DigiTech HardWire DL-8 Delay/Looper

I have two big gripes regarding this pedal that just may take the pedal of my grab and go board.

The first is the small gripe of not being able to see settings with the shiny knobs, very hard to see settings, have to rely on ear.
no biggie, get knobs that will do what I want. OK.

The big gripe is the fact I can't turn the pedal off when in tap mode.
For me, being in tap mode is the way to for live performance. But since I play a lot of blues I don't always need delay.

So when in tap mode, how do you turn it off or on?

1. tap tempo and play till time to turn off
2. Hit footswitch for two seconds so it switches to Manual mode.
3. Hit footswitch again to turn off.
4. To turn on, hold footswitch for two seconds (not the worse)

The Hold footswitch having to be held for 2 seconds to turn off is so inconvient that I don't do it, the turn off proceedure takes around 4-5 seconds of my attention when I should be focused on the music.

Bad design imo.

Everything else is fine.

I dig the sound of evert delay.
A little bummed that you can't blend normal guitar with the reverse delay, that makes the reverse much less useful imo.

Of course like I said above, hasseling with turning on/off tap mode can affect my playing and that affects sound. But I ain't going to ding the sound of the pedal for this.

I totally dig the "capture delay/loop feature. The great Bill Frisell has used old Digitech delays with the capture/loop feature for years.

When off this pedal sports real hardwire bypass, so no tone sucking.

I think the delays are great, all usable sounds, my favorite might be the Analog delay (capture isn't an option)

The pedal sounds great and really seems set up for hand control much more than foot control.
What this means is this pedal is not the best for a floorboard.
It would be perfect as a tabletop unit that you could adjust with your hand ala Bill Frisell, Nels Cline.

But as a floorboard pedal you will have to do all that multi switching. Beware.

Personally, I really like the idea of tabletop effects used live.
So this is where this pedal will end up.

I need a tap tempo delay that can be turned off with one tap, even if you have to hold it for two seconds, as long as it's one action.
That would live playing friemdly imo

In all fairness, I can't give this pedal a 10 because it doent turn off easy in tap mode. I don't care so much about knobs being difficult to see settings. Turning it off is my turn off.
I mean all my live playing needs a tap tempo that's easy to turnon/off, a provide tap tempo. Blows my mind they missed it.
For that, they only get an 8 (lucky it isn't a 7).
It has great value as a hand contriled pedal

Outside of my one big gripe, this is a wonderful sounding delay easily worth a 10.

There are four nobs to twist and turn to your desired delay or loop setting. Easy to set up and easy to use.

The rubber cover for the knobs are a really cool feature for these pedals no more accidentally kicking nobs on stage.

I accidentally stepped on the pedal for too long during a set and put it into loop mode......oops. So be careful if you've had a few beers and are concentrating more on your playing than your foot work ;)

Typically I run an ESP MII through a Peavey 6505+. I run the delay unit through the effects loop. Delays, IMO, always sound best run through the effects loop.......it delays your processed sound rather than just your guitar.

I was using a Boss DD-3 for the last 15 years, the same one, and decided to get this bad boy so I could run stereo. The minute I turned this unit on was that moment I knew I made a good choice. Crisp digital delay, warm analogue, and most everything you need in between.

I was very surprised at the sound quality to be honest.

This thing has true bypass but I got a popping noise when switching the unit on and off. However turning the true bypass off is where this pedal really shines.....because when you have the delay effect going and your step on the unit to disengage it the delay will continue to tail out the last notes played, A GEM!!!

One of the nob sheaths came off after about three weeks. The nob did not break its that the silver cap that goes over the shaft came off. Nothing a little super glue could not fix. Never had a problem with it otherwise.

No other issues.

Haven't had to use them

I play mostly metal, but also play rock and blues. This pedal is great for all these styles and more.

I have been playing for more than 17 years most of which have been in a professional manner. This is my first digitech pedal and am very satisfied with the hardwire series of pedals.

I would have to buy this pedal again if it were stolen.....delay is a very big part of my sound and this pedal is ideal!

If you are going back and forth between the Boss DD-7 or this pedal.....don't question get this pedal. I have been a loyal Boss user and fan for many years but this delay pedal hits a home run IMO.

