Arion SAD-1 Analog Stereo Delay

just 3 knobs and dir/stereo switch...

little noisy but wery worm, organic sounding.
I use it alone or with other effects /jp preamp, boss CS3, line6 crunchtone, marschall guv'nor, kod overdrive+, ibanez PH7, dod 565, ibanez sf5, ibanez DL5, arion SPH1, line6 pod xt live and sometimes korg ax5g and korg kaoss pad kp2/ connected to amps /fender bassman, roland spirit, novanex, line6 flextone, marschall TSL100, HH musican/ or nearfield monitors /yamaha MSP5/ - Always sounds great. Its not digital crystal delay! It has sonoric artefacts like some buzz, distortion, feedback. Cool. It's a musican noise. You can use ?SAD as a feedback generator or dub siren (on small delay time and near max clockwise feedback) when connected with next delay after unit.

hard plastic shell

Fantastic delay for the money. I got many delays stompboxes, signal processors and software (exar AD1, arion SAD1, ibanez DL5, dod fx9, dynacord, line6 pod xt and xt live, lexicon mpx, alesis midiverb, korg kaos, korg ax5, wavelab4, acid4, PSP) - this unit is one of best sounding analog echo with nice feedback generator

Very Easy

I own the early grey box version. I use this pedal through the fx loop of my Mesa Lonestar Special. This pedal may not look like much but the tone coming out of this thing is just so warm and natural. I used to have a Maxon AD-900 analog delay which was a good pedal (although it costs $300+. That pedal had more delay capabilities due to more delay time available but needless to say, i never found myself using the longer delays anyway. Anyway, i couldn't justify keeping the pedal considering how much i paid, so i sold it. I bought the Line 6 delay modeler for an array of delays which is nice for digital type stuff, but still doesn't give me that one great, natural delay tone that I would feel good about having on all the time with any amp/guitar/effect. It is good for what it does, but I find that it takes away some of my natural tone, especially when using overdrive/distortion. Well, I bought this Arion delay and let me tell you, this thing is a keeper. In all honesty, i think it has more vibe than the the Maxon. The delay from the Arion is less noticable, it's there, but not in your face, and definately retains the tone you already have, just adds it's own thing, which in my opinion, sounds cool. And when you kick in some overdrive, this thing fits right in great and smooths everything out without adding the harshness that some delays add. I can't say it's the end all delay because it is limited as to how much it can do as far as delay time goes, but for what it does do, it's great. That's all you can ask out of an effect, is to sound great for what it does, and this one fits the bill!!! I feel like I can rate the sound quality a 10 because I've owned the Maxon AD900, which is considered one of the best analog delays, an EH memory man which is great for what it does, and own a Line 6 delay, so I've owned several very high quality delay fx and have a good feel for what's available, and am the most pleased with the Arion!!!

I'm guessing it's reliable enough due to the fact that it's still working after about 20 years!!!!

I'm into mainly into classic rock/blues. I usually like my tone to sound pretty natural. I buy good equipment and would never let some pedal mess up the sound. I own a Mesa Lonestar Special and a vintage Fender Princeton Reverb. I play a Gibson 57' Les Paul Historic and an Eric Johnson Strat. I've owned many high end boutique effects but just recently sold off a lot of that and am down to only an Analogman Sunface, Arion delay, and Arion stereo chorus--(also, the vintage grey box version which I highly recommend also). For the price, it's unbeatable!!!!

This pedal is very easy to use don't really think you would need a manual. Three knobs and a switch for stereo or regular use.

I run a Gibson SG into either a jackson refrence 50 or a epiphone comet sounds good through both with open back cabs or closed back. Very little noise unless you turn the repeat all the way up with distortion then it will self oscilate which I think sounds awesome you can then turn the rate control to get sweet ufo sounds. This Pedal sounds very similar to the boss analog delays dm-2 and dm-3. If you like those but don't like the price definitly check out this pedal.

It does look cheap but mine was from the 80's and I had no problems with it. I would gig with it but it is always a good idea to have a back up if its an effect you can't get by without.

