The Black Fountain Stereo is a delay pedal from Old Blood Noise Endeavors that emulates the sound of an oil can delay, which the maker describes as "warm, modulated, and a little gritty"1. It is a digital pedal with stereo input and output and an analog dry through, meaning your untouched guitar signal stays analog from input to output while only the repeats are processed12. Old Blood Noise Endeavors positions it as suitable for chorusing, doubling, slapback, and long rhythmic delays alike1.
The pedal is the current version of the Black Fountain line and replaces the discontinued Black Fountain V3 + Tap Tempo3. It is hand-made in Oklahoma, USA, and carries a list price of $329.0014.
What is an oil can delay?
Oil can delays are vintage echo devices built on a short-lived but characterful technology from the 1950s, an alternative to tape and wire echo machines that came before digital delay67. Guitar Interactive Magazine described the original units as emphasizing "a chorus-like modulation on the repeats of the effect signal as well as a beautiful and warm repeat cycle"8. That warble and warmth, rather than a clean digital echo, is the sound the Black Fountain line has chased since the first version appeared in 20148.
The pedal offers three modes that point at different eras of the original hardware6:
| Mode | What it emulates |
|---|---|
| Modern | The classic long delay of oil can units6 |
| Organ Tone | More recent units featuring shorter delays6 |
| Vintage | Similar to Modern, but with a grittier, grainier feel to the repeats6 |
The controls
Guitar Pedal X counted 10 controls, dual footswitches and onboard presets on the Stereo Black Fountain, calling it "more of an advanced unit" than other oil can delay options on the market9. The knobs break down like this1:
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Time | Sets the delay time3 |
| Feedback | Sets the overall feedback amount1 |
| Wet | Sets the volume of the delay1 |
| Rate | Sets the modulation speed1 |
| Depth | Sets the modulation amount1 |
| Grit | Sets the amount of drive in the repeats1 |
| Tone | Shapes the warmth of the repeats1 |
A toggle selects between the Modern, Organ Tone and Vintage modes3. Beyond the knobs, the pedal adds expression control over every knob, so a single expression pedal can sweep any of them1.
The two footswitches are a soft-touch bypass switch with relay switching for minimal switch noise, and a Tap/Aux switch1. The Tap/Aux switch taps in tempo, or you can hold it down for infinite feedback; it can also optionally be repurposed as a preset switcher1. On the V3, two taps of the footswitch activated tap tempo, with quarter, eighth or triplet subdivisions available5, and MusicRadar confirmed tap tempo carried over to the Stereo version10.
Power and connections
The Black Fountain Stereo requires a 9V DC center negative 2.1mm jack power supply capable of 350mA, and the supply is not included1. That is a substantial step up from the V3's 110mA requirement3, so a small daisy-chain output may not be enough for this pedal.
The pedal's port list covers TRS In, TRS Out, MIDI In, MIDI Out, USB-C, Expression and 9V DC power4. MIDI control extends over everything in the pedal, including MIDI clock in and out for external syncing1. Jacks are top-mounted, which helps on a crowded pedalboard4.
From the Black Fountain V3 to the Stereo
The Black Fountain line goes back to 2014, when Guitar Interactive Magazine reported on the original pedal as an emulation of the "famed and elusive" oil can units8. The V3, launched in 2020, was a digital recreation of an oil can delay that added tap tempo to the popular effect511. A limited colored version of the V3 was also available for a short time from the blackbobbin.com site5.
The Stereo version, announced in 2025, evolves the compact Black Fountain Oil Can Delay in the same way Old Blood Noise Endeavors previously evolved its Dark Star into a stereo unit4. Guitar Pedal X called it "a similarly fabulous evolution" of the original compact pedal and a cool matching pair to the Dark Star Stereo4. The maker has since confirmed that the Black Fountain V3 is discontinued and has been replaced by the Black Fountain Stereo3.
The additions over the V3 are the stereo in and out with analog dry through, presets, full MIDI implementation with clock sync, expression control over every knob, and the selectable trails or true bypass switching1. The V3, by contrast, was a mono pedal with true bypass and no MIDI3.
What reviewers said
Reviewers covering the oil can delay category in 2025 found the field crowded, with the Stereo Black Fountain standing out among the candidates. Guitar Pedal X, comparing it against rivals in the category, wrote that "the Stereo Black Fountain from OBNE being particularly potent"9. MusicRadar noted the pedal arrives in a pedalboard-friendly format with tap tempo included10, and Guitar World highlighted the analog dry through as part of its design2.
Videos
Old Blood Noise Endeavors
Old Blood Noise Endeavors
Old Blood Noise Endeavors
Questions
Is the Black Fountain Stereo true bypass?
It offers a choice of trails or true bypass switching, so you can let repeats ring out after bypassing or cut them dead. The bypass footswitch is a soft-touch switch with relay switching for minimal switch noise, and it can also be used as a preset switcher.
What is an oil can delay?
An oil can delay is a vintage echo technology from the 1950s that used a rotating oil-coated disc instead of tape or wire. These units were short-lived but full of character, with chorus-like modulation on the repeats and a warm repeat cycle. The Black Fountain is a digital emulation of that sound.
Does the Black Fountain Stereo have tap tempo?
Yes. A Tap/Aux footswitch taps in the tempo, and holding it down momentarily maxes out the feedback for infinite repeats. The same switch can optionally be set up as a preset switcher instead.
What colors does the Black Fountain Stereo come in?
It comes in three colorways: Cream, which is the standard finish, plus Terracotta and Slate. All three are the same pedal inside, hand-made in Oklahoma, USA.
Can the Black Fountain Stereo sync to MIDI clock?
Yes. The pedal has MIDI control over everything in it, including MIDI clock in and out for external syncing. It has both MIDI In and MIDI Out ports, alongside TRS input and output, USB-C and an expression input.
Sources (11)
- Old Blood Noise Endeavors, Old Blood Noise Endeavors
- Old Blood Noise Endeavors debuts Black Fountain Stereo, Guitar World, 2025-03-25
- Old Blood Noise Endeavors, Old Blood Noise Endeavors
- Guitar Pedal X, Guitar Pedal X, 2025-03-26
- Old Blood Noise Endeavors Black Fountain V3 + Tap Tempo: Oil Can Delay with new features, gearnews.com, 2020-10-10
- The 3 Best Delay Pedals Per Type, In 2023, Delicious Audio (delicious-audio.com), 2023-08-25
- Old Blood Noise Black Fountain V3 Delay, Delicious Audio, 2020-12-11
- Old Blood Noise Endeavours Unveil The Black Fountain Pedal, Guitar Interactive Magazine, 2014-08-11
- Guitar Pedal X, Guitar Pedal X, 2025-10-15
- “Perfect for chorusing, doubling, slapback, and long rhythmic delays alike”: Old Blood Noise Endeavors' Black Fountain Stereo is an oil can delay emulation pedal packed with modern features, MusicRadar, 2025-03-25
- Old Blood Noise Endeavors launches the oil can delay-inspired Black Fountain V3, Guitar World, 2020-10-21
