NAMM 2022: Laney’s The Difference Engine allows you to mix features from classic delays

NAMM 2022: Laney has announced an innovative take on the delay pedal in the form of the Black Country Customs The Difference Engine.

At its heart, The Difference Engine is a digital delay processor with analog, digital and dynamic-style delay modes. 

The Analog mode draws on a traditional tape machines – think Space Echo style delays (with wow and flutter artifacts), while the Digital mode pulls in crisp, '80s-style effects offering up to 2500ms delay time, plus freeze and multi-tap modes. 

Lastly, the Dynamic mode emulates the industry standard of the '90s, the TC Electronic 2290 Dynamic Digital Delay – offering modulated repeats with ducking features and phase reversal on repeats. 

Where things get interesting with The Difference Engine is its ability to blur the lines between the modes, by pulling in and combining different abilities from different eras. For instance, adding phase reversal to your Space Echo-style repeats.

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A 2.42” OLED screen should help you to keep track of your tweaking, while there’s MIDI in/out for those who want to trigger changes remotely, and an expression pedal input. 

Finally, Laney has recruited a host of big name guitarists to create presets for The Difference Engine, including Tony Iommi, Vernon Reid and Lari Basilio. There’s plenty of space for them, too, with 50 presets onboard already and space for a further 50 user presets.

There’s no word on price yet, so keep an eye on Laney’s official site for more information.