Delay is a popular effect, usually used to create an effect with repeating echoes or to add a sense of space to a track or sound. But short slapback delays can also be used to “thicken up” a sound. Try adding a 60ms-120ms delay, mixed to taste depending on your instrument or sound, along with your dry signal. A short, “slapback” delay of this length will be just enough to audibly “double” your sound — as if two instruments or vocalists were performing together — without sounding like a separate echo repeat from your original sound — if you hear a discrete echo or repeat, the delay is either too long or mixed too loud. Slapback delay is commonly used on electric guitars and snare drums, but it can be used on any signal: vocals, strings, synth pads and leads, percussion and drums, and more.
A nice slapback delay can add punch and power to a relatively anemic signal or make a big tone even bigger. Give it a try!
