Ibanez AD-9 Analog Delay

This is a follow up to the review I posted earlier. I just wanted to report on the results I got from adjusting the internal trim pots which respectively control delay time and feedback.

Having adjusted the delay time trim pot (the one on the left) to it's full counter-clockwise position, the pedal has much more delay time, probably about 500ms. The new longest delay time setting is about right for the dotted 1/8th note delays that work for "Another Brick in the Wall".

There is however, a raspy, distorted, lofi quality to the repeats with longer delay time now. I actually like it. It sounds a bit like a delay with a ring modulator effect applied to it. With the delay time knob set between 2 and 3 o'clock, the distorted quality of the repeats becomes negligible, and the delay time is similar to what had previously been the longest delay time.

Adjusting the feedback trim pot (the one in the center) full counter-clockwise produces more feedback (more repeats) to the point that the pedal goes into self-oscillation much sooner and more easily. After this adjustment, it's possible to go into self-oscillation with the delay time set to max, which was previously impossible.

I like these mods for now. It widens the parameters of the pedal considerably, making it more versatile imho. It's still possible to get all the sounds out of the pedal that were previously possible by rolling back the delay time and feedback knobs.

Just wanted to pass it along.

Very easy to use. It's easy to get "good sounds" out of it (if you like the sound of analog delays). You can get a vaguely chorusy doubling effect, to reverby ambiance, to endless dark, warm echos that decay beautifully. With shorter delay times, feedback (self-oscillation) is possible. At the longest delay (about 300ms) the unit will not self-oscillate.

I've never had a manual. I bought this pedal when I was 13 years old (back in 1985). It was my first stomp box.

I think it sounds nice. Warm, dirty, the repeats decay nicely. Most negative reviewers seem to dislike just what I like about it. If you like analog delay, this is a good one. No modulation, and limited delay time, but oh well.

I don't find it noisy.

I play through either a pair of Fender Blues Jr's (playing out when I need more volume) or a pair of Fender class A 5w amps (a Vibro Champ and a Champion 600, for at home playing). I love a stereo amp configuration. I have the delay coming out of one amp and the other amp is dry. I have a bunch of other effects too which run thru both amps:

volume pedal > snarling dogs wah > MJM Guitar FX 60's Vibe (univibe clone) > Fulltone '70 > Fulltone Distortion Pro > amps. Delay is last in chain and in effects loop of my pedal board and routed to 1 amp.

I like Hendrix, Eddie Hazel, Jeff Beck, David Gilmore and such. This pedal can help get sounds like some of these artists.

I've had this pedal since 1985. It still works perfectly.

Never dealt with customer support.

It sounds nice and warm. I wish it had modulation and more delay time. I also wish it were true bypass. Considering that I bought it over 20 years ago and it still works, I'd say it's a pretty darn good value.

I own a Maestro Echoplex EP3, which is by far the best sounding delay effect I've ever heard. It's not so reliable though (mine's in disrepair and in need of refurbishment). I owned a MXR Carbon Copy Analog Delay, which really sounded nice, had (subtle) modulation and 600ms of delay time. Unfortunately that stopped working a few months after the warranty expired though. I briefly owned an Electro-Harmonix Memory Boy, which I liked for the most part, but returned it because it produced a volume jump when engaged. I've owned Boss DD3 and DD5 digital delays (to sterile for me).

Compared to the other delays mentioned above, this is 3rd in line behind the Echoplex and the Carbon Copy in terms of sound quality. It's more reliable than those two though.

It a a stomp-style on and off switch and 3 knobs which are self explanatory. It couldn't be easier to use. But you could argue that it's next to impossible to get what you're looking for because of the limited parameters, hence my average rating for this catagory.

Sounds awful. Analogue delays have a rapid decay rate, but as long as you plan to use it in a subtle way, that wont be a problem. If however you want to use this for anything other than filler, you'll be seriously disappointed by it's very narrow parameters. The biggest problem I had with this thing is that it sounds dreadful. You play a silky, clean-toned note, and what you hear being spat back at you, is a distorted, corroded noise with a rancid cherry of a high-frequency squeak on the top for good measure. If you combine this with a fizzy distortion pedal, you wont notice this.

I didn't need to own this thing for 5 years to know how bad it sounds, so I cant comment on it's reliability because I returned it after owning it for 1 day.

Had no dealings with them.

They say that for every negative experience, there is an equally positive, and often unknowable result. If I hadn't returned this thing and in a few years time someone had stole it, the part of me that knows the unknowable would probably add them to my Christmas card list. If the Ibanez AD9 were ??19.99, I'd say you get what you pay for but they're relatively expensive. I was disgusted with the poor quality of this item.

Very easy to use, 3 knobs

I have owned this pedal for almost a year and so far it is has not met my expectations. My issue with the pedal is that it colors the sound (I wish it were a more transparent pedal). Not to say it sounds bad, it actually provides a good tone and works very well with my distortion pedal (just not the tone I am usually looking for). It does not provide a lot of delay; however, I was well aware of this when I purchased the pedal (I was simply looking for a delay pedal to fatten up my sound a bit - especially with solo's). It does provide this and as stated earlier it works well with my distortion pedals. I plan to keep the pedal despite it not meeting all expectations.

No Problems

Never had to use them.

I mainly play blues / blues rock. As a result, my current playing style does not often require a delay pedal. As stated, the pedal does provide some cool sounds and I will keep it; however, if it were lost or stolen I would try a different delay pedal.

not much to it. 3 knobs.

nice warm analog delay. I agree with most people on the pedal. It sounds great but could use more delay time. Only goes to 330ms. But don't let that dissuade you from buying. you just have to buy a digital delay as well.

no problems so far.

n/a

Great little pedal.

Pretty easy to use with its 3 knobs. Has limited functionality: nowhere near the features on the newer Boss DD series.

Warm, lush, analog-like sound. I am using this with a Stat and LP into a Bassman head. I have not tried the stereo outputs (separate dry and delyed) so can't comment on the stereo capability. As others here have noted, reverb and slapback effect are easy to achieve and sound great. This does not seem to suck tone.

This is a new, reissue model from Japan...seems well made but too soon to tell.

Used primarily for slapback and reverb sound, playing the blues: great match for the blues, even though it is pink. I definitely would replace it if stolen: this and my Boss TR-2 tremelo and are the best effects I've bought.

Among the easiest delay pedals to use today. No real manual to speak of, the control labeling provides more than enough information.

This is a very different animal from digital delay. The repeats atre warmer and fuzzier, rather than the sort of higher definition sound digital provides. For slapback sounds this thing rules....very natural and tube-y sounding. It warmed up my Telecaster nicely without killing the twang.

Longer delays are a mixed bag. Since it maxes out at 300ms, there's not a whole lot to work with. It has a very Pink Floyd, tape-like feel to it, and it can actually be adjusted in such a way that longer lines and phrases echo nicely, but strumming or note-heavy excursions don't get all bogged down in a whole bunch of echoes. This is by far my favorite use for it.

For applications that require greater fidelity or delay times, this is not going to fit the bill, but while a digital delay can do a lot of what the AD9 does, the AD9 has a really nice sweetness and musical quality to it while digital delays can run a little bit cold.

The Ibanez 9 series is pretty solid over all, though there switches can be kooky at times. No problems so far though.

not applicable

I play rock of all types. I've been playing for almost 20 years now. I'm mostly a Fender guy, have oodles of pedals and other stuff and Vox and Fender amps.

This was my first analog delay of any time, and I've used digital ones (Digitech and Boss) for a long time so I had a pretty good baseline to compare it to. I really like the Ibanez. It doesn't do everything I want in a delay, but it's also very much plug and play and doesn't get in the way of making music at all. If you're looking for slapback and don't need a whole lot of available delay time to do what you're doing, this is a great choice. If fidelity and flexibility are important, the AD9 may not exactly be what you're looking for, but since a Boss DD-3 is actually cheaper than an AD9 it's probably not a big deal for most to own both.

three knobs: delay time, delay length, and delay level...not much to it

(playing through an elk custom 30 and echo cab w/ rocktron austin gold, boss sd1, and dunlop jimmy wah)

THE GOOD:
the super warm tone that comes from this thing still makes me smile.
the sound is crisp and clean and did i mention it sound AMAZING!

THE BAD:
the 300ms maximum delay is a major let down. i opened up the back of the pedal and boosted the delay time pot and was able to achieve somewhere around 500ms delay, but with major distortion issues. also, not being able to control the delay time with an expression pedal gets really old when playing live.

