anyone have an opinion of the DD-20 vs TC Nova Delay?

[geoangus]

Having seen the pedal board photos, I remember seeing many DD-20's. I really like the footprint of the Nova, but have been unable to find one local to demo. How do they compare for ease of use? And more importantly, how is it for finding delays similar to the Edge, Belew and Gilmour? Not that I can play like them, but I like trying.

thanks.

[m_lance]

I've no experience with the Nova, but I can say that as of about a year ago, the DD-20 was the best delay for the money available today (it can be had for $179).

It nails the analog delay sound (I've A/B'd it with a Maxon AD-80 in a quiet room ... I cannot tell the difference) and the rest of the sounds are nice too. The high end roll off will do the Analogman hi-cut mod sound and there are some interesting other sounds to play with. I don't care for their warp sounds but you might like them.

It's not true bypass and can't be powered by my Voodoo Labs PP2 (I don't have the PP2+). Other than that, no complaints. It also has an external pedal jack you can use for tap tempo so you don't have to give up the 2nd footswitch for channel switching - a great feature!

The Nova delay does look good, but if you can't find one to test drive (and you don't mind the true bypass or power issues), I think you'll be quite happy with the DD-20.

All that being said, I play a Diamond Memory Lane.

[tom]

the dd20 can run off the line6 output on the pp2 with a standard cable.

[kurt1981]

Tom is correct, you can run it off inputs 5 or 6 on the PP. Also, am I the only person who has noticed noise on the DD-20? I kept hearing a high pitched hum in the background with this pedal, I've owned several over the years, and they all exhibit this. I liked the nova, very musical sounding, but ended up with an AD900.

[pipedwho]

The Nova and the DD-20 are both great delays. I prefer the Nova for how it sounds, but only marginally. The DD-20 however, just feels a bit quicker to use live.

One thing I discovered after getting all sorts of delay pedals while trying to find that 'analog/tape' delay sound, was that the older tape machines and analog pedals seem to compress the delayed sound a little. This helps to get rid of obvious amounts of pick attack from the delay - which is great when using it for 'ambient' background duties (ie. what most people seem to use analog delays for).

These days I usually compress the sound a bit - usually by driving the amp slightly into distortion and using the delay in the loop.

Neither the DD-20, nor the Nova compress the sound much (if at all). The ducking delay helps a bit, but not as much as using some sort of compression. But, once I figured out the trick, I wasn't too worried. Also, the non-compressed delays in both of these pedals are fantastic for U2 and Pink Floyd sounds.

One thing that bugged me about the Nova was that the tap tempo acted on the release of the button, not on the downward action. This could probably be worked around over time by practicing with it, but I got rid of it before that could happen. The DD-20 lets you plug in an external pedal for tap tempo if you need to, but also works with the second pedal by holding it down first.

Another thing I thought could be improved on the Nova, was that you can't tell what some of the settings are set to (eg. repeats, mix, or level) without changing them. This is annoying when trying to recreate delay patches. You can, of course, write the settings down as you put them in, but that sort of defeats the concept of ease of use.

If you are truly after the ultimate delay, the Eventide Time Factor is it. It's pretty big (and more expensive than the others) unfortunately, but definitely ticks all the boxes.

[Pietro]

The DD-20 however, just feels a bit quicker to use live.

Thanks. THAT just convinced me about which I need to get! I've been wanting (needing?) a delay so that I can use, from time to time, my old 60s Bassman head (my favorite amp ever) again with my church rig from time to time...

[geoangus]

If you are truly after the ultimate delay, the Eventide Time Factor is it. It's pretty big (and more expensive than the others) unfortunately, but definitely ticks all the boxes.

I was afraid of that . .

Thanks for everyone's opinion

[guitarzan]

There's a REALLy long thread comparing the Time Factor and the Nova at the gear page. Link is here. (http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=280629) (http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=280629)

[John Price]

Yeah! that is a long thread but I found it very informative! I'm going to try the Eventide!.....

[geoangus]

Yup - saw that thread too. It seemed to turn into a Nova Delay appreciation thread, but I'm starting to lean towards the Eventide.

Excluding a rack multi-effects processor in the 90's, I have not owned a delay pedal since the early 80's. I'm not sure, but an analog pedal might probably cover most of what I want to do. But since I'm in the market, I guess I'd rather find a pedal that goes well beyond that.

[LonestarGtr]

I'm sure the Eventide sounds phenomenal, but after a 15 minute try in a music store I don't think it's anywhere near as user friendly as the DD20 or the Nova. I ditched both of my DD20's and got 2 Novas because I think they're awesome. I was able to ditch my rack with my t.c. d-two delay and not miss a thing as far as sound quality. There are a few things that I would change if I were picky, but they're far outweighed by the ease of use and flexibility, especially for live applications. I think the delays sound better and the DD20 and you have 9 presets as opposed to 3. You don't have to read 30 pages of manual to use it and the "strum in" tempo feature is a lot more precise than any tap button I've used.

+1 for Nova here. If you want to spend a lot of time programming, etc. I'm sure the Eventide is awesome too.

[dannopelli]

If you need something that sounds good and simplicity is key try the Line 6 Echo Park. I just use it with its "one setting at a time" feature. And its tap tempo works quite well too.

Again I should qualify that this works for me becasue I don't need presets, at least not at this time.

