TC Electronic Alter Ego x4

Pro Guitar Shop

Since man first put signal to magnetic tape, countless engineers have dedicated myriad hours to as many refinements. Since the production of the first compact standalone delay machine for musicians—the Maestro Echoplex—much time has been spent perfecting the delay effect, one of the most ubiquitous sounds in musical history.

It is with that level of care that we at Pro Guitar Shop approached the design of the Alter Ego X4. Starting with the acquisition of several vintage delay units three years ago, we undertook the Alter Ego X4 project in the most organic way possible—deriving sounds from the actual units to be modeled. Several classic units are represented within the newest Alter Ego: From classic units such as the Binson Echorec and the Roland RE-301 Space Echo to more obscure pieces such as the Watkins Copicat and the Tel-Ray Super Organ Tone, every flavor of echo is represented from every era of the delay continuum.

The process of developing the algorithms of the new X4 took over a year's time. A group effort, each setting was painstakingly dialed in, fine-tuned with an array of guitars, compared with the original unit, and then shelved. Some time later, the algorithm would be unearthed and the process began anew with fresh ears. If it wasn't right, the algorithm was tweaked until it was, then shelved again. As time went on, the time between revisions became longer and longer. After several iterations of this, the adjustments became fine enough to where they became trivial. It is then that we knew we were finished, and each mode now stands in its current form. When the project was completed, we unanimously agreed that the Alter Ego X4 had met the credo that we had started with: "This is the delay pedal that WE would want."

Keeping in the tradition of the Flashback X4, the other controls of the Flashback X4—including the four user-assignable TonePrint settings, subdivisions and looper mode—remain unchanged. The unit is true bypass, with standard 9v DC operation and 300mA current draw.

Settings:

• Binson Echorec 1
• Binson Echorec 2
• Electro-Harmonix blue face Deluxe Memory Man (chorus)
• Electro-Harmonix blue face Deluxe Memory Man (vibrato)
• Tel-Ray Super Organ Tone
• TC Electronic 2290 with modulation
• Reverse delay with modulation
• Boss DM-2
• Watkins Copicat
• Maestro EP-2 Echoplex
• Electro Harmonix Echoflanger (think The Police – “Walking on the Moon”)
• Roland RE-201 Space Echo

• Pedal Of The Day

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