User reviews: Line 6 DL4

11/19/11

Fireguy8402's review "Awesome Pedal with a Ton of Tricks"

The DL-4 by Line 6 is actually a modeler of several different famous delays of the past, along with a few modern ideas thrown in. The pedal features models of 16 different vintage delays and on top of that they throw in a 14 second looper feature (which can be twice as long if used in half time mode). The pedal has three footswitches for three presets which can have values changed in real-time via an outboard expression pedal, and there is a fourth footswitch for using the tap tempo to change the delay speed. The pedal can be used in “True Bypass” mode for tone purist or it can be used in my favorite setting, “Trails” mode, which allows the delays to fade naturally when the pedal is turned off. Stereo ins and outs are provided for a full stereo sound when using multiple amps. This particular model is a floor based unit, however Line 6 did come out with a rackmounted version. The DL-4 supposedly runs for about 30 hours on four C batteries but is best powered by the Line 6 power adapter or a third party power source.

Utilization

Hooking up the pedal is fairly simple. For a simple guitar rig most people hook this up at the end of their pedal chain after gain pedals or in the effects loop of their amplifier. There are stereo inputs and outputs so if you’re using it in mono with one guitar and amp be sure to plug into the mono input and output. Editing the sounds can be a little tricky on the DL-4 without the use of the manual, however Line 6 includes two stickers for the pedal to help you along. The pedal has your basic delay knobs, but also includes a Tweek and a Tweez knob that change different parameters depending on what delay you are modeling. If you are on one delay model these two knobs may change the amount of modulation and rate of modulation, while on another delay model these knobs may change the amount of bass and treble in the delay. It’s nice that the pedal is tweakable, but this can get confusing if you don’t use the pedal often, so keep those stickers. In looper mode the pedal works just like you’d expect, no surprises there. Overall, the pedal is pretty well laid out and easy to use. Basically you just tweak the knobs until you find a sound you like, hold down on a preset button for a few seconds until the LED blinks and you’ve stored your sound to that footswitch. Basic usage is simple, but to get into all of what this pedal can do it is best to read the manual, and I’m a guy who rarely does so. The manual is clear and easy to understand, there are just a lot of features packed in this green machine.

Sound Quality

If you need the tones of a Tube Echoplex, a Space Echo, and a Deluxe Memory Man but don’t feel like shelling out the big bucks for all these different pedals, this modeler is a good compromise. Does it sound exactly like each one of these pedals? No, but it’s in the ballpark. This pedal does basically everything you’d ever need in a delay, and that’s why it’s so widely used. The looper is great for practicing or performing and it is easy to get clean starts and stops on your loops. The delays can be set to short and subtle or long and super lush and anywhere in between. The “Swell” setting is sort of like a Boss Slow Gear and sounds similar to using a bow from a cello on the strings, fading in the sound and rounding off the initial attack of the notes. I love it. Another one I really like is the “Sweep” delay which puts a phaser type modulation on the delays. The “Reverse” delay when set high can get you those wild Jimi Hendrix sounds that a few years ago you could only acheive in the studio, now these are available for live use. I usually set up a slap back style echo for rhythm guitar on one preset, a longer delay with a few more repeats for solos, and a lush delay with modulation for a third preset. You can make this pedal as subtle or extreme as needed, and the tone is great without killing your signal. I do notice a slight signal drop when it’s used in the loop of certain amps though.

Overall Opinion

Overall this is a super versatile delay that will do just about anything you can dream up. I love having different delays at the push of button, and with tap tempo I can line them up perfectly with the tempo of the song so the delays line up. While many people use the looper live, (if I were to use one this would be the one due to it’s simple layout) I only use it for practicing leads over chords. The footswitches on these units are known to fail with time, but there are many people out there to replace them with sturdier switches that can take abuse. I’ve done this mod myself and it’s quite simple. It has a ton of features for the price, but I’ve moved on to two separate delays because the pedal has a significant volume drop when I use it in the loop of my Marshall. I probably wouldn’t buy it again myself, but not because the pedal is poorly designed or built, but because it has too many features that I never use and takes up too much space on my pedal board.

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10/31/11

heads on fire's review "Just buy it."

