DelSane

Name: DelSane
Price: 32.91 USD
Author: Rob Papen

by Rob Papen · Delay · Stereo tape delay

Not rated yet

DelSane is a stereo tape delay with two sides: a simple, sane delay and a creative mode driven by the Disrupt control.

The Disrupt Sphere-Slider changes delays dynamically without heavy automation; it costs $35.

Best for: Vocals, Guitars, Keys & Synths, Sound Design. Genres: all genres.

Keywords: tape, tape echo, vocals, creative, sound design, dialogue, experimental, glitchy, mixing, rectifying, simple, smooth, spring, tempo-synced.

What it does

DelSane is a stereo tape delay from Rob Papen with a "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" idea: a smooth everyday echo on one side, and a Disrupt section that pushes it into experimental effects on the other.

Delay core: mono or stereo tape-style delay with separate left and right times and tempo sync.
Equal Feedback and Cross Feed: Equal Feedback balances the stereo tails so both sides decay evenly, and Cross Feed sends one delay into the other.
Filters and Vocal mode: high- and low-pass filters that turn into variable Vowel and Frequency controls in Vocal mode, for talking, speech-like repeats.
Colour: adjustable distortion, full-wave rectification, and a frequency shifter (±5 kHz) in the feedback path or after the delay.
Disrupt Sphere-Slider: one controller that moves many delay settings at once, with Spring to snap back to centre in time with the track, quantized steps, and a depth control in the Disrupt section.
Lazy Mode and Audio Follower: Lazy Mode sweeps the slider automatically at a tempo-linked rate; the Audio Follower moves it with the input level.
Control and display: a MIDI and MOD section with external controller setup, and four interface sizes from 100% to 200%.

A demo is available.

Source: Rob Papen product page

When to use it

DelSane is the cheap pick for tape-style echoes that you want to mangle and animate as well as use straight. Compared with EchoBoy or Galaxy Tape Echo it does much less vintage modeling, but its Sphere-Slider, Vocal filter and frequency shifter give it moving, sound-design effects those do not focus on. Against Valhalla Delay it has fewer delay modes, while its Disrupt and Lazy Mode give quicker hands-off movement. It also costs a fraction of what EchoBoy does.

Best for: everyday stereo echoes, plus animated, glitchy or vowel-like delays for builds and transitions.
Genres: EDM and electronic music get most from the extreme settings; the plain tape delay suits any style.
Look elsewhere if: you want detailed vintage tape echo modeling (Galaxy Tape Echo or EchoBoy) or multi-tap rhythm work (EchoBoy's Rhythm mode).
Tip: a little frequency shift in the feedback gives a Doppler-like effect; higher values move towards ring modulation (Sound On Sound).

What producers say

Reviewers rate it a flexible, well-priced delay that goes well beyond plain tape echo.

Sound On Sound (Paul White, August 2021) called it "very flexible, going way beyond conventional delay", praising the vowel filter, Equal Feedback and price; the MIDI features take some planning.
KVR users give it 5 out of 5 from 1 review, calling it "a steal" with effects "not available elsewhere", though the Disrupt controls were not instantly clear.

Where to buy

Tutorials and reviews

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