The Echoplex is a tape delay effect, first made in 1959. Designed by Mike Battle,[1] the Echoplex set a standard for the effect in the 1960s--it is still regarded as "the standard by which everything else is measured."[2] It was used by some of the most notable guitar players of the era; original Echoplexes are highly sought after.
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Tape echos work by recording sound on a magnetic tape which is then played back; the tape speed or distance between heads determine the delay, while a feedback variable (where the delayed sound is delayed again) allows for a repetitive effect.[3] The predecessor of the Echoplex was a tape echo designed by Ray Butts in the 1950s, who built it into a guitar amplifier called the EchoSonic. He built fewer than seventy of them (they were used by players like Chet Atkins, Scotty Moore, and Carl Perkins) and could never keep up with the demand.[4] Electronics technician Mike Battle copied the design and built it into a portable unit;[5] another version, however, states that Battle, working with a guitar player named Don Dixon from Akron, Ohio, perfected Dixon's original creation.[2]
The first Echoplex with vacuum tubes was marketed in 1961. Their big innovation was the moving head, which allowed the operator to change the delay time. In 1962, their patent was bought by a company called Market Electronics in Cleveland, Ohio. Market Electronics built the units and kept designers Battle and Dixon as consultants; they marketed the units through distributor Maestro, hence the name, Maestro Echoplex. In the 1950s, Maestro was a leader in vacuum tube technology. It had close ties with Gibson, and often manufactured amplifiers for Gibson. Later, Harris-Teller of Chicago took over production.[2] The first tube Echoplex had no number designation but was retro-designated the EP-1 after the unit received its first upgrade. The upgraded unit was designated the EP-2.[1] These two units set the standard for the delay effect, with their "warm, round, thick echo."[6] Two of Battle's improvements over earlier designs were key: the adjustable tape head, which allowed for variable delay, and a cartridge containing the tape, protecting it to retain sound quality.[2]
The Echoplex wasn't notable just for the delay, but also for the sound; it is "still a classic today, and highly desirable for a range of playing styles...warm, rich, and full-bodied."[7] The delay could be turned off and the unit used as a filter, thanks to the sound of the vacuum tubes; this is how Andy Summers uses it, for instance.[8] A later model was called the EP-2.[1]
While Echoplexes were used mainly by guitar players (and the occasional bass player, such as Chuck Rainey, or trumpeter, such as Don Ellis), many recording studios also used the Echoplex.[9]
Market Electronics held off on using transistors while other companies made the transition. Nevertheless, in the late '60s they set Battle and Dixon to the task of creating the first transistor version of their product. Once the two were satisfied, beginning in the 1970s, the solid-state Echoplex was offered by Maestro[6] and designated the EP-3, but Mike Battle, unhappy with the sound of the EP-3, sold his interest in the company.[1] This unit offered echo, sound-on-sound, and a number of little convenience tweaks. Having been produced from 1970 to 1991, this unit enjoyed the longest production run of all the Echoplex models. Right about the time of the public introduction of the EP-3, Maestro was taken over by Norlin industries, then the parent company to Gibson Guitars.[2]
In the mid-1970s Market created an upgrade to the EP-3, designated the EP-4, adding features such as an LED input meter and tone controls and dropping the sound-on-sound feature. The EP-4 has an added output buffer to help improve impedance interfacing with other equipment. A compressor board based on the CA3080 Transconductance Amplifier was added to the record circuit of both the EP-3 and EP-4 models for a short while after the EP-4 model was introduced and then the compressor board was dropped from both the EP-3 and EP-4 models. The EP-3 model was also offered for sale alongside the EP-4 model after the EP-4 was introduced.[10]
Battle's final consulting with Market yielded the EM-1 Groupmaster, which offered a four-channel input mixer section and a mono output section. Dissatisfied with the transistor-minded direction Maestro was taking, Butts left the company.[2] In the mid-'70s Maestro also created the ES-1 Sireko (pronounced "Sir-Echo"), a simplified, echo-only unit with a bin-loop cartridge system.[citation needed]
At the end of the '70s, Norlin folded and their Maestro brand and Market Electronics was forced to find another distributor for their products. They found that distributor in Harris Teller, a Chicago musical wholesaler. Units built for Harris Teller carried an Echoplex badge that omitted the Maestro name. In 1984, Harris Teller bought out the Echoplex name and all the back stock of Echoplex parts from Market Electronics. Harris Teller used the back stock to assemble reissues of the EP-3, EP-4, and tube EP-2 (which they designated the EP-6t). In 1991, the thirty-year run of electro-mechanical Echoplex production finally came to an end. Towards the middle of that decade the Echoplex brand was purchased by Gibson and applied to its line of digital looping units,[11][12] one of which was sold under the Oberheim brand as the Echoplex Digital Pro.[13]
The Slip is the seventh studio album by American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, released on July 22, 2008. It was the fourth consecutive Nine Inch Nails release to be produced by frontman Trent Reznor with collaborators Atticus Ross and Alan Moulder. The album was released for free under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license, with the message from Reznor, "this one's on me".The Slip was initially released digitally via the Nine Inch Nails official website without any prior advertisement or promotion. A limited-edition, physical version followed two months later, though this iteration of the album was not free.
The Slip was originally intended to be an EP, but eventually grew to be a full-length album. It was recorded and released in three weeks; Reznor released the album's single, "Discipline", to radio stations himself, less than 24 hours after it was mastered by Moulder. Critical reception of the album has been generally favorable, and its unorthodox method of release attracted significant media attention. The album peaked at number 13 on the Billboard 200.
Echoplex is a live music venue located in the Echo Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It is owned and operated by the same people as The Echo, and the two are considered sister venues. It is located and commonly described as being "below The Echo," leading some to erroneously believe that its official title is "Echoplex Below The Echo." Along with The Echo, Echoplex is affiliated with Spaceland in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles. Some notable performers to have shows at Echoplex include The Mars Volta,Beck,NIN, The Rolling Stones and Thom Yorke.
Coordinates: 34°4′39″N 118°15′37″W / 34.07750°N 118.26028°W