Review: Strymon El Capistan plugin and Strymon DIG plugin

Strymon presents two new plugins for delay fans. Check out the review of the Strymon El Capistan plugin and the Strymon DIG plugin. Not only for guitarists.

Strymon El capistan PluginThe new Strymon El Capistan plugin and the Strymon DIG plugin have been created to make the hearts of delay fans around the world beat faster.

As most delay lovers will know, the sound of the Strymon DIG is based on two different digital rack delays, while the El Capistan emulates the sounds of tape delays. The range extends from single-head to multi-head tape echo. The two classic pedals are now also available as digital plugins, which makes recording in the (home) studio much easier. In the past, Strymon was able to impress with a software version of the Deco and the Big Sky and now we want to take a closer look at these new plugins.

Strymon El Capistan plugin

Visually, the design of the Strymon El Capistan plugin is really well done and if you already know the hardware effect pedal, you will immediately feel familiar with it. In the upper part of the user interface, the input and output of the virtual effects device can be set – visually displayed by an LED meter. By increasing the input, you can get a slight saturation if desired. But you can also create a very clean sound. Three silver icons on the right side make the configuration pretty easy. The eye symbol switches between a constantly displayed potentiometer with a range from 0 to 255, a display when you mouse over it, or it hides these settings completely. The question mark activates the user manual. The respective function is briefly described when you mouse over it.

The wheel icon leads to a submenu that, in addition to the software version and a tab for support information, also shows the operating system and CPU used, as well as the sample rate and the plugin settings. It is practical that the information can simply be copied to the clipboard if there is a technical problem. Like the eye symbol, the „Settings“ tab switches the display of the set values. The display size of the plugin can also be set here. You can choose between a small, medium, large and very large view. So no one needs to bother with reading glasses here.

The color of the Strymon El Capistan plugin matches the elegant gray-black of the pedal finish and the white lettering of the hardware model can also be found here. Even the 9 virtual potentiometers correspond to the pedal and look very attractive.

There are three different tape echo machines to choose from and the design in the upper area of the user interface changes accordingly.

Strymon El Capistan plugin: The „Single Moving“ delay

The „Single Moving” delay uses a single tape head and the delay time is set by moving the virtual tape head or by adjusting the time potentiometer, which is labeled „Tape Distance“ here. This tape machine is sonically based on the Echoplex, and two different tape speeds can be set by using the buttons „Normal“ and „Fast“. „Fast“ not only bisects the delay time, but also changes the sound of the delays. The faster tape run creates a slightly clearer, fresher and more trebly sound. With „Normal Speed“, a few tape artefacts can be added, especially with longer delay times, which makes the sound very organic and three-dimensional.

Strymon El Capistan Delay Plugin

The maximum delay time in „Single Moving“ mode ranges from 25 ms in „Fast Speed“ mode and 50 ms in „Normal Speed“ mode, up to 750 ms („Fast Speed“) or 1500 ms („Normal Speed“). All delay variants are possible, from a subtle slapback to a subtly mixed delay to thicken the sound to long and dark delays. The repeats have a wonderful dark character with longer delay times and short delay times create percussive and brighter delays. With „Wow & Flutter“ and „Tape Crincle“ natural modulations that sound really authentic can be added as well.

The „Single Fixed“ delay of the Strymon El Capistan plugin

In the „Single Fixed“ delay, you can switch between the three virtual tape heads by using a three-way switch. Depending on the tape head selected, this is of course presented visually in a very appealing way. The delay time of the three tape heads can be set from 75 ms, 225 ms and 300 ms to 375 ms, 1125 ms and 1500 ms. Each tape head offers a slightly different sound. The time potentiometer is not called „Tape Distance“ here, but „Tape Speed“. So if you change the tape speed while playing, you get the start and stop sounds that are familiar from tape echoes, which you can easily integrate into your own songs. In this delay mode, I like to play with the tape bias to create a bit of dirt and reduced headroom. You can almost feel the vintage device. The guys from Strymon did a really great job.

The „Multi Fixed“ delay of the delay plugin

The third delay can be used to activate several tape heads by selecting them either with the „Heads“ selector switch or by clicking on the tape heads. There are the combinations 1 + 2, 2 + 3, 1 + 3 and 1 + 2 + 3. The speed is again set by using „Tape Speed“ and the delay time of the individual tape heads can be set from 60 ms, 120 ms and 180 ms up to 300 ms, 600 ms and 900 ms. This allows you to create beautiful patterns with longer delay times and washed-out repeats with short delay times. Like a space echo, this multi-mode sounds very spatial and with a little additional reverb you can float away with the sound. With these three modes you have all the relevant tape delays covered.

