CopyCat vs Space Echo
P C Arnold
Does anyone know the differences between a Watkins Copy Cat and a Roland
Space Echo????
They both work on 1/4" tape loop, right???
The roland has reverb???
Anything else, anyone have any preferences to either??? why???
Any info on this would be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance
Phil
Rex Jackson
The Roland has a spring reverb. I dunno about the Copy Cat, but the
Roland has a knob on the front panel that selects one of four or five
play heads and that is the way you select (preset) delay times. I don't
much like these units. On the other hand, an Echoplex has the play head
attached to a slider control on the front panel so that the delay time
is continuously variable. You can also use an Echoplex for sound on
sound. Get a 'Plex, you won't be sorry.
--
Mike Healy
>
>The Roland has a spring reverb. I dunno about the Copy Cat, but the
>Roland has a knob on the front panel that selects one of four or five
>play heads and that is the way you select (preset) delay times. I don't
>much like these units. On the other hand, an Echoplex has the play head
>attached to a slider control on the front panel so that the delay time
>is continuously variable. You can also use an Echoplex for sound on
>sound. Get a 'Plex, you won't be sorry.
>--
>
Speaking of echoplexes, does anyone know where I could get some
replacement tape cartridges (including that metal and felt thing
that hold the tape against the capstan) either in San Diego or
by mailorder? I got it around '79.
thanks
Mike Healy
Steve Cowell
Rex Jackson <re...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>In <D7xzz...@bath.ac.uk> py3...@bath.ac.uk (P C Arnold) writes:
>>
>>
>>Does anyone know the differences between a Watkins Copy Cat and a
>Roland
>>Space Echo????
>>
>>They both work on 1/4" tape loop, right???
>>
>>The roland has reverb???
(snip)
>
>The Roland has a spring reverb. I dunno about the Copy Cat, but the
>Roland has a knob on the front panel that selects one of four or five
>play heads and that is the way you select (preset) delay times. I don't
>much like these units. On the other hand, an Echoplex has the play head
>attached to a slider control on the front panel so that the delay time
>is continuously variable. You can also use an Echoplex for sound on
>sound. Get a 'Plex, you won't be sorry.
Echoplex uses a cartridge, hard to find. Roland uses straight 1/4" tape.
Cartridge tapes have to roll over themselves (like the old 8-tracks).
This results in accelerated tape wear, exacerbating the cartridge
availability problem.
The Roland has a speed knob in addition to the selection of 1,2, or 3
playback heads simultaneously... multiple slapbacks (using no feedback).
Thus the speed *is* continuously variable... the available delay time
is longer on the Echoplex, however... you can't play "The Bomber"
by James Gang with the Roland.
The RE301 has sound-on-sound capability... rarely useful, IMO.
I have an RE201 (bought over the net) and have been very happy with
it. Paid about USD200 for it last year.. about going rates.
The Roland is a high-quality, heavy-duty piece of gear that will
last for decades... I recommend it unequivocally. I don't have
any experience with the Copycat... if it's got tubes, definitely
get it instead!
--
Steve............scowell@aoc.nrao.edu.......................
Rex Jackson
>Speaking of echoplexes, does anyone know where I could get some
>replacement tape cartridges (including that metal and felt thing
>that hold the tape against the capstan) either in San Diego or
>by mailorder? I got it around '79.
>
>thanks
>
>Mike Healy
>
Jim Dunlop still makes them. They cost about $20.
--
Rex Jackson
Cowell) writes:
>Echoplex uses a cartridge, hard to find. Roland uses straight 1/4"
tape.
Jim Dunlop still makes the carts. They cost about $20 and you can swap
them out in-between tunes. If you have to change the tape in the Roland
you have to manually re-thread it.
>Thus the speed *is* continuously variable... the available delay time
>is longer on the Echoplex,
An aquaintence of mine regularly uses a Roland and I had it here the
entire month of October last year. The longest echo on the Echoplex is
longer, trust me.
--
Rex Jackson
writes:
>
>In article <3o50e4$l...@ixnews3.ix.netcom.com> Rex Jackson,
>re...@ix.netcom.com writes:
>>The Roland has a spring reverb. I dunno about the Copy Cat, but the
>>Roland has a knob on the front panel that selects one of four or five
>>play heads and that is the way you select (preset) delay times.
>
>select which of the *play-back heads* will be used? I don't think so.
What a dweeb. It has a spring-reverb IN ADDITION to it's tape loop
echo. The tank even says "Made in Wisconsin by Beautiful Girls" on the
side if you open up the Roland and go looking for it.
--
Dean Aldridge
re...@ix.netcom.com writes:
>The Roland has a spring reverb. I dunno about the Copy Cat, but the
>Roland has a knob on the front panel that selects one of four or five
>play heads and that is the way you select (preset) delay times.
Eh? The roland uses a spring to create reverb, BUT it has knobs to
select which of the *play-back heads* will be used? I don't think so.
It would have either a tape loop system to create the lag needed for
delay, reverb, echo, chorus, flanging etc. OR a spring to create reverb
effects. I've never heard of a spring echo unit, or a spring chorus
unit. I'm not saying they don't exist, just that I don't think they
would sound any good if they did, and in any case the roland certainly
isn't one.
Those older roland units (space echo and space chorus/echo, or something
like that) are tape units, just like the watkins copy cat and a few
others.