Characteristics

16 vintage delay and echo effects including Tube Echoplex, Space Echo, Deluxe Memory Man, and more

Provides for 3 programmable presets

Tap tempo control

14-28 seconds of sample-loop memory

True bypass switching

Expression pedal input

Stereo inputs and outputs

Runs for up to 30 hours on four “C” batteries or with the optional PX-2G power adaptor.

Add the optional EX-1™ Expression Pedal to your Line 6 gear to modify the length of your delay time as you play.

Utilization

Every once in a while, an effects pedal is released that changes everything, one that guitarists run out to purchase in droves, as it makes playing more fun. This is one of those boxes. It is brain-dead simple to use, with plenty of great sounds and fun features. This is one of the most inspiring effects pedals I've ever had the pleasure of using. I like it so much, I've actually owned 3 of them!

Sound Quality

The delay sounds are quite nice. I know some modding companies are doing some modifications to make the sound quality better, but I've never had a problem with mine. I'll give it a 9 in this area, as it appears there is room for improvement with the mods, but I'm perfectly content with these 15 models and a looper. The Memory Man model sounds a lot like my old 70s EHX DMM, and there are a lot of great digital delays in there as well. The coolest thing to me is the looper - reverse on the fly, as well as half/double speed, just by hitting one stomp switch - that is priceless, and makes for hours of fun composing and improvisation.

Overall Opinion

I'm giving this a 10. It is about as good as an effects pedal can be. It is a bit bulky and takes up more room on a pedalboard than the average stompbox, but it makes up for that in its coolness. I love the delay sounds, but I use the looper so much that I hardly even use the delay settings anymore - I've got another box for it. Still, even if this pedal was just a looper with these functions, and was the same price, I'd STILL give this a 10. Awesome buy.

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07/12/11

wwhhhaatt's review "When it works it's great"

Characteristics

This is a 24 bit digital delay made to emulate some of the classic delay sounds from pristine to grungy lofi. It has 16 models including Tube Echo, Tape Echo, Analog Echo, and Lo Res Delay for the warmer ambient sounds and digital, sweep echo, rythmic echo, ping pong, and more for the pristine and wild sounds. It also has a looper which for me is the best part about this pedal.

Stereo 1/4" inputs and outputs along with an input for an expression pedal and power input. 6 parameter knobs, 4 stomp switches for three presets plus tap tempo, and can store three presets for instant recall.

Utilization

The dl4 sets up like most other effect pedals out there and is also easy to get a good sound out of. The controls are pretty self explanatory with the exception of the "tweak" and "tweez" knobs. These knobs do different things depending on which delay model you are using. The manual explains their functions well and with time you will probably have them memorized. This is however one of the few delay pedals I have where I occasionally refer back to the manual when things get a little foggy

Sound Quality

I mainly used this peal in a guitar set-up and 90% of the time it was in looper mode. The majority of the available sounds are great but the looper is where this pedal really shines. I have owned a headrush and still own a timefactor and DD20 but the looper on the dl4 blows them out with ease. The start and play switches are very quick and make it very easy to get a seemless loop that locks in with a good drummer. There is a switch that can slow the loop in half, reverse it, or you can even record in 1/2 time then hit the switch to double the speed of the loop. Another great feature is the one shot which you will find on tons of songs by "Minus the bear". It is meant to let you have the loop only play once through without having to press stop but it also lets you rapidly restart the loop at the beginning which can make some great glitching sounds.

I also really like the analog emulation for it's smooth ambience, the lofi for gritty sounds, and the sweep is a great special effect. The digital delay models are pretty much what you would expect just clean repeats nothing special. The bypass is great in true bypass but it does color your signal a bit in relay mode. Unfortunately I much prefer having delays that trail after bypass and this is only possible in relay mode.

Overall Opinion

Now the bad part. This pedal is notoriously unreliable. It's seemingly constant failure is actually how I acquired it. I repair pedals as A side job and I fixed this one in particular so many times that the owner gave up on it and let me keep it. They are very picky about power and sometimes just shut down and will not power up unless you know how to reset the eprom chip. It is not a difficult fix but it dumps all your stored presets and it's not exactly something you want to be doing in the middle of a set. The switches can also fail at times leaving you stuck with either no delay or no control over the looper. It's really a shame because the pedal has some great sounds and it seems like these problems could easily be remedied by Line 6. The issues with the pedal are what keep it at home and on looper mode so I don't waste time writing presets that I will eventually lose. If the quality of this pedal was stepped up I would actually buy one to use live.

