Wow, Boss knows your a “ influencer” now , 😊 well done....This sounds great!! & an excellent move by Roland. I really love its look as as well ( shame they didn’t squeeze a little VU meter on it☺️). Never could afford an original so this is close to an Insta-buy for me.
Everyone cries about the reverb on space echo...they're not understanding it's not meant to be a standalone...it's magic is how it interacts with the delay. It's speciyfy made for that and it's where the magic of space echo comes from. It's kinda obvious, no?
Your RE-201 sounds better to my ears. It has an analogue "fragility" characteristic that the digital version does not. This makes it more "human", IMO. I hope you can hang on to it. Cheers. 🙂
Thanks. You've sold me. Back in the eighties I ran a stereo sound system for my duo ( Keys / Drums / Vocals ). I had two Roland RE 301 Chorus echos that i used for stereo delay. Excellent sound. I've tried a host of different delays and reverb units, but haven't been really satisfied. But this RE202 might do.
I have the Arturia emulation and love to use it, even though I have no idea if it's a good emulation or not. Can only imagine how great a real one must sound up close.
My re301s motor died in 2009, I certainly miss it, but would rather deal with a contemporary pedal and not needing to hunt down parts. That said, I do like watching the tape move on the originals, lol
Great video as always Jorb! If you had to choose one (tapeless) tape delay, would you go with this, the Strymon Volante or something else? What’s your current favorite?
I'd have to compare! Its not fair to say, '15 years of dsp improvement' but I would bet it does sound better. the guys from that pedal show seemed to think the biggest difference was in the reverb, but that was on guitars of course
Could dry ice cool down the moving parts of a space echo? and if so would it make the machine more versatile? (i could repeatedly twirl around the repeat rate knob). I had way too much fun doing that, because of the pitch shifting and delay at the same time. Nowadays it can’t really oscillate as well as it used to.
@@saren6538 I said that based on this video. And since my last comment, I've watched many other comparison videos between the RE-202 and the RE-201 and I still say the newer one doesn't capture all of the nuances of the old one at all. In fact, the RE-20 that came before it did a somewhat better job of emulating a vintage RE-201, except for the spring reverb. This RE-202 is too perfect, even when the tape selector is set to "aged" and "wow and flutter" is cranked up.
I skipped to the 20min mark but the vintage has a dead giveaway, the pitch wobble. That and the EQing/high roll off being accented as the repeats continues. Otherwise they sounded close. Those difference is neither good nor bad by the way
Have you heard/ checked out the Echo Fix EF-2? This dude in Australia who used to repair roland space echos and similar machines for years decided to improve upon the original design and correct some design issues that would usually lead to the units’ failure, and decided to sell them. It’s a bit out of my price range (I’ve been eyeing the t-Rex replicator jr) but I think you’d be very interested in checking it out, reading about the story behind it.
I have seen! Actually I shared a few emails with them, one of the few things I did myself on this space echo was replace the switch, its a really unique part and I had trouble finding any suitable replacement. I got connected with them after asking around a bit, and he sold me an original one for a great price, I cleaned up all its jacks and soldered it into my unit. The EF-2 is an amazing thing to produce and sell in the modern era, and it comes from a passion that I really respect.
Great comparison! I love my El Cap pedal for live shows and the UAD plugin in the studio. To me, the sound of the boss pedal doesn't "inspire" me as much as your vintage unit (which I wish I owned) or the UAD plugin, but I think it's fine for live shows if you like the configuration of the RE-202.
The Roland RE-201 is the sole Roland instrument I sold. I had the late 1984 model and it was build like a tank. I used it before the Ebay times where you can buy tape loops online but, back in the day, you had to make them yourself by using a magnifying glass. The RE-201 needs a bit of maintenance, also. A bit of oil here and there and don't use cheap oil for that. In addition, it needs a reel to reel tape which is not available anymore, unless you take your time to find it. Mind you, it's always NOS. I used a Maxell tape back then. It's too much of a hassle to own, but then you have... the Boss RE-202. No more maintenance or tape looping anymore. Add to that, when the tape on a RE-201 got worn down, it sounded great. Until it broke. If you'd replace the tape, the RE-201 sounded differently. But, it's taken into account in the RE-202. You can switch between the old and new tape. How cool is that?