END RESULT:
i'm going back to boss.

but i havn't given up, when i find myself with some extra money i'll send my ad9 into robert keeley and see if he can't do something for me.

this thing is a tank

i've never had to deal with them :)

overall, if ibanez made the delay time atleast 700 ms and made it so i could use an expression to control the delay time i would spend more money on it than any other delay pedal on the market.

IBANEZ...if you read these things...do so and you'll make BILLIONS!!!

Delay is very simple to use. 3 knobs for delay, repeat, and level. There are internal trimpots also, but only adjust these if your delay has a significant amount of noise

I love this delay pedal! I originally thought it could not sound better until I adjusted the two internal trim pots. I have a vintage ad-9 from the 80s. When I adjusted the pots I now have the most beautiful delay imaginable. I used to have a lot of hiss at the end of each delay, but not anymore. This unit is perfect! My setup is: 2002 Gibson Les Paul 60's reissue ---pedalboard---- Emery Sound Superbaby setup with EL34-12ax7-5y3 combination. The pedalboard consists of an Analogman King of Tone, then Ibanez Delay, then Boss TU2 Tuner. I love this delay. I can get anything from a slight echo to crazy spaceship sounds. This is great!

So far no problems and its from the 80s. 20 years of reliability so far! A+

This is by far the best analog delay for the money! Get one now before they are all gone

This is a drop dead easy pedal to use... as it should be.
three knobs: delay time, # of repeats, and level of repeats.

I find the sound quality in mono is very good. In stereo it totally rolls off all the high end of your signal. The concept of taking a dry signal only on one channel and a delay (only) in another is not new and you should experiment with this. It is a very striking treatment to a normally overused and common effect. I would have loved to take atvantage of this feature, and you could in theory still use it if you don't mind all the high end cut-off.
I run a stereo setup with a Twin and a higher gain switchable tube amp in my rig. I also have an ab/y box to split the signal and a pedal board with vaious effects and an FX loop on the board to switch a rack mount unit in and out of the chain. For those of you out there pondering digital vs analog... forget the mental theories and just go with what each one does best. My digital unit does a great job of the longer stronger delays and it's programmable. This unit is a different breed and adds another color. It's older (bucket brigade) design makes it perfect for those country / rockabilly slapbacks ... or on the longer settings a more 70's rock...echo sound. The rolloff is still quite strong and that gives the pedal the characteristic of not overtaking the sound or the mix... you could leave it on for a lot or sounds and not really notice it... on the other hand, because it is subtle, if you want a strong delay you'll have to crank it a bit. It's a musical effect and adds a nice touch. I use it for delays that I don't want the digital overpowering sound on, for its more natural organic sound and that type of thing.I compared this to an old Boss Analog delay I had years ago, and the roll-off on this unit really is more substantial... very similar sound just more high-end roll-off.

It's built very well and is heavy.

NA

I play a lot of different styles from hard rock, classic rock, country, rockabilly, blues, gospel and worship music, praise and choruses and acoustic steel string. I have been playing for over 20 yrs mostly in a church worship setting but also in other rock bands and such. This pedal is a good match, can do the subtle delays well and is a musical effect. You won't get a lot of variance out of the controls really, basically a short delay and a medium delay (100-300 ms) You can tweak it I heard but I haven't tried that.
I got it to compensate for the digital delay that I use.
Using the sterile sounds on the digital sometimes just doesn't work as many have noted already. It's a good mix, its' a small cheap addition and it's versatile for basically any style where a small sutle delay can be used. It has found a permanent place on my pedal board and I use it quite a bit. You wont go wrong with this unit.

Easy easy easy - three knobs, super intuitive!

I'm loving the warm tones coming out of this little pink box.
After buying it, I read that the delay time can become 500ms by tweaking one of the component inside... so i did that - very easy to do, and the effect still works and now gives me a slightly longer delay.
I can get a great reverb from this ad9... i'm loving it!

Its new now, but it seems built to last

Never dealth with them!

Overall, a great analog delay for 120EUR... i guess elsewhere it's less expensive but here in ireland thats the price...

This pedal is easy as Lady Marmelade, or orange marmelade at that (Ok pink). There are many subtle things you will figure out over time using it though. This one I have, I bought back in 1985 for around $90 and it was made in Japan (322065). I don't have the box or manual anymore.

This pedal I regarded as mediocre until around 1995 when I noticed that everyone was using these dry un=real digital delays.I was all about digital back then too. I can't really nail down an artist who this pedal sounds like but it does have a vintage sound..as in warm, a bit muddy and kinda subdued for a delay. Ibanez pedals from this era are like that, real similar to the late 1960's pedals I believe. If you want grand canyon echos, this pedal is not for you. This one is good for that trippy background stuff that will creep up behind your soloing or picking and make your hair stand up. It has a great slap back for a good blues sound too- imagine B.B. King sittin on a potty in a large ceramic tiled bathroom wailing on Lucile ( the guitar Lucile). Play some floyd-esque stuff and (if you're not drunk or too ston-ed) you can manipulate the delay time knob with your left foot at get that whooshy, I'm drunk falling down, here comes the spaceship ...Bass-WHUMP.....WHUP....chipmunkchipmunkchipmunk...sound. Understand you have to spend 20 years with this pedal to understand how it affects your MIND. Now, there are a couple of things to know. Play it from your guitar to the amp and you have more delay time and that little scream thing when you bend notes ( Think Prince) going on. If you run an effects loop, you will have a cleaner sound with less delay time.

I have severly abused this pedal since 1985, chastized it for being pink, ( it still is pretty) molested it with scotch tape for the battery compartment ( spiled some scotch on it too )and let it roll and tumble un- supervised in a bag with other effects ( some of which are Boss). It's still here and sound great. The switch is a little cranky but if the battery is fresh, it acts livelier.

Ah dunt no

I play anything from progressive to metal to hard 1970's & 80's to southern rock and blues. I have irritated folks since 1979 with my guitars. RIG= Strat HWY1 & Phoenix Electra +(others) > Ibanez FL9>Ibanez AD9>Ibanez Tube Screamer Turbo>Boss Noise Suppressor>Dunlop Crybaby>Boss Tuner>Randall RG 100SC212/212 cab. I also have a 1985 Boss HM-2 and a 1996 Zoom 1010. This delay is great for cool background delay, slap back reverb, signal manipulation for a trippy-ness factor and just a good source for a vintage sound. This pedal is subtle like I stated before so it's not for everyone. I heard there are trim pots inside where one could incease time but I don't know. That's the only thing I would wish was different was a little more delay time but the warmth of this pedal adds sooo much to you sound that it makes up for it. The older I get the more I have started to use it. ( the question at the bottom about 10+5 I wanted to answer "Argentina" but I thought they would make me say " egg mcmuffin.and I couldn't have that>admin.. )

Like someone else here said, if you can't operate this then, well...

Currently using a Fender Tele/Strat hybrid through two homemade custom tube amps and a Celestion loaded cab. The AD9 feeds a matching Ibanez compressor and an old 70's MXR flanger. For a pedal it's very quiet. Like a few other posters here however, I must note that it's mostly useless as a stereo delay. The dry signal looses most of it's gain and high end. Also, it doesn't provide long delay times. That said it provides a really nice slapback sound which to me sounds somewhat close to an echoplex but in a much smaller and reliable package. It also provides a nice warm sounding reverb or larger venue sound.

I bought my AD9 sometime between 80-82, not quite sure. Things were a bit blurry back then. Anyway, here's the same little pedal today and it looks and works mostly the same and boy has it been used! I had no idea when I bought it that I'd still be using it for this many years later, yikes. Yes, it's reliable.

Never needed to.

I play many styles, (mostly rock), and the little AD9 can be used on 99.99% of it. The only thing I can't pull off with it are those ultra long delays. I'm nit picking. If it were lost or stolen I would be sad as it's been part of my sound for nearly 25 years. I guess I'd replace it with the same. Hopefully they sound the same and are of same build quality. If they are then most guitarists should probably have one of these.

Very easy to use, you don't have to be of high intellect to work this and get a good sound. Manual is not much, but then, you really don't need one for this pedal.

I use a '98 Lone Star Strat, or my trust old '76 Tele through a Re-issue Fender Twin. I get a slight noise, but I got that before I got the pedal. I've ordered a Voo Doo Lab Power Pedal in hopes of cutting the slight hiss. I've used a Boss DD-5 for years and also have a Boss ME-50, which I love, but the AD-9 just gives me that extra option for certain sounds on certain songs I was looking for. I have in in my chain of effects as follows: 1. Original Cry Baby, 2. Boss Harmonist, 3. Boss Compressor, 4. Boss DD-5, 5. Ibanez AD-9, 6. Boss Turbo Dist, 7. Boss Tremblo, 8. Boss Flanger, & 9. Boss CE-20 Chorus

Rerading all the user reviews, I would say it is a dependable product. Just got it today, and have a gig tomorrow night. Plan to put it to use 1st thing.

