal is/does

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I love my whammy pedal and use it on most songs. "Head" from "Korn" used the whammy about the best. It has some of the most innovative sounds ever created plus some traditional sounds. I have the whammy on the front end, right before my Digital delay and after my wah pedal. I like my delay before the pre-amp in most cases and I always have the wah/whammy, front end. I like a boost in the loop on my Mark III but my Marshall loves the boost in the front, after the delay, I haven't any choice with that one, no loop. I've been experimenting with a TS-9 and a TC electronics mojo-mojo before the wah for classic rock to give me a different clean tone and more range for the wah. When I play at high gain on the Mark III, the front end boost only adds mud, where as the boost in the loop gives more volume.

Well, I ended up buying an MXR Carbon Copy but my DR doesn't like it.
It's barely noticible in the effects loop and is extremely limited, so I'm selling it.

I'm now looking at the TC Electronics "Flashback".
It has tons of options and can be configured to run 100% wet (no dry signal).
All other features aside, I'm thinking this option will allow it to "play nice" in the effects loop.
I really like the Flashback X4 but it would just take up too much space on my pedalboard.

Dino. said:

Well, I ended up buying an MXR Carbon Copy but my DR doesn't like it.
It's barely noticible in the effects loop and is extremely limited, so I'm selling it.

Click to expand...

Don't DRs have adjustments for FX send/return level or a mix adjustment along with an activation switch for FX loop on each channel? Something to check into if you haven't already. What you describe sounds kind of odd.

KiwiJoe said:

Dino. said:

Well, I ended up buying an MXR Carbon Copy but my DR doesn't like it.
It's barely noticible in the effects loop and is extremely limited, so I'm selling it.

Click to expand...

Don't DRs have adjustments for FX send/return level or a mix adjustment along with an activation switch for FX loop on each channel? Something to check into if you haven't already. What you describe sounds kind of odd.

Click to expand...

My DR has a parallel effect loop.
I have both "send"and "mix" controls turned all the way up but the delay is still buried in the mix.
I've tried placing the delay in different positions of my effects chain and it doesn't help.
Again, I find the Carbon Copy very limited anyway so I just assume replace it with the Flashback.

Hey Dino - I know you're looking for a moderately priced delay, but man you should check out the strymon el cap. It is a tweeker's dream come true. I've owned a ton of delay pedals over my 18 years of playing (boss, TC, digitech, maxon, etc.) and the el cap is by far the best sounding I've ever used. To me, it's worth the extra coin because crappy delays just really sound, well crappy. Best of all, it's true bypass so it won't color your tone. Also, you can purchase an external "favorite switch" for $50 that works as a preset button.

Here's a pic of my current board:



As you can see, I love strymon pedals!

Have a qualified tech modify the crappy parallel loop into a groovy serial effects loop. Pedals in the loop will work much better.

KiwiJoe said:

Dino. said:

Well, I ended up buying an MXR Carbon Copy but my DR doesn't like it.
It's barely noticible in the effects loop and is extremely limited, so I'm selling it.

Click to expand...

Don't DRs have adjustments for FX send/return level or a mix adjustment along with an activation switch for FX loop on each channel? Something to check into if you haven't already. What you describe sounds kind of odd.

Click to expand...

What he described is not odd, it's exactly what has to be done for most pedals to work in Mesas old shitty parallel fx loops. There's a reason they dropped them in the new reborn rectos and switched over to serial loops. Parallel loops suck. Thankfully TC is kind enough to offer a killdry feature, other manufacturers aren't so kind.