El Capistan Digital Delay plugin: Tempo

The delay time can either be set freely by using the potentiometer, or of course it can also be synchronized or tapped by using the tap button. So if you like it very strict, you will be just as satisfied as if you are a fan of somewhat freer and more organic delays. In „Sync Mode“ you can select the note values. If certain subdivisions are not possible due to the selected BPM because they would exceed the maximum delay time, they are highlighted in red.

The setting options of the El Capistan plugin

The lower part of the user interface is identical for all three tape echoes. There are 8 potentiometers to adjust the sound of the delay, or rather the quality of the tape and device. The options are called “Wow & Flutter”, “Tape Crincle”, “Low End Contour”, “Tape Age” and “Tape Bias”. These controls are used to fine-tune the basic sound and enrich it with random wow and flutter, crumpled tape, clipped bass, an older tape and a tape bias that is set too high (which can lead to slight distortion).

So everything is possible here, from a perfect tape machine with a fresh tape to a worn-out device with an ancient tape. The modulation naturally also depends on the tape speed, i.e. the delay time. The sound can wobble a lot, sound darker and the headroom can be limited. These controls are very sensitive.

There is also, of course, the „Repeats“ potentiometer, as well as a „Mix“ potentiometer and a potentiometer for the „Spring Reverb“.

The Strymon Spring Reverb is legendary in my opinion and gives the tape echo sound a wonderful breadth. It is very nice that the „Repeats“ potentiometer has two small buttons, which can be used to deactivate the repeats if the echo gets out of hand and becomes too wild, and an infinity button, which turns the delay into a tape loop that can be played continuously. The sound of the loop changes over time due to the modulation settings. „Spring“ and „Mix“ have an additional lock button that can be used to determine the current setting so that it is not accidentally changed.

Strymon DIG plugin

The interface and the handling of the The Strymon DIG plugin is almost similar to the El Capistan plugin, but the color scheme changed from black to pink.

Strymon DIG plugin
The Strymon DIG is known to be the digital counterpart to the El Capistan and is dedicated to the sound of the digital rack delays of the 80s through to the modern digital delay sound. The three delay types „24/96“, „ADM“ and „12 Bit“ can be set using a virtual button.

In addition, the DIG, which combines two delays that can be configured in series, in parallel or as a ping pong delay. The basic sound can be adjusted by using the global controls for „Modulation“, „Tone“ and „Dry Level“.

The two integrated delays are constructed in the same way and each provides a „Time“ control for the delay time, which ranges from 20 ms to 1600 ms. In addition, there is the option of setting the tempo via tap tempo, sync or freely using a potentiometer. And you get a large display that shows the delay time in milliseconds or subdivisions, as well as a control for „Repeats“ and „Level“.

So far it is quite easy to handle, but offers a lot of possibilities. You can use different delay times, which can either be set freely or synchronized with each other. With a different number of repeats, different volume ratios and individual routing, many other possibilities arise. Of course, the rhythmic delays of U2 and other stadium bands immediately come to mind here. With a little modulation, the signal becomes even more vivid and via the „Tone“ potentiometer the delay can be integrated perfectly into the mix.

While the „24/96“ reproduces the modern digital delay in high resolution and sounds the most neutral, „ADM“ and „12 Bit“ have a very nice grainy character and sound really vivid and three-dimensional. The Strymon DIG plugin really reproduces all the digital delay sounds you need and in great quality. I’m a big fan of the DIG and I particularly like the sound of the „ADM“. But the „12 Bit“ delay, which has a slightly crisper attack, also sounds wonderfully. A real asset to any DAW.

Both Strymon plugins naturally have some very good factory presets that are great as a starting point for your own sounds. But experimenting yourself is of course much more fun. And they are not only for guitarists. They are also perfect for piano sounds and synth!

Strymon El Capistan plugin and DIG plugin: system requirements

Both the Strymon El Capistan plugin and the Strymon DIG plugin are available for MacOS (Monterey 12.7 / Intel®Core i5 or Apple M1) and Windows (Win10 / Intel®Core i5 processor or AMD multi-core processor) in AAX, VST3 and AU (MacOS only) formats. The computer should have at least 8 GB RAM. You also need an iLok account to activate the plugins. The price of the plugins is $79 for the standalone version and $99 for the Strymon Echo bundle version, which is actually an absolute no-brainer.