Haven't dealt with them

I'm an old dude, 62 years old. Been playing and writing original material since I was 14. So, I've played older R & R, 60's Surf like the Ventures, traditional country, newer country, R & B, Gospel, & Folk. If lost or stolen, I would buy another just from the way it sounded as soon as I hooked it up this evening. I love the darker sounds & colored slap-back you can get from it. I will keep my DD-5, but my arsenal is now complete. The only 2 things that bug me about it are: 1) Ibanez could have at least labeled the input and outputs, and 2) I wish the activation switch was as large as my boss pedals. The Ibanez is well built, and heavy as a brick, but the activation switch has to be hit just right with the tip of your toe. But for these two items, it would get a 10, but because of that I'll go with an 8.

Very Easy to use. Nothing more to be said.

Well... Like any bucket-brigade chip delay in the analog fashion, the delays roll more and more information off as they're passed down the line. Therefore, this pedal is very very good at thickening your sound. You have to turn the mix of the delay level up past 9 o'clock to really even hear it. I own a DD-6 as well that I use for more intense delay effects that need to be heard. This is much more subtle, therefore more usable in more applications without overdoing it. The roll-off on the highs is quite high on this pedal however, more so than I'd like. I've played a Boss DM-2 and liked the roll-off much better than this pedal. This seems to be a bit too subtle for my taste. The roll off is somewhere around 900hz to 1khz, which is pretty low for a delay. Therefore, I would put a DM-2 ahead of this pedal. But if you already own a digital delay, this makes a nice complement to your setup for fattening your tone.

Immaculate reliablility. Heavy, dependable, excellent soldering job inside. These pedals were made to last, better quality than Boss by far.

I have no clue. There hasn't been a need to contact Ibanez on this. Their guitars suck, but they make solid pedals.

I play Indie Rock in the style of Radiohead, Flaming Lips, Arcade Fire, etc. It suits what I'd like to do very well. Unfortunately, it can step into that realm of cheesy delay very quickly if you're not careful on dialing in your repeats. Very subtle. It's excellent for slap-back delays and faster repeats. I wouldn't ever use it on something that requires more than a few repeats.

I found this pedal a bit tricky to use at first because it wasn't quite as intuitive as the knobs were labeled, and the manual was pretty useless (in my opinion). There are three knobs: delay time, repeat, and delay level. However, after playing around for a little while, I finally got the hang of it. I can go from slapback echo to echoplex-type repeats.

I think the sound on this is great, and it's EXACTLY what I was looking for. I used to have an echoplex but those are BIG units that are old and hard to maintain. But I didn't want digital delay, which sounds too "clean". This gives that perfect analog delay which will break up around the edges. Think of those old Rush and Led Zeppelin recordings/concerts where Alex Lifeson and Jimmy Page used echoplexes. That's the sound I was looking for and that's what you get DAMN close to with this.

I have had an Ibanez TS-9 for almost 10 years now with no problems. These are built tough in all metal housings. No worries.

N/A

Fantastic analog delay pedal. The closest I've gotten to my old echoplex.

Nice warm delay- more on that later. Is easy to set up from a nice hall reverb to run-on delay. The adjustable trim pots inside are a nice addition. You can get a little more delay time out of fromthe stock setting.

Here is where I'll diverge from the herd...
Guitars are a 335 w/ anderson pu, a Japan Stratw/ Kinman AvN's' or a USA 62 tele with POS aftermarket pu's> BOSS TU2> Cry Baby Wah w' mods>Toadworks compressor> Barber LTD> OD 820>LBD1 Boost> Guaytone Flanger> Ibanez AD9> Traynor YCM80 w/ JJ tubes and greenbacks/ Boogie extension cab.

This pedal, when hooked up with the signals split wet and dry, sucks the highs off the dry signal. Flat, muted, dull, sry signal. It's not a fluke- I went back to the store and tried the ohter three they had instock and they were all the same. Te wet side is great- no - awsome! The dry side makes it unusable. I'm going to have to put the beat-down on this one.

Great. Backup not required.

no experience.

If you don't split the channels, go for it. I split them out, so it is not a usable tool for me. I took it back. Still looking for a good delay under $250.00.

Super easy to use. Standard delay controls are there - mix, time, and number of repeats.

The sound is PERFECT. I've currently own a real Echoplex, and have owned a number of analog delay pedals in the past - DOD680, Electra 520AL, and a Danelectro Reel Echo. The Echoplex is just too bulky and finicky to use live all the time. Not to mention that its awfully loud, depending on the grounding issues at different clubs. I pretty much use it for recording only. And the other pedals just couldn't touch the sound of the tape delay.

The DOD6800 and Electra 520AL were both great sounding pedals. The DOD eventually crapped out, and I got rid of it because a chip went bad. The Electra (Locobox) was great, but the delay times were too short. The Danelectro Reel Echo was pretty good sounding for a tape delay simulator, but it still lacked that indescribable touch that a true analog delay adds to your sound.

So I decided to try the Ibanez AD9. I think mine is a re-issue, but I'm not sure. I popped it open and tweaked the little delay time trim pot that is inside. I turned it fully counterclockwise to the left, and this jumped the delay time up to around 500ms, which is exactly what I need. 300ms is just seems like too little delay time for anything other than slapback. To do this, just follow the wire that corresponds to the delay time pot, and you'll see a tiny trim pot on the board. Turn it to the left to increase the delay time.

This mod worked pretty well. It definitely degrades your delayed signal, which is actually pretty cool if you want the tape delay sound. I also had to tweak the internal trim pot that corresponds to the number of repeats. I pulled it back just a tiny bit because I was getting an ever-so-slight upper register ring on each delayed signal. This only happened after the mod, and it only happens on the longer repeats. It was barely recognizable, and by tweaking the other trim pot, it seemed to control it a bit better. I'm super picky about sound and tone, so its really not a big deal.

But overall, this is a thick, warm, beautiful delay pedal. It sounds great before and after the trim pot mod. I use this pedal in conjunction with a few other effects - Frantone Peachfuzz, Dano Tuna Melt Tremolo, Boss OC2 Octave, Boss BF2 Flanger, and an outboard Premier Reverb Unit. This all goes into a 1953 Fender Tweeed Pro.

I just really like the size, sound, and feel of this pedal. I didn't want anything big, but I needed a big sound. This is it. It does all the cool self-oscilation UFO stuff too.

Built like a tank. Strong and durable. Mine was used when I bought it, and it has plenty of road wear, but still works great.

Never dealt with Ibanez.

Great pedal. Sounds great, and it colors your signal nicely. So far, its one of my favorite analog delays that I've ever owned.

So simple I can do it! I have just ditched seven years of Multi-effects Digital Madness for the analog \ Stompbox way and am so happy I did. Sure, it takes more room comparing a pedal board to a multfx, but who cares!

American Strat & Tele w\ Noiseless PU's > Maxon CP101 Comp > MXR 10 Band EQ > Radial Tonebone Trimode > Ibanez CS9\ Chorus > Ibanez AD 9\ Delay > Fender Deluxe Reverb Reissue

This is the way that Delay is supposed to be. I've had some decent delays in the Multi fx's before (Boss GT3, Gt 6, Digitech RP400 etc.) but this one is a horse of a different color. I can dial in everything from sublte to just right! My amp has no reverb on channel one and I can turn the Delay Time down to 9 oclock and the Level to 12 oclock with the repeat at 12 also and get a killer Reverb Effect. It doesn't have a tremendous amount of Delay time, but I don't need it. It's just right for my taste and applications. Analog all the Way!!!

N\A

N\A

Church \ 60's & 70's Classic Rock Stuff \ Blues and this pedal fits all the modes of music for me.

There is no learning curver here, it's very straightforward. If you can't use this unit, you need to find another line of work.

There is no problem getting slapback or nice repeated delays for accentuating your arppegios.

Here is where I have to give you the two-headed monster. This unit really nails that old/reissue sound. It's a bit scratchy and raspy and the delays are somewhat dark - just what you may want. It's not what I like, so I sent the unit back. However, it is what many people want. It's just that I'm a fan of the ultra-clean digital delays. There is a new crop of digitals out there who are trying to emmulate analgue, but why? If you want the analogue sound, get this pedal. So I give it a 10 with a caveat that you may not like it if you're looking for killer clean, flexible digital delays.