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03/17/11

iamqman's review "One of the best Stomp Delays around"

Characteristics

I have owned two of these things from one time to another. Could be my favorite delay stomp box style for live gigging. My first one was given to me by my bass player. He though he could use it with his rig and got tired of it. The next was borrowed from a buddy to use at church.

I used this exclusively at my church for over 2 years. I ran it in front of a clean amp with a Boss pedal. The delay sound really jump out in the band mix very well. I love the way this thing sounds in the band mix and being able to stomp on another patch and tap it in on the fly was very beneficial to me for the music that I was playing.

I pretty much stayed on the rhythmic delays since I was all about the Edge/ U2 sound. I also used this thing as a synth patch as well. I ran the tweek, tweez, and mix up real high and channeled up the reverse delay and I basically had a synth sound which was very cool on ambient songs.

Utilization

Very easy to use as you just twist the knobs hold on to the foot clicker and the patch is saved. You could save up to three settings and then the extra clicker was for tapping in the tempo. There is also a looper function which is very cool when trying out multiple guitar sounds at the same time.

Like all Line 6 units the manual they provide is very practical and self explanatory. They provide a good understanding of the unit in common terms of use. But you really don't need it to run the delays but it did help when understanding how the looper setting works. I'm sure they have a download version on their website if you were to loose it like I did.

Sound Quality

The rhythmic delays were definitely my favorite setting. I pretty much stayed on this since I was using this unit more on the fly then having called up presets. It really cut in the band mix and sounded very good complimenting the songs. The other preset I used was the reverse delays with basically everything turned up to get a synth patch.

I used this unit with a Strat, Tele, Boss OD-2, TS9, Marshall JCM2000, and a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. It really blended well with the Fender. The fender was more of a darker amp and it gave a great tone with the Boss. I had a great U2 or Coldplay type sound. When I ran it with the Marshall I could instantly get that Welcome to the Jungle type tone.

Overall Opinion

I love the way this unit sounded in a band mix. I wish they also added a little screen that could show you how fast your milli seconds were. It would be nice to know the time you're at like Eventide or TC Electronics has done for you.

If I had the chance again I would definitely get this pedal again. I would get the thing modded to better operate the volume loss that is apparent in this unit. I actually like the tone of this unit a little better than the Eventide Timefactor.

I would recommend this unit to just about any guitar player. Great delays and very functionally easy to use in a band setting or sitting in your home jam room.

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02/20/11

MGR/Billy's review "Line 6 DL4 Delay Mod"

This is the long neon green cinder block sized pedal that everyone has had on their board at least once.

16 different types of delay models on the rotary knob on the far left.

The other knobs are are from left to right: Delay Time, Repeats, Tweak, Tweez and Mix.

This isn't only a delay pedal you can build loops up to 14 seconds long, store I think 3 presets as well as there is a handy tap tempo switch all the way to the right.

I lucked into one of these used for a great deal. Brand new they run $250. I purchased it because I messed around with it and loved the Reverse effect on it.

The reverse effect! I\'m a big fan of The Beatles and wanted to nail some of the reverse guitar licks. Hendrix also used some reverse guitar effects. Well there aren\'t many pedals that do this and you can\'t really gig with an old tape deck now can you?

There are pleny of options like stereo outs and an input jack for an expression pedal. I feel I haven\'t come close to tapping into all of what this pedal can do.

Some of the effects are a bit over the top, but I can always tame them a bit. Rather too much than too little I guess?

The pedal can be noisy at times. If you are recording and not using the pedal do yourself a favor and take it out of your signal. It is a mild tone sucker.

You don\'t want to drop this on your big toe! Well built, metal box, nice easy switching. The knobs are inset from the pedal so they won\'t snap off in your gig bag.

Plenty of vintage and modern delays all in one box. If you want to experiment with looping and delay, this pedal is well worth checking out.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

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12/08/10

moosers's review

Characteristics

Line 6's ever popular DL4 is a delay and looper pedal with a ton of versatility. The pedal has 16 different types of delays on here, each on modeled after a classic delay pedal with it's own sort of sound. The looper gives you 14 seconds (28 seconds if the half speed button is engaged) of looping ability, which is truly awesome when you're playing by yourself. The pedal is a digital one that consists of two 1/4" stereo jacks for inputs and outputs and the pedal is powered up by a specific Line 6 power supply that I believe is 12 volts. It's not going to be rack mountable as it's a foot pedal.

