MusicRadar Verdict

There's no denying that this is one of the best-sounding and most exciting digital delays we've used in some time, and we can't help but recommend it.

Pros

+
Superb digital emulations of analogue sounds. Perfect for atmospherics. Degrade knob is a great feature.

Cons

-
Tap tempo control is laborious. Reverse mode is wet-signal-only.

MusicRadar's got your back Our team of expert musicians and producers spends hours testing products to help you choose the best music-making gear for you. Find out more about how we test.

As well as being a robust and good-looking compact delay pedal, the Obscura is inventive, too.

The concept is thus: four delay types - analogue, tape, lo-fi and reverse - are manipulated via tone and degrade controls (the latter changes depending on delay type).

"The analogue sounds are up there with the best digital emulations we've heard"

The repeat hold function is a great addition: set the repeats control below three o'clock, get the delay going, then twist it to max.

The delay signal now repeats infinitely, and your guitar signal is unaffected, leaving you to play over it, or alter the repeats for pitch-bending insanity - perfect for atmospheric intros and outros.

The tones themselves are brilliant, too: the analogue sounds are up there with the best digital emulations we've heard, and there are warm digital repeats to be had from the lo-fi setting, which apes early digital delays.

The Obscura isn't perfect: the 'hold footswitch for three seconds' tap tempo is somewhat laborious, the reverse mode is wet-signal-only, and there's more versatility available elsewhere at this price.

However, fussy echo fans will love the ability to tweak the tone, while the degrade knob dials in just enough rough, as it saturates, grits, wows and flutters the repeats.

Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism, and has spent the past decade writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as a decade-and-a-half performing in bands of variable genre (and quality). In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.

“It's rare to encounter a song from the last 70 years that doesn’t involve it in some way”: Why reverb is one of the most reliable effects in a producer's arsenal

“All the albums I did with Metallica were recorded on 24-track analogue tape. There’s not a computer in sight”: How Flemming Rasmussen produced Metallica’s classic Master Of Puppets

“We could see John begin smiling. At the end of the first verse, he gave an exuberant thumbs-up and McCartney and Harrison began slapping each other on the back”: How one Beatles track spawned a recording technique revolution

See more latest