I had one gripe and that's that it was only able to mix in the delay signal to a maximum of 50% uless you bi-amp it with it's stereo output jack. This renders the delays a bit too weak in my opinion. However, if you bi-amp it, you can really get nice results.

Can I depend on it? Heck, it's tough enough to use as a deadly weapon and clearly reliable. This is the classic Ibanez box, cast steel with quiet button and split spline pot shafts. The battery box is easy to get into as well. I have no question that this unit will last for many years with no trouble.

This unit is great for slapback delays and some of the more seperated delays out to it's maximum of 400 ms. It is solid and well made with full expectation of a long life of good sounding delays. If you are looking for a classic little pedal that is easy to carry, reliable, and performs like a classic, then here it is. If you are looking for the likes of a Boss DD-20 (I'm personally thinking this way for now...), then don't get this pedal. For it's price, you are getting a very solid performer.

Easy to use and get a good sound out of. There's a decent amount of ways to get some pretty awesome sounds. There are knobs for level, time, and number of repeats on the outside and on the inside there are 3 pots to change the values of these. Overall it's not as feature-laden as a digital pedal but what it lacks in features it makes up for in warm, clear reproduction of the original sound.

I play a Fender Fat Strat with a Duncan JB in the bridge (coil-tapped) and also a Fender Jazz Bass with Duncan Hot stack p/u's through Tech 21 SansAmp preamps into a JBL powered 300 watt floor monitor. I have an Ibanez TS-9 reissue, a Morley wah, and also looking to get an Electro-Harmonix Electric Mistress to complete the deal. This is arguably the best delay unit on the market. Sure you're not getting 20 seconds of delay time but for the majority of us musicians, we only need about 2 or 3 seconds AT MOST. I a/b-ed this pedal with the Boss DD-3 and they both sounded really good. The Boss did have more features and was a bit cheaper, but there's just a certain characteristic warmth this unit had that the Boss did not. Also, if you turn the delay time knob while playing a note it makes a really cool sound (I'm guessing this is the self-oscillation). There are better sounding units out there of course, but who wants to pay $2oo or more for an effect pedal?

Seems pretty reliable. I've known older musicians in the neighborhood who have had one of this since the 70's and it's still working great.

The AD-9's are great as reverb units or for short to mid-range delay times. They clearly reproduce what's been played and decay smoothly. I love playing my Jazz bass through this even more than my strat. I can get different sounds ranging from Claypool to Roger Waters (Pink Floyd) on "One of These Days" with the bass, and with guitar I use it mainly for reverb and solos. I play a variety of rock, metal and country and this unit adds some very nice textures to the songs. There's nothing I'd add to this pedal and I'd recommend to anyone!

three knobs, self explanatory.

on the inside were extra trim pots, people talked about enhancing the pedal from the inside so I immediately tried it out. I needed a longer delay time so I could play "against" my own rythm and make it look like I'm actually a good guitarist.

I only messed with one of them, just follow the wires that come from the "delay time" knob, there are two that go to one of the four trim pots, that's the one I changed. It was at about one o'clock first, it is now as far to the left as possible, say at almost eight o'clock.

The delay time is now at about 500 m/s. Long enough for my needs. I don't plan on messing with the other trim pots until I get a second AD-9 so I always have one that is in usable shape.

Excellent, it doesn't mess with your original sound the way digital pedals do. Twisting the delay time knob while ringing a chord is also fun. I give it a nine, since this is the first analogue delay I've heard, I need to check out the analogue boss pedals as well.

I don't have it that long yet, but I'm sure it will last a few world wars.

no need for it

Overall the best delay pedal I've tried yet.

If there are any analogue pedals which have the "hold" function the Boss DD-3 has, I would go for that since that's a really cool function to create some psyched out sounds. If there are people that know of any such delays, please email me.

Not sure? Unaware of internal mini pots til now.

I really like this box. If your looking for warm, spacy, ambiant delay ...this is it. The self oscillation is awesome (cool recording trick). Now a lot of folks give digital delay pedals a bad rap. I also use a boss dd-5 digital delay pedal. It's a complete different animal. The digital delay is way better for dialing in speed for a great slapback effect. You can slap back with the ad-9 but it's not very adjustable in the main controls. I like the previous reviewer was not knowledgeable about the inside trim pots. I would also love to know these controls. I may be wrong about the slapback. I don't lose any tone bypassed on either. This box is a must for the average pedal geek. There are a lot of analog delay pedals though. I have heard the DM3 b0ss pedal is not very reliable. I have seen alot of broken ones (DM3) on ebay. The maxon ad900 or higher sounds to be the holy grail. I've never heard one though. They are real pricy though(250-300). My Ad9 was about 150 on ebay and the led dosen't work.

Very easy to use. 3 knobs like most analog delays.

Excellent sound. Almost seems to add a smoothness to the tone of humbuckers. This pedal can and will enhance harmonics along with sweetening sustain. I can't really go any further than the guy's below.

It's rock solid but if you kick it around alot and throw it in a backpack with the other metal BOSS pedals, it will chip the paint and sometimes change the calibration on you. You can adjust all the tone/delay controls from inside with mini pots. I would like the calibration sheet if someone would oblige me.

what? this is from '81.

My favorite delay, but I also love the DM-3 by BOSS. The BOSS is more fun sonicly but the Ibanez is the machine for smoothness and sweet old analog delay. FWIW the Ibanez "IZ" THE one to have if you can only have one on your board!

So if you have a data sheet email me. remove the (no-spam)from the addy. ;^)

Using this unit is a breeze, there's no fuss about it. The only thing that might need to be pointed out is that turning the speed nob up all the way is no a good idea if you're sitting right next to the amp.

I use this pedal in an effects chain. The chain goes from right to left. The last pedal is the pedal before the amp: Original Crybaby, Boss MT-2, the AD-9, Boss CH-1, DOD Graphic EQ, and a Bespeco Volume. I have put this pedal almost everywhere in this chain and it sounds the best somewhere in the middle usually after the distortion pedal. The effect itself is very smooth. With enough tweaking on the nobs one could get an almost reverb sound and turning the speed nob up all the way and twist the time nob while slapping the lowest string on the guitar creates a very cool warped almost like a snyth sound.

I have dropped this thing down at least 4 flights of stairs and it hasn't died on me yet. Who knows maybe staircase #5 will kill it. I do not recomend using a battery to power the unit though. It sucks power out of 9v's faster than any other pedal I own. So if your going live, run out and get a 9v transformer it'll do ya some good.

I got this thing for free cause my guitar teacher at the time didn't want it anymore so I've never delt with Ibenez or the company that designed the pedal Maxon. Maxon just re-released the 9 series so I'm sure if you have one of the older modles they'd be happy to service them in some way be it an exchange or just a suggestion for making it a better unit.

I primarily play hard rock and metal, but I was trained on jazz and blues so I've found uses for this thing in so many of my songs and projects. What I love about it is the stereo output feature. These outputs help expand the sounds you could get including paning and chorus sounds. What I hate is the battery power. It dies in like a week. I use an SKB pedal board to power all the pedals I use. I play on and ESP F-300 with EMG-HZ H1 pick-ups and I run everything through a Fender Delux 90. Along with the pedals I listed before I also use a Digitech Hot Rod distortion, a digitech Envelope Filter, and a fuzz pedal I constructed myself that sounds a bit like the Octiva unit that Jimmy Page used on Led-Zeppelin 1. I don't think I would ever need to replace this unit because of the past I've had with it. If I ever did need to replace it I would by the new version from Maxon cause it sounds exactly the same and has True Bypass switching so it is a definant improvement.

3 knobs the usual analog setttings for rate,speed and depth..........

