Keeley Delay Workstation

In a world that is increasingly conscious of pedal board size, weight limits for travel, and versatility in a small enclosure, the Keeley Delay Workstation stands out as one of the best options for those in a downsizing frame of mind. This surprisingly compact pedal packs two high quality and versatile effects boxes into one. Half delay, and half reverb, this Keeley workhorse is an exceptional way to get a lot with a little. Even if you are not in need of a small pedal to fill your delay and/or reverb needs, this pedal is an excellent choice for any board.

External Control: EXP/STEREO OUT/EXTERNAL TAP/ONBOARD TAP
Cost: $$

HornFX Review

Interface:  4/5
This pedal has a lot to cover. When thinking about how to put a delay pedal and a reverb pedal into one box, one can imagine that the controls can get way out of hand. That is not the case here. The two sets of controls are incredibly simple and intuitive. The selector knobs for the delay and reverb engines have a strong and pleasing click when going from one delay or reverb type to another. The layout is such that manipulating controls on the fly is easy and not confusing. The only real challenges come with the nature of the pedal. The knobs and foot switches are closer together than your average pedal, but when considering the tiny footprint, they did a great job. The knobs that select effect engines are labelled with numbers, and the numbers are described in a chart on the front face of the pedal. This can require some memorization, which could cause some frustration for some. This goes the same for the “morph” knobs, which function differently for each effect engine. These limitations, however, are minute, and are a wonderful trade off considering the positive qualities of this pedal.

Versatility: 4/5
This pedal is by no means a hugely varied delay monster like many pedals out there, but it has a surprising amount of effect types for its size. In addition, not even the most complicated and deeply diveable delay pedals can boast a secondary set of reverb effects that go along with the delay or vice versa. In fact, all of these effects work beautifully in tandem. The reverb side of the pedal even has a couple different delays, allowing you to stack multiple delays at one time (See recording below). The Keeley Delay Workstation has lots of choices for its two effects engines, does both reverb and delay well, and can even be further expanded with the use of the expression pedal input. Truly versatile.

Reproduction of sound: 3.5/5
When using the digital delay and the hall reverb, the reproduction of tone is quite clean. All of the other effect types tend to put some spin or twist on your raw sound, which can be very desirable. One thing is for sure, this pedal has a consistency of personality when listening to its various effects and colors. If this sonic personality is something you connect with, you will be extremely happy with this pedal.

Live application: 4.5/5
What more could you want? a reverb and delay pedal all in one tiny box that somehow is easy to control. An on board tap-tempo, multiple effect engines, and an expression input round out this pedal’s extreme usability. The only score deductions are for lack of presets, and the need for memorizing a few numbers and knob functions

Audio

Input Signal - Tenor Saxophone

This first clip highlights a conventional Hall reverb with a short decay. Well suited for “always on” use

The second clip is also a Hall reverb, but with a longer decay and the “Morph” knob at 12 o’clock. Ambient sounds!

This clip uses the Delay Workstation’s “Flanged” reverb with the “Morph” knob at 1 o’clock. Great for some 80’s sounds with a little wobble to it.

This first example of delay showcases the Keeley’s tape delay with the “Morph” knob at 3 o’clock.

The second delay clip uses the “Analog” delay with the “Morph” knob at 12 o’clock. Great for stacking pitches.

This clips shows the two effects working together. “Hall” reverb combines with “Digital” delay. Incredibly useful combo!

This last clip uses the “Digital” delay available on the reverb side of the pedal and the same effect from the delay side. These stacked delays can give a cool effect.

Input Signal - Trumpet

Product Information

The Keeley Delay Workstation is a powerful, dual DSP processor delay and reverb machine.  Combining Keeley’s unique delay and reverb patches in an incredibly small package, the Delay Workstation is an extremely creative tool.

With the Delay Workstation you can combine vintage slapback and multi-head tape echoes with Spring or plate reverbs to create some instantly classic sound spaces.  You can set the Delay Workstation for warm sounding analog delays and then use the chamber or hall reverbs to create a huge warm and endless space.  Need rhythmic delays with some shimmer?  It’s here.  Always wanted to have the perfect ducking delay?  One that backs out of the way until your done with your notes, then the echoes fill in. “Ducking” is a very intelligent way for clearing the clutter in a sound that would normally be overrun with delays and echoes.   Wanna get twisted?  Try the Pitch delay into our Flanged Reverb.

The Reverb side of the Delay Workstation contains all of the most common reverbs and some delays. The Morph control allows users to put creative twists on the reverb patches like spring tension, shimmer, and random flanging.  There are two delays included in the reverb bank.  You can use these to setup very cool ping-pong delays and many other creative rhythmic patterns.

• Two banks of eight legendary effects.  Super Fidelity.  Super Compact.

• The Delay Workstation has on-board tap tempo on the Delay side and external expression control on the Reverb side.

Product Information from the Keeley Website