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Download Example 1
Fender Strat, Bridge Pickup, Level 3 o'clock, Repeat 3 o'clock, Tone 9 o'clock, Time 1 o'clock. Warp switch engaged on every 4th chord. Warp switch held on last chord to illustrate how the self-oscillation can drive an amplifier.
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Download Example 2
Same settings as above but Time knob is twisted after self-oscillation begins to illustate pitch bending effect.
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Download Example 3
Gibson SG, Bridge Pickup, Level noon, Repeat 2 o'clock, Tone 9 o'clock, Time 1 o'clock. |
| All clips were input into an Electro-Harmonix 44-Magnum power amp feeding an Emperor solid birch 4x12" with Weber C1265s recorded using a Shure SM57.
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Despite qualifying as an ancient relic
in the relative terms of electric guitardom,
the Echoplex tape unit remains
one of the benchmarks for sweet-sounding
delay. Designed by Mike Battle in 1959,
the Echoplex delivers sounds that the most
advanced digital-delay manufacturers are
still trying to emulate with varying degrees
of success. But while the Echoplex gave
players some of the warmest tape delay
tones ever known, it also had an incredible
capacity for weirdness that was, in
many ways, far ahead of its time. With
the introduction of the simple but flexible
Electroman digital-delay pedal, Canadian
effects manufacturer Solid Gold FX demonstrates
an appreciation for both extremes
of the Echoplex’s performance envelope,
and the know-how to make both straightforward
and unusual delay sounds that are
practical and inspiring.
Built For Space Travel
Solid Gold FX makes little effort to conceal
the Electroman’s potential for out-there
sonics. The neon, alien-green-on-black,
LED-inspired graphics give you the sense
this might be an instrument left behind
in an alien abduction (or at least a movie
about one). But the true-bypass Electroman
doesn’t require a degree in astrophysics—it’s
easy to operate and navigate.
There are knobs for Level, which sets
the level of the delayed signal, and Repeat
(otherwise known as feedback), which dials
in the level of an echo relative to its previous
echo. The Tone knob determines the level
of filtering applied to each delay repeat, and
the Time control sets the amount of time
between echoes, which ranges from short
slapback echoes up to 600 ms of delay.
Two footswitches, Bypass and the enticing
Warp switch (which induces a self-oscillation
effect), round out the Electroman’s
controls. In addition to 1/4" input and
output jacks, a 1/4" effects loop jack lets
you add additional textures to the delay via
outboard effects and a TRS Y cable.
Tone Trials
With a Fender Stratocaster in hand, I began
my first investigations of the Electroman’s
capabilities with tweaks of the Tone control.
Rolling off the Tone control darkens successive
repeats by filtering away high frequencies.
As with a vintage tape unit, this makes
each echo progressively less apparent. But
much to the delight of my analog-synth-fixated
ear, it also imparts some qualities of
low-pass filtering that give the Electroman
an individual sonic signature.
Bringing the Tone control up brightens
the delays, but interestingly, I never landed
on a setting that sounded like unfiltered,
mirror-image echoing. There almost
always
seemed to be some sort of tone coloration,
which gives the Electroman’s delayed signal
a singing resonance and pleasing harmonic
richness that lends a cool vintage touch and
helps the Electroman carve out sonic territory
without getting too muddy.
Toying with the Repeat knob reveals
more about the wilder side of the
Electroman. With the Repeat set to three
o’clock, you’ll get an infinitely recurring
signal and anything higher will eventually
self-oscillate. You can keep this effect mellow
and understated, of course. By setting
the Repeat control low and cranking the
Tone control, I was able to achieve a really
convincing 1950s-style slapback echo that
would be great for country and rockabilly.
But inverting the settings of those two
controls gave me a dark and lingering
shoegazey delay that faded very slowly. And
using those settings with the Warp switch
transformed the sound more radically still.
Instead of delicately undulating towards
silence, the echoes gradually become
louder and louder, eventually shrieking
and pounding as if you were concurrently
cranking the repeat and level controls on
an analog or tape delay. And the real beauty
of the Warp switch is that releasing it will
taper the oscillation before it can overwhelm
or destroy a song or your audience’s
eardrums. This produces a natural crashing
wave of sound that is great for transitions
between songs in a performance or punctuating
a solo section.
Sending the Electroman into self-oscillation
does not mean you’ve reached the limit
of the pedal’s possibilities. With the Warp
switch depressed, you can still tweak the
Time control to pitch-bend the oscillations,
creating a cool Doppler effect. And with
the effects loop, you can color the delayed
signal in ways that lend more dimension
than simply placing an overdrive or distortion
in front of a delay.
The Verdict
In terms of features and sounds, the
Electroman is most inspired by vintage tape
delays. As such, it lacks some features that
modern players are accustomed to, such as
tap tempo, stereo output, ultra-long delays,
and expression-pedal control. On the other
hand, the Electroman is delightfully simple
to operate and delivers sweet tone. And
practical features like its effects loop can
extend the pedal’s capabilities in unique
ways. Add the amazingly cool Warp and
self-oscillating feature into the mix,
and you have a delay that may guide you
into some very unexpected realms.
At $225, it’s a little pricier than your
average off-the-shelf, mass-manufactured
delay unit. But the Electroman is not as
expensive as many boutique pedals that
don’t have its sound-warping potential.
And if you’re into custom graphics, there’s
even a one-of-a-kind airbrushing option for
personalizing your pedal. But even if you’re
just looking for a great sounding, handmade,
high-quality stompbox that can also
take you on some less-than-conventional
sonic sojourns, the Electroman is an echo
machine well worth investigating.
Buy if...
you want a less-generic sounding
digital delay with the capability to
deliver unusual oscillation effects.
Skip if...
you need more than 800 ms of
delay, stereo output, expression
pedal control, or tap tempo.
Rating...
