Roland SDE-1000

Really easy to use with some unique features like the x2 switch. Mo midi, just 4 presets which is more than I need for my guitar rack. The effect sounds analog with the versatility of a digital unit.

There is something about these early units. Most likely it is the combinaiton of JRC4562 opamps with 16 bit processor and mostly analog circuitry. The unit is quiet at all settings which sound really vintage. I love its chorus and flanger. The delay is what you would expect from a standard 16 bit unit.

Built like a tank. No probs here!

Never had to deal with them!

I play Jazz and Blues for the last 30 years and I have used over the years most effects that are on the market. I use the SDD-1000 when I want to get that 80's sound on guitar and keyboards. Works well in line and in parallel.

This was my first sound effect I had and had almost no trouble at all of understanding it. While having no manual, I did have to find out that saving some preset needed pressing the preset button for a while, but ok.. The rest is kind of straightforward as you go on using it..

I love the sound of this thing.

I used it with a hughes&Knetter amp (which itself sucked haha) but the delay sounded still good on that one. Nowadays I use it in my electronical setup (akai2000XL->roland delay SDE-1000->behringer multicom->Nord modular G2->behringer multicom->esp1010 esi soundcard->KRK rokit5 monitor speakers)

I have no noise on my unit, no hiss or anything.

I firstly used it with my guitars (semi accoustic and electric) and it sounded awesome.
Nowadays I use the effect over my electronical music to give it glitcheffects (think about squarepusher/aphex twin): short delay's sound just TO awesome and warm/bright (depending how short you put the delaytime (down to 0.1ms) and feedback.
Pushing the hold-footswitch you can use the machine as a retrigger: AWESOME :P
all and all, it's a damn nice piece of equipment both for guitar players as well as for electronical musicians.

ehm..... well, it never let me down..
somebody said something about changing the batteries every 4 years.... ehh.. batteries? :P as far as I know my batteries are working for the last 10 years haha
I will certainly use it on a gig!

who needs customer support with a thing like this haha!

great with both guitar music and also electronical ambient, breakbeat/core, drum&bass, tekno, etc, etc...
I will certainly get a new one as it would get stolen..
hmm, is there something I hate? ah, not being able to change the delay time if using some footswitch (forgot which one..) but you'll probably be able to change the time using another footswitch then (which I'm probably going to build later this day haha)
never really compared it to others, but it sounds great.. I do which it had a reverse delay in it..but well, you can't get all from the 80's..
anything else to share...ehrm.. don't let the dutch government stop the 'gedoog'policy :P

I just got it seems good.The guy I bought it from on ebay must of taken care of it I sent to The Neitherlands for a Manual and a Service Manual.Did you know that if you bridge one wire you can double the Headroom.The Service Manual is GREAT even shows all other SDE1000-2000-3000 If you want one email me>bacusbob@yahoo.com

This is a good D.DelayI have not put it in my rack yet.I am testing it with each of my other rack FX.ART Pitch Trasposer, Roland SRV2000 Reverb, Yamaha 1500 DDL Digitech Time Machine,SOHO Tube Preamp,PS Systems Power Tool. That thing is very cool.I use a 1959 Plexi full bore Like a pedal It has a post FX loop. When I have it all togather I will submit a update

Being 24 years old its fine.All depends on who, or how hard you are with it.

Roland makes something and 5 years later They want you to buy there "New" crap.Digitech and Peavey are a few of the companys that will try to help you.My old 4 track that I got from PV.broke down and they tryed to fix it.The head of the tech support Gave me his Dean Athens of Digitech is very nice too. You would think that a company co-owned by the guys in DEVO would be a little more helpful.

R%R, R%B,1960's Jeff Beck , Cream, Led Zep1-2-3, SRV,VH-1 I have over the years had everything.I have a Ton of pedals I now have a pedalboard just for my Rack,10 Boss FS-1 L-U switchers to program up/down On/Off 100 watt Plexi Marshall 64 Fender Bandmaster,All upgraded MM trannys Vintage Tubes ect,and Tons of vintage speakers,Fanes,Jensen,Celestions,Vox. 53 Tele 57 Strat,Homemade franky's And my secret Tone/studio amp 1966 Sears Silvertone 1484 Twin-12

Man, you gotta love the SDE. I have two - one as the original owner (1984, man!). The other reviews here cover much of the bases, but I'll add that this is a wonderful piece of gear for the guitarist that's also into home studio use. Yeah, it's awfully deep for rack use, requiring a deep rack, and many gig bags are too shallow. But on the plus side, no wall wart! Plug you guitar in (make sure the level switch on the back is set for guitar levels) and go - the tap tempo footswitch is a godsend; and the 4 presets are a good start (I range them from a doubling/slapback for that rockabilly sound through the full-tilt times-two delay) and tweak a bit song-to-song.