Sound quality is excellent for analog delay, this pedal has that great raggedy edge and a slight warble that you usually associate with tape echos.I have played rock-a-billy for over 15 years and just got sick of lugging around a Roland Space Echo, as much as I loved them.So if your after that nice old 50"s rock-a-billy vibe then look no further than this pedal and don't worry I've tried many other delays over the years including stuff byDOD,Danelecto,Boss,
Arion,Guyatone and Echoplex just to name a few and I still keep going back to my best friend.I also play many other styles of music including swing,jump blues,old skool hardcore punk,country,ska and jazz and have used the pedal
in every band I have ever played in with maybe the exception of the punk stuff
sometimes dryer is better.Guess what! I only own 1 other pedal and that is
another Ibanez 9 series pedal and that is their graphic eq, what a match.The eq first then the delay straight into one of several amps that I own including a 1951 TV front deluxe, a Vox AC15, and a Deluxe reverb with the eq pedal set for a mid boost and a quick slap back on the AD9 I get a great edgy solo that really cuts thru and keeps the signal as honest as possible whilst also helping a 1x12 combo sound much bigger than it really is. But the features don"t just stop there you also get a poor mans AB box thanx to the wet and dry outs just don"t step on it accidently if you"re using it to record your Bass tracks.The pedal is pretty much silent except when the batteries wear out (i much prefer the sound of it with batteries its a personal thing)what can I say. Now for its final trick max out the tone and volume of you're favourite small valve combo preferebly something like an old tweed champ or a princeton if you have one. Then set the AD9 settings all to hard right and start playing you're best Neil Young licks from the Dead Man Soundtrack and I guarantee that you won't be dissapointed.The views I have expressed in this review are just my personal experiences with this pedal and tone is a very subjective thing. I suggest that along the way thru you're tone quest to experience as many varied sounds as you can thus allowing you the luxury of making a more informed desicion and hopefully the best player that you can be...........

Can you depend on it ? Yes.
Would you use it on a gig without a back up? Yes I do it all the time I'm not the big scardey cat that I used to be if it breaks down the show must go on please maintain a proffessional attitude at all times don't be a big girly pants.

Finally I have had the pedal repaired twice once by me broken 9 volt battery conector hey what can I say things just get old and wear out and the other problem was rhw on/off switch and that was cured by using the same one out of a TS 808 so yes some parts are interchangeable that repair cost me a whopping AUS D 5.00 bucks pretty cool I thought............

Didn"t really deal with Ibanez directly because I've worked in the music industry I pretty much now where to source parts if I need them and no I never felt the need to have the pedal upgaded it would defeat the purpose of this particular pedal...................

Opps I spilt my guts way to early see my views above in the section called sound quality.Anything I wish it had no , I say try to buy the right pedal for the right job don"t expect an analog delay to have the huge delay times and the presicion and detail of say a Boss DD 5 or 6 they are two completly different
animals and should be approached as such.It has always helped me to make my musical experiences far more enjoyable and never gets in the way and if it does it's as easy as turning it off thats why stompboxes are so cool and finally a few words to describe my own AD 9 sturdy,reliable,robust and tottaly irreplaceable, for me it is the very heart and soul of my own personal tone and sound I would not hesitate in the blink of an eye to replace it no matter what the cost ....................................

3 knobs controlling delay level, number of repeats and delay length.
you won't need a manual for this. I haven't messed with the internal pots cause these are my fav pedals.

these pedals sound really nice and warm.
beware its got a max time of like 300 ms which is too short for the edge-type escapades...
I especially like to use this with a clean or slightly overdriven signal..
for distorted I like my digital boss delay better...

Ive got two of this one. on one of them the switch fails if you dont step on it hard. it doesnt really matter to me cause at the moment I only play at home. other than that the 9 series are solid pedals.

Ive never dealt with Ibanez..

I did buy a used whammy II and e-mailed digitech for a manual and they sent me an old whammy II manual that someone found at the office free.. that was nice..
but as for ibanez.. I have no idea..

I really like these pedals..
I found both really cheap and I've seen these go for like $160-200 on e-bay.. I'll never get rid of these...
I've also got a cs-9 that I found used in a store for $25..
too bad I don't like chorus.. but I'll keep that one too..
right now I'm looking for the sd-9, af-9, fl-9 and any other 9 series..(but those 3 imparticular)

Pretty E-Z to use, but may take you awhile to dial in the "perfect" setting.

Great sounding stompbox. I prefer these "bucket brigade" analog pedals over the newer digital models. I also have the Maxon AD-80 reissue which is very similar to this, but the AD-9 sounds better to my ears. I think the delay time is slightly longer than the Maxon and you can get the AD-9 to self-oscillate when you want noisy sound effects. I use it with a 1982 Ibanez AR-300 and Les Paul Studio through a Vox AC-15 (tube) and Fender Deluxe 90 (solid state).

I have two and never had a problem with either one.

Never had to contact support.

This is still my favorite no frills analog delay stompbox. It has seved me well over many years and many styles of music. Sometimes I wish they had a tap tempo feature, but I can live without it.

It took me a few weeks to get the true sound I was looking for. I'm a perfectionist. Once I felt satisfied with what I had found, I haven't touched the knobs since.

I play jazz influenced rock and use the pedal exclusively to add depth to my lead tone. I play a Gibson Howard Roberts Fusion III semi-hollowbody with a Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge pickup. My pedal chain runs Voodoo Labs Tremelo -> Ernie Ball Volume -> Ibanez CS9 Analog Stereo Chorus -> Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer w/ AnalogMan -> ProCo Rat 2 -> Ibanez AD9 Analog Delay -> Boss DD5 w/ tap tempo extension. The AD9 in conjunction with the DD5 for rhythm work more than satisfies my delay needs. I am a big fan of the Ibanez "9" series pedals. Max the AD9 out and you can achieve some wild space sounds - think Radiohead noise track.

I haven't had a problem with any of my "9" series pedals.

I have never dealt with the company - a good thing IMO.

As long as you know what you are looking for, this pedal is a keeper. Delay is an effect that can be misused very easily. Combined with the DD-5, I am getting the exact use out of this unit that I purchased it for.

Like any delay I've seen. I prefer numbers on amps and effects, so that I can precisely record my settings. That's why I'm not giving it a 10 - no numbers.

This thing is the best. I use it in the effects loop of my Voodoo modified Mesa Heartbreaker head on a relatively short delay. I learned about this technique in an article about Robben Ford that said he used a short delay to fatten up his lead tone. This pedal really delivers in this application. The analog sound is so much fatter and warmer than a digital delay. Sounds a lot like a tape echo unit. Very quiet.

Well as I write this review, my pedal is being repaired by Robert Keeley. The LED light is going on and off, but no effect. He thinks it's a "switching FET" and should be repairable. I hope it is, because I love this thing.

It's really old, so I guess it's lasted a good long time with no problems. However, it really just sits on the top of my head and I turn it on at the beginning of the night and turn it off at the end. It doesn't seem like this "switching FET" is very reliable. Maybe I should just leave it on from now on!

I play rock and blues. I've been playing over 30 years, with a 10 year hiatus in the middle. My electric rig consists of:

PRS McCarty
Fender American Series Stratocaster with Lindy Fralin Blues Specials
Carvin DC127 koa with Seymour Duncans ('59 and JB)
Mesa Heartbreaker head modified by Voodoo Amps
Mesa 2x12 Recto cabinet with Vintage 30s and Weber Beam Blockers
Thomas Organ Crybaby way modified for true bypass
Ibanez TS9 reissue
Maxon OD808

This pedal sounds so great for providiing some ambient delay and fattening up the tone. A friend of mine gave it to me in the late 80s, when he decided to go with a digital delay. I believe it was made in the early 80s. If it were lost or stolen, I would have to shell out the big bucks for another one on Ebay, or a reissue. Welll at least I got this one for free! Even though itdoesn't have numbers (see Ease of Use), I still have to give it a 10. It sounds that good.

So easy how can it not be a 10

Here we go. Oh please! this pedal is ok, it is not perfect, it is not as good as newer some digital pedals. ie: Guyatone MD2 and 3, Ibanez DE7 are two excellent new pedals. I know everyone talks about "the warm analog sound". Well try a digital with a little distortion/overdrive added and you will have the "warm analog sound".
I have owned the following Ibanez AD9,AD99,BossDM2,DM3,,My favorite still is the Ibanez DE7, DODfx96, DOD505, Electro Harmonix deluxe memory man what a big box of dissapointment. Anyway, I know I am peeing on all you golden eared AD9 fans but this pedal, just like the Boss DM2 is over rated over priced and talked up way to much. It is very limited in it's length of delay times and settings. Don't get me wrong it is an ok pedal and will do the job for most things. but it is not any better than a lot of other delays and is actually not as good as some. But it does look cool on a pedal board.

I guess so mine was over 20years old and still working

Vintage 60's and 70's Rock and Rockabilly Baby!!!!

If you cant figure it out you shouldnt be using it. Three controls, Rate, Depth, and Level.

If you appreciate the anolog delays you will like the AD9, It is very warm and creamy with nice decay. I bought this unit used off Ebay along with a Ibanez CS9 stereo chorus for $135.00 for both. Which i thought was an awesome deal. I had to tweak the trim pots inside. apparetnly someone tried the same and had it all funked up. After about 10 minutes of trying different settings i got is sounding very pleasent. I still have and like my digital delays also they have there advantages. Im dont favor either more than the other they all have there own place ya know.

