He came up with that basic riff that we all worked on and turned into One of these Days. It makes for a sound that really adds depth to the guitar tone in the mix, but is not cluttered by delay repeats. Electric Mistress V2, V3, or V4: : You can use two delays in series (one after the other) or in parallel (each in a seprate signal path) to get David's multi-head Echorec style repeats. volume swells in verse section after second solo: 680ms -- feedback: 4-5 repeats There are lots of different ways to use two delays at once for an integrated rhythm like this, so use your ears and experiment. Below are some specific Gilmour settings I use. - first is 380ms delay in the left channel, then 380ms+254ms in the right channel. A good chorus like the Boss CE-2 or CE-5 can also be used in place of the flanger. This website is frequently updated. However, it is possible to play this one one guitar. CATALINBREAD ECHOREC - One of my favorite simple Echorec style delays is the Catalinbread Echorec. As the recording drum and playback heads aged there was a slight loss of high end that added a unique high end roll-off as the echoes decayed. With regards to the actual sound of the echo repeats, there are essentially two types of delays - analog and digital. The simplest option is to use an online Beats Per Minute caculator, like, - David from Guitar Player Magazine, November 1984, I have a bunch of pedals - 4 DDL's - which I use in different combinations, MXR Digitals and the little Boss DD2'sI usually have one DDL with a short single slap on it. A bit of delay can smooth out the unpleasant, raw frequencies you get from a fuzz box. That delayed chord would ring on through the second Hiwatt for approximately 20-30 seconds before decaying, simulating a sustained keyboard chord. The tape splices were then camouflaged with cymbal crashes. First you hear a single muted note picked with a 294ms delay set for 7 repeats (played twice). That equates to 250 - 240ms. David Gilmour Tone Building - Kit Rae Delay Type: Analog delays are warm sounding, with repeats that are softer sounding than the original note due to a high end roll-off. It is impossible to achieve the exact same tone as a player without using the same equipment. Set up your preferred delay settings and beam that into your pedal. A single delay set at 1400ms with 3 repeats has a similar feel as well. He then upgraded to an MXR Digital Delay System II. - parallel delays, 380ms (both channels) and 507ms (right channel only), going to separate amps, David would play a chord, raise the volume pedal to send the signal into the SDE 3000, then lower the volume back to to zero to kill the input signal. alternate 2nd Solo: (start of unison bends after ball opens) Delay 1 = 540ms / Delay 2 = 730ms, Comfortably Numb - 2006 OAI Tour: This warble is similar to a light chorus sound, with high end roll-off. If you are playing at home on your amp with delay, the delay sound will be much more apparent than when you are playing with a full band, where the delay repeats will blend in the band mix much better. Delay volume 50%. What delay does David Gilmour use? - Killer Guitar Rigs The 4/4 delay thickens space between the main delay repeats by double tapping your 3/4 repeat with a 4/4, creating a more bouncy rhythm. >> Click to read more <<. Listening to the trails specifically, something a little darker like a DM-2 would do it. But which delay pedal(s) does/did he use? The effect actually works fine with only two delays. 350ms, Breathe - studio version (several duplicated multi track recordings offset to create the long delay repeats): With that said, the rest of the article is designed to . Most digital delays create an accurate, pristine repeat that only decays in volume with each repeat, not in quality. His tone is instantly recognizable and unique. Posted December 21, 2005. porsch8. Later versions of the DD-3 have different circuits. Multiply that number by 75% to get the triplet time delay. Those are not the type of parallel setup we are talking about here. To sound like David Gilmour of Pink Floyd, start with the following amp settings: Gain: 3-4. FINDING THE "TRIPLET" TIME DELAY FOR A SONG - David has sometimes used a rhythmic 3/4 time delay, what he calls "triplet" time. The most recognisable and somewhat stereotypical sound that Pink Floyd uses is their ambience. Below