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Vox Time Machine
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Dual-mode digital delay pedal designed with Joe Satriani
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Searched Vox Time Machine in Reviews
Versatile Digital Delay with added Satriani cred 
| Ease Of Use |
It's a pedal, so you get 1/4" in, out and dry out. Power is from a 9V battery or standard 9V mains adaptor. As with any digital delay pedal, you're better off using a mains supply as battery life isn't the greatest.
It looks lke there's a lot going on here but it's a very straightforward pedal to set up. Left footswitch to turn the effect on and off, right footswitch for tap tempo. Having the tap tempo so accessible is a very nice addition and an obvious sign of a player's involvement in the design. This can also be seen in the large, bright status lights which, as well as indicating whether the Time Machine is on or off, also show whether it's in Vintage or Modern mode and flash continuously (even with the pedal off) to indicate the tempo.
Holding the right footswitch toggles the Time Machine between Vintage and Modern modes and a small toggle switch swaps between Hi-Fi and Lo-Fi modes.
The very groovy cream chickenhead knobs are your standard Digital Delay fodder : From left to right you have delay level, delay range, delay time and feedback.
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| Sound |
In the Modern setting and the toggle switch set to Hi-Fi, the Time Machine is as clean and clinical as you would expect from a digital delay. Maximum delay time is nearly 6 seconds so, while it's no loop pedal, you couldn't ask for much more out of a regular delay. One thing to note, unlike some other digital delay pedals, the Time Machine only does anything once it's on; play a phrase and then kick in the pedal and you won't get any repeats.
Still in the Modern mode but with the toggle switch in the Lo-Fi position and there's a very subtle high-end rolloff to take the edge off the repeats and help the pedal sit back in the mix a bit. This is the setting I normally leave it in.
Switching to the Vintage mode gives you a digital approximation of an analogue delay, with some lovely breakup on the repeats and a very warm sound which melts into your playing without sounding strident. You wouldn't mistake it for, say, an MXR Carbon Copy but it does a very good job nonetheless.
In either Vintage or Modern mode, cranking the feedback knob will push the pedal into oscillation for some crazy feedback, the pitch of which can then be adjusted with the delay range and time knobs. Not very musical but definitely very cool.
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| Reliability |
It's not the heaviest of pedals but it's a big chunky thing that's road-proven. I wouldn't be packing a backup.
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| Customer Support |
I've never had to deal with Vox so I can't comment on their customer support.
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| Liked about it |
- Very versatile delay pedal, with everything from crystal clear repeats to analogue-style swirls
- Tap tempo footswitch for quick tempo changes between songs (or in the middle of one, if your drummer's timekeeping is bad)
- Cream chickenhead knobs make the settings a doddle to adjust and look extremely groovy into the bargain
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| Didn't like |
- For those after the Satriani Sound, it's a little disappointing that the Time Machine is a single delay unit. Joe uses a pair of delay pedals live, set to different tempos for a huge clean sound. It would have been nice if there was some way of building in a pair of delays in the one box.
- The price for the chunky construction and big chickenhead knobs is a large pedal (nearly twice the size of a Boss pedal) so it uses a lot of real estate on your pedalboard. It does have that tap tempo switch, though - if you added a separate switch to a Boss delay, you would need even more space.
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| Overall satisfaction: |
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4.0 |
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Easy to use and very veratile
| Ease Of Use |
As with all Vox/Satriani boxes you get a few tips on various settings in the manual, including some of Satriani's settings. So all from slapback to delay and reverb is within reach with this stomp box.
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| Sound |
Whatever type of delay you are after you are likely to find it in the Time Machine. The three different delay ranges can be modified with the time knob and the length of the delay is set with the feedback knob. You will see that it's set up very intuitive and it is easy to use both on a dark stage and at home.
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| Reliability |
The Time Machine is fairly large, but I feel it justifies it with being versatile. I use it for adding sustain on certain songs, delay on other and also a touch of reverb on some acoustic songs.
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| Customer Support |
I have not dealt with Vox customer service.
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| Liked about it |
- Versatility
- Intuitive
- Cool design
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| Didn't like |
- Slightly big
- Quite expensive
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| Overall satisfaction: |
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5.0 |
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internal use: spec31 spec672
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