Utilization

Using the Line 6 DL4 isn't too difficult to follow, as more or less everything follows a pattern. The pedal has four buttons for controlling the looper and for setting your preset delay sounds, depending on which mode you're in. The far one will also act as a tap tempo button if you're using one of the delays. Once you've chosen from the different delay types, you can further edit your sound using a series of knobs for parameters which will change depending on which delay setting you're on. They are labeled delay time, repeats, tweak, tweez, and mix - tweak and tweez and the ones that change depending on the delay mode you're in. You can get away with not using the manual, but if you want to know what the corresponding parameters are for each of the delay types, it's definitely a good thing to have around.

Sound Quality

As far as tones go, the Line 6 DL4 offers a plethora of different sounds between the 16 types of delays. You can usually get some pretty differing sounds within each of the delay types as well between all of the parameters. Many of the delays on here definitely come off as being digital delays, since they of course are, but it's a trade off considering how many different sounds you're getting. If you're looking for an analog delay sound, you're not going to find the best ones on here, but if you get an analog delay you're not going to get all of the control you get here. The looper is probably my favorite part of the pedal however, as it provides endless fun and is a great songwriting tool.

Overall Opinion

The Line 6 DL4 is a very popular pedal for good reason, as it's the best way to get an almost endless variety of delay sounds in one place. Perhaps none of the sounds on here will be as nice a true analog delay, but considering how many different types of sounds you're getting, it's really not a big deal I don't think. If you're after that thick analog delay sound, I'd look elsewhere, but for versatility amongst delay sounds, this is the place. The pedal isn't too expensive considering what you're getting here, as most looping pedals will cost around this price. The Line 6 DL is absolutely the time to check out for every guitarist...

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12/02/08

M Elise's review

Characteristics

This thing is loaded with a wide variety of analog and digital delay models of famous pedals and devices such as Echoplex, Roland Space Echo and Deluxe Memory Man to name a few and also has basic sampling capabilities which I am not all that familiar with. It is a modeling device. You can use the 5 knobs to tweak each delay to your needs but you can only store three of your settings at once. There is a toe tempo tap button. The pedal has stereo/mono inputs and stereo/mono outputs. The unit requires its own proprietary power adapter. The unit is very solidly built but has a very poor reputation for the reliability of its buttons.

Utilization

The setup of the pedal is kind of ergonomically ideal in some ways but you quickly wish you could store more than 3 user settings because there are lots of cool models. I greatly appreciate that there are user friendly knobs for quick tweaking and not digital menus which are time consuming and nightmarish.

The manual is very cool too with neat information about the original devices that the models are based on.

The unit is supposedly true bypass but I feel it robs tone even when off and bypassed.

A big problem with this devise is the unreliability of its buttons as reported by many many users over the internet. In fact my unit has a button which sometimes and sometimes doesn't work. I also had to pay $25 for a replacement power adapter.

Sound Quality

The unit is very quiet and designed to be used on the front end between your guitar and amp and not in an effects loop where it apparently doesn't work well. The models are good and the pedal is fun fun fun. However it is important to realize that this is a modeling device and like all modeling devices it sounds cold, sterile, and artificial and will interject that sound into your chain. If you are into the virtues of pure, warm, beautiful, analog sound as can be achieved by playing guitar straight into a quality tube amp like a blackface Fender for example then you will find this pedal unusable. These are accurate mostly analog models that do not really sound analog in the slightest because digital modeling is incapable of actually sounding analog. I prefer using an analog delay pedal or an actual tape delay for this very reason.

Overall Opinion

It is definitely a cool pedal that has been around for a while and needs to be updated with the capability to hold more user settings and needs to have its reliability issues fixed. (Maybe it has...I don't know because mine is over 5 years old at least.) However I refuse to use this delay as part of my main sound because of the sterile artificial sound that the modeling interjects even for some reason when the guitar is plugged in the unit but the effect is bypassed.

