DIY tape delay machine is useful, has the look
The soul of gadget lust is to want something the moment you see it, before you have any idea what it does.
Crunched together from two generic walkman-style cassette players, the tape delay device works by recording on one side and then spooling the tape through both cassettes to the pickup on the other.
"A single tape loop runs through two modified cassettes (each which have had one of their left or right sides removed). The players themselves have had there walls (the two in the center, respectively) filed down, so the tape runs fluently. ... the tape (which moves counter-clockwise) travels through the left player (Realistic) where it's internal microphone records sound, and then travels to the Memorex which plays back the sound about 3 seconds later. "Frankly, I have no idea what I might do with it. But the likelihood of me turning up at the old electronics shop and losing a few hours to this is high.
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That would be great for synching radio sports broadcasts to the TV. That way I don't have to listen to the tards on FSN Pittsburgh.
I live in Pittsburgh; I feel (hear) your pain.
Looks like a guitar/recording effect features on Bowie's space oddity or any radiohead from OK computer onward. Tape delay units are pricey and much in demand on ebay. I can see why homebrew would be an attractive option. Popular commercially produced examples include the Roland Space Echo and the echoplex. Bonus points if it has vacuum tubes in it. http://www.loopersdelight.com/history/Loophist.html
You can also get a 3 head pro tape deck for cheap on the ebay these days. You won't get a 3 second delay out of it, but if you split off the signal pre tape deck to monitor it and then monitor off the play head while recording, you can get some sweet tape delay action.
I may be remembering some of this wrong, but we used to use this trick back in college radio. A deck with variable speed makes it even better.
Install it on the line running to a speaker in an illegal betting house. Everyone listens to the results there, but you have a ten second advantage.
There are at least three ways this could work:
1. You own the betting house. Having taken bets, you either intercept the real results at the last second to replace them with your rigged results OR persuade someone to place a very large losing bet.
2. You secretly gain access to the betting house, install the delay device, and then use the ten second advantage to place winning bets.
3. You claim to have gained access to the betting house (or stock exchange, bank, International monetary system--anything), when in reality there is no delay device and the sucker who thinks you will make him money simply gives it to you.
All aboard for the Terry Riley limited. Next stop, Frippertronics.
Yep, classic tape echo. Why anyone would go to the trouble of building it out of cassettes is a Mystery to me, but what the heck -- "just because we can" is sometimes good enough.
(Some day I need to build a cryptographic machine, with space inside it to hold a detective novel, into which I'd insert a slip of paper with a brief question... just because there really ought to be a physical instantiation of Churchill's "riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an Enigma.")
Analog tape delays are still in high demand in music studios. I had a ... gotta look it up... Echoplex a while back for refurb that I think sold for $800. Maybe there's a market for this stuff again.
Yup - http://www.fulltone.com/tte.asp
A reel-to-reel version of this kind of setup was used by Brian Eno on his Ambient albums, his collaborations with Robert Fripp (No Pussyfooting), and Robert's later guitar experiments (Frippertronics). If I understand this build correctly, it will be possible to increase the delay time by simply moving the two decks further apart - as long as there are no cats around to play with the tape...
I used to use a broadcast record / play cartridge deck for a crude tape delay. I swapped the record and playback heads and wound the cart to the length of delay needed. Added a small permanent magnet between the heads (or maybe I put it inside the cart; it's been many years) to erase the tape before it was re-recorded, since cart decks don't have erase heads. It was hissy, the frequency response was fairly lousy, and the abrasive magnet wore out the tape after a few hours, but it worked for as often as I needed it.
Isn't this like the tape-delay techniques that became very popular in the second half of the 20th century among 'experimental' music composers such as John Cage?
or is this something different
Thanks, #3, for the link.
In the early 80's, I saw Robert Fripp on his solo Frippertronics tour in a small auditorium at Arizona State University. He presented a fascinating lecture on history and art, interspersed with personal anecdotes. And of course he played a state-of-the-art MIDI guitar through the Frippertronics setup--two reel-to-reel tape decks set about six feet apart.
Fripp opened the floor for questions. After so much erudition and virtuosity, the first question from the audience was "What's David Bowie like?"
I love old echoplex's but a digital delay can simulate tape ,analog and of course digital.
A digital delay is also less costly and durable.
To get a true delay, not just chorus or flanging the distance between tape recorders has to be more than in the picture.
I have seen some pictures of Fripp's with a good 15 feet between tape heads for more of a looper effect.
28 years ago when I began playing guitar seriously and discovered all the cool effects musicians use I got all tingly at the possibilities.
What would a Bach or Mozart have done with stuff like this?
I always wonder what Hendrix or the Beatles, would have done with all of todays effects.