Well being that it is like 21 years old and looks like hell. but sounds like heaven. i would have to say its reliable. The footswitch is still very functional. which is surprising as these are one of the first things to go on the 9 series pedals.

I used to work for ibanez a few years back and must say i thought our customer service sucked. Eithere you get and answer or no answer at all. JMHO

I defintly will recommend this delay to all. But if you are looking for delay times that are long then look elsewhere. i belive it maxes at like 300ms or so. but you can tweak it a bit further with the trimpots.

This pedal has only (3) knobs - Rate, Depth, and Level, so basic operation was a no brainer. It also has some internal trim pots - one of which controls the Delay time. If you leave the trim pots alone, then this pedal is "easy as pie".
..if you want to play around with the trim pots (which you may want to do as these pedals are no longer manufactered and there is a possibility that previous owners tweaked it) it may be a little bit more difficult/time consuming...but well worth the effort.

If you have never experienced an analog delay, then you are missing out on a true tonal tool. Oh so delicious...

My set up is as follows:
Tele (w/ SD HB's) > Boss TU2 > Fulltone Fulldrive II > Vox Wah > Boss DD3 > Ibanez AD9 > Marshall 50w JMP w/ 4x12. Cables are George L's.

This pedal DEFINATELY, without a doubt, lives up to the hype.

Perfect for any kind of delay under 300ms. Not a hint of "ping", unlike ALL digital delays set to 300ms or below.

If you play with the internal trim pots and max the delay time (see review below for more detailed instruction) you will sacrifice some sound quality...I adjusted my internal pot (for Delay time) to just under half travel.

I like the Depth at 3 o'clock, Rate at 9 o'clock, and Level at 9 o'clock - this setting allows me to thicken up my tone very nicely with some very sublte, shallow echos/repeats...like reverb, only better.

This pedal is great with both "clean" and "dirty" amp settings. Does not add or take away anything from your tone while bypassed.

I cannot say enough good things about this pedal. Just beautiful.

Well condiering mine is over 22 years old, seen who knows how many stages, and passed thru who knows how many hands, it seems to work

Well, the pedal isn't manufactered anymore...and I haven't tried contacting Ibanez for any help. No opinion.

I bought mine from eBay without trying one out and was a bit skeptical of what the hype surrounding this vintage, analog pedal suggested...The AD9 definatley lives up to the hype.

If you are serious about tone, and want to add a smidge of delay (under 300ms), then get your hands on one of these.

These things are the real deal. If you can scoop one up, I suggest you do. It may cost a lot for a used pedal, but you get what you pay for. Very sweet indeed.

The AD-9 analog delay has 3 knobs: delay time, repeat, and delay level. Unlike the Boss DM-2 each knob does what you think it would. (I have heard DM-2s have the d level and d time functions switched.) It also has a second output, labeled "dry output" which apparently seperates your dry signal from the delay signal so that you can do a ping-pong kind of effect in stereo set-ups. But this pedal isn't as easy to use as you'd think: because the pedal only has 300 milliseconds of delay time it was confusing at first when I tried to find the delay time I wanted. In addition, where a specific setting is on each knob seems to change every time I turn the AD-9 on after not using it for a while. The changes aren't huge of course; they are small enough for me to not be sure if I'm imagining it or not but I think they do change a bit.

Well this is my first foray into the world of analog effects so I can't really say how great it is compared to other analog delays. But I have owned a Boss DD-3 which does not deserve the high rating it has on HC; it is very metallic sounding and unnatural. I have also owned a Dan-Echo and I liked it a lot but both the ones I bought did not seem to work right in my effects loop (on both the volume would just die). I have to say I was a bit dissappointed due to the great reviews for the AD-9. It is very reverby--especially through headphones--and I don't like reverb much. The top-end roll-off is also much more than I though it would be.
Nonetheless I am finding myself to have a style very rock/countryish in a "Honky Tonk Women" kind of way so this thing grew on me very fast as it complements my style a lot. It also adds a dimension to your sound that is much better than reverb and also doesn't compete with your playing. My best explanation for the sound of this pedal is that the repeats come in the form of short-decay reverberations with a small upper-peak/echo that has slightly more definition/treble than the reverb quality of the repeats. I hope that made sense. In addition, this pedal is totally silent. No noise whatsoever even with humbuckers. (This noiselessness seems to be an anamoly because many other reviews say analog effects are noisy.)

21 years old and it works perfectly. The footswitch functions like the best Boss pedal. Apparently this isn't the case with many individual pedals in the 9 series but I have had no problems. Even if you do have a problem, there is always a replacement footswitch on eBay.
To figure out the age of your 9 series pedal: the first digit in the serial # is the last digit in the year of its manufacturing. By the way, the 9 series were only manufactured between '81 and '84 or '85. They had black back labels until around late '82/early '83 and then the labels were changed to white/silver.

CS for a pedal made in the early '80s? Yeah right!

A very cool looking pedal but I'm going to sell it because it's not quite what I'm looking for. And for $122.50 a delay pedal better be exactly what I'm looking for! I think I'll try a Boss DM-3 next because it apparently has less high-end roll-off and it has 450 milliseconds of delay time. Not that I'm complaining about 300 milliseconds because I usually only use about 115. But DM-3s have skyrocketed in price on eBay over night for some reason (all the high bidders were new to eBay too--weird huh?). But so it goes in the vintage market. (Take out the "NO SPAM" in my email address if you want to email me. It took me a while to realize you had to do that!)
Cheers and Good Guitar Playing! --Matt

three knobs, very easy to use

the sound quality is great. i turned it on and it sounded just like scotty moore off of old elvis recordings. i don't think i've ever played an analog delay before (maybe), but this sounds like no delay i've ever heard. if you turn up the repeat knob all the way and turn down the delay time, you can sort of hear the quality of the tone, and it's very,very warm...it's beautiful. It sounds kind of like it's breaking up somehow, it's great. every setting is useful. I seriously did not know delay good sound this good. i don't know if it's analog or just this pedal, maybe both. the other very very cool thing about this pedal is that by fooling around with the delay knob you can get the pedal to squeal or hum, or to do string bends... if you turn the repeat up all the way, you can get a pure pitch and just modulate it as you wish, playing different notes by adjusting the delay time. if you lower the repeat setting and then strike a note then turn the delay time knob, the note will bend up and then back down to the original. This is the coolest pedal I've ever had, except for maybe my buzz box.

just got it today

Ha HA! these are going for 130 on ebay, and I traded my friend a skateboard for this! and he threw in a ts-10 tubescreamer! and two more pedals! I'm in guitar bargain heaven. I played this delay through a japanese squier bullet i bought today, plugged into my 6 watt (?) fender tube amp. this is one of the most beautiful tones i've ever heard, and i've been playing 10 years. i'm in tone heaven. my dad heard me playing through this, he's not a guitarist, but he kept saying how pretty it sounded, and he's never commented on guitar tones, and knows nothing about them. my mome heard me fooling with the delay time and was wondering what those weird noises were. she thought aliens were invading.

I have nothing to say. this pedal is so easy to use

Are you a tone freak? I can tell this is the 2nd best delay pedal.
I used Boss, DD2,DD3,LINE 6 DL4, WAY HUGE DELAY. I will say way huge is the first. AD9 is the second.
There is my pedal setting.

parker nitefly
Keeley Comp-Crybaby535c-Mt2-London fuzz-Hot cake-
Tc electronic scf-ad9-
Fender twin reverb


sound so good.

oK

Good delay pedal. If i have money i will buy way huge.

i just wanted to add some notes to the last reviewers after using his "tweak" for trimming the delay. on my box i had to remove the bottom plate to actually see the trimming pot. also others might like to know there are two pots, the one to the right adjusting the delay time and the one in the middle adjusting the feedback (or repeat as it says on the front knob of the device). i played around with the trimmers a bit, and it felt like it released potential to this little box i never thought possible. adjusting the delay and feedback to bigger values (turning counterclockwise) made the ibanez add even more warmth and dirt to the sound. and thats the beauty of this box.

about a year ago i had a digital ibanez delay, can't remember the name but it was a plastic black stomp box... anyways, comparing these two i found the digital delay giving a flat, clean and boring sound. the ad-9 on the other side actually added something new, as other reviewers also has stated. perhaps this is not for everyone, but i can see this delay coming handy when used for experimental or grungy sounds. myself i use it mostly with synthesizers, playing and turning the knobs at the same time creates some really nice sound effects.

Nothing to add here to previous reviews.

