what the dod dfx 98 is

[Matt Davignon <mdavig@sfsu.edu>]

"DOD/Digitech could do well (and does anyone know just what
the FX-98 would have to offer, were it to exist?)"

I know a little bit about it, I have it's predecessor, the DFX 94, a 4 
second
digital delay/sampler squashbox. Mostly, the 94 works as a digital echo 
pedal
with three echo ranges (up to 1/4 sec, 1/4 to 1 sec, and 1 sec to 4 sec). 
Within
these ranges, you have an analog pot named "DELAY" which allows you to
analogally change the delay time (and pitch with it). On the longest echo
setting, you can switch it over to "infinite repeat" mode which would of 
course
be the looping element.

On the other modes, hitting the footswitch turns the echo on and off. In 
inf
repeat mode, it toggles the loop between open (where you can add to it, 
but the
original components gradually fade away), and closed (where you can't add 
to
it--this is where you'd "solo" over the infinitely repeating loops).

There are two more dials, the volume dial which controls the echo/loop 
volume,
and the repeat dial, which gives you anywhere from 1 to a whole bunch of
repeats. When you're looping, the repeat dial represents how many layers 
you
want in your loop. If you change the settings of the repeat dial while 
you're
adding to your loop in infinite repeat mode, you can decide whether you 
want the
new part you're adding to replace the existing part, or to be added on top 
of
it.

There's also a sampler mode available in the 1 to 4 second setting. Past 
the
"infinite repeat" notch on the range dial, there are two more notches: 
"trigger"
and "sample". When you're on sample mode, pressing the footswitch on the 
box
makes the unit record a sample. The sample length is determined by the 
"DELAY"
wheel. When you have a sample, switch over to the "trigger" mode and you 
can
play the sample every time you hit the footswitch. And like you'd guess, 
you can
change the pitch of the sample while it's playing