Strymon Deco Tape Saturation and Doubletracker Delay

Two fully detailed tape deck emulations in one

It’s impressive enough that Strymon managed to pack one high-definition tape machine emulation in the Deco pedal, let alone two of them. But you don’t have to dive deep to appreciate the quality of the Deco’s processing – just roll up the saturation control and bask in the warm glow of the harmonic overtones. Up to about 10 o’clock, the Saturation effect is subtle, introducing the non-linear odd-order harmonics that make old-school engineers nostalgic for the days of 2″ tape. Push the Saturation knob above 10 o’clock, and you achieve the effect of pushing the tape machine into the red. At 1 o’clock, the effect crosses over into lush and vibrant tape overdrive, which is absolutely amazing on your pedalboard, and when you blend in the Doubletracker sound in one of three unique modes, the range of thickening effects is absolutely astounding.

Tap into classic double-tracking tape effects

Tape overdrive is just the beginning of what the Deco has in store. In the Doubletracker section, you’ll find additional controls (both on the surface and “hidden” in the secondary knob functions) that allow you to add flanging, chorusing, slapback delay, and vintage tape echo to your tone. The Wobble control also serves to spice up your effect, adding a range of character from mild detuning to surprisingly musical chaos to your sound. You can also widen the stereo spread (the Deco, like most Strymon pedals, can run in stereo or mono), add auto flanging, and filter out highs and lows to better contour the effect.