@@JorbLovesGear I found it to be very harsh and digital sounding.. very easy to saturate as well and this sounded very unpleasant. I sold it for the El Capistan and this was a night & day difference.
One thing they absolutely nailed is how it looks, with the shape of a CE-1 and the colours and styling of an RE-201. Then they packed it to the brim with features giving pedals like the Volante a run for their money, including stereo operation. Nice to hear a demo with analog synths. Thanks.
I love that CE 1 nod. and makes me think they'll have other things in this format, with one obvious first guess... I believe volante wins pretty handily on stereo options, but yes they both preserve a stereo signal. THanks!
@@JorbLovesGear Yes, I think this new form factor could replace the one used for the double pedals like the RE-20, slightly smaller and with 3 switches instead of 2.
Hey jorb sweetwater leaked the Juno x, Jupiter x but in the body of a Juno! It's 800 bucks cheaper and comes with a Juno 60 model instead of 106. Thoughts? Also looks like it comes with the jd800 of expansion
First ive heard of it! If they wanted to capitalize on nostalgia, they should put the boutique engine in it with 12 voices & a full size panel. Even if it can sound good, public perception of the zen core is not good
@@JorbLovesGear it sucks that people don't like it but realistically it's everything we already have from the integra sounds and fantom capabilities. What was more eye opening to me is the xv5080 is in theory the most capable and editable model. I love has sh101 tones being able to be polyphonic. I think the form factor is the biggest appeal sliders vs. knobs but either way you menu dive.
@@mattswanton I got the xm but I'm super tempted to get this as well I think sliders would fit to from better. It may be unnecessary but for 2k it's beautiful. I recently got a verselab and it has Juno style sounds, plus I got a Juno g, and with the xm I think I'm pretty solid I'd almost sell everything but the Juno g and verselab both pretty capable
@@legitimatefrenzy It's actually good to hear that. I've messed around with the Xm a little and love the concept, but it seems too much functionality was traded off for its compactness. I've loved every moment I've spent with either the 60 or 106 but the noise issues and maintenance reputation has always put me off. The X ticks so many boxes at this point.
I am no expert but the general take from my own research is that it's usually the bearings getting gunked up that affect the motor pitch like that - having said that the pitch modulation flutter can be part of the charm :) @@JorbLovesGear
The old Roland have this magic with the tape heads , it’s something magic and its age also…then for those who can’t afford , the Boss does quite good job in this range of product…
Do you, or anyone else here, find this to be a major improvement to something like the El Capistan? Because I’m not sure I hear it to be that superior. Especially in the context of a band. But don’t get me wrong, it does sound good.
I mentioned it only briefly, because I think it deserves a deeper comparison. I want one or two other options for tape delay before I do a video, but I would like to compare them in detail. El Cap is excellent, handles line level, + is stereo in / out just like this, all for a bit less money, especially since way more are around used.
I had the El Cap for a few years after finding the original RE20 a bit sterile, but the El Cap doesn't have panel labels for half its functions, which I found clumsy. I wouldn't be surprised if emulations have improved a bit on the ten years since it appeared as well, though at the time it was very impressive.
@@JorbLovesGear would be cool if you could get your hands on a Catalinbread Belle Epoch for the comparison. Either the deluxe or the regular will do, although the deluxe has more headroom and can take line-level synths fairly well. Nice pre amp too! The regular Belle Epoch is finicky when it comes to hotter input levels... however it has all the mojo in my opinion (love LOVE that modulation) and can highly recommend you use it at 18v.