I think the sound quality is very nice, the unit is not very noisy, on the contrary I find it surprisingly quiet. As so many have stated the delay time is on the short side. Here's a tip: If you open the battery compartment and take out the battery holding the unit upside down you can see a trimmer on the right below the circuit board. This trimmer fine tunes the delay time. Time to find a small headed screw driver. If you turn it fully counterclockwise it maxes the delay to about 500ms (compared with by digital unit where you can set the delay ms.). Turning the other way will shorten it. I find that to achieve the specification delay time of (10ms-)300ms you will set the trimmer to about middle (/half of the travel). Maximizing the delay time with this trimmer is sometimes said to decrease the effect quality, but as always, experiment and use what you like.

I tried to match the sounds of this analog unit and my digital Boss GT-6 multieffect unit delay with this box in the effect loop and was able to get fairly close, or close enough, the Boss being much quieter :-) The key finding to get the sound similar was to set the high frequency cut in GT-6 as low as 700Hz! No wonder AD-9 sounds warm as much of the high frequency range is cut from the delayed signal.

This is a '81 unit - 21 years old and still going strong!! And it looks like it has got its share of the road and been through a beaten life. Reliable enough for me.

I have never ever needed any customer support with stomp boxes. Lucky me.

Overall I think this is a good, simple analog delay holding the Ibanez 9-series fame with honour.

Can't be much easier.
Manual is not needed, it's only three knobs -after all.

It's incredible. It's often compared to the Boss series DM2, DM3 -but I think all of these has their own personality.
I do prefer this pedal over the others though, but that's just me.

Now, I've read some reviews who complained about it being noisy and not enough delay time. And, yeah, it could have been quieter and had slightly more delay time- but this is a vintage analog pedal -which means it can be noisy and have a short delay time (300ms) by todays standards that is. And if you don't like the treble roll-off -go for a digital delay.

I've been using it with a 70's Fender Stratocaster and a Hagstrom Super Swede in pair with a Marshall amp- sounds just great.

Built like a tank-
Yes I would gig w/o backup. But like any other pedal it eats batteries so be sure to unplug it when you're not using it -or use an adapter.

The footswitch is not 100 -but that's a common problem. Just be careful.

Ibanez should reissue this series- not only the TS9. Many of the other ones in this series was really cool. Sounded great and looked wonderful.

I've never dealt with them and doubt that I ever will- at least regarding the 9 series. (not at all like the cheap plastic 'Soundtank' series which fall apart just by looking at it...)

It fits any style really.
You can fatten up the sound, have a slapback etc. Suitable for (and a must) to re-create the vintage sound- but 'modern' stuff could need this pedal too.
Digital delays simply don't give the 'right' sound. Too sterile and cold for my taste.

Maybe what I like most about it is the beautiful color...

Simple, self-explanatory knobs. Most basic delay pedals are the same...

I use lots of pedals, into the loop of my Carvin MTS3200 100 watt tube half-stack. Various guitars. I paid $150 for this on E-bay, and it was a gamble in my mind. BUT, know this, this is the best delay I've ever heard, and having heard it I have no desire to look further. I'd never give anything a "10", but this is a great pedal. I don't even think its a question of "analog vs. digital", there is just something so right about the way this particular pedal sounds. Overdriven but not offensive by any means. Even if you leave it on you don't mind it, it seems to compliment anything. Mine isn't noisy, plus if I turn the repeat all the way up I get a cool infinite repeat that eventually turns into beautiful noisy mush (think a jet plane crashing, definately cool). I am so surprised to hear how nice this thing sounds; this is the first time I've let the vintage tone nazis talk me into getting an old pedal, but I'm beginning to see their point. I like that the delay level doesn't suck the volume of my guitar to work (all my other delays have, even rack stuff). I like that the delay time isn't exorbitantly long, cause its not meant to be an instrument in itself, its meant to enhance your playing. This thing has NO ego.

It's old and still works, and I bet it will for some time. That's all I can say. I'm reckless so I'd gig without a backup, but I'm still gonna try to find a few more of these to grow old with.

Been playing 7 years or so now. As far as style, I'll go from blues to "Metal", whatever. This thing seems to just take what you give it and not really change the sound. I even had my distortion up all the way, playing chords, riffing, etc, and the delay didn't really affect the sound, but turn the metal off and there it is, sounding great. Like I said, I'm getting more of these, bottom line.

Killer analog delay. Probably one of my favorites. I have only tried about 50 or so different delays. This one is smooth.

Sound is warm fuzzy analog. Put it after the filter and distortionand modulation stuff. I run a PRS hollowbody II->Musitronics Octave Divider->Teese RMC 3 wah->TS808->Ibanez Super Tube->Electro Harmonix Zipper->Ross Grey Compressor->mxr script phase 90->Arion Chorus->Ernie Ball Volumne Pedal->DM2->DM2->Boss DD5->1966 Fender Deluxe Reverb. oooh oooh oooh. Tone out the arse! You can check out samples at <a href="http://www.freshlybaked.com/pedals">Randtronics</a> and check out my band <a href="http://www.freshlybaked.com/">Freshly Baked</a>

This thing is a tank like all 9 series fx. watch out for those switches and dont lose the battery covers.

Don't know never ever had a problem with any ibanez stuff.

great pedal. buy one if you can if not try a boss dm2, dm3 or way huge aqua puss.

its the most easyiest pedal to get a good sound cause its the best analog delay pedal out there the dan echo rates second to this

i used it with the metal zone and also a tube screamer i think its the best delay pedal to use with other pedals its not noisy i use it with a hiwatt custom 50 head through a carvin cab loaded wit brit 12 speakers i also use it through my vox cambridge 15 aND SOUNDS REALLY GOOD WITH TUBE AMPS

this is the best series ibanez came out with i want to get every pedal from that series these were probebly the best built pedal ibanez came out with i own five others from this series and they all work great

this is were ibanez needs to improve they need to have better comunication and make it so u can order parts like battery compartments i give them a 4

i love this pedal and would try to get another one if i could cheapley
i own a lot of delay pedals and this is numba one for sounds

Well there are 3 knobs(delay time, repeat, delay level).You should tweak them to hear what they can do for you.It? not hard to get good sound or atmosphere.This is an old analog delay so you should not look for looooong delay time.It is a second hand for me so no manual...

I use am. std. strat ,ibanez ts9,boss cs3,boss ce2, boss ph3, ibanez ad9, morley pbw-power booster wah,and then it finishes or in crate gx 15r or in marshall jmp superlead 1oo.The soundS that i get with the ad9 is warm not so clear as with digital delay but i consider them as different pedals.Sometimes i play with the delay time knob like turning it counter-clockwise while i'm playng so i get this jet sound.Mostly i use the ad9 to fatten up the sound of my strat with the repeat s on minimum, delay time at 10 o clock and the level at12.I cant say i use it for repeats,i never bought it for that reason.You can get the sound of lets say REd house-live version from Toronto, or you can get some psychodelic sounds if you turn the knobs clockwise especialy the repeat knob.

I bought it second hand from a guy that was the first owner.It looks hard to break and its much heavier than my boss pedals.I have it 4 mounths and i have no problems.Since this one is realy old pedal i think it is a long runner.

Never had to deal with them.Hope it remains that way.

I play some blues , funky and rock stuff alla Hendrix, Jorma Kaukonen(jefferson Airplane...)Vlatko Stefanovski( one of the best guitarists in the world for my opinion because he has technic,skilland SOUL and he can make cry his guitar not only on records but also live on stage. By the way he is from Macedonia and he used to play in a band LEB I SOL),Robert Fripp,Frank Zappa...As I said before i use this pedal just to fatten up the sound and it does very very good.To use it as a delay i advice you to play it through a good good amp.Once I had a chance to play it through a H&K Duotone combo.Man ,what sound even the delay sounds where more clearer.Amazin.If you can find one ,first you should try with your rig because it makes differences, and than you decide.

I really enjoy this delay. I got it new back in 1984. Three knobs controlling (1)the number of repeats, (2) the amount of delay between repeats, and (3) the volume of each successive repeat.

It doesn't give you quite what you could get out of an old Echoplex, but to me it sounds a lot better than any of the digital effects I've tried. Mainly, this is because you get a natural sounding decay with analogue, much like an echo inside a deep cave---a very warm kind of delay with this particular model. And if you twiddle with the repeat and delay knobs while driving the amp or while creating feedback, you can get some really cool Star Trek (the real Generation) phaser type sounds. This pedal will give you all the delay you need to reproduce Pink Floyd live, for example (Run Like Hell is as good a test for a delay pedal as any).