[LonestarGtr]

I have a few presets for certain songs that need a set delay time or a really loud delay level and I have one preset as my main stereo ping pong delay and I tap tempos in on that one. I have a preset that I use one of the double subdivision patterns and I can't get that setting on any of my other boxes. I know the eventide would do it, but I think you'd have to figure out the delay times and enter them instead of just tapping in the tempo and the nova doing the work. I just think the nova is really versatile, small(ish) and sounds better than my old DD20's.

[dannopelli]

I have a few presets ... I just think the nova is really versatile, small(ish) and sounds better than my old DD20's.

Hey Mike,

I would not mind having two or three presets and tap all in one. Did you read the comment from pipedwho about how it's tap tempo works? That kind of scares me off. Also is it true bypass?

The thing I like about the Echo Park is the tap tempo is actually an average of the beats you tap. So if you are "glad with the rhythm" and tap too soon or late, the next few will overwrite that one bad beat. It will adjust with as few as one beat and as many as you like.

[geoangus]

Hey Mike,

I would not mind having two or three presets and tap all in one. Did you read the comment from pipedwho about how it's tap tempo works? That kind of scares me off. Also is it true bypass?

The thing I like about the Echo Park is the tap tempo is actually an average of the beats you tap. So if you are "glad with the rhythm" and tap too soon or late, the next few will overwrite that one bad beat. It will adjust with as few as one beat and as many as you like.

From what I've read, the Nova is not true bypass. With regards to the tap functionality, the "audio tap" seems to be a real nice feature, as well as the ability to set global or preset tempo. My old delay had no tap feature, so the switching may or not be a big deal for me.

With your Echo Park - does it boost your volume? My friend's pedal has a definite boost when engaged. I don't know if its a setup issue or what. It does have alot of bang for the buck.

[pipedwho]

From what I've read, the Nova is not true bypass. With regards to the tap functionality, the "audio tap" seems to be a real nice feature, as well as the ability to set global or preset tempo. My old delay had no tap feature, so the switching may or not be a big deal for me.

With your Echo Park - does it boost your volume? My friend's pedal has a definite boost when engaged. I don't know if its a setup issue or what. It does have alot of bang for the buck.
The Nova isn't true bypass, but it is so clean when bypassed that it doesn't matter. It was the best sounding delay of the lot, only coming in second to the Time Factor.

The audio tap feature on the Nova is a great idea. The only problem is that it mutes the output while you're setting the new tempo. This may or may not work for your situation, but either way, it is a nifty way to accurately set the tempo.

Regarding the tap feature, if you tap fast enough, the timing 'error' from triggering on the 'release' stroke, versus the push instant isn't too bad. And I'm sure you'd get used to it in time. This lets you set the tempo in the middle of a set without muting the guitar in the process.

If you're considering the Echo Park, another one in that same category is the Marshall Echohead. I preferred the solid knobs on the Marshall, but I think it required an external pedal to do the tap tempo thing. It's worth checking it out if you're at a shop that has both.

[LonestarGtr]

I didn't really notice the tap "release" thing, but it did feel a little different from the DD20's. I use both the foot tap in (during a song when I don't want to mute) and the audio in (during the count off of a song usually) depending on when I actually think about it. You get used to the feel of the tap pretty quickly. I really like the sound quality of it so much that I hardly fiddle with it. That, to me, is the sign of a good pedal... when you're not constantly fiddling with it to "fix" it. I run two amps at the same time so I really like the ping pong setting on most things and love being able to roll off the highs to a tape-like setting at the same time... not capable with the DD20.

Mike

[dannopelli]

With your Echo Park - does it boost your volume? ... It does have alot of bang for the buck.

The mix dial handles the volume balance thing. I basically set it to ducking one just a couple of repeats, tape mod, with a touch of flutter, trails on.

But I would like to have that and say, a nice dry echo and maybe a slap with a few more repeats for ballad pieces.

I should point out that I think it weighs about 15 pounds. (actually it weighs 2.5 lbs)

[tom]

the new ones(tonecore) have alum housings, and they sell them separately.

[John Price]

OK! I've changed my mind and ordered a TC. Nova! Should be here Tomorrow!:D

[StudioRat]

Does the Nova delay have a "Dynamic Delay" or " Delay Ducker" patch? In other words an auto swell/fade in feature. I really want a delay that has more presets, but I can't live without the "swell" delay in my DL6.

[John Price]

It does have a dynamic delay setting but I'm not sure it does what your looking for! Here's a segment from the manual.

Dynamic: The Dynamic Delay is a feature that was
initially introduced in the legendary TC 2290. It allows
the dynamics of the input level to reduce the delay
output level while you play and increase the delay level
when you stop playing. The result can be a clear and
undisturbed source signal while you play and a
significant delay level when pausing.

I'm hoping to have mine Tomorrow! I'll see what it sounds like in the Dynamic setting!

[John Price]

OK! I've made my decision between the t.c. Nova and the eventide Timefactor and have to say that the Eventide Timefactor won me over. It replaced the DD-20 on my board resulting in a very comfortable transition. I hope you get a chance to try both of these fantastic delay's.

[Suriel Zayas]

got to fiddle around with a tc nova this weekend, and my mind is set. tc nova! try it. the non-true-bypass is not an issue with me, as i run it in a loop. really loved the sound, very warm compared to the dd20 & dl6. very easy to operate and built like a tank. the audio-tap is a really inovative feature.

[StudioRat]

Did anyone get a chance to try the new Nova System at NAMM?
From the photos it looks like all 4 of the Nova boxes, Delay, Mod, Dynamics, and Reverb, packaged into one floor box. Plus a drive, noise gate and EQ. TC says coming in March. Has anyone heard it yet?

http://www.tcelectronic.com/NovaSystem