is a clip illustrating plate reverb from a Free The Tone Ambi Space stereo reverb pedal. DELAY TYPES - ANALOG AND DIGITAL - David has used numerous types of delays in his carreer, both analog and digital. He also used an Echorec PE 603 model from 1971-75 that had a maximum delay time of around 377-380ms. How to Sound Like Dave Gilmour - Guitar Lessons London David was very much in control of his sound system We rarely added effects to his guitar in the control room. The motor had a fixed speed so one turn of the drum equated to approximately a 300ms delay, but that could vary slightly depending on mains voltage, and volatage fluctuations. solo: 500ms, High Hopes - live versions The PE 603 Echorec had similar controls, but rather than having a switch to select different combinations of the four playback heads, it had individual switches for each head. POWER BOOST PLACEMENT - The Colorsound Power Boost was an overdrive that David used throughout the 1970s. Brain Damage - Pulse version (TC2290 Digital Delay): Breathe - studio version (several duplicated multi track recordings offset to create the long delay repeats): Breathe - Pulse version (TC2290 Digital Delay): Coming Back To Life - Pulse version (MXR Digital Delay II and TC 2290 Digital Delay): Coming Back To Life - 2015/16 live version: Comfortably Numb - 1986 live version / Columbian Volcano Appeal Concert: Comfortably Numb - Pulse version and most Division Bell tour performances: Eclipse The shorter delay fills in the gaps between the longer delay repeats, creating a smooth delay sound, but the delay time on both makes the repeats fall inline with the song tempo. middle section: 1000ms -- feedback: 4-5 repeats BREATHE and GREAT GIG IN THE SKY SLIDE GUITAR VOLUME SWELLS - Breathe from Dark Side of the Moon features some beautiful David Gilmour slide guitar work. When he began using digital delays in 1977 he started to use longer delay times and specific times to rhythmically work with the song tempos. 1st solo: 435ms 650ms: feedback: 7-8 repeats - delay level: 25% -- delay type: clear digital, Sorrow Intro / Outro - Pulse version (TC 2290 Digital Delay): Gear used: Telecaster into a fender twin Reverb and Reeves Custom 50, Boss CS-2 Compressor, Tube Driver set for light overdrive, Electro-Harmonix Electric Mistress, TC Nova delay. If you don't have a delay with a millisecond display, it is still possible to find the proper 3/4 delay time in a 4/4 time signature. The delay was such an integral part of their sound, then almost any Pink Floyd song wouldnt sound complete without Davids signature delay sounds. David Gilmour's delay sounds (part 2) - YouTube The Blue: Using Program position 3 for that part also works. The sustained verse chords and chorus chords (the "run, run, run" part) were also double tracked with the same delay time, but slightly less repeats. We are a participant in several affiliate programs including but not limited to the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. In the studio recording the 4/4 delay is not very obvious, so it was low in the mix, possibly only in one channel, or both. David would play a chord, raise the volume pedal to send the signal into the SDE 3000, then lower the volume back to to zero to kill the input signal. solos: 430ms, Yet Another Movie: Sometimes these are called "parallel mixers" or "looper" pedals. R channel -- 1400ms with two repeats. Delay Level: This is the volume level of the delay repeat compared to the original signal. David also had an MXR 113 Digital Delay System that could do that delay time. Using two delays to simulate the multi head Echorec effect, Below is an example from 2016 of David Gilmour using three delays to simulate the Echorec sound in, - One of the first recorded uses of Gilmour's "triplet" delay technique using a Binson Echorec was in the song, - This is one of the standout tracks from Pink Floyd's. Comfortably Numb: Because later in his carreer David often used both a 3/4 delay, or what he calls a "triplet", and a 4/4 delay simultaneously, mimicking the sound of Heads 3 + 4 on the Echorec. I run it last in the signal chain and I almost always have a light plate reverb sound on when I play. solo: 530ms -- feedback: 5-6 repeats, 5 A.M. 2015/2016 live version: David's T7E and PE603 Echorecs, and even the stock Echoplexes at the time, were not capable