Looking for that final piece.

Can't speak to these^ specific options but I'd also recommend you check out Strymon for delays and reverb. They happen to do the modulation and time-based effects really well. The footprint is a little smaller than the two mentioned as well. If you have the budget they are real winners for me. I have the El Capistan delay and the BlueSky Reverberator - sound really great, offer plenty of flexibility while not being overly complex and are very intuitive to use.

 

I love both reverb and delay, but if I had to choose one over the other I'd go delay- IME/O a tad more practical for real- life/live use. I'd also want a true analog unit, or at least one that can self-oscillate. I have several delays, mostly old and semi- rare, so I won't suggest them specifically but will urge you to look at old funky stuff if and when you can.

 

You could go the best-of-both-worlds approach and go with something like the Earthquaker Devices Dispatch Master...

 

I totally missed that OR on this request - sorry.

I'm with you, if I had to choose one over the other, I'd definitely go with a delay. Have had some cool, and some in some cases rare, analog delays (Boss DM-2 w/ MN3005 chip, Analogman ARDX20, etc) and although they sound great alone, they can get pretty muddy with other effects and/or in the mix with a band. I personally tend to really not like some digital delays as they sound way too bright for my taste (think Boss DD-7), but there are some really nice units out there these days that will get you very close to the analog sound without getting too dark, too muddy on the repeats and have more functionality. The Strymon does this very well and it has a tap tempo, which if you hold down the tap it goes to infinite repeats (self oscillation) without runaway volume. Also, it has an aux switch that allows you to save a preset for quick changes to another mode. Just my $.02... opinions tend to vary on this greatly. Probably best to demo a few if you can.

 

+1...

 

Strymon Timeline totally rocks. It is the best delay for bass IMHO...

 

I like the mxr carbon copy for my super wierd delay needs. It's certainly one of the oddest I've used, but it sounds great!

 

+1

 

Strymon stuff is awesome but if you don't want to break the bank, I'd suggest checking out TC Flashback, Hardwire DL8 or Line 6 Echo Park.

 

I dig my TC Electronics Flashback Delay. It has 10 (11?) different kinds of delay (analog, reverse, ping-pong, tape, etc.), plus a 40-second looper and TonePrint, where you can create your own delay. I find it to be well-suited to bass, though that much variety can be overkill.

 

Hate to tell you, there is no 'final piece'! Especially right after winter NAMM.

 

My two cents would be a tc electronic delay, either the Flashback delay or the Nova Repeater (pretty similar except Nova has dedicated tap-tempo footswitch built in, although it's much much bigger than the Flashback) I use the Flashback personally and can't imagine not having it! We get real ambient a lot of times, and this just widens EVERYTHING to epic levels.

 

And Christmas, and Easter, and Thxgiving, and your birthday, and St-Valentines...