El cap sounds a ‘bit more analogue’ less harsh ? But I agree it’s not knob per. I prefer El cap personally. I prefer iPad with fabfilter timeless because you can dial in the modulation you wanna hear. Then again I worked I can run 15 simultaneous effects through my MC707 which is pretty cool if you run each channel into each other.
i could be happy with either, and only comparing them would I feel the Boss pedal didn't match up. And I do always prefer and notice the old gear to be better. But when you have a lot of it ...one does notice that its a total pain in the ass to use in lots of cases. so its better to pick and choose when to take a modern repro and when to take an old gear. In the case of this echo I passed on the old Roland one and am excited to get the Boss one. But I prefer the Roland original for sound.
In the past I have extensively used an RE-201, and to me it's clearly a more interesting and organic sound. Mind you, the one that I used was nearly new and with a new tape loop. Once a real tape machine becomes worn though, you are pretty limited in what you can use it on and how much you can mix in - unless you are doing scary sci - fi.
I would love to hear how it compares to the RE-20... but every gear youtuber had been like: "I love that boss did a recreation of the RE-201"...they already did! over a decade ago!
The sound is right on but if you are fussy about DSP then it might not be high res sounding enough for you. If you are the kind of person who likes the sound of Boss delays and reverbs in pedal format normally then you should be fine with the RE-20 (I used to own the RE-20 and I swapped it for a Strymon Volante)
I have an RE20.. it's not a perfect re-creation of the RE201, but it has it's own character. I use it to make dub techno. I still plan on buying an RE202, but I have a suspicion that I will probably continue to use the RE20 in my productions.
i grabbed this because i love my original ce-1’s enclosure and i love the re-201 (but probably could never afford one now). glad to see someone who totally gets it. there really isn’t enough difference to me to make the vintage unit’s differences a dealbreaker
Love the RE-20 but this has memory slots .. Over Priced with subtle differences .. Space echo keeps on slipping tripping into the future . .. .... ....... ............
@@JorbLovesGear Hi. Well the 202 is still working and sounding great. I used to program it to make techno sounds etc, but I never used it as a straight forward synth. But I have now. Once I dig my HH echo machine out, I will try to get some of the sounds you have done here.
Man, you get it. Too many people get caught up in the “authenticity” and “original sound” when the reality is that vintage gear requires a lot of work/$ to keep running. It’s great for musicians who appreciate history and the magic of old tech, but it’s DEFINITELY not always going to be superior in terms of sound and practicality. Great demo.
I wish I had the hands on time to give you a good opinion. I think if you like the control on the volante, or enjoy playing with the stuff it has for itself, like the spacing control, or the other echo types, then stick with it. If you just want some fresh-flavor tape delay, by all means swap.
Hey bro. Good work on the demo. You'd be stoked that Roland sent you that i bet! Awesome. The re202 is a step up from the re20 (which everyone seems to have forgotten). I LOVE tape echo (dubtechno fan). The question is; what do i do with my re20 when i get the re202? Echo through echo? Kudos.
🙏🙏 I am too, high key. I did try and get an RE20, but I've gotta save my pennies for superbooth. And you should run em in stereo, one panned each side. LOL
Volante v. RE202, any thoughts? I'm leaning Volante as I also play guitar for my music and I'm really more of a fan of the echorec/echoplex than the Space Echo. But curious if you have any thoughts Jorb. Used Volantes rune $330-350, RE-202's are $400 new (same price as a new Volante). Both have midi.
I likewise love this pedal, been using it quite a bit lately. Personally the *only* thing I wish could be changed (for my part, on the compact version) is a minor UI tweak: the 11 modes are kind of silly, I'd rather just have the reverb level reducible to zero and either 3 more on/offs for the heads, or a direct binary->head configuration switch (for 3 heads, you only need 7 options for that: 001, 010, 011, 100, 101, 110, 111. Label that in the documentation, but following binary makes it predictable.). That isn't the vintage gear, of course, but oh man it would make it so much easier for someone coming to this as a modern user.
To be clear, the compact version also doesn't have the indicator lights - which would also resolve this issue. It's just a minor gripe that the compact version is harder to use because of this oversight (although I stand by the idea that changing the mode dial to be more predictable wouldn't change the vintage feel at all to my mind.)