In your home studio, it's a fab vocal doubler, and with a good reverb it gives you total control over predelay. It's a great building block in an insert or send chain (again, set the level switch in back for the higher line levels). A real workhorse with a "just right" kind of sound. The unit's sound is really nice with a tube guitar amp, can't really nail down "why", but the delay on your solo just sort of "tucks in" to your overall sound. Love it.

For an "old school" effect, it's not bad - and plenty of "big time" studios had a few of these on hand as well. I never used the mod settings much and used this primarily for soloing and overall ambience, where it shines. As said above, it has a nice sonic "wrap" to it, and again, in a studio vocal mix, it's usually down in the mix enough for any noise to disappear. Try turning the mix up to equal the input and playing a very short-delayed solo - cool sound.

I gigged with mine for 3 years, 5 nights a week, playing dozens of clubs in the Dallas area, 3 or 4 sets a night. No prob at all. Found a used one at Guitar center - the switch in back for overall level was busted off, but it was just the plastic part that sticks out - you can still switch it by using a pencil to push the switch guts.

Never deeded support from Boss.

I've played piano for 40 years, guitar for 35+ - started gigging at 12, bars at 17. My SDE was fired up every night with an '84 USA strat, a '73 SG and a sucession of amps, doing everything from "how the clash might cover motown" to U2-ish power pop, for years. They now sit in my home studio and occasionally drop by somewhere to jam. Stolen or lost? Well, I have two and would probably grab another if not for pro tools taking a lot of the thunder from my rack. Basic delay is one of the prime building blocks of live guitar and also recording - this may be almost as "basic" as it gets, but the little that it does, it does admirably. They pop up on ebay for $100-$200, and at that price, they're worth a look.

I bought this on ebay for $80.00 It looks will new Works greatSounds great I have both the owners and the service manuals If you have a older one you can have 2 spots bridged and it doubles the headroom and frq hq

Sound like a pro to me

22 yrs old and works good need to change the memory battery every 4-5 years This is well made item

ZerOOOOOOOOOOOOO might get a manual

For the money I paid this it cool

As other review writers said before me - it looks very easy to use at first glance, but there are a few small things you really need the manual for, like the thing with the delay time scanning.
I also don't understand why the modulation on/off button doesn't seem to work while there is a delay time tapping pedal connected .. That's probably in the manual too but unfortunately I don't have a manual.

I don't understand how others can say that this is a very clean sounding unit... are we speaking about the same product here? At least, mine is VERY hissy.. especially when you press the button that doubles the delay time. The sample frequency is probably not very high, but hey what do you expect - it's an 80's unit. When you make sure the input signal is loud enough, the hiss is just within levels I can live with.
It also helps if I use my Boss LS2 line selector to blend my original dry signal with the 100%wet signal from the SDE1000. That sounds a bit brighter and more dynamic than while using the mixed output of the SDE1000 instead.

But.. there is something about this unit that sounds really warm and inspiring, especially when a bit of modulation is used. Maybe it is the same fact that it's so noisy and not at all transparant that attracts me to its sound... I'm sorry does that sound confusing to you?

This thing is built like a tank. I'm sure it will never fail me.
But it's also almost as heavy as a tank... when you're used to compact effect pedals and want to transport all your gear in a gigbag, traveling to gigs and rehearsals by bike and public transport, that's a bit of an inconvenience.

Never dealt with. But a manual would be awesome to have. Can anyone help me with that? Please send me an e-mail.

I play mainly pop/rock but I'm using the SDE100 in my jazzy hiphop band.
I've been playing for 15 years or so.
In the band I'm talking about, I use a Fender Telecaster and Jazzmaster through a Fender Bassman Ten Amp. I use a Boss TU2 (tuner) and LS2 (line selector), a Dunlop Cry Baby (wah), EHX Small Stone (phaser) and the EHX Bass Micro Synthesizer (crazy octave up/down and filtering unit). And of course the SDE1000.
I ordered the new Roland Space Echo twin pedal for use in my band because it's less big and heavy and has that tape delay sound, but I haven't got it yet. I think it'll fit my music better but I don't think I'll ever sell the SDE1000 anyway. It has a unique sound.

