Delay

Delay, like reverb, is another effect used to add space, width and depth to a sound or a whole mix, when combined or mixed with the original sound. Delay, unlike reverb, is typically one or more distinct echoes or repeats of the original sound, rather than a decaying of the original sound. There are many different types of delays, which can make selecting and using the right delay a little difficult. To help make things easier we have created the following guide to help you on your journey for the perfect delay sound.

In the technical sense, delay is the simple act of taking the original sound and storing it in memory, or on tape, for a predetermined amount of time before playing it back. In the effect sense, the delayed sound is normally combined or mixed with the original sound to produce an echo type of effect, although it typically consists of one or more filtered repeats of the original sound, with the highest and lowest frequencies attenuated or removed to provide a more natural sounding echo, much like the typical echo that you would experience in the real world. Delay is classified as a time based effect, as is reverb. Most delay effects also allow some or all of the delayed sound to be fed-back into the delay input, resulting in multiple repeats that can be made to persist or fade away over time. Some of the different types of delays that are available are:

• Echo: Typically a repeat of the original sound that occurs fifty milliseconds to one second after the original sound is heard.
• Slap Delay: Typically a repeat of the original sound that occurs fifty milliseconds to two hundred milliseconds after the original sound is heard, also known as a slap-back echo, and was commonly used on early rock 'n' roll music.
• Ping Pong Delay: Typically two or more repeats of the original sound, where the odd repeats and even repeats are panned to opposite sides of the stereo spectrum.
• Doubling: Typically makes use of a twenty five millisecond delay with a single repeat, with the original sound and the delayed sound each panned to opposite sides of the stereo spectrum, causing the sound to become fuller across the stereo spectrum. This can be a good effect to use if you have a mono recording that you wish to give more of a stereo feel to.
• Granular Delay: An effect that is quite different from typical delays, where the original sound is chopped up into small grains, with each grain being delayed by a different amount of time, which causes an effect somewhere between a typical delay and a typical reverb. Some granular delays also allow each grain to be panned and / or pitched up or down independently of the others.

Delay effects are not only a good way to add space and depth to a sound, but can also be a good way to add a rhythmic feel to a sound or whole mix by setting the delay time to match the tempo of the track. For example, if you have a track that has a 120 BPM tempo you would use a 0.5 second (500 millisecond) delay time to get a repeat on every beat, or 0.25 second (250 millisecond) delay time for every half-beat. To figure this out, use the below formula:

Delay Time (in seconds) = 60 / Tempo (in BPM)

Most delay effects typically provide a number of common controls or parameters, which we have outlined below:

• Delay Time: The time between the original sound and the first repeat, usually measured in milliseconds or seconds. Most effects plug-ins and some hardware delay units allow the delay time to be automatically synchronized to the track tempo to allow you to create a more rhythmic feel, without the hassle of having to manually calculate the delay time.

• Feedback: Controls how much of the delayed sound is internally fed back into the input of the delay effect, allowing for multiple delayed repeats that either persist (high feedback level) or fade away over time (low feedback level).

• Dry / Wet or Mix: Determines how much of the delayed sound versus the original sound is output from the plug-in or effects unit. When using the delay on an auxiliary return channel you would set the delay to 100% wet and use the channel's fader level to control the amount of delay.

There is no hard and fast rule as to which delay you should use in any situation, or how you should use it. Feel free to experiment with different delay types and parameter levels to see what sort of sounds you can achieve.