Just a quick update on my previous review with regards to the increments / detents on the delay time knob - Digitech say the only way to remove the detents is to replace the pot, or to use the tap tempo feature...for me using the tap tempo is too hit and miss when trying to fine tune the delay time for recording, so I might replace the pot if I can find someone to do this, although Digitech dont recommend modifications...

Its a guitar pedal, therefore a doddle to use. Knobs are nice and chunky, and move in small increments, which can be useful in some respects, but fine-tuning the delay time can be a bit troublesome because of this, especially when recording. But will get on to that later. On / off action is very smooth, without any annoying clicks. Has a rubber knob-lock thingy which can be clamped on and makes it nigh impossible to adjust your settings unwillingly while playing live, and there is also the option of attaching a big glow-in-the-dark sticker on the switch, obviously for live use..

Sound quality is pretty darn good, and the unit is very quiet. No problems in bypass (without or without true-bypass, which is only effective when 'trails off' is selected). The modulated delay is very cool, adds a nice chorusey / detune effect on the repeats, which I'm finding very usable. The lo-fi is good fun too, a feature most other delay pedals at that price range dont include. Everything else is fine, the analogue / tape and slap settings are just right, not too subtle, nor too over the top. The loop feature is grand for jamming with oneself / making up riffs etc, but you're not gonna right the Bladerunner theme tune with it (it is a delay pedal after all).

Looks as solid as a rock. In fact I dropped on the floor when removing it from its packaging, I was that excited...and it still works! Only had it a month or two, but I'm not worried about reliability, I think Digitech are pretty good in that department.

I play a bit of everything but mostly rock, been playing for about 18 years now (although havent improved much in the last 13!) - I think this is a very useful pedal, good for recording, you can get some interesting effects, nice and versatile, so will cover most styles. Its not overly complex either so wont give you a headache and make you want to watch tv instead, or take up half the space in your pedal board....my only gripe is the increments on the delay time. On a rack unit you get 1 to 128, on this I get 1 to 40. I've contacted Digitech to see if there is any way round this, as I've just sold my Lexicon thinking I no longer need it! Apart from that though I like this pedal very much, I think its worth spending the extra 30 odd quid compared to it's main Boss and Line 6 rivals.

Its a guitar pedal, therefore a doddle to use. Knobs are nice and chunky, and move in small increments, which can be useful in some respects, but fine-tuning the delay time can be a bit troublesome because of this, especially when recording. But will get on to that later. On / off action is very smooth, without any annoying clicks. Has a rubber knob-lock thingy which can be clamped on and makes it nigh impossible to adjust your settings unwillingly while playing live, and there is also the option of attaching a big glow-in-the-dark sticker on the switch, obviously for live use..

Sound quality is pretty darn good, and the unit is very quiet. No problems in bypass (without or without true-bypass, which is only effective when 'trails off' is selected). The modulated delay is very cool, adds a nice chorusey / detune effect on the repeats, which I'm finding very usable. The lo-fi is good fun too, a feature most other delay pedals at that price range dont include. Everything else is fine, the analogue / tape and slap settings are just right, not too subtle, nor too over the top. The loop feature is grand for jamming with oneself / making up riffs etc, but you're not gonna right the Bladerunner theme tune with it (it is a delay pedal after all).

Looks as solid as a rock. In fact I dropped on the floor when removing it from its packaging, I was that excited...and it still works! Only had it a month or two, but I'm not worried about reliability, I think Digitech are pretty good in that department.

I play a bit of everything but mostly rock, been playing for about 18 years now (although havent improved much in the last 13!) - I think this is a very useful pedal, good for recording, you can get some interesting effects, nice and versatile, so will cover most styles. Its not overly complex either so wont give you a headache and make you want to watch tv instead, or take up half the space in your pedal board....my only gripe is the increments on the delay time. On a rack unit you get 1 to 128, on this I get 1 to 40. I've contacted Digitech to see if there is any way round this, as I've just sold my Lexicon thinking I no longer need it! Apart from that though I like this pedal very much, I think its worth spending the extra 30 odd quid compared to it's main Boss and Line 6 rivals.