With solid cast-metal construction, this is about the most solid stomp-type effect I've found. Too many of the stomp pedals available during the '80s were made of non-durable plastic. These Ibanez effects swallow up batteries pretty good, so get an AC adaptor.

I like it. You can't duplicate many of the studio type delay effects, so if you're into that, you may want to get a rack system. But if you're like me and really depend more on your guitar and amp for your sound than your effects, this little gem will be quite adequate. Despite the fact that it has a limited delay range, it gives you a nice, warm, natural sounding decay. For live performances, this is all you need.

Pretty easy... but it can become complex if you get inside and start messing around... no one else mentioned this aspect of the pedal. I'll tell you about it below...

The sounds I get are very warm... You can get anything with this pedal... from slap back to wall of sound... The best part of this thing... (which no one else mentioned) is the fact that you can tweak it. If you open it up there are four little screw type things which allow you to adjust the parameters of the sound. It's a little tedious to work with but it pays off because you can make the pedal do some amazing things...

built tough

never had a problem...

I really like this pedal... I play in an indie rock act... same vein as Tortoise, This Heat, or Sonic Youth... Works great for my set up. I use a Fender American Telecaster and a Teisco baritone guitar, through a Sunn Coliseum Lead head and out of a Marshall... The only other pedal I use is an MXR distortion 2...

Three knobs: 1) Delay 2) Repeat 3) Repeat Level, easier than pie. Wet and dry outputs.

DeArmond SG Copy (H/H) > DOD Dist(boost) > DOD Flanger > Russian Big Muff Reissue > AD-9 Delay > Zoom 505 (Recommended uses: reverb, some delays, eq, level, tuner) > Peavey Bandit 112.

This pedal is ugly on the outside, but the delays are beautiful. Nope, doesn't do the digital thing and get 2 full seconds of endless clear echo. INSTEAD this pedal makes your signal sound like an old record...warm, a little hissy, dreamy, creamy, soft, classic...I normally have both the delay and repeat all the way up and the volume almost all the way up too, but I don't suggest anyone really do that. I just can't get enough of the dreamy sound this setting gives me makes. Just plain beautiful. Play around with the knobs to get the sound you like. My only one and complaint would be that when the batteries are low, the delay becomes really ugly...but sometimes this distorted sound is pretty cool too!

Mine is dented up with paint chipping off of it, but it works without any problems. I didn't realize how old this pedal was when my friend gave it to me, well, practically gave it to me. Now I have even more love and admiration for my ugliest colored pedal. Even the battery compartment and cover are in excellent condition. Solid metal everything except for the knobs. Only two things could go wrong with this pedal: 1) you somehow break off the knobs and make them unfixable by breaking the pots too. 2) You don't take care of it and don't tighten the rings around the input jacks...therefore stripping the sodering job.

Nope

Aye, I'm in love. I've had this for over 2 years now and its had so much impact to my sound. Most of my equipment is either second hand or subpar-new, so my setup doesn't sound all too hot, but this delay makes my signal so warm and dreamy that I think I sound like a live version of a 60's 4-track recording. Very impressive. I'm no expert on delay pedals, but this pedal makes you sound beautiful, distorted or not.

Has to be one of the simplist delays ever built!

I'm using this with an old G&l strat style guitar, a Peavey special 130 amp and a rat fuzz. I adjust all three knobs at 1:00PM setting and only add a slight amount of standard peavey amp reverb. I play alot of pedal steel licks (have a hipshot B bender, a palm G bender and a low E detuner to D. Naturally with that old Peavey amp, things might not be as clean as some would like, but the delay does not appear to add any additional noise whatsoever. My pedal just recently began giving me problems (I bought this thing in 81' or 82'). Like a fool, I simply went to the local store and bought a danecho unit---used it one time and tore into my pedal with the thought that it must be easy to fix and sure enough, I fixed it! Decided right then and there to look for another one just in case.

As I earlier stated, I play through two pedals only, I carry two pedals only and do not carry backups. I will carry the danecho along just because I bought it used for $30, and it is good enough to be called a backup....

Never dealt with 'em, but I do agree with another person that their website is lame when it comes to pedal info.

I'm presently looking for another one---this thing gives me the nicest delay with warmth....the decay (unlike those digital units) is so amazing and natural sounding.....

simple old-school delay--three knobs. never seen the manual, but you won't need it.

use it with an sg standard and a line 6. hate most of the effects on the line 6 so i use boxes. i play guitar a little strangely, and this pedal is great for me. most of the other reviews are from people looking for natural sounds, and while i love that aspect of this pedal, i can also make the guitar stop sounding like a guitar with its help. it will feedback it you want it to, but not immediately. max the level and repeats and start messing with the time, and no digital delay can sound like this thing. very warm; organic as dirt. noise only becomes a problem when the batteries get low, which does happen fast, but it takes power to sound this cool.

it's at least fifteen years old, and okay so far. it's a hunk of metal. the pedal doesn't have a lot of travel when you kick it, but it seems solid. i don't have a backup.

never dealt with them with this pedal, but as someone else said there's no info on the site about old stuff that i can find. their new pedals are pants as i'm concerned, but i've never chosen to deal directly with ibanez, so they get a five. i actually got lucky and scored this pedal after a guitarist left my band, and i never looked back.

i play a fairly straightforward setup. no stereo stuff, just some boxes and an amp i don't claim to completely understand. i love the amp models and the tremolo in the line 6, but i need boxes to change the signal on the fly. still working on a collection, but this and an EH electric mistress and a crybaby and an ebow are getting me there. the new music we play lends itself more to strange guitar work (think more jonny greenwood), and this pedal is great for that as well as conventional delays. not a big fan of ibanez in general, but they did right with this pedal. right now i'm trusting the switch to hold up, and that's my only worry. i don't see anything missing; three knobs is enough for analog delay. great sound, great pedal, great color. get one.

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The first thing I did when I got this pedal was got a hold of one of my friends, borrowed his Aqua-puss and then put the two of them through a side-by-side comparison. I was using the following set-up:
Strat.....Ernie Ball volume pedal...Fulltone '69...Fulltone Fulldirve II...Fulltone Supa-trem...AD-9/WH Agua puss. Well here it goes.

I will start off by saying that both of these pedals are excellent pedals. They both shine in certain areas and come short in others.

Delay time:
THe AD-9 blows the Aqua puss away in the arena. It offers a little longer delay than the WH but this is alot in the analog delay relm.

Repeats:
Both pedals would repeat for a long time but the AD-9 stayed clearer, cleaner, longer. The WH would begin to feedback much sooner and the repeats would change timbre on you alot sooner. This is cool..but not always wanted. The WH has this weird mid rangy sound that is cool but I like the true sound of of the AD-9 much better.

Sound:
The WH is alot crisper than the AD-9 which is good with analog pedals that can seem muddy at times. Sometimes you forget that the AD-9 is on. Some may prefer this, but this is one of the areas that I felt the WH excelled.

One final note on the WH. This pedal offers many setting that are unusable. Anywhere past 12 o'clock on the repeat knob and all you get is uncontrollable feedback. What's the point? Every setting on the AD-9 is usuable. A real plus.

Bottom line.
If you don't mind spending over $300 for a used WH Aqua puss and you want the best slap-back in the world, go for it. If you are on a budget and you want to have a pedal that can do almost any kind of delay in the world (and a darn good job at that), buy a AD-9. I found mine used in a music store for $40!! I don't know if you will be that lucky but it wouldn't hurt to try.

If you can't get a good sound out of this thing, you can't get a good sound out of anything!!! Just set it where you want it and go.

I've had this thing since I was 16, way back in 1982, so I've used it with everything I've ever owned since then. Currently I'm playing thru a Budda Twinmaster head and a 1- 12 Mesa Boogie Thiele cab loaded w/ a celestion. Guitars: Fender 50's reissue Strat, Gibson NightHawk "the Hawk" and a custom parts dinky strat type guitar that I built. No noise with this pedal. Full tone with this one, very thick and fat, always sounds great. Eric Johnson tones, easy. This pedal works great with everything in my pedalboard. I currently use a Ernie Ball Volume pedal, Crybaby wah, tubescreamer, rat, chorus and this AD9. It sounds great with everything.

I've had it for 18 years and never had a problem with it. I regularly gig without a backup for this, it's so reliable. I wish they still made these things!!!

N/A

Right now I'm playing with several groups ranging from gospel/r&b to pop to blues. This pedal fits in with every application that I find myself in. I've been playing for 20 years, 18 with this thing. I've checked out other delay pedals, but never purchased anything else because this thing is, IMO, all that. I'd probably buy another one if I could find one for the right price. I love its warmth and thickness.