Belle Epoch Deluxe Experiences

[Bob Womack]

Hi, all! Happy Friday!!!

I've put up a new article detailing my experiences with the Catalinbread Belle Epoch Deluxe pedal, which is an attempt to tapelessly clone the venerable Maestro Echoplex EP-3 tape echo machine from the last century. I've owned one or another Echoplex most of the years since 1978, and still own a really good one. My article isn't a deep-dive review of the pedal and its features but is more a comparison between it and the original and a chronicle of my experiences with it. It isn't definitive, instead perhaps subjective, and (hopefully) entertaining. You can find it over HERE.

Bob

Edit: Speeling

[PineMarten]

I have the regular Belle Epoch, the Deluxe wasn't out yet when I got it. I'd been using an old Melos tape echo (the same as the Univox in the US) with my band at the time - a somewhat cruder device than the Echoplex but good sounding on the days it behaved. I tried a few different faux tape echos, and the Belle Epoch was the only one I tried that I liked enough to not miss using the tape echo. The original Echoplex is a rarity over here, at various times I've owned a WEM Copycat, a Roland RE-201 and the Melos so I'm familiar enough with the character of tape to be picky, and the Belle Epoch does it surprisingly well.

[Rumblefish]

Great writeup! I have the original Belle Epoch and love it. It’s the only delay that I’ve found that works well in front of a pushed amp. I’ve managed to resist the deluxe so far.