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03/25/08

soccerplayer25's review

Characteristics

The Line 6 DL4 is delay pedal with 16 different settings, all based on other delay pedals. It also has a 14 second loop sampler. There are 1/4'' mono and stereo inputs and outputs and has 3 spaces for making your own presets and also has a tempo tap feature.

Utilization

The pedal is very easy to use, although it takes some time to master it and to reach its full potential. Each knob has a different use for each setting and I would recommend looking at the manual for the full information on that, just because there is so much information and so much you can do with the pedal. Overall, its really easy to get some great sounds out of this though.

Sound Quality

The effects on this are impeccable. While some are better than others, all of the sounds are very realistic and they don't sound too 'digital' at all. I use this mostly on electric guitar but I have used it on keyboards as well, and it works great with both. My favorite settings are the sweep delay and the reverse delay. I used the looper constantly, most of the time I just lay a chord progression down and make up lead parts over it - its a really great writing tool as well.

Overall Opinion

I've had this pedal for about 3 years now and it really suits all of my delay needs. Its convenient to have so many different types of delays in one box, and I love having the option of making my own settings. While it does cost a bit for a single pedal, its worth it for me because I use delay all of the time. Anyone who is looking for a wide variety of delays and echoes without having 5 or 6 different delay pedals needs to try this out. I've used some of the Boss and Electro Harmonix delay pedals and although those are great as well, they don't have as many settings, they don't have the looper and they don't have preset options. Overall, I say this pedal is worth its hype and the price.

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05/06/05

MGR/Scott Pal's review "Line 6 DL4 Delay Mod"

I bought this pedal at MusicansFriend.com, for $249 (plus shipping). I worked all summer mowing lawns to get this pedal. The reason I bought this was I saw Howie Day Live at the House of Blues and he looped his voice useing this and it sounded amazing!!! He had like to of these but all tou need to record is one.

I love this pedal because I can use it with my bass is my rock band, I can use it to loop(14 seconds) and delay my vocals, and I can make it sound like there are like 20 gutairs when its really just me. But what love most about this pedal is that I can play a simple chord progression and i can just solo over it for hours, my soloing has enproved SO much since i bought this both with my bass and my acustic gutair.

The two things I dont like about this pedal is that the battery is pretty short (and with it taking 4C batterys can really burn a hole in your pocket)so I highly sugjest spening the extra 25 dollars on the power sorce. And when your in the loop mode you can\'t loop the different delays. That is the only two bad things about this no joke.

This petal is made to last, with a rubber bottom it wont slide on the hard wood floors at all, made completly of metal along with the bottons on it. You dont have to worrie about dropping it because i dropped mine twice on concret and it didn\'t even dent and it still worked perfectly.

If you want to improve your soloing derasticly, this is a must need, I mean if you don\'t have a rythem gutairst than this is perfect with 14 seconds of looping time and it was cheaper and easier to use than the Boss one and it came with effects. I love it I plan on getting another one for my vocials.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

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02/21/05

MGR/Matt Allen's review "Line 6 DL4 Delay Modeler"

Bought it at my local music shop early 2004. I really bought it for the looping capability, and after some shopping decided it was the best for my money. I ended up paying about $250, and they gave me the power supply.

Like I said, I bought it because I wanted to practice soloing and harmonies and stuff like that. The pedal has exceded my needs in that department, especially the reverse and 1/2 speed overdubbing. The delays sound great, are fully customizable, and really easy to create and save.

The 14-second loop comes up short on some of the slower, longer riffs I use, but those suck anyway so I don\'t mind. Also, it\'s tough to get timing down on some of the rhythmic delays. My main problem is with myself- I can\'t ever play at the same tempo twice, so I\'m always off when I load up the saved delay.

Nevermind what anyone else says about cheap knobs, this thing is a tank. I can\'t see it ever breaking. All metal except for the knobs, which I turn with my fingers anyway. People who break them have got to be using their feet or turning them too far or something...

It\'s great. The looping capability is underrated and often overlooked. Younger players who want to practice any kind of improvisation should get one. All I ever hear people talk about is how vintage pedals are so much better than these \"cheap digital rip-offs.\" This unit will put nostalgic old people and their pedals in their place.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

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Line 6 DL4

Line 6 DL4 user reviews ( 8/10) - 25 user reviews