codetocontra wrote:What's your favorite Echorec emulator so far? Have you ever played an old Binson? Ever consider one of the ones made from NOS parts from the guy in Italy? I don't have much faith in T-Rex after their tape echo units, never played one but read enough about their problems.
Boonar (easy to interact with...select time/feedback, then your heads). I would say that one's the best. They certainly get style points for manual head selection, instead of you having to go by a cheat sheet to set your head combinations. I use it with a Mimiq and it sounds huge.
Keeley Echoes (really underrated, not sure how close it gets to the real thing, but it's great if you're a multi-head fan. There are 6 total modes and the modulation is purposefully exaggerated to extreme degrees on some modes. It gives you a massive, psychedelic sound wall---one of my favorite delays.)
CB Echorec (it has a lot of vibe, it's extremely ethereal, but I think it is off the mark, based on the side-by-side comparisons I've heard. The tricky thing is that no two original BEs are going to be identical. After years of usage, they've all got quirks and different degrees of wear. The CB model may be nearly perfect to the unit that it's modeled after. If you throw in dirt, in attempt to go for the 70s Gilmour sound, I imagine this one might get closer to the real thing. All that extra grit and sustain may help to blur the illusion.)
Alter Ego X4 (love it overall, but the two E settings are bad---way too much modulation leaves it sounding like a runaway chorus/flanger.)
Echosex 2 (it doesn't simulate multiple heads, so it wasn't faithful to the BE experience at all. As far as PT2399 delays go, it sounded quite good though.)
Echosex 2 T7E (haven't tried this, but there's no way I'd pay $600+ for a PT2399 delay. $400 for a PT2399 is hard to swallow, but $669 retail is insanity to me.)
I haven't played the Echosex 3. I'm not really inclined to, after selling the Echosex 2 twice---it's not a bad pedal at all, but the price is so high for a vintage-flavored delay, compared to all the multi-engine delays out there. The Fox (Gurus) Echosex Baby might be a decent pickup for anyone wanting some vintage vibe. They're only about $110.
Polymoon (certainly not a BE tribute, but if you like lush delays & multi-head, rhythmic cascades, it's in similar territory.)
Infanem SEA (Binson-inspired, but it's a bit too lo-fi for me.)
Nemesis & the Echosystem both have BE presets, but I haven't downloaded them. Listening online, the Nemesis' emulation sounds nice, but is too pristine.
I'm familiar with Marcello, and the modern motors certainly reduce the noise, but it's not something I've seriously entertained largely due to price (got 40+ delays already). For $3500-4500, I'd rather get several other things first.
I got one of the first Replicators off the line and it had significant issues. Their tech, Kristian, was really cool and he took care of everything. I think it had an alignment issue and also they had upgraded some parts in it (I took a long time to send it in), so a couple components were replaced and it works so much better.
I will certainly consider a BE from T. Rex, but I'm curious where their progress is. Hypothetically speaking, a modern BE could require less maintenance and perform more steadily than a tape delay. The biggest hurdle for them seems to be figuring out a way to fabricate everything and to efficiently get the wire prepped and wound.