When we talk about echo, it might make you think of vintage effects, which may be dirty, distorted and lo-fi in character. In contrast, ‘delay’ started becoming the standard term when digital technology made it possible to manufacture cleaner and quieter-sounding effects with a full frequency range and longer delay times – as found on many modern . Whatever the nature of the effect, delay mimics something you might experience in a large empty building or a canyon.
The time interval between a sound being generated and the sound that bounces back is long enough for the ‘echo’ to be heard as clear and distinct repeats. Reverb is related, but these multiple repeats occur so quickly that the reflected sound is perceived as continuous, rather than something separate. Studio designers could build dedicated reverb chambers because the space required isn’t actually that great.
But tacking an echo canyon onto the back of a live room has never been a viable proposition...
Consequently, echo effects didn’t become commonplace until technological solutions presented themselves. Looking back to the mid-1940s, the Allies returned from World War II having discovered Germany’s secret method for biasing analogue tape. Applying a high-frequency signal greatly expands tape’s upper frequency range, and it soon replaced acetate discs as the studio recording medium of choice.
Now, while Les Paul may not have been the first to use tape for echo effects, he was certainly at the foref.