So many ins outs buttons .. and yeah that scanning the delay time thing had me flummoxed until i read here how to press both down and up at the same time.. but otherwise it is a delay! and a modulation! if you don't know what either of these mean , you probably shouldn't be toying with such a powerful machine anyway...

SWEEEEEEETTTTTTTT....
i put this up against my DD-6 [boss is owned by roland right?] and it was incomparable. I had an analog Yamaha delay rack as well that was obnoxiously unstable and clipped very often. this is a very sustainable machine with self oscillating features that will blow your socks off. the modulation is very clean and shifts between slow warps to off throttle space warbles.. place this in with the delay and its nuts. I use other effects with it but there are so many options on this unit alone I can have fun for hours.. but try sticking it into an auto-wah or other modulation pedals.. light distortion perhaps, but im never a fan of heavy distortion and delay unless you're playing very high up for some robert fripp type rhythms..

TANK TANK TANK.. roland makes the most reliable machines in the industry. hands down. it IS my back-up, as I have no other and have no need for another to back this baby up. it does everything for me. except drive me around. and tie my shoelaces.

roland is nonexistant in my eyes in this category because nothing i've ever purchased from any roland owned company, even their hand-made amdek pedals have ever gone out on me. they're survivors.

I play in a modern jazz group we use massive amounts of effects and instruments, and we've plugged many-a guitar-synth-electric violin-drummachine into this guy with no problem.. never tried on a bass though.. I use fender jaguars, an aria, a telecaster and a takamine electric acoustic. there is nothing i would trade for this, as it is my favorte delay over many analogs out there. it definately inspires me to make music, even when im by myself i just plug this into my loop station and jettison off into lunar orbit ..
it is MAGIC. its also has an EXPRESSION foot controller jack which has come in handy when i want to be hand-free..
i bought this used , but i think it's worth every penny..

Its simple to get a good sound out of it, but it really will take some time to control this unit! it's wild, and can seem complex to a rack unit first timer! But it's ALL there plus more, just gotta play with it to figure out what you need from it.. So many buttons, ins outs, awesome to have that kind of choice!

This doesn't compare to any pedal..
BOSS digi delays aint got nothing on this baby..
no noise, very clean warm analogy-sounding even though digi..
i plug it into my analog gear and its a great addition

Tank.

never needed!

besides the obvious factor like inconvenience, plugs in the back instead of the front so its no good really to place in a rack, its a great machine. keeper. reliable. VINTAGE! if you can get one of these for reasonable [like under 200] do it!!!

A real No-brainer. Another reviewer mentioned it is slow to advance the delay time. If you hold the up or down side of the rocker, and then press the opposite simultaneously, it advances very quickly (he said he had no manual; this is explained there.) Also, the Mixed output IS mixed, if it is the only one connected. If you connect the Delay AND Mixed outputs, the Mixed becomes direct only, or dry. This is also explained in the manual.

front panel controls for this unit are basically one knob or one button for each function, so it couldn't be any easier to use in that sense. there is one simple reason I didn't give it a 10 in this category: the Mix output on the rear of the unit. granted I bought this unit without a manual, however it took me some time to figure out that the Mix output is actually just the straight dry signal - not a combination of dry and delayed signal as the term "Mix" would suggest. once I had this sussed out and patched up the Delay output as well, we were rockin' ;-)

editing patches couldn't be easier. there are 4 patch memories, but this unit is so easy to tweak that I'll probably never use them. controls are: Input, Feedback, Delay Out, Rate and Depth as knobs; Delay time as an up/down selector button; and delay x 2 multipy, delay phase invert, modulation on/off, feedback on/off and memory recall as push-buttons. like I said, simple...

I know this is an old unit, but my only other gripe would be that I wish there were a knob for the delay time as well, to make it a little easier to set the time you want. the up/down selector takes a while to get from one end of the range to the other.

otherwise no complaints.

