Guitar FX basics: What is digital delay?

Delay pedals have several controls and are extremely versatile
Delay pedals have several controls and are extremely versatile

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Getting to grips with guitar effects can be a complicated business and there are so many different types that it can be difficult to know where to start. This Guitar FX basics series of video lessons is a brief introduction to the most common effects.

This video lesson focuses on digital delay. Delay works by adding a copy of the guitar signal to the original, unaffected ‘dry´ signal after pausing for a certain amount of time. The resulting effect sounds like a sort of echo. Delay pedals also allow you ‘repeat´ the copy of the signal so that more than one echo is heard. To hear how this sounds, check out this video below.

A typical digital delay pedal has a different sound to its historical predecessor, the Tape Echo; check out our Guitar FX basics video on Tape Echo to hear the difference.