Echo machine
Encyclopedia
An echo machine is the early name for a sound processing device used with electronic instruments to repeat the sound and produce a simulated echo. The device was popular with guitarists and was used by Brian May
, Jimmy Page
and Syd Barrett
among others. Nowadays it would normally be called a Delay
or Echo
.
Early versions (1970) called "plate echos". They were analog and consisted of one or more transducers on one end, a coil spring of 1-2 feet in length, and transducers on the other end, each connected to a separate spring. The transducer turns the audio signal into mechanical vibrations which travel down the spring experiencing a delay before they arrive at the transducer at the other end. At that point, the sound is reproduced and fed back into the amplifier as an echo. The size and tension of the springs creates different delays, and could be applied to any audio source. These devices were inexpensive, hobbyist grade, and sometimes sold in kit form so every garage band could have one.
A second type of echo machine is the "tape echo". Originally they were made with tape recorders where the tape speed and distance between record and playback head determined the delay for the echo and were quite expensive. The more common type of tape echo is a small portable unit. One example is the Echoplex
which used a tape loop
. The length of delay was adjusted by changing the distance between the tape record and playback heads. A example is the Roland Space Echo
with a record and multiple playback tape heads and a variable tape speed. The time between echo repeats was adjusted by varying the tape speed. The length or intensity of the echo effect was adjusted by changing the amount of echo signal was fed back into the pre-echo signal. Different effects could be created by combining the different playback heads. Some models also had a Spring Reverb
.
Brian May
Brian Harold May, CBE is an English musician and astrophysicist most widely known as the guitarist and a songwriter of the rock band Queen...
, Jimmy Page
Jimmy Page
James Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...
and Syd Barrett
Syd Barrett
Syd Barrett , born Roger Keith Barrett, was an English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and painter, best remembered as a founding member of the band Pink Floyd. He was the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter during the band's psychedelic years, providing major musical and stylistic...
among others. Nowadays it would normally be called a Delay
Delay (audio effect)
Delay is an audio effect which records an input signal to an audio storage medium, and then plays it back after a period of time. The delayed signal may either be played back multiple times, or played back into the recording again, to create the sound of a repeating, decaying echo.-Early delay...
or Echo
Echo (phenomenon)
In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound, arriving at the listener some time after the direct sound. Typical examples are the echo produced by the bottom of a well, by a building, or by the walls of an enclosed room and an empty room. A true echo is a single...
.
Early versions (1970) called "plate echos". They were analog and consisted of one or more transducers on one end, a coil spring of 1-2 feet in length, and transducers on the other end, each connected to a separate spring. The transducer turns the audio signal into mechanical vibrations which travel down the spring experiencing a delay before they arrive at the transducer at the other end. At that point, the sound is reproduced and fed back into the amplifier as an echo. The size and tension of the springs creates different delays, and could be applied to any audio source. These devices were inexpensive, hobbyist grade, and sometimes sold in kit form so every garage band could have one.
A second type of echo machine is the "tape echo". Originally they were made with tape recorders where the tape speed and distance between record and playback head determined the delay for the echo and were quite expensive. The more common type of tape echo is a small portable unit. One example is the Echoplex
Echoplex
The Echoplex is a tape delay effect, first made in 1959. Designed by Mike Battle, the Echoplex set a standard for the effect in the 1960s and was used by some of the most notable guitar players of the era; original Echoplexes are highly sought after....
which used a tape loop
Tape loop
In music, tape loops are loops of prerecorded magnetic tape used to create repetitive, rhythmic musical patterns or dense layers of sound. Contemporary composers such as Steve Reich and Karlheinz Stockhausen used tape loops to create phase patterns and rhythms...
. The length of delay was adjusted by changing the distance between the tape record and playback heads. A example is the Roland Space Echo
Roland RE-201
The Roland RE-201, commonly known as the Space Echo, is an audio analog delay effects unit produced by the Roland Corporation.A tape echo device records incoming audio to a loop of magnetic tape, then replays the audio over a series of several playback heads before it is erased again by new...
with a record and multiple playback tape heads and a variable tape speed. The time between echo repeats was adjusted by varying the tape speed. The length or intensity of the echo effect was adjusted by changing the amount of echo signal was fed back into the pre-echo signal. Different effects could be created by combining the different playback heads. Some models also had a Spring Reverb
Spring Reverb
Spring Reverb is the third studio album released by the rock and roll jam band The Big Wu. This was the last album recorded with former member Jason Fladager before he departed the band.-Track listing:# "Break of Day"# "SPMC"# "Make Believers"...
.