It wasnt too hard to figure out. I have had it for about three weeks and I think I have all the settings down and my favorite sounds wired in. The hardest part was figuring out the speed when changing settings because the delay times changes on the diffent settings.

I think it sounds great. I play a Warmoth strat with stacked "Noiseless" pick-ups into a Tweed Blues jr. I use a BB preamp and an Ibanez weeping demon wah. I notice that while it is true bypass, it seems to cut a little bass, but still sounds pretty good to me. I really like it with the BB.

So far so good. Only have had it three weeks, so who knows.

Dont know.

I will rate this hi. I was looking for a delay pedal and got a lot with this one. Analog tape, low-fi and modulated all sound good. The loop is fun to play with and is useful when developing rthym and melody ideas. I wish the loop was longer, but still fun. The tap tempo seems to work well but I am still practicing with that, so I think I will like it even more. The reverse mode works well but I dont really use that at all. I paid $93 for this pedal thanks to a great sale Pro Guitar Shop was having. For that price I feel like I really scored. The normal price of $160 is a little hi but I still would have kept it I think. All in All great pedal for me. I play Blues rock, Punk, Rockabilly and a little jazz. Been playing 25+ years

This unit is very easy to use. There are four knobs and you know right away what they do (because its function is printed above!).
The knobs work really exact and you can really spend some time working with them..
It is pretty easy to get good sounds out of this stompbox, the only reason I give this a '9' is, because it doesn't have a external tap tempo thing - which is ABSOLUTELY no argument not to buy this pedal.
It doesn't have "presets" that you can swith between so you will most likely always stay in one "mode" - you can just stay in "tap-tempo-mode" to tap your tempo on stage - just like a regular tap tempo switch.
Nevertheless it gets a 9 - because you will have to hold down the pedal for two seconds, and this might suck at some points.

Until now i only played it through my old Marshall 30DFX that I use at home together with my Fender Strat. The pedal is not noisy at all! I will have to try this in a couple of days in front of my tube amp (which is not here right now unfortunately) but it really does sound great!
I am playing four years now and I was not a big delay fan at first, but it seemed like (almost) everyone has a delay on his pedalboard and I thought i need to give it a try! I wanted to buy something decent that would stay(!!) on my pedalboard forever, so I looked at different things and there it was! The Boss Pedals seem to be very popular but I just wanted to give the Hardwire a chance. (This is my first delay in a stompbox so i can't give any comparisons)
I get pretty much everything i will ever need (actually it's much more than that!) from a delay pedal - especially the "modulated" Mode is awesome - it kind of adds a chorus to your signal and you get a very awesome clean rhythm sound! The whole thing makes a really good impression on every setting!

It also does a great job at looping and it's really a lot of fun to play with!! I had a Boss RC20XL an it sucked more of your tone than this pedal - actually this one doesn't at all! (Well I am still going to try in front of my tube amp.. whatever, it's a great extra and a lot of fun if you are happy with 20secs of looping time (Boss has 40 i believe).

Still - the sound quality is really awesome and it is great quality for an affordable price!

Just look at it.. how could i manage to break it? It makes a really good impression! Its a little tank..just a little bit bigger than your regular Digitech pedal but no plastic on this thing whatsoever!

Never dealt with them!

This thing will help me by making music - i play kind of everything that gets in my way :P (Funk,Blues,Metal,Jazz,Pop,younameit)
It's great for rythm - it's great for lead!
And it can loop! What do you want more from a delay pedal? I will give it a 9 because it is an perfect delay (for me) I don't think i will ever need any other delay sounds.. if it was stolen i would definately buy it again because its just a great pedal to upgrade your tone (not color IT!) I am tired of pedals that just modify my whole tone! This one did not - it can stay ;)

Still there are a lot more delays and price categories out there - nothing is perfect and this is my first (and probably last) delay. I do not have any comparison to other delay pedals.. there is the 9!

As easy as 4 knobs.
Ease of use is why I tried it.
I want to play guitar NOT program a complex, phony sounding, piece of digital doggy doodoo.

