The Strymon El Capistan literally revolutionized the deley pedal market when it was released. Never before had a pedal so well reproduced the characteristics of a tape echo. In the summer of 2022, The El Capistan is updating to version 2. The El Capistan allows you to access the best of Tape Echo, this, within a compact box with possibilities of interaction extremely pushed. If you've always dreamed of using an Echoplex (EP2) or a Roland RE-201 without the bulk and flaws of these, look no further, the Californians at Strymon have done it for you and they offer you great Moreover!
El Capistan benefits from 3 different types of tape machine within the same pedal, each with 3 unique modes and extensive control over the quality of the tape, the hardware of the machine and the slightest audio characteristics of these legendary machines.
You can recreate the sound of a brand-new tape machine and deconstruct it on the fly, to recreate the sound of a near-dead machine. All the nuances, all the unique details of "tape" sounds are recreated here. All in a compact box with extensive connectivity.
For this version 2, Strymon has remained faithful to the original box by adding an additional control. Beautiful aluminum chassis, ultra light, PCB at the top, the manufacturing quality is there, it's Strymon, we are at the top of the basket. With its ultra-quiet, high-performance 24-bit 96 kHz A/D and D/A converters and a frequency response of 20 Hz to 20 kHz, the El Capistan is as at home on a studio console as it is in front of an amp. with lamps. It is made for duration.
The new functions of version 2:
Extended Control - A control for the onboard Spring Reverb has been added. This ultra-authentic spring reverb blends beautifully with recreated tape echoes. Some algorithms have been revised to be even more faithful and realistic.
MIDI - USB - Instrument / Line Level - The addition of MIDI protocol and a USB-C port gives you the ability to control every parameter on the pedal and recall them via 300 presets. There are two input modes to choose from, each optimized for a specific type of setup (bass guitars with active pickups, synthesizers, effects loops, vocals and more…)
Hardware - A new premium JFET analog input stage ensures superb responsiveness to your playing, and lets you select mono or stereo input at the push of a rear panel button. You can now control the El Capistan with an expression pedal or a MultiSwitch Plus. An all-new ARM processor delivers more processing power for every nuance of sound, with less power drained from your pedalboard.
Controls:
3 different types of tape echo:
Fixed Tape Head - We created a classic delay with tape speed controlled via the Time knob. The toggle-switch mode offers three playback heads, each at a specific distance from the recording head for a specific time interval. Choose between: (A) short delay with sixteenth note tempo, (B) medium delay with eighth note tempo, and (C) long delay with quarter note tempo.
Multi Tape Head - It has the same three tape heads as the fixed version, but uses two of the three tape heads simultaneously to create intertwining delay lines. The toggle-switch mode selects the two active reading heads: (A) Heads 1 and 2 are active. (B) Heads 2 and 3 are active. (C) Heads 1 and 3 are active. The Time knob sets the tape speed.
Single Tape Head - This machine runs the tape at a fixed speed while the Time knob sets the delay time by adjusting the position of a sliding recording head. This tape machine has a sound-on-sound (looper) mode. The toggle-switch mode offers the following options: (A) Double speed for better fidelity with shorter delay times. (B) Normal speed for degraded fidelity with longer delay times. (C) Sound-on-sound mode to achieve tape looping with instant cut, loop erase and two tape speeds.
- The buttons: Mix for the WET/DRY balance, Time for the delay time, Wow & Flutter for the modulation part, Tape Age to adjust the aging of the tape and Repeat for the number of repetitions.
- Many secondary functions are available: Crinkle, Bias, boost and more…
The sound:
The El Capistan is an almost infinite sound machine. The kind of pedal that has the ability to awaken your creative side. It's simple, the effect generated by it is so complex, so unpredictable, so rich and potentially unstructured, that you can stay for (very) long minutes, just listening to how the El Capistan oscillates and transports your notes. . It is of a musicality potentially never equaled within a delay pedal. The possibilities are limitless, the musicality, the way the frequencies fit together are unique. The El Capistan has its own highly addictive sonic signature that liberates your ideas, whether for a simple slapback or an ambient pad that tends towards the atmospheric and the infinite.
Inputs, outputs and footswitches:
● Ultra low noise, high impedance Class A stereo JFET TRS input.
● Independent low impedance TS stereo outputs.
● Input for expression pedal and MiniSitch, MultiSwitch Plus or TRS MIDI.
● USB port for controlling via MIDI from a computer or for performing firmware updates.
Dedicated footswitches for each effect/
Audio quality:
● Premium JFET analog input stage
24-bit 96 kHz A/D and D/A converters with very low noise and high audio quality
520MHz Superscalar ARM processor
● 32-bit floating point processing
● Frequency response from 20 Hz to 20 kHz
● Audio input impedance: 1 M Ohm
Audio output impedance: 100 ohms
And more:
● Strong and lightweight sky blue anodized aluminum chassis
● 9 V DC power supply included
Power requirements: 9 volts DC maximum, center negative, with a minimum current of 300 mA.
