Korg 301dl Dynamic Echo

The 301dl is not particularly difficult to figure out how to use, but with so many features and knobs that have dual functions its difficult to tweek quickly to suit the song, the room, the volume level etc. The 301dl has many features of a rack mount studio delay, in a stomp box package with high cut, low cut, low fi, ducking, pre-delay, delay, level, regeneration available to you, you have a wide variety of sounds you can get out of it. Luckily the 301dl does provide two programs you can store and recall with a stomp of the foot, but you'll wish you had allot more! My Advice: The first thing I did was change the pre-delay (the delay time of the first delay) to zero and stored both programs. This way as I change my delay time from song to song, I only need to adjust one knob. Pre-delay is cool in that you can make the first delay a different interval than the subsequent delays, but I find I only use it occasionally as a "special" effect. MORE ADVICE! THIS IS BIG!: After hearing the sounds you can get out of the 301dl, I really wanted to use it through my board's effects send bus for final mix downs, but the 301dl had no dry defeat! I opened it up and found a two pin plug that had a wire looped from one pin to the other. For the heck of it I pulled it out and tested it and sure enough, nothing but delay, no dry signal. I put the connector back but cut the wire and wired it to a switch that installed on the front and BAM, dry defeat switch!

I use the 301dl primarily through an effects loop of either a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe or a Mesa Boogie Caliber .50. As I eluded above I also use it as a studio effect. As others have recommended, get a power supply. If all your doing is live rock, the batteries will do fine for several hours, but the power supply cant hurt, its one less variable. As the batteries weaken the noise increases and the output decreases. The 301dl has a wide range of sounds, from very clean, to very dark tape delay sounds that are just really too cool to describe. Check out http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Studio/6153/ for an example.

So far so good.

No opinion.

The 301dl has many nice features and makes really nice sounds for a wide variety of applications. Its nice to have all the features, but its a little tedious to tweek on the fly which indubitably, you will need to do. The knobs have dual features that are switched with a toggle switch so that the position they are in does not always correlate to where the setting is presently active. When you rotate a knob and it sweeps past the stored setting an LED blinks to let you know. You can get used to it, but not knowing where your starting from without having to sweep the knob is just one more thing that decouples you getting where you want to be quickly. Why not twice as many knobs, why not twice as many patches to store, why not a button you can tap to adjust delay time? Will they ever make the the ultimate delay? I still give it an 8 because, with a little patience, ultimately you can get it to sound the way you want it to and that is the most important thing!.

Everything is very easy and logical. The only reason I give it an eight is because the 301dl's 8 functions are edited with 4 knobs (there is a switch to change between top four and bottom four functions). It's a little annoying at first, but then you get used to it and it's no big deal. Oh yeah, there is also a footswitch for changing between the 2 user programs and an another for effect/bypass.
The functions are as follows:
TOP:
TIME --- how far apart delays are (up to 1 second long)
FEEDBACK --- how long delays last before they disappear (up to, like, forever. If you turn this down to nothing, it's like a poor man's reverb)
HiDAMP --- increasingly dampens the high tones of the echo
LEVEL --- adjusts volume level of echos
BOTTOM:
PREDELAY --- adjusts the time before the first delay, separate from the delay time overall
Hi-Fi/ Low-Fi --- Hi-fi settings produce digital delay sounds, low-fi settings produce analog tape delay sounds
LoDAMP --- Increasingly dampens low tones of echos
DUCKING --- Silences delays until you stop playing, at which point delays come in
TOASTEROVEN --- Just kidding.

