There have been a few takes on the concept of the single-button tap tempo delay pedal, each with their various flaws. The Line6 Echo Park would allow tapping if you pressed gently and it would turn off when more pressure was applied, but it’s a little finicky to operate with 100% accuracy. TC Electronic’s Flashback pedal eschews tapping altogether in favor of a system where you strum the tempo on your guitar, which is fine if you can do it between tunes but not ideal for mid-song changes. And then there’s the method popularized by the Boss DD-6: hold the pedal for a couple seconds to enter tap tempo mode. If you want to turn the pedal off, hold it down again to exit tap and then tap once to bypass. Like TC Electronic’s system, it works, but it’s not ideal, especially for folk who don’t stick with a core tone all song. There’s a reason why the DD-6 evolved into the DD-7, which has an external tap switch (like the sadly discontinued DD-5 before it).
I… think the new MBS Mr. Smith operates the same way. The video doesn’t spell it out, and the manual is in Spanish. Well, anyway, it certainly sounds nice, and the analog dry-through and 1600ms of delay time are welcome features. You can pick up one for yourself from the MBS website for $200.
Source: No Treble
funeraldoombuggy / September 23, 2014 2:20 pm
Just what we need, another delay pedal. For me if it doesn’t have a dedicated tap button then it’s worthless. I hated the DD6 because I don’t want to even have to lift up my foot… I want to be able to keep my foot on the pedal all day without it changing modes or something. I still love my DD5 with the remote tap tempo.
I did recently get a Strymon Timeline, I needed something with a lot of presets for a band I’m in the uses backing tracks. It’s interesting how few options there are out there with for a 20+ preset delay pedal.
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mitchell271 / September 23, 2014 5:34 pm
I’ll stick to my carbon copy. Neat pedal though
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Maximiliano Toyos / September 26, 2014 1:15 pm
To tap the tempo in the Mr Smith you just put the Time knob down to 0 (labeled tap) and tap the tempo!, no need to keep pressing to enter tap tempo mode or different pressures on the switch. If you press once, it bypass it. Just as simple as it looks on the video.
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