REVIEW > CUSACK EFFECTS
CUSACK EFFECTS
TAP-A-DELAY
BY LYLE ZAEHRINGER
In some ways, delay effects have come a long way from the Echoplex tape echo of
the late 1950s. Yet modern delay devices still
seek to emulate the warmth of a tape-loop-ing machine. For a lot of guitarists—myself
included—a great delay pedal is defined by
its ability to achieve the warm character of
vintage units, while offering enough modern
parameter control to inspire creativity and
explore the delay textures that tape echo
units can’t provide.
The Tap-A-Delay, by Michigan’s Cusack
Effects, hits the mark on both counts. But
what makes the Cusack pedal so appealing—
and to some extent, sets it apart—is how it
allows you to control it so effectively.
on a tape delay toward the playback head.
Consequently, the delays increase in both
speed and pitch, creating a lift-off effect to
your riffs. Position 8 is the inverse of position 7, causing the delay to decrease in speed
and pitch. Because there are maximum and
minimum delay speeds, positions 7 and 8
will snap back to the beginning of their cycle
once it has reached maximum or minimum
delay. This can sound musically jarring, but
effective if you’re ready to hit the bypass
switch. Delay speed changes can be overridden at any point with the Tap Speed
footswitch. This is not a device that has been
stocked with a million studio presets, but
rather one that has been carefully designed to
respond to your input signal. And the most
impressive design feature of this pedal is its
potential for musical interactivity.
Out-of-the-Box Thinking
For all its capabilities, the Tap-A-Delay is
a compact pedal. Even so, there’s plenty of
room for a cool engraved logo and a bunch
of controls. These include five neon-green
chicken head knobs (Level, Mix, Feedback,
Delay, and Modulation), two 3-position
mini-toggle switches (Mode, Divide), two
LEDs (Tempo, Status), and two momentary-style footswitches (Tap Speed, Bypass).
Mono 1/4" input and output jacks, a standard pin-out 9VDC connection, and a special
RCA jack that enables you to use the tap-tempo control with other Cusack pedals are easy
to access on the back of the unit. It also can
be powered via 9V battery. If you like rubber
feet, you’ll have to install them yourself or buy
a $6 rubber skid pad from Cusack that covers
the underside of the pedal. The unit is true
bypass (Cusack also sells true-bypass switching
systems to use in your own project pedals) and
overall, it feels solid, well built, and able to
survive the rigors of real-world gigging.
overall volume. The Mix knob controls
the volume of the dry signal relative to the
delayed signal. Feedback determines how
much of the delayed signal gets reprocessed
by the effect, and at its maximum setting,
you’ll generate what can be a really useful
and musical self-oscillation that rumbles like
a fleet of helicopters. The Delay knob selects
delay times that range from 50 ms to 750
ms. This range is suitable for quick rockabilly slapback, slow Gilmour-esque dreams-capes, and anything in between.
The Modulation control is an 8-position
rotary switch that selects from an assortment of modulation presets. Modulation is
disabled in position 1. Position 2 introduces
subtle modulation to the delayed signal and
subsequent positions increase the modulation up to position 5, which Cusack aptly
describes as “Too much and too fast.” When
used in moderation, these modulations
are an excellent addition to the rich delay
tones—again inducing thoughts of Gilmour.
Called Warp Up, position 7 initiates a
program that steadily increases the delay
time, as if you were sliding the record head
Beyond Versatility
Thankfully, Cusack Effects believes that no
modern delay pedal should be built without
a tap-tempo switch. They’ve gone a step
further with their 3-position Divide mini-toggle switch that enables you to subdivide
your tap rate. The switch’s three settings are
eighth-note, dotted eighth-note, and quarter-note. If you prefer fast and synced country/
rockabilly slapbacks, but cannot stomp the
footswitch as fast as Dave Lombardo, simply
set the Divide switch to eighth-note and tap
every beat. The Divide function then interprets incoming taps as quarter-note beats.
Modulation
control
Divide rate
toggle
Wealth of Control
The versatility of the Tap-A-Delay is pretty
astounding. However, the pedal’s vast capabilities don’t prevent you from quickly and
easily accessing a basic, quality delay tone.
The first four knobs operate just as you
would expect. Level determines the pedal’s
Tap-tempo switch
premierguitar.com
PREMIER GUITAR MAY 2011 159