of anything even close to that length of delay. Copyright Kit Rae. WHY CAN'T I HEAR THE ECHO REPEATS IN SOME GILMOUR/PINK FLOYD SOLOS? Note the controls show playback mode switch is in position 4, which is single playback Head 4, Gilmour's Binson Echorec 2 model T7E from 1970-71 with the playback mode switch in position 4, Gilmour's Binson Echorec 2 model T7E from 1972 and 1977 with the playback mode switch in position 1, which is singe playback Head 1, Various Echorec 2 settings seen in David's Medina studio from 2013, 2014, and 2017, The Echorec 2 in David's Medina studio from 2017. There is an EMT 140 plate reverb on David's floating Astoria recording studio and the four famous EMT 140 plate reverbs at Abbey Road studios can be heard on early Pink Floyd recordings, especially Dark Side of the Moon. It also had had a rich and warm-sounding tube amplifier stage that gave it a beautiful and unique tone. For The Wall he switched to the MXR Digital Delay for those accurate and pristine time setups. - 2016/15 live version: This is the primary delay time you hear in the song. For example, take 450ms divided by 3 = 150ms. delay 1: 250ms How to you get the proper 3/4 delay time from that 4/4 time? The first delay is set to 570ms, which is the 4/4 time, and the second is set to 428ms, which is the 3/4 time. -, David Gilmour interview by Bob Hewitt from Guitarist, June 1986, FINDING THE "TRIPLET" TIME DELAY FOR A SONG. Because the DDL keeps running along, you've got time to leave the pedal playing and play a couple of chords while the effects carry on - David Gilmour from Guitar for the Practicing Musician, January 1995. This was most likely a reel-to reel recorder set up for a tape-loop delay. DD-500 Settings for David Gilmour Style Lead Guitar Delay I am talking about the natural reverb sound of the room or hall the amplifier or speaker cabinet was recorded in, or studio reverb added to simulate it. Alternately, you can use 380ms as the long delay and 285ms as the short time delay, equivalent to Head 3 and Head 4 on the PE 603 Echorec, but that creates a slightly different delay rhythm than the album sound. Make David Gilmour's Shimmering Sustained Delay in Live. The reverb could have been added in the mixing stage, or it could be natural room reverb from mics positioned in the recording studio to capture the natural room sound. His final delay was the TC Electronic 2290. - Pulse version (TC 2290 Digital Delay): It was my very first delay and one of my favorite pedals for Gilmour-ish delay. 440ms -- feedback: 4-5 repeats, No More Lonely Nights: The delays are set in series like this: Run Like Hell Tone Building - Boss CS-2 compressor, Hartman Flanger, and two Boss DD-2 delays. Most digital delays create an accurate, pristine repeat that only decays in volume with each repeat, not in quality. This obviously means that a lot of guitarists want to be like him. The simplest option is to use an online Beats Per Minute caculator, like this one. If you put it in a 3/4 time it has an interesting bounce to it. Fat Old Sun- 2015/16 live version: USING TWO DELAYS TO MIMIC AN ECHOREC - David stopped using the Echorec live after 1977. Alternately, you can use 380ms as the long delay and 285ms as the short time delay, equivalent to Head 3 and Head 4 on the PE 603 Echorec, but that creates a slightly different delay rhythm than the album sound. The best way I have found to create the smoothest delay is to simply set it in time with the song tempo. solos: 660ms -- feedback: 6-7 repeats, Time: Assume a 100% delay level means the delay repeat volume is exactly the same as the original signal volume, so the dry signal and the delay repeats will be exactly the same loudness. Delay settings - Tony Samperi David used the DD-2 extensively in the mid to late 1980s, as well as using a Pete Cornish Tape Echo Simulator (TES) in 2006, which was a Boss DD-2 circuit with a selectable roll-off filter added to simulate the worn tape head sound of old tape delays like the Binson Echorec. - David has used numerous types of delays in his carreer, both analog and digital. To add some modulation and a spacious feel to the delay tone on the studio recording David used either a Yamaha RA-200 rotary speaker cabinet or an Electric Mistress flanger. There are many effect pedals that simulate those sounds, and those types of simulated