Fender Strats and Teles
Mesa Boogie LoneStar Special
This is the best delay I have ever heard.
It is versital as it contains an array of filtered delay settings.
Digital, analog, tape, lofi, etc ...
I have 4 hardwire pedals now.
Going Hardwire "ALL THE WAY".
Sold my BOSS GT-10 to get into Hardwires.
Not looking back.
They ALL sound GREAT.
No color of your tone.
No impedance issues.
A whole chain of them and your tone still sounds like it is just amp and guitar.
The only down side is understandable and is this - occasionally when things are quiet you can hear the switch, but I suppose there is NO way around this as a true bypass (hense hardwire) has to be a mechanical switch to hard bypass the effects circuitry. This is not a problem though as I have only noticed it occasionally when things are VERY quiet.
Would give it a 12 if hc had it in the drop down

My line of Hardwire pedals look like little tanks ready to attack the world. I think I will sell the story to Hollywood. "War of the Hardwires" coming to a theatre near you.
Unbelievable!!
They have a larger footprint than the BOSS pedals and I had to tear my pedal board apart for them to make room but it was worth it.

N/A as probably never needed.

I play the style of music where you hit a couple of notes apart from each other until the dogs start barking.
I have been playing 30 years.
If it were stolen I would find the theif and sick my other Hardwire pedals on him/her or maybe stone them with my other hardwires then pick them up again and keep playing.

I used to have DigiTech rack stuff, IPS 33B, DSP 256, MEQ14 etc .. and have always liked the tone and quality.

When I saw the hardwires I knew I had to give DigiTech a chance finally in the stomp box world.

GET THESE PEDALS.

RUN TO THE STORE AND BUY THEM ALL.

Had the new DL-8 for two weeks putting it through its paces with a few amp set-ups & the like. I like the feel and weight of the pedal, as well as the knob turn increments which you can set very easily. A whole bundle of modes to play with and a looper to provide endless fun with layers

I ran this unit through the effects loop of various Marshall & Fender amps. I found that it worked equally well with serial effects loops as well as parallel loops with only setting the level to suit the different loop.
Sound ranged from the pristine clean digital delay with 8 seconds of time to some more older type delays, Anolog & lo-fi. I found preference to the anolog setting as it rolled a bit of high end off and sounded pretty sweet under overdrive.
The modulated delay was a modern sound delay imo, compared to the tape which adds a light chorus shimmer to the effected delays (Very cool) Didn't notice any change to the bypassed signal. There is a delay trail switch inside the pedal to enable the delay trail to continue after you turn the pedal off.

Looks pretty reliable. the build is good with solid feeling knobs. Theres no fear in dropping this one or having to baby it.

Emailed them to ask a couple of questions & didn't have any drama

I think the only thing i would like is a longer loop time (It's 20 seconds) which is fine for a few bars of a song, but say up to a minute would be nice.

Other than that im very happy with the pedal & would pick it up again.

Most of the functions are very intuitive. Making loops appear seamless takes a bit of practice, though. Also, it can be a little confusing that the time knob's range is different for some of the delay times (for instance, the range of the "Analog" delay is 35 ms-1 sec, wheras "Tape", "Modulated" and "Lo-Fi" are 100 ms - 1 sec). But apart from this, you have the usual stompbox simplicity.

I'm playing through an SDG deluxe reverb-style tube amp, with a guitar that has EMG active pickups. The pedal is not noisy at all. The sound quality is good, but not exceptional. Compared to the "guitar straight into amp" sound, the tone seems flatter, kind of digital in a slight way, when I put the DL-8 between the guitar and amp. My previous delay was a TC Nova, which I think did less to "digitize" my tone than the DL-8, but I had other reasons for replacing the Nova.

In my opinion, all of the delay models on the DL-8 sound their best on the more subtle settings. If you make the "Analog", "Modulated", "Tape" or "Lo Fi" models very pronounced in the mix, they don't sound very convincing.

I sent Digitech a question about the sampling rate, and got a reply within 48 hours, saying that it's "CD quality". Plus for a quick reply, but a few points subtracted for not being more specific.

It's a fun pedal with most of the features you could want from a delay pedal. Up to 8 seconds delay, stereo in/out, tap tempo (although I wish they could have added an input for external tap tempo), 20 seconds of loop time, reverse delay and other models. As I said above, the sound quality is good but not exceptional. It is in the same price range as the Boss DD-7 and the Line 6 Echo Park, which would be the main alternatives to consider.