This delay pedal is so cool I feel inferior standing near it. Any kind of delay or echo sound you want, you can get with this pedal. I'm a fan of the Police and U2 and Pink Floyd, and this does them all proud. Great for any kind of echo sound, short, long, analog, digital, minimal repeats or infinite. Also the ducking effect (best set at 1/4) is extremely cool, as is the ability to seperately modify the time of the first echo. Essential is the ability to save 2 user programs, because at least in my case, I don't just use one kind of echo. Fiddling with knobs when you're performing is not fun.
My setup is thus: Telecaster, Korg 411fx Super Multi Fx, Danelectro Cool Cat, 301dl Dynamic Echo, Peavy Rage 158 amp. The three pedals mentioned are the only ones I own, the only ones I need, and for me, the holy trinity of effect pedals.
The Super Multi has a very good sounding but not extremely editable echo already. I've been getting some interesting double rhythm effects using both echos together. I really like this mix: flanger or reverb and compression from the Super, plus chorus from the Cool Cat, and add echo from the 301dl. Beauty, eh!
Another cool thing you can do with the 301dl is this: set the feedback to as high as it will go, the echo time to as slow as it'll go, then make string-scratch noises and whatever, then adjust the echo time up and down. Creeeeeepy!
Why does this get a 9 instead of a 10, you ask? Very slight hum. Very slight. Really, you never notice it, but it's there. You could probably spend 800 dollars and get all this with no hum, but if you're like most guitarists, you aren't independenly wealthy. Therefore this is a very good choice for those of us without money falling out of our arses (and on sale for $100 bucks, half off!).

I've had the Korg Super Multi for almost a year now with no problems at all (and I've dropped it down the stairs once and onto the driveway once), so I assume this will be the same. Its body is identical to the Super Multi's, as are all of Korg's Toneworks pedals. I'll give it a 10 based on past experience (I've only had this thing for like two weeks).

Never had a reason to call them.

Overall, I give it a 10. Obviously I'm not basing it on the average ratings I gave it for the other categories. But for the moola, it can't be beat. Hell, for three times the moola, it can't be beat. I had considered buying the Danecho, but I chose the Korg because I wanted to be able to save user programs, and I think the Korg just sounds better. Not to knock the Danecho or Danelectro products (try the Cool Cat!!), but if you want a very good echo without leaving the store feeling like you've just taken your first shower in prison, this is it. Even if you don't like the U2/Pink Floyd sound, echo can thicken up your sound and give it another dimension. Or, you could just be a boring schmoe with no echo, and people will look down on you. Then your boss will fire you. Eventually, your girlfriend will leave you for a guy with the 301dl. You'll be crying while I'm sucking face with your ex. Tough luck, chump.

As far as ease of use, it's easy, just read the instructions for about 15 minutes and you got it. One thing, in the manual it say's that if you have a high output guitar (humbuckers)to use the high setting on the input-I think this is backwards because all the switch does is make it noisier when it's set to high so I leave it on low.

It has a pretty high level of "hiss" to it, especially if you leave the input switch on high which is worthless in my opinion. It's the only pedal I use. I play it with a Sovtek mig100H and 2 4x12 Laney's. The pedal more than doubled the noise on my setup which "was" very quiet. Other than the noise the pedal is top notch, you can really fine tune everything. The "ducking" feature is extremely usefull. I don't uderstand why it's noisy because I've used other delays that don't add any noise at all.

I play hard rock. I've played for almost 7 years now and like to keep my rig very simple, this is the only pedal I use. Because of the "hiss" the pedal produce's, I don't believe I would buy it again, but due to the cool "ducking" effect I might. I would'nt have bought a delay pedal without this feature and this is the only pedal I found with it.

Kind of hard -- there are about ten controls, so you really have to fiddle around to get the sound you want. Also, the manual is in freakin' Japanese, so it's not too helpful...

The delay is a hybrid analog/digital, so you might think that sound quality would be compromised. Not so. I use it with a Fender Strat through a Fender Champ. It has a really brilliant, clean sound no matter what the setting. I'm not a fan of U2, but I can get a really good "Joshua Tree" sound out of it. I'm a big Jon Spencer fan too, and with a short delay time using both the analog and digital circuits, I can get a pretty good "Extra Width" sound. With up to 100ms of delay, it's pretty versatile.

Haven't had problems yet -- Kind of makes me nervous because it's made mostly out of plastic

Haven't dealt with Korg yet

Incredible range of possibilities with it because of the number of controls (hi/lo-fi, ducking, pre-delay, etc.). Very comparable to Boss quality. Don't get down with something schwag like DoD -- invest your money in a Korg 301dl!