reverbs are also usually called plate, room, or hall reverb. You might be tempted to make it ear piercingly loud, but trust me on this, a little goes a long way, especially when playing with other people. The repeats in the RLH studio recording sound clear and clean, so the MXR was probably the delay used for the studio recording, and it was used for the 1980-81 live performances. *While I did a ton of work figuring out many of these delay times, a big thanks goes to Raf and the fine folks at the Gilmour Gear Forum for providing some of the delay times and to Will for compiling a list of the 2015/16 tour delay times seen on David's digital delays! As the song plays on I dial the delay volume and number of repeats higher and higher. He always kept the Echorec in tip top shape, and after the MXR Delay System used a variety of digital delays, including the DD2 and later the TC 2290. If using a 2 amp setup, you can try running one 380ms delay to each amp and keep the volume and delay repeats about the same for each, or you can run the 380ms delay to one amp and the 507ms dealy to the other for a slightly different feel to the stereo separation. 3rd solo: 430ms, Money solos - 2015/16 live version: This effect seems like reverb, but it is much different and less tone-robbing than reverb (reverb was almost never used in a Gilmour rig). Run Like Hell Demo Instrumental - excerpt from The Wall demos, Run Like Hell - extended intro from the long version of the original studio recording - one guitar in L channel and one in the R. Run Like Hell R channel - same as above, but just the R channel so you can hear just a single guitar playing the riff. Read an explanation about how this is achieved here. David's Echoes delay time of 300ms, one for the delay in Time, and 423ms in the display. 147ms (2X the delay repeats), or 2 pulses for every delay repeat. The Tone From Heaven: SETTINGS There are so many different delays available now that it can be confusing to know which one is appropriate for Gilmour tones. He used analog delays like the Binson Echorec throughout the 1970s and one has been seen in his Medina studio from 2013-2017. Program Position 5 is equivalent to Switch Position 7 on the real Echorec, which is Head 4 + Head 3. The volume swells can be easily created today with a delay and a volume pedal. If you have a subdivisions setting (quarter notes, eighth notes, dotted eighth notes, et cetera) set it to quarter notes, or the normal setting. The Effect Level (volume) and Feedback (number of repeats) will vary. Also, two delays in line, while useful for some double tap delay effects, means that the repeats from the first delay are then repeated again by the second when both are used at the same time, which can sometimes create a mushy mess of repeats. . Set the delay time so the repeats are in time with the song tempo (beats per minute) or drum beat, approximately one repeat for every beat. When he played Shine on You Crazy Diamond in his 2015 live performances he used three delays to replicate the old Echorec sound, two Flight Time delays and an MXR Delay. This is something us Gilmour fans have sought to recreate in our own playing. David and Roger Waters each had one of these amps but I think the only other recorded example of it being used was for the BBC performance of Embryo in 1968. Here is a breakdown from the Great Gig multi tracks. Other than a few instances like that, reverb from David rig was not used and I do not recommend it. analog gear was not as good as digital at the time, so the belief that analog is always better than digital arose. The last 8 minutes of the song is a rambling collage of echo repeats. 5 A.M. : This gives the impression of a 920-930ms delay. A) All those pictures out there of David Gilmour's tours have the settings knobs shown, but you can not go by that and insist it is bible. MXR DIGITAL DELAYS - David began using digital delays in 1977. In fact, Dark Side engineer Alan Parsons said plate reverb was virtually the only reverb used for those recordings, although he has said they also used as many as five or six tape machines to create various reverb delays. To get the second delay in 4/4 time, multiply 150 x 4 = 600ms. volume swells: 1100ms -- feedback: 4-5 repeats. I use chorus, little delay and some reverb on my amps clean setting. verse/chorus sections: 310ms -- feedback: 3-4 repeats Find the proper delay time for the song as described above, then let's do some "Echorec math". This is probably spring reverb from David's Twin Reverb. The fill patterns played in the verse section sound dry, with almost no delay. second solo: (early in song) 580ms -- feedback: 4-5 repeats -- delay level: 25% -- delay type: analog The first send went to a volume pedal. Members; 529 Members; Share; Posted December 21, 2005. La guida un lavoro in continua evoluzione ed in continuo aggiornamento. I list a number when I can clearly hear them, otherwise 4-5 repeats is usually close. intro and verse volume swells, first solo: 480ms -- feedback: 6-7 repeats Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for THE RULING CASTE: IMPERIAL LIVES IN THE VICTORIAN RAJ By David Gilmour **Mint** at the best online prices at eBay! If the repeats are faster than the tempo, increase the delay time. Brian May (of Queen) did the same effect a few years later on Brighton Rock and Son and Daughter using his modified Echoplexes. Copyright Kit Rae. delay 1 time (main delay): 380ms -- feedback 8-10 repeats - delay level: 95% -- delay type: digital This is actually not quarter-note triplets. All those divisions and subdivisions will be in time with the song. What is interesting about this performance is that it is probably the only time David is known to have used a tape delay. SLAPBACK / ADT DELAY - It is not often, but ocassionally there is what sounds like a short slapback delay in Gilmour's guitar recordings, like the "dry" solo in Dogs from the Animals album. There is also the "modulation" factor which is a common feaature on modern analog and digital type delays. - David often has a big, watery delay tone, as if he were playing in a large hall, but the actual audible echo repeats in his solos are almost absent in many cases. Shown below are some typical Gilmour DD-2 delay times. The third solo also sounds like it has reverb, but that sounds more like room reverb or plate reverb added in the studio. Below is a breakdown switching between the various tracks of all three solos. Or you can simply multiply the 4/4 time x75% and get the same 3/4 time. slide guitar: 440ms -- feedback: 5-6 repeats -- delay level: 30-35% -- delay type: analog there is no delay on the studio recording, but the multiple multi-tracked guitars playing slightly out of time with eachother make it sound like there is delay. He would do this for each chord change in the intro to Shine On You Crazy Diamond, effectively doing both the keyboard and guitar parts all by himself. Alternate (Pulse): Delay 1 = 430ms / Delay 2 = 1023ms, Hey You: I use the MXR with the read-out on it, so I instantly have the right tempo. This the dominant delay, but there is also a 300ms delay low in the mix third (dry) solo: simulate studio ADT with a 40-50-ms slapback delay -- feedback: 1 repeat DAVID GILMOUR DELAY TIME LIBRARY - Song by Song. Basically anything prior to 1977 is 300-310ms, which is the best delay time for the Echorec IMO, and Program position 1 is the standard for most DG solos from the Echorec period, equivalent to Switch Position 4/Head 4 on a real Echorec. Guitar stuff, gear stuff, soundclips, videos, Gilmour/Pink Floyd stuff, photos and other goodies. You can also do the volume swells with the guitar volume knob, although it is much easier with a volume pedal. David could play a chord while the delay rhythm repeated, and jump back to the delay rhythm before the repeats stopped, almost as if there were two guitars playing. You simply have to practice your timing so you can play the fills and get back to the D rhythm note exactly in time with the delay repeats. for a song-by-song list of Gilmour's delay times, but it is easy to find a delay time that works with a song tempo, even if you can't clearly hear the echo repeats when listening. How to Sound Like Pink Floyd: Amp Settings Guide Below is a link to a song-by-song list of Gilmour's delay settings, compiled from measuring the echo repeats in official releases and bootlegs of live recordings, and from delay times visible on the LCDs of his digital delays. outro arpeggio riff: 310ms, Shine On You Crazy Diamond VI-IX (Binson Echorec): It's all on a D pedal. Using spring or digital reverb does not even get close, but some people struggle getting a delay pedal to sound right.