Conclusion

Years ago, Strymon effect pedals raised the standard of delay pedals to a new level and DAW users can finally enjoy using the El Capistan and the DIG without having to laboriously integrate hardware effects into the setup. The sound of both, the Strymon El Capistan plugin and the Strymon DIG plugin is absolutely brilliant and the two plugins cover all the sounds of digital delays and tape echoes. An absolute recommendation for fans of plugins. They are very easy to use, they are visually very appealing and sound great.

Strymon El Capistan Plugin Demo-Video

Strymon El Capistan Plugin Demo-Video. Check out the brilliant sounds of the new plugin for your DAW.

Das neue Strymon El Capistan Plugin ist eine Freude für alle, die das El Capistan Delay-Pedal lieben und vereinfacht die Verwendung der brillanten Sounds in einer DAW ungemein.

Tauche ein in Sounds der Modes „Single Fixed“, „Single Moving“ und „Multi Fixed“. Die Einstellungsmöglichkeiten sind extrem umfangreich und ich bin mir sicher, dass hier jeder den passenden Tape Echo Sound für sich findet.

Den kompletten Testbericht findest du hier bei AMAZONA.de.

Erhältlich auf  www.strymon.net/el-capistan-Plugin

Strymon DIG Plugin Demo-Video

(English) Check out the demo video of the Strymon DIG plugin and read the complete review on DelayDude.de.

Das Strymon DIG ist ja bekanntlich das digitale Gegenstück zum El Capistan und hat sich klanglich den digitalen Rack-Delays der 80er-Jahre bis zum modernen Digital-Delay-Sound verschrieben.

Während das „24/96“ das moderne digital Delay in einer hohen Auflösung abbildet und am neutralsten klingt, haben „ADM“ und „12 Bit“ einen sehr schönen körnigen Charakter und klingen wirklich lebendig und räumlich.

Lerne mehr über die Sounds dieses großartigen Plugins, das sowohl für Gitarren, aber auch für Piano, Synth und viele weitere Sounds perfekt ist.

Einen detaillierten Testbericht findest du hier bei AMAZONA.de.

Chase Bliss Onward – Das Klangparadies in Pedal-Format

Das Chase Bliss Onward ist ein Glitch und Ambient Effektpedal der ganz besonderen Art. Auf der diesjährigen Superbooth wurde es erstmals vorgestellt und die Idee und Sounds haben mich sofort angesprochen.

Das Onward ist wirklich eine Klasse für sich und ich mag es gar nicht mehr ausschalten. Von kurzen Glitches bis zu Brian Eno-Sounds (er wird auch in der Gebrauchsanleitung erwähnt), ist hier alles drin. Eine absolute Empfehlung für Freunde von außergewöhnlichen Glitch- und Freeze-Sounds. Das Onward ist mehr aus die Summe der beiden Effekte. Das Zusammenspiel und die abgefahrenen Error-Effekte agieren je nach Sample-Size unterschiedlich und liefern immer wieder neue Sounds. Mit den zahlreichen Hidden-Features lässt sich das Effektgerät perfekt auf das eigene Spiel abstimmen.

Den kompletten Testbericht des Chase Bliss Onward mit weiteren Sounds findest du bei Amazona.de.

(English) Workshop: SOMA Pulsar-23 with the guitar

Leider ist der Eintrag nur auf English verfügbar.

SOMA Pulsar-23 (screw) mit einer Gitarre

Mit dem SOMA Pulsar-23 lassen sich auch externe Signale verarbeiten und so habe ich mich gefragt, ob und wenn ja, wie man eine Gitarre mit dem Semi-modularen Drum-Synthesizer kombinieren kann.

Im ersten Soundfile habe ich das BPF-Delay angewählt und steuere das Feedback über ein CV-Touchplate. Auf diese Weise können Akzente gesetzt und das Delay in die Oszillation getrieben werden.
Per LFO erzeuge ich im zweiten Sound-Beispiel die Modulation, die die Delay-Zeit moduliert. Da ich den LFO mit einem weiteren CV-Plate verbunden habe, kann ich per Fingerkontakt von einem leichten Chorus-Effekt zu einem Vibrato wechseln. Gleichzeitig spiele ich mit dem Feedback-Anteil.
Das Pitch-Delay habe ich auf eine höhere Oktave eingestellt. Zusammen mit den aggressiveren Industrial-Drums klingt das gesamte Setup im dritten Klangbeispiel wirklich abgefahren.
Da das Pulsar-23 auch Stereo-Effekte bietet, wenn man es entsprechend patcht, habe ich das Double-Delay natürlich in Stereo getestet.
Beim Reverb-Sound für einen starken Hall Effekt entschieden, der wirklich klasse klingt.
Um mit dem SOMA Pulsar-23 einen Tremolo-Effekt zu erzeugen, habe ich das Gitarrensignal an den Eingang des VCA, also den Voltage-Controlled-Amplifier, und diesen Ausgang an den Mix-In-Eingang angeschlossen. Das CV-Signal für den VCA kommt von dem LFO. Um die Modulationsgeschwindigkeit an das Song-Tempo anzupassen, habe ich den LFO mit der Clock synchronisiert. Und fertig ist ein einfaches Tremolo.