I use it in a completely line-level set-up, connected to a patchbay and patching synths to the input and the output to a mixer as needed.

it seems easy to overload the input using it at line level, which leads me to believe this unit was maybe designed for direct input from guitars (or possibly modified by a previous owner?)...

if you've heard any of the other Roland SDE delay units from the 80s (2000, 2500, 3000) then you know what this sounds like - good and warm for a digital unit, gets a little crusty in a nice 12-bit sounding way when feedback on the delay is cranked.

like many other early 80s digital delays, doubling the delay time also seems to cut the audio bandwidth in half, although without a manual I can't say at exactly what frequencies. for my purposes though this is fine, as it just contributes to the warm tone of the unit.

so far so good. it survived a trip across the continent having not been packed as well as it could have, and I'm sure it was knocked around a bit along the way. it will be stationary in my rack from here on, so I'm not too worried. and after reading the story of the other guy below whose unit survived when his house burned down, I'm *really* not worried.

haven't needed it here. I once had to deal with Roland Canada to help a friend get a part to repair a Jupier 8 synthesizer - dealing with them was a breeze on that occasion. but that has been my only experience.

basically I make ambient/weird noises with a modular synthesizer and a ton of FX processing. recently I have been adding a lit of cheaper digital delays to my set-up to further help me in that regard. my criteria has been that I will only buy units that have an intuitive and easy-to-use interface. aside from the Echo Pro, there aren't many cheap modern delay units that fit this criteria, and I already have an Echo Pro. this unit is very cheap on the used market right now and is a great value for what you'll pay. it does what it's supposed to do and does it with a minimum of fuss.

This unit couldn't be easier to use. All the controls needed are on the front in the real world rather behind screen accessed via menus. Delay time, modulation on/off, modulation rate and depth, feed back are all seperate knobs or switches. Sometimes the first solution to a problem really is the best.

I use this unit in the effects loop of a Tube Works guitar preamp. It is relatively clean, not quite transparent but warm-toned and pleasant. Its digital can't be any better than 16 bit or so but it really sounds good.

I bought this thing new in about 1982 and have used it in my guitar rack ever since. In 1986 my house burned down around it and it has never failed me or needed any type of repair. I'd say its pretty tough.

Don't know. Never needed.

I gig in many styles but I concentrate on jazz. Effect-wise, I have found that a decent delay unit is one of the most useful tools you can have. It can enhance almost any part of almost any song. If I was stuck with only one effect this particular unit would get me through any gig. If I ever lost I'd live but it wouldn't be the same. I'd buy anither one if I had the chance.

the sde 1000 is a master of "ease of use" i use 2 of these on live vocals in a rock band..the presets are near perfect. basically 4 knobs to adjust.

why it is no longer built is a darn good question...roland got it right!! very quiet..but like all units in its' price range it can get a bit "cranky" at extreme levels..its built in limiter helps this greatly. no reverb just lush,rich delay found in studio delays at much higher costs. i have used many delays..sde 1000 certainly makes it happen in live vocal performances.

bought both 2 years ago never had a problem...something like a tank in constuction and internal design. i use one as a "special" and the other as a constant delay on vocals.

never needed it..battery is a "no brainer" to change.

doing sound for 36 years i find the sde 1000 to be a well kept secret.simplicity mixed with top-notch sound quality. destroys lexicon 200 and 550 for straight delays. i decribe the sound as near analog trapped in a digital body!!

This is a very simple delay to use. For those who have never used modulation, try using the standard triangle patern for the rate and depth (rate 7 and depth 3).

My rig is: Fender Strat-Boss SD2-Roland SDE 1000-Vox AC30.

I also own a Digitech TSR 24 and Zoom delay. I prefer the Roland 1000 by far over the Digitech and Zoom. The warmth of tone I am getting from the Roland is superb.

This is the best delay I've used so far. I have used an Ibanez DM2000, Zoom delay, Digitech TSR 24 and many others delays. This just has a very sweet, warm sound to it.

This unit is not midi controllable, so I am having to use footswitches to bypass the delay, as well as toggle between the four memory presets. I'm guessing it was made in the early to mid eighties, in competition with the Korg SDD series. As far as gigging without a backup. Yes, this unit seems to be withstanding the test of time pretty good.

I think if my Roland was stolen I'd invest in another dedicated delay unit. The Korg SDD2000 seems to have the tone that I'm looking for and it is midi controllable too.