Caroline Guitar Company Unveils the Megabyte Delay

January 14, 2020 · 5 sources

Caroline Guitar Company unveiled the Megabyte Lo-Fi Delay Computer, an upgrade of the company's well-loved Kilobyte Lo-Fi Delay shown ahead of NAMM. The new Megabyte is a lo-fi delay pedal that keeps the character of the original while adding tap tempo, more delay time, and a more aggressive runaway feedback mode¹.

The Megabyte uses two old school PT-2399 delay chips, which up the delay time to 1200ms, double the roughly 500ms-plus available from the Kilobyte's single chip¹. The two chips are wired for increased time and improved noise performance, and the pedal carries a +21db drive preamp and modulation for the delay side, letting repeats be driven into clipping²³.

Key features announced for the Megabyte:

• Tap tempo with three subdivisions, tapped in via a footswitch
• Up to 1200ms of delay time
• A modulation control that detunes the repeats for greater depth and color
• A Havoc function, paired to the tap switch, that produces runaway repeats when the player holds the tap button down
• Switchable trails and true bypass modes, changed by holding down the bypass button
• Internal controls for a 100% dry-kill for production work and a maximum headroom option on the havoc/oscillation side²⁴

The pedal was developed with collaborators John Snyder at Electronic Audio Experiments and Scott McCombs at McCohms Labs, and is assembled in the USA at the Caroline workshop in South Carolina⁴. Caroline Guitar Company is an audio effects design and manufacturing firm in Columbia, South Carolina⁴.

The Megabyte began as a limited release pedal originally for charity: Caroline sold a limited number of pedals in an advance sale benefiting Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands, raising more than $3,000 for victim assistance and operations. The company then moved it into a wider release through its worldwide retailer network, with a MAP and street price of $249.99⁴⁵.