Without looking at the manual I had a hard time with it after reading the manual it was easy to get the sound you want

I found the sound quality as good as the boss dd-5 but you can also get a really crappy sound if you put it on the lofi setting for the tape sound

no clue

N/A

I have only had this pedal for a week and every time I use it I like it even more I think this one is a keeper

Since I just sold the Echoplex I used for nineteen years, I'm in the market for a delay and have auditioned several. I've spent a couple of long sessions with the Korg 301dl, particularly auditioning it against the Boss DD-5. The user interface is both a strong point and weak point of this unit:
In order to achieve maximum flexibility at reasonable cost, the main controls are four pots in a row and a bank-switch which allows two funtions per pot:
Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4 Upper: Delay Time Feedback Hi damp Echo Level
Bank Switch
Lower: Predelay Fidelity Lo Damp Duck
Delay Time, Feedback, and Echo Level switches do what you would expect. Predelay allows you to set the delay before onset of the first delay. Fidelity (called Hi-fi/Low-fi on the pedal) adjusts continually between a pristine digital delay and a progressively band-limited and distorted tape-delay simulation. Hi and Lo Damp controls allow precise control over how much of these frequencies you want in the regenerated signal. Duck causes the pedal to dim the level of the echos by the selected amount until the main guitar signal ceases.
The learning curve enters in that these pots are "soft" controls. When the bank switch is set to the upper position, the pots control the upper variables and when in the lower position, they control the lower variables. After a bank switch change, a pot doesn't capture control until you move it. This means indicated value and real value aren't necessarily the same. Korg has, however, grouped most of the controls you'll need to vary in real time into the upper bank.
Since all this flexibility and the switchable knobs might make live work difficult, Korg has built-in the ability to store and retrieve two complete front panel setups with tap of a footswitch. These memories survive power-down AND battery removal!!! Yahoo!

The quality of this unit compares very favorably to the Boss DD-5. You are offered extremely flexibility, which is good for the studio, and a two patch, footswitch selectable memory, something I always wanted for my echoplex. The 301dl offers a 1000 millisecond (one second) maximum delay time, which, if I am correct, is about the same as an echoplex and is plenty for creating a spacey background. Setting this pedal apart from the the Boss DD-5 is its Fidelity (Hi-fi-Low-fi) control. Because many consider the sound of a digital delay too sterile, the Korg allows you rough-up the quality of the digital delay and simulate the signal degradation of a tape delay.
The duck feature turns the echo down during your playing, so things don't get too muddy, and brings it back up when you stop. Used gently, it can be very effective.
One note: It appears that there is not hard bypass on the unit and it doesn't allow you to mix the direct signal out, so much like the Boss DD-5, it should be run in the parallel loop or before the input.

Because it is brand new, I don't have any reference here.

Korg has alway been extremely helpful to me and has always responded to my requests for information. I have no repair history with them. The manual, however, leaves MUCH to be desired. I've seen better pictogram manuals included with Instamatic cameras.

I play classic rock and alternative stuff. This pedal can accomplish just about everything a typical player of these style would expect and allows you to tailor its sound to suit your tastes as well. I suppose because I work in a recording studio, I'm reasonably comfortable with the knob-sharing interface, but others may not be. The sound and features of this unit are more useful, in my opinion, than those of the Boss DD-5.

It took a while to figure out how to tweak it but once I did it was real easy and being able to program two different patches is a great bonus ! The manual was not that great of a help but it's really not that hard to program.

This thing sounds KILLER ! If you are looking for a echo unit that covers the spectrum from analog to digital in one box, this is the box ! You can even get a good tape echo simulation using the Lo-Fi Hi-Fi feature in combination with the loDamp and HiDamp knob. This is the coolest echo pedal out right now, and take my word for it, I've tried just about everything out there ! The only feature that I might suggest Korg to add to this cool little box would be modulation, other than that it covers all the bases !

It hasen't been out that long so I can't say ! It is housed in a solid casing ! No electro-Haromonix box here !

All I know is that Korg is a pretty reputable company !

This unit does everything I need it to do and then some ! One thing I might add is that it seems to work better with a power adapter, for some reason if you use batteries you hear a low level hum, (maybe my batteries were a little low ?).