Den kompletten Workshop findest du bei AMAZONA.de.

7 Fragen an Yukihiro Hayashi (Free The Tone)

Yuki Free The Tone InterviewDie Free The Tone Future Factory FF-1Y ist in meinen Augen ein großartiges Pedal und weil mich immer auch interessiert, wer hinter den Geräten steckt, die mir so viel Freude machen, habe ich 7 Fragen an Yukihiro Hayashi gestellt. Wie wurde er Eigentümer und Präsident von Free The Tone, welches Pedal eines anderen Herstellers hätte er gerne erfunden und was wäre wenn alles ganz anders gelaufen wäre? Auf das und einiges mehr gibt der sympathische Yuki uns hier Antworten. „7 Fragen an Yukihiro Hayashi (Free The Tone)“ weiterlesen

Soma Cosmos Demo Video

SOMA CosmosDer SOMA Cosmos ist ein ganz besonderer Looper, der die Kreativität und den Spieltrieb neu erweckt. Er animiert zu Klangexperimenten hin zu sphärischen Sounds und inspirierenden Variationen und zaubert immer neue Möglichkeiten. „Soma Cosmos Demo Video“ weiterlesen

Aktuelle DelayDude-Tests September/Oktober 2023

Neben den Reparaturen und Modifikationen von Effektpedalen, habe ich ja auch immer wieder das Vergnügen, neue Pedale zu testen und Euch an meinen Erfahrungen teilhaben zu lassen. „Aktuelle DelayDude-Tests September/Oktober 2023“ weiterlesen

Sonicake Matribox Multi-Effects Processor, Reverb Settings

This is a demo about the different reverb sounds of the Sonicake Matribox. Besides these reverb effects, Matribox offers a large number of other high-quality digital effects and more than 40 legendary amplifier models.
And the compact multi-effects processor is not only suitable for guitarists. It also might be interesting for bass-players and keyboarders as well.

0:08 Church „Sonicake Matribox Multi-Effects Processor, Reverb Settings“ weiterlesen

Sonicake Matribox Multi-Effects Processor, Delay-Settings

In diesem Video checke ich mal die Delay-Settings des Sonicake Matribox Multi-Effects Processor. Bei den mehr als 130 High-Quality-Effekten fällt es schwer zu sagen, welcher der Beste ist.

Die Matribox ist ein kompakter Multi-Effekt Prozessor der mit über 130 hochqualitativen digitalen Effekten und mehr als 40 legendären Verstärker-Modellen Gitarristen, Bassisten und sogar Keyborder überraschen will.

0:03 warm delay „Sonicake Matribox Multi-Effects Processor, Delay-Settings“ weiterlesen

Behringer Model D mit Modulations-Gitarrenpedalen

In diesem Video zeige ich, wie leicht man mit Gitarren Effekten wie Chorus, Phaser, Tremolo, Wah und Pitch Shifter die Sounds eines analogen Synthesizers wie dem Behringer Model D aufpeppen kann.

Einen ganzen Artikel zu diesem Video findest du in Kürze auf www.amazona.de

Und hier findest du ein Video darüber, wie du digitale Synthesizer wie den Arturia MicroFreak mit Effekten wie Delay und Reverb kombinieren kannst.

Meris LVX Modular Delay System – Filter Sounds

Ich habe eine Weile gebraucht, um in das Meris LVX einzusteigen. Dieses modulare Delay-System bietet nahezu unbegrenzte Möglichkeiten.
In diesem Video habe ich mit ein paar Filteroptionen herumgespielt.

Keeley Compressor Plus

Wenn es etwas gibt, wofür Keeley Electronics bekannt sind, dann sind es Kompressor Pedale. Ich habe den Keeley Compressor Plus mal getestet und hier ist, was dabei rausgekommen ist.