● Designed and manufactured in the USA
El Capistan benefits from 3 different types of tape machine within the same pedal, each with 3 unique modes and extensive control over the quality of the tape, the hardware of the machine and the slightest audio characteristics of these legendary machines.
You can recreate the sound of a brand-new tape machine and deconstruct it on the fly, to recreate the sound of a near-dead machine. All the nuances, all the unique details of "tape" sounds are recreated here. All in a compact box with extensive connectivity.
For this version 2, Strymon has remained faithful to the original box by adding an additional control. Beautiful aluminum chassis, ultra light, PCB at the top, the manufacturing quality is there, it's Strymon, we are at the top of the basket. With its ultra-quiet, high-performance 24-bit 96 kHz A/D and D/A converters and a frequency response of 20 Hz to 20 kHz, the El Capistan is as at home on a studio console as it is in front of an amp. with lamps. It is made for duration.
The new functions of version 2:
Extended Control - A control for the onboard Spring Reverb has been added. This ultra-authentic spring reverb blends beautifully with recreated tape echoes. Some algorithms have been revised to be even more faithful and realistic.
MIDI - USB - Instrument / Line Level - The addition of MIDI protocol and a USB-C port gives you the ability to control every parameter on the pedal and recall them via 300 presets. There are two input modes to choose from, each optimized for a specific type of setup (bass guitars with active pickups, synthesizers, effects loops, vocals and more…)
Hardware - A new premium JFET analog input stage ensures superb responsiveness to your playing, and lets you select mono or stereo input at the push of a rear panel button. You can now control the El Capistan with an expression pedal or a MultiSwitch Plus. An all-new ARM processor delivers more processing power for every nuance of sound, with less power drained from your pedalboard.
Controls:
3 different types of tape echo:
Fixed Tape Head - We created a classic delay with tape speed controlled via the Time knob. The toggle-switch mode offers three playback heads, each at a specific distance from the recording head for a specific time interval. Choose between: (A) short delay with sixteenth note tempo, (B) medium delay with eighth note tempo, and (C) long delay with quarter note tempo.
Multi Tape Head - It has the same three tape heads as the fixed version, but uses two of the three tape heads simultaneously to create intertwining delay lines. The toggle-switch mode selects the two active reading heads: (A) Heads 1 and 2 are active. (B) Heads 2 and 3 are active. (C) Heads 1 and 3 are active. The Time knob sets the tape speed.
Single Tape Head - This machine runs the tape at a fixed speed while the Time knob sets the delay time by adjusting the position of a sliding recording head. This tape machine has a sound-on-sound (looper) mode. The toggle-switch mode offers the following options: (A) Double speed for better fidelity with shorter delay times. (B) Normal speed for degraded fidelity with longer delay times. (C) Sound-on-sound mode to achieve tape looping with instant cut, loop erase and two tape speeds.
- The buttons: Mix for the WET/DRY balance, Time for the delay time, Wow & Flutter for the modulation part, Tape Age to adjust the aging of the tape and Repeat for the number of repetitions.
- Many secondary functions are available: Crinkle, Bias, boost and more…
The sound:
The El Capistan is an almost infinite sound machine. The kind of pedal that has the ability to awaken your creative side. It's simple, the effect generated by it is so complex, so unpredictable, so rich and potentially unstructured, that you can stay for (very) long minutes, just listening to how the El Capistan oscillates and transports your notes. . It is of a musicality potentially never equaled within a delay pedal. The possibilities are limitless, the musicality, the way the frequencies fit together are unique. The El Capistan has its own highly addictive sonic signature that liberates your ideas, whether for a simple slapback or an ambient pad that tends towards the atmospheric and the infinite.
Inputs, outputs and footswitches:
● Ultra low noise, high impedance Class A stereo JFET TRS input.
● Independent low impedance TS stereo outputs.
● Input for expression pedal and MiniSitch, MultiSwitch Plus or TRS MIDI.
● USB port for controlling via MIDI from a computer or for performing firmware updates.
Dedicated footswitches for each effect/
Audio quality:
● Premium JFET analog input stage
24-bit 96 kHz A/D and D/A converters with very low noise and high audio quality
520MHz Superscalar ARM processor
● 32-bit floating point processing
● Frequency response from 20 Hz to 20 kHz
● Audio input impedance: 1 M Ohm
Audio output impedance: 100 ohms
And more:
● Strong and lightweight sky blue anodized aluminum chassis
● 9 V DC power supply included
Power requirements: 9 volts DC maximum, center negative, with a minimum current of 300 mA.
● Designed and manufactured in the USA
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