501 Chorus Echo

What it does

A model of the Roland RE-501 tape echo, combining a preamp, a BBD chorus with intensity and width, a tape echo with six head modes, a spring reverb and a bass and treble tone control. The sound-on-sound section sets left and right delay times, linked or independent, synced to host tempo or switched to milliseconds, with feedback and a direct signal toggle.

In the demo

Jade builds a guitar chain in AUM, turning each section on separately so the chorus, preamp grit, head modes and reverb are all heard in isolation. She pushes the reverb and feedback until the unit self-oscillates into a sustained drone, then runs presets on a live acoustic, drums, a synth and vocals.

Worth knowing

Feedback keeps ringing after playback stops, so it needs watching in a live chain. The interface follows the Nembrini house layout, and the preamp is easy to overdrive on already-bright sources.