Never delt with them

I play all kinds of music from blues to metal not much country though and I could use this pedal with just about any style of music. I've been playing guitar for ten years and have owned lots of other analog delays the only one I've liked better then this would be a ibanez ad 202 but there is about a $150 price difference. I sold mine to buy a Roland DC-30 because the roland had a few more features for noise making but the sound quality is almost identical. One cool feature I loved was plugging one the outputs into the input and using it like a synth because of the feedback and self oscilation you could creat some really cool tones.

Very easy to use. Don't know if I ever even had a manual.

I don't really use this as a "delay" pedal - I use it for reverb. I'm not crazy about spring reverb, so I turn the reverb on my amp off and I use this for a very subtle reverb sound. Not as in-your-face as slapback, but it's very nice.

Man, I've had this thing for years...It was collecting dust for a long time and I pulled it out and I really liked it. Then I thought it died - stopped working - so I tossed it aside. The other day I plugged it in and it was working just fine so something else must have been going on. Duh. Anyway, it's hard plastic and has lasted longer than I ever thought it would.

Never tried to contact Arion.

Great little pedal. This is NOT a digital delay. You are not going to sound like David Gilmour or The Echo, I mean, The Edge. It's one of those pedals where I think less is more. If you're looking for a real cheap reverb or very short delay for stereo effects, you should check it out.

Very easy to Control. It doesn't have so many never-used functions like other digital delay prdals. You know how to make the tone you like by the 3 knobs.

It produces very clean and warm analog delay! No noise at all. I like to set the delay time to 2/3 position, about 200ms. I've been using a BOSS DD-6 as my main delay for a long time and I also had a Ibanez DE-7 as my backup delay. After I take the Arion SAD-1 home, the DE-7 went to the secondhand market at once. I still keep the DD-6 in order that I need long tome delay sometimes. But I can say frankly that when set to the same volumn, same delay time, same feedback, the SAD-1 sounds far more better than the DD-6. It can reproduce the original sound very warm and real! DD-6 and DE-7 can't not do the same at all!(That is why DD-6 needs Hi Cut Mod).

It is a plastic thing, but if you don't stomp on it like a mad man. It won't stop working.

I play 80's metal and sometimes pop music. It works well with my style. It becomes my main delay pedal now. If it were stolen or lost, I will be sad because it's difficult to find a new Arion SAD-1 today. It is not high priced, but it can offer you good delay! Trust me. If you meet one, buy one at once!

This is the grey MIJ pedal. Easy as cake to use!

Not noisy! No need for true bypass IMHO. I use this as my short delay before my PDS2000 long delay/sample. Awesome short analog delay. Comprable to my old Boss DM-2 (remind me again whny I sold this?!?). This replaced my Ibanez EM-5 (analog-like delay also cheap plastic case) on my current pedalboard, although I still like the EM5 which gets slightly different sounds, but the SAD-1 is cleaner and more defined, tighter sound. The EH Memory Man Deluxe was also an AMAZING sounding delay pedal, but it is just tooooo big. This Arion does its job well and meets my size criteria and sounds better than the EM-5.

Grey plastic case. Surprisingly sturdy. Input and DC jacks have not had any issues. Knock on wood.

n/a

Great delay! If it was stolen, I'd get another one for 50 bucks off ebay :-)

It's as easy as other delays to use. Repeats, feedback and mix level, with on/off switch, and a stereo/mono switch if you want to use the two output jacks instead of one.
This review is for the SAD-1, not for the later SAD-3.
I'll give it a 8, just cause it does what it says.

Ok, who is giving this thing a NINE or TEN? This is a poopy sounding delay. I have not been able to find an acceptable mix level on it, as it fights with my incoming signal rather than artfully ducking in the backround and appearing when I stop my playing. I am basically comparing this box to the hallowed Rockman Stereo Echo, which is king for analog echoes. The Arion has got a lot of hype about it, and it really isn't desereved. It's a mediocre lo-fi analog delay at best. The lo-fi bit is kind of interesting, and sounds distinctly like a BBD chip. But it's pretty in-yer-face about its business.

I think I overpaid for my pedal, it had the **** kicked out of it.
But no broken traces or bad pots and the sound is fine, no scratchiness or futzy signals. Got give it credit for robustness. Considering it was a plastic case makes this even more remarkable. A solid little turd this is.

