Analog Reel to Reel Tape Delay Effect Demonstration

hi there I'm going to show you how to use an old reel-to-reel machine as a tape delay effect it's pretty easy to use all you really need is an old reel-to-reel machine I got this one on Craigslist for about 20 bucks it's an akai gx2 a DD you'll also need a mixer a mixer with an effects send so I have my guitar going into channel 1 on this mixer so my guitar is going into channel 1 and then I have the effects end knob turned up so that is sending the same guitar signal out of the effects send and then I'm running that into the input of my reel-to-reel machine now I'm going to hit record you don't really hear anything different but it the signal coming into from my guitar into the mixer is going onto the tape it's being recorded now so from there I have an another cable coming on the output of the reel-to-reel and that is coming back in to channel 4 on my mixer so let's hear what the output signal coming out of the reel-to-reel machine sounds like it's coming into channel 4 from the output on the reel-to-reel so what's happening the signal that I'm playing is being recorded onto the record head of the reel-to-reel machine and then there's a slight space between the record head and the play head that playhead is what we're hearing on channel 4 and since there's that slight space where the tape moves along the signal gets recorded moves a little bit and half half second later it gets played back into the mixer this is where things get fun on that channel 4 you can turn up that effects end so then the signal coming out of the tape machine will feed back upon itself that's when you get those echoes you can go a little further and you can adjust the EQ on the on that delay signal I like to drop the highs and the lows and boost the mid frequencies this gives you a real lo-fi tapey sound so here's the original trade signal and this is what it sounds like affected and you can turn down make it so it's less intense by just turning down that channel for a little bit get to feedback on itself and create kind of a oscillating effect another thing most tape machines have more than one speed on this machine there are two speeds some machines have three four speeds actually but this one has two and so I'm on seven and a half inches per second now then I'll switch it to three and three-quarters that's a slower so that's what sounded like on guitar let's hear it sounds like on voice so I'm back on yeah seven and a half inch per second speed so that would be that that slapback echo sound that Sam Phillips and some records used on done every recording pretty much it all started with reel-to-reel machines in this exact set up and starting in the early 50s they wanted to recreate the sound of alive space well recording in a small studio another cool variation is to take that reel-to-reel delay signal coming in to my channel for hear and adjusting the pan knob putting the signal to either the right or the left you may create a more Spacey kind of feel here it is straight down the middle here it is to the right all right go get yourself a reel-to-reel make your own delay effect nothing sweeter than analog tape delay especially on synthesizers sounds amazing on an analog synth but don't overuse the delay effect use it tastefully right

Channel: tooleyoclock

Views: 128,601

Keywords: Reel to reel, analog, analogue, effect, delay, echo, space, sun records, sam phillips, elvis, johnny cash, Vintage, 1970s, DIY, Studio, recording, gear, retro

Id: QXNoUHdFyrQ

Length: 6min 0sec (360 seconds)

Published: Fri Feb 19 2016