Red Witch Violetta Delay review

Retro delay in a modern stompbox

  • £120
  • $159
By Trevor Curwen
( Guitarist )
published
Three tiny knobs adjust the standard delay pedal parameters

MusicRadar Verdict

A delay pedal that shines in more ways than one.

Pros

  • +

    Plenty of retro delay range. Expression pedal link.

Cons

  • -

    Lithium battery requires replacing after two years.

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The Violetta is the first in the new Chrome series from NZ company Red Witch and offers the same footprint and rechargeable lithium battery system (300 hours from a charge or use a 9v adapter) as the firm's popular Seven Sisters range.

"Red Witch has voiced the Violetta for a retro sound with the top end rolling off the repeats as they decay"

Three tiny knobs adjust the standard delay pedal parameters of wet/dry mix, delay time and number of repeats (also adjustable via an expression pedal), while a fourth adjusts modulation.

Red Witch has voiced the Violetta for a retro sound with the top end rolling off the repeats as they decay: this beds in nicely with the guitar tone and sounds great.

There's plenty of range here: everything from slapback up to a full one-second delay, and the modulation knob adds a touch of tape-echo-esque pitch wobble.

The expression pedal is a great idea for controlling your repeats and bringing in self-oscillation dub effects, but you may need an adaptor or a special lead, as the socket is a mini-jack.

A very nice-sounding and versatile delay pedal, with the added advantage of its compact size.

Trevor Curwen

Trevor Curwen has played guitar for several decades – he's also mimed it on the UK's Top of the Pops. Much of his working life, though, has been spent behind the mixing desk, during which time he has built up a solid collection of the guitars, amps and pedals needed to cover just about any studio session. He writes pedal reviews for Guitarist and has contributed to Total Guitar, MusicRadar and Future Music among others.