PSP 608 MultiDelay Review: Features, Sound & Presets

7 Creative Ways to Automate PSP 608 MultiDelay in Your MixThe PSP 608 MultiDelay is a versatile delay plugin that combines classic echo textures with deep modulation, filtering, and feedback routing. Automating its parameters can transform static repeating echoes into evolving soundscapes, tighten rhythmic parts, and add dynamic interest across an arrangement. Below are seven creative automation techniques you can apply in your DAW to get the most out of PSP 608 MultiDelay.

1) Automate Delay Time for Evolving Rhythms

Automating delay time lets you shift echoes relative to the tempo and create rhythmic variation without re-recording.

• What to automate: Delay Time (for each tap or the global time control), Sync/Free mode toggle if available.
• Use cases:
  • Small increases (~10–30 ms) introduce subtle flanging/chorus-like movement.
  • Larger shifts snap the echoes into different rhythmic subdivisions (e.g., ⁄₈ → ⁄₁₆).
• Tips:
  • Smooth transitions with automation curves to avoid abrupt pitch artifacts; consider automating a short LFO instead of a hard jump.
  • When changing delay time drastically, use the plugin’s tempo-sync and crossfade features (or crossfade between two delay instances) to avoid pitch jumps.

2) Automate Feedback for Swells and Freeze Effects

Feedback determines how long echoes persist. Automating it can create swells, build tension, or produce an instant “freeze” around a chorus or transition.

• What to automate: Feedback amount and individual tap feedback routing if available.
• Use cases:
  • Rise feedback over a bar or two to grow a tail into a breakdown.
  • Drop feedback immediately for a tight, dry section.
  • Momentary max feedback with a high-pass filter for a lush, self-oscillating texture (watch levels).
• Tips:
  • Automate output gain or a limiter when pushing feedback high to prevent clipping.
  • Combine with wet/dry automation to blend the effect smoothly.

3) Automate Filter Cutoff and Resonance for Tonal Movement

PSP 608 includes onboard filtering. Automating filter parameters sculpts the timbre of repeats over time.

• What to automate: Low-cut/High-cut (or band-pass) cutoff and resonance.
• Use cases:
  • Open the low-cut slowly to let low-end echoes bloom during a build.
  • Sweep high-cut down for a lo-fi, muffled delay on verses then open it for a chorus.
  • Increase resonance during automated sweeps for pronounced, vocal-like timbral motion.
• Tips:
  • Pair filter automation with feedback increases to emphasize filtered repeats.
  • Use subtle automation on per-tap filters (if available) to create stereo interest.

4) Automate Tap Levels and Pan for Spatial Motion

PSP 608 lets you control levels and panning of individual taps. Automated tap level/pan changes create movement across the stereo field and prevent a static-sounding delay.

• What to automate: Individual tap volume and pan positions.
• Use cases:
  • Auto-pan repeats from left to right to reinforce a stereo spread.
  • Reduce the level of certain taps during verses and boost them in the chorus for clarity.
  • Mute or lower early taps while emphasizing later taps to create a ghostly, distant echo.
• Tips:
  • Keep small panning moves for subtle width; larger moves for dramatic stereo sweeps.
  • Complement this with reverb sends or a mid/side EQ for added depth.

5) Automate Modulation Amount and Rate for Movement

Delay modulation (chorus/flux on the delay lines) adds pitch and time modulation to repeats. Automating rate and depth produces anything from slow, lush detuning to fast, chorusy warble.

• What to automate: Modulation depth, modulation rate, and LFO shape or key-sync if present.
• Use cases:
  • Slow rise in modulation depth across a pad to create a drifting, evolving texture.
  • Fast modulation bursts at transitions for a “glitchy” or electronic vibe.
  • Sync modulation rate to tempo for rhythmic modulation artifacts.
• Tips:
  • When automating rate, consider musical subdivisions (e.g., ⁄₄, ⁄₈) so the motion complements the beat.
  • Combine modulation automation with subtle delay time modulation for richer movement.

6) Automate Wet/Dry Blend and Send Levels for Dynamic Presence

Automating the wet/dry mix or the send level to the PSP 608 allows you to place the delay precisely when it’s needed without muddying other sections.

• What to automate: Wet/Dry knob, effect send level, or the plugin bypass.
• Use cases:
  • Bring the delay in only for pre-chorus or chorus to create contrast.
  • Gradually introduce wet signal in an outro so the mix dissolves into ambient repeats.
  • Use quick wet spikes for glitchy slaps at phrase ends.
• Tips:
  • If your DAW supports clip-based automation, you can create precise rhythmic wet spikes tied to performance.
  • Use automation on a bus send for multiple tracks to share the same evolving delay texture.

7) Automate Advanced Routing Parameters for Creative Textures

PSP 608 MultiDelay has routing and tap-group features that let you reconfigure the signal path. Automating routing or switching parameters can produce abrupt or subtle transformations.

• What to automate: Tap routing, serial/parallel routing parameters, stereo/mono switches, and tap grouping if present.
• Use cases:
  • Switch taps from parallel to serial routing to dramatically lengthen or complexify echoes mid-track.
  • Automate mute states on tap groups to reveal different rhythmic layers across arrangement sections.
  • Toggle stereo modes to collapse to mono for a focused verse then open to stereo for the chorus.
• Tips:
  • Pre-automate safety: automate a gentle crossfade between two differently-configured delay instances to avoid clicks.
  • Use MIDI or macro controllers to record more musical, real-time routing changes.

Combining Techniques for Musical Results

Blending multiple automation techniques often yields the most musical outcomes. Examples:

• For a pre-chorus build: automate feedback up, open filter cutoff, increase wet mix, and widen tap panning — all over two bars for a dramatic swell that blooms into the chorus.
• For vocal interest: automate short delay-time nudges, subtle modulation depth, and decreased early-tap level to create motion behind the vocal without masking clarity.
• For ambient textures: automate long delay times, high feedback, heavy low-cut filtering, and slow modulation rate while removing dry signal for a pad-like wash.

Practical Workflow Tips

• Automate on a bus when you want the same delay behavior across multiple tracks.
• Use parallel instances with different settings and crossfade automation between them for glitch-free, dramatic changes.
• Record parameter moves with a MIDI controller for expressive, humanized automation curves.
• Always monitor levels when increasing feedback or modulation to avoid clipping and aliasing artifacts.

Experiment with small, musical moves first; subtle automation often sounds more professional than extreme parameter gymnastics.