Skip to Main Content

DSP Audio Effects: Delay

This library guide offers a comprehensive introduction to audio effects (FX) processing—also known as audio signal processing—which can occur in either analog or digital form. Given the widespread use and affordability of digital technologies, the focus h

Definition

A delay effect in audio production is a technique that records an audio signal and plays it back after a set period, creating an echo-like sound. This effect can be adjusted to repeat multiple times, adding depth and texture to the original sound.

Delay Basics

Delay (Wikipedia)
Delay is an audio signal processing technique that records an input signal to a storage medium and then plays it back after a period of time. When the delayed playback is mixed with the live audio, it creates an echo-like effect, whereby the original audio is heard followed by the delayed audio. The delayed signal may be played back multiple times, or fed back into the recording, to create the sound of a repeating, decaying echo.
Delay & Echo: A Guide to Using Time-Based Audio Effects
Delay is an audio effect often called an echo and sometimes confused with reverb. All three are actually distinct effects than can all be understood through grasping the intricacy of the common sound delay.

Select Delay Plugins

Delay and Dub Music

Dub music (Wikipedia)
Dub is a musical style that grew out of reggae in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It is commonly considered a subgenre of reggae, though it has developed to extend beyond that style. Generally, dub consists of remixes of existing recordings created by significantly manipulating the original, usually through the removal of vocal parts, emphasis of the rhythm section (the stripped-down drum-and-bass track is sometimes referred to as a riddim), the application of studio effects such as echo and reverb, and the occasional dubbing of vocal or instrumental snippets from the original version or other works.
How Jamaican Sound System and Dub Culture shaped modern music
Jamaican sound system culture and the legacy of dub have had a profound and lasting impact on modern music, extending far beyond their Caribbean roots. By reinventing the way sound is manipulated, it reshaped our approach to bass, rhythm, and spatial sounds, leaving a deep imprint on many genres.

Delay How To

Using Delay Effects in Music Production
Whether you are using outboard delay effects such as guitar pedals or rackmount effects units, or in-the-box effects like plugins or other software suites, delay effects can add an extra dynamic layer to your tracks. Delay can be used all over productions, from snare drums to guitar and synth leads to vocal layering, delay is one of the most versatile effects in a producer’s arsenal.
Vocal Delay Mixing Trick

Pre-Delay (Reverb)

Delay Types

The Definitive Delay Guide: 10 Delay Types & Their Uses
Delay is one of the most powerful tools at the disposal of any musician or audio producer. It’s a classic effect that is extremely versatile, plus it just sounds really cool.
The Roland Space Echo RE-201: Iconic Tape Delay Used by King Tubby, Tame Impala & Radiohead
Why is the Roland Space Echo RE-201 one of the most legendary tape delays in music history? From King Tubby and Lee “Scratch” Perry to Radiohead, The Clash, and Tame Impala, the RE-201 shaped the sound of dub, reggae, post-punk, psych rock, and modern electronic music. With its warm tape delay, spring reverb, and unique modulation, this unit became a studio essential.