Thank you for the physical crash course on tape delay heads. Awesome simple explanation. Don’t quite understand feedback intensity when you said each head somehow picks up the others but maybe it’s multiple heads activated at once? Fantastic content man.
🙏 Feedback sends the signal from the play back heads back to the record head, with less gain & maybe an eq. As far is which do or don't feedback, which would affect the rhythm of the delay, I believe the space echo feeds back all active heads. The Volante for example let's you pick which heads play back, and separately which feed back.
Hey Jorb! Could you elaborate a little more on the preservation of the stereo image? I'm thinking about upgradin to the RE-202 from my Strymon El Capistan (v1). I use it a lot on my analog dj mixer with send/return system and although I've set it to stereo internally, it seems like in the actual echo signal, L & R are somewhat mixed together in a "stereo soup" so to speak. Sounds great on its own, but my old Boss RE-20 on the other hand was absolutely stereo: sounds playing through the left input would only echo through the left output and vice versa... is this the same on the new RE-202? Thanks a lot!
@@JorbLovesGear thanks! Just read the same thing on the Strymon website, explains a lot.. As for the RE-202, I've got it on pre-order in local music store and we're going to test this! I hope it is a truly stereo fx engine, but I suppose it will be - just like the +10y old RE-20. Anyways, this video has me pretty much convinced already - just like your Take 5 video (my wallet sends its regards)
there's an iPhone app called: K7D that is the closest thing to a "space echo" sort of thing it's not quite an emulation of tape, but if you buy a TRRS 1/4" cable, you have an old iPhone with 1/4" jacks and it's better than a LOT of digital pedals....
Jorb, could you recommend a good electric keyboard that has a pretty close Rhode’s 71 sound-or just one that has a good low end? My local used scene is so dry and I am broke haha so like under $300 Oh and maybe like 66 keys?
the funky T ripped from the 101 manual is a great idea. (I love repurposing images/text from old consumer and professional electronics manuals.) does the manual actually have "(funky)" written in romaji beneath the katakana? just my opinion, but I'd prefer if it was just the kana... first question I had when I saw the 202: the Treble and Bass EQ - are those Baxendall or Hi/Lo Shelf curves? RE:Reverb (Spring) the RE-201 never had a great tank in it to begin with, in my opinion. not useless, but fairly short springs (how many, in your original?) and monophonic, so limited to say the least. additionally, digital models of mechanical reverbs rarely do their respective inspirations justice. according to the good people at Rare Signals, maker of the Transatlantic Plate plugin, this is partially due to the digital signal processing used to manipulate the impulse responses (presumably referring to such emulation plugins which utilize convolution in their modeling) to truncate reverb tails for the benefit of sound design flexibility in deference to user preference. on top of all that, many of the seminal and "classic" sounds in our collective memory that associate the RE-201 and its siblings with spring reverb stem from records (Tubby, Scientist, Prince Jammy, Scratch, Mad Prof., Coxonne Dodd, etc.) that substituted a Grampion or similar unit with much larger tank/springs/stereo signal processing for the internal spring of the Space Echo. years ago I regrettably passed on the opportunity to purchase a clean 201 for about $400, and have never owned one, so take my point of view with a grain of salt and FYI, my points of reference for the Space Echo specifically are essentially Dub records and digital emulations such as Arturia's plugin. and when I use such a digital recreation, I only apply like 1-5% of the total range of the reverb setting. sometimes I'll put it on a bus at 20-100% wet reverb only, and then place another reverb type (or two - algorithmic, plate, etc.) in the effects bus chain before/after/around the 201 spring.
As usual, excellent video, Jorb! I very much appreciate both the comparison to the 201 and also the reasoned perspective on their similarities, differences, and applications
I wondered this about things like the dd500 / 200, and I really dont know. I actually should ask boss, if they have shared dna with all the DSP space echo stuff