I might put it into a new hammond box with new pots someday.

Would I gig with it, only if I was playing a really sketchy bar and was worried about my pedals getting lifted. This would be the decoy or sacrificial lamb if I rehoused it.

nil

I bought one 'cause of some of the reviews I read here and fortunately I didn't pay more than a tenner for it. Honestly, if you haven't played thru a Rockman Stereo Echo, then I suppose this might sound 'good' to your ears. (IMO, the only thing that beats a rockman echo is a REAL tube tape echo.) The echo sound itself isn't all that bad, it's the way it MIXES with the original signal that pisses me off. It just sounds gross, and creates this ugly smear in my tone. I've tried this box in the loops of a number of good tube amps, and really can't be bothered to try it in any more.
I was kind of hoping that I could find a sub for my precious rockman echoes, but you get what you pay for in this case. Don't be a sucker and pay more than $20 for this guy.

Could not be easier to use. Only problem is there is absolutely no calibration, so if you're into synchronising delays with tempo, you will have to do it by ear- which might be the opposite of a problem depending on your philosophy

If you want straight echo, then this is total crap. If you want character, then the SAD 1 is fantastic. It has a glorious low bandwidth sound with quite a lot of aliasing. Clearly he designers decided not to use any anti- aliasing filters, so it's nice and crunchy, especially at longer delay settings. Terrible sound= Great!

The knobs disintegrate, so I replaced mine with standard K9 pots. They just about fit, and are nicer to use than the originals. I've had it for nearly 10 years, gigged it, and it has never failed.

n/a

This is a real EFFECTS pedal. It makes noise on its own. Great for improvised music, especially electronic styles. I hope the pricing doesn't get silly...

delay/mix/repeat

this was my first pedal. 13 years and hundreds of pedals later it is still my favorite. it does not clip out with high output pickups like other delays. don't confuse this with the sad-3. It is much better. this kills ibanez ad9 or any other compact delay pedal. I have other much more expensive delay pedals. believe me I wouldn't stear you wrong. this is the holy grail of analog delay as unlikely as it may seem. I also have ibanez ad9 and ad230, mxr huge green thing, guyatone tdx tube delay, dan echo, and korg dynamic echo. this is the best.

like i said 13 years without a hitch and I bought it used.

company gone.

don't dismiss this delay until you try. don't just assume it is like the sad-3. this was arions top of the line delay when it came out. the sad-3 was a cheaper alternative to their digital delay it may look the same but it is not quality like this one.

I know too many people leave straight 10's, but in this case it is true. No wait, I take it all back this pedal is crap. Don't buy one. The price keeps going up and who knows when I'll need another one. Keep the prices low. I have two. They are the only pedals I'll never sell.

Pretty straight forward to use with a world of wonderful anaolg delay at your touch. I love this thing!

Not noisey at all and creates everything from a soft reverb, slap back to fantastic long analog delay that will feed back on itself to create some wacky fun when tweaking the knobs. I run this for Pink Floyd and those Santana type leads that call for it and yes I also have ran it from my theramin.

From reading what others have said good and bad I have to say mine has been on a minimum of 100 gigs now and with zero issues. Sure its made out of plastic and should not be used as a hammer or anything but mine has stood the test of time being kicked on, stepped on by liquor loaded dancers and thrown around from gig to gig.

Never had a problem so I never had to deal with this.

My band covers alot of classic,current and original tunes and the Sad-1 comes in when needed. Been playing forever and use this with Lespauls, Strat and a tele. I have another one for a spare but if it were stolen I would hunt another one down due to the fact I cant find any other pedal that does what this does sound quality and versiality wise. Again the sound and ability to feed back upon itself is a little mind blowing. No longer made...and then Arion came out with the Sad-3 and the "3" is close but not the same. The now extinct bucket brigade chip makes this thing what it is! Again analog delay at its best and the possibilities on this is endless. Sound wise there is no other. Another plus is that it does not suck down batteries like some other analog / digital delays I have. Battery lasts a very long time. Get one and have fun!