Top 5 Delay Plug-Ins & How to Use Them

No matter the genre, learning how to use delay in your productions is critical. Whether you're adding the final gloss to a vocal or creating trippy synth or guitar textures, knowing which delay to use and how to dial it in will transform your tracks into something special.

Here, we'll show you the top 5 best delay plug-ins and give you tips on how to expertly add them to your music.

1. Galaxy Tape Echo

A dead-on emulation of the iconic Roland RE-201 Space Echo,* Galaxy Tape Echo gives you all the quirks, tone, and realtime playability of the unique '70s hardware — from warm, hazy beds of delay to intense self-oscillating chaos.

How to Use Galaxy Tape Echo

This plug-in is meant to be dirty, so don’t be afraid to crank the input volume to add analog harmonics and saturation. This effect is especially useful for adding interest and "hair" to your vocals and drums.

For an instantly recognizable dub-style effect, turn up the Feedback control until the delay starts to self-oscillate, then use Echo Rate to pitch the oscillation up or down.

By continually adjusting the Feedback and Echo Rate knobs — either in realtime or via automation in your DAW — you can play analog tape effects like an instrument and create organic build-ups and sweeps that fit perfectly into your track.

Galaxy Tape Echo is often used on a return track so it can add its signature spacey sound to multiple tracks at once, but it also works great as an insert effect.

You can also automate the Input Send switch to create simple delay throws. For example, adding delay only to a particular word or line in a vocal track.

Simply flip the switch to “Mute”, and only automate it to “Echo” on the parts you want the echo effect. The Input Send switch only mutes the echo portion of the circuit, so you’ll still hear the spring reverb regardless of the switch’s position.

2. Cooper Time Cube Mk II

Designed by Duane Cooper and Bill Putnam Sr. in the early ‘70s, the Cooper Time Cube is truly one of the most unique delay units ever created. It was a fully mechanical device that used lengths of garden hose to create different delay times, with Shure SM-57 capsules at both ends used as speakers and pickups.

The Cooper Time Cube Mk II plug-in captures all of the character of the original hardware but adds a slew of exclusive features for modern workflows like tempo sync, expanded delay times, EQ, dual delay lines, and stereo panning.

You can read more about the history of the Cooper Time Cube here.

How to Use Cooper Time Cube MkII

The Cooper Time Cube is legendary for its doubling effects, perfect for adding depth to vocals, guitars, synths, and more.

For a mono effect, start by turning the Echo Volume knob down on the “B” delay line, then set the “A” line’s pan knob to center.

Now you can use the “A” line’s Delay knob to dial in the effect. Short delay times under 40 ms will thicken up the sound without creating a noticeable repeat, while times from 40 ms up to 80 ms get into slapback territory — great for creating a sense of space around the sound.

Anything higher than 80 ms will create distinct repeats like you may be used to with more traditional delays, at which point you’ll probably want to enable Tempo Sync to keep the repeats in time with your song.

For longer delays, you may want to raise the Decay knob to increase the repeats and get a nice, long tail.

To make the effect stereo, pan the “A” delay line hard left and the “B” delay line hard right, then bring up the “B” line’s Echo Volume knob until it’s roughly matched with the “A” line.

When Tempo Sync is off, set the delay times for each line 10-20 ms apart. This will add width to your slapback and doubling effects.

If your delays get too muddy, use the HP Filter and Treble/Bass knobs to clean up the sound. This is a great way to get audible repeats without turning up the volume.

3. Korg SDD-3000 Digital Delay

The Korg SDD-3000 delay revolutionized modern rock and pop when it was introduced, thanks in large part to U2 guitarist The Edge using it to forge his instantly recognizable signature guitar sound.

The SDD-3000 doesn’t only sound good on guitars though, and it quickly became a favorite for new wave and other synth-driven music as well.

The SDD-3000 plug-in captures all of the mojo of the original unit from its colorful analog circuitry — including a preamp capable of adding musical harmonics and crunch — to its imperfect 13-bit digital delays, for sounds unlike any other delay.

How to Use Korg SDD-3000

To get The Edge’s classic delay effect — which also sounds great on other sources like synths and keys — start by pressing the Sync button and selecting a dotted ⅛ delay time (either using the Up and Down buttons, or by clicking on the Delay Time display).

Adjust the Level knob to get a healthy signal level without any distortion, then set the Low filter switch to 500 Hz and the High filter switch to 2 kHz. This limits the frequency range of the repeats to keep them from clashing too much with the dry signal.

Next, raise the Modulation Frequency to around 5 or 6 and dial in the amount of modulation with the Intensity knob. Between 1 and 2 adds the nice subtle movement favored by The Edge, but you can also experiment with higher values to add noticeable pitch shifting for more intense flavors.

4. AMS DMX Digital Delay & Pitch Shifter

Used on classic albums by Brian Eno, Joy Division, and Nirvana, the AMS DMX is most famous for the iconic doubling/widening effect popularized by Prince, Phil Collins, Radiohead, and others.

The AMS DMX Digital Delay & Pitch Shifter plug-in expertly captures all of this innovative digital goodness — including the ultra-rare chorus expansion module — and adds modern features like tempo sync, dual VCO mode, dry/wet mix, and more for modern producers.

How to Use AMS DMX Digital Delay & Pitch Shifter

With its default settings, the AMS DMX is already set up perfectly for its classic doubling and widening effect.

The delay times are set very short, with the right delay time being longer than the left to introduce subtle differences in each channel and instantly add some stereo width.

The left channel is also pitched slightly down while the right channel is pitched slightly up, further differentiating the two sides and making the effect even wider. These settings work great when the plug-in is used as an insert with Wet Solo disabled, or on a return track at 100% wet for creating a general purpose widening bus that can process multiple tracks at once.

You can make the effect more intense by increasing the differences between the two channels. Start by increasing the amount of pitch shifting on each channel using the Pitch Shift knobs — shifting the left channel down and the right channel up — and you’ll instantly hear a difference.

You can also enable the chorus module in the bottom right corner to create some movement by continually changing the pitch shift values, with the Speed knob controlling the rate of the changes and the Depth knob controlling the amount of pitch shifting.

A little pitch shifting goes a long way, so be careful not to overdo it.

From there you can increase the delay times to exaggerate the effect even further, which creates a more noticeable doubling effect while also making the pitch shifting more apparent.

For a more traditional delay effect with trailing repeats, increase the feedback amount by raising the Regen knob on each channel, then increase each channel’s Delay Time (and optionally enable Tempo Sync by clicking the red “Sync” LED next to the display).

Since all of the delay repeats are fed through the pitch shift circuit, each repeat will become more and more pitch-shifted, which becomes more apparent the higher you set the Regen knobs.

5. EP-34 Tape Echo

The Echoplex EP-3 and EP-4 tape delays were introduced in the ‘70s and have been heard on too many classic records to list.

These units were loved for the musical harmonics and saturation added by the preamp, and their quirky analog behavior, from organic wow and flutter and self-chorusing to wild self oscillation and squelch effects.

The EP-34 plug-in combines the best parts of the EP-3 and EP-4 into a single tape delay with all the unique idiosyncrasies of the original units, plus expanded features like adjustable tape tension for sludgier response times and a Hi/Lo input switch for expanded preamp tones.

How to Use EP-34 Tape Echo

The EP-34 is a favorite for vibey slapback delays that are incredible for adding depth to sources like guitars, vocals, and drums, usually used as an insert with Wet Solo disabled

Start by lowering the Echo Repeats knob almost all the way down, then use the slider above the display to dial in between 100 and 200 ms of delay time, depending on the tempo of your song and how loose you want the slapback to be.

For trippy dub effects, crank up the Echo Repeats knob until the feedback starts to self-oscillate, and then use the Echo Delay slider to warp the echos up or down.

If that’s your style, you can also take it a step further by flipping the Send switch to Off to mute the dry input signal, letting you hear the self-oscillation by itself and paint unique textures onto your track.

Want to learn about more popular plug-ins? Check out these articles:

• Best UAD Plug-Ins for 2024
• Best Compressor Plug-Ins
• Top UAD Vocal Chains
• Best Plug-Ins Included with Apollo