Unlock Amazing Rhythms with Cheap Foot Pedals — 2-Minute How-To

video upload by Saul Stokes

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Combining multiple mono delays is not something many people do. Yet, it’s an amazing way to create rhythmic structure that you won’t get any other way. Any delay pedals will work. I prefer to use a mono signal chain to keep things from getting too complex. This concept does work in a DAW—just make sure you turn off tempo sync.

1. Create a simple rhythm. In this quick tutorial, I made a very bland white noise hi-hat loop.

2. Using the first delay pedal, slowly move the repeat knob until you find an interesting rhythmic structure. Make sure you keep the level of repeats down so the rhythm doesn’t get too wet.

3. For the second delay pedal, turn the time knob very slowly. As you do this, you’ll hear moments when the two delays start to play off each other, creating something new and exciting. This works great when the first delay is just slightly off-tempo.

4. As an extra, I added a phaser, which adds a beautiful smeared wash to the rhythm. The phaser's cycle actually adds a third sweeping rhythm.

4. Keep tweaking the repeat and time knobs of each delay—you’ll continually find new rhythmic structures. Go slowly, as there are hidden rhythms that will emerge that you might otherwise miss.

4. Why can't you use one stereo delay to achieve the same thing? It's simple because using two delays gives you two clocks, and the timing will never be perfect. The result is something that has a human characteristic rather than being stiff and perfect.

If you're strapped for cash, look for older pedals on Craigslist or eBay. The phaser in this tutorial was actually found at Goodwill. The Line 6 was purchased for $40 on Craigslist, and the Oceans 11 can often be found very inexpensively.
The cheaper the effect, the better!

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