Walkman Analog Tape Delay

xelent‘s Tape Delay Machine uses two Walkman type tape players, a Realistic Stereo Mate and a Memorex XB, to create a tape delay. It’s Frippertronics on the cheap!

A single tape loop runs through two modified cassettes (each which have had one of their left or right sides removed). The players themselves have had there walls (the two in the center, respectively) filed down, so the tape runs fluently.

The tape (which moves counter-clockwise) travels through the left player (Realistic) where its internal microphone records sound, and then travels to the Memorex which plays back the sound about 3 seconds later.

2 thoughts on “Walkman Analog Tape Delay

  1. Wow!

    This takes me back to the “way back when” times! I had a full personal studio (synths – multi tracker – effects) in the eighties, and this was one of those “tricks” to use. There also was this one with a long spring, a speaker and a pick-up needle to create an echo-chamber…

    Ah, where are the days…

    Well done. But…(not willing to smash any bubbles here) is’nt there any software that does the trick too? Feed the audio into the SB port and feed the WAV to a filter…

    Anyway, well done!

    Thor

  2. Thor – there’s software for just about everything these days – but a lot of people like the tactile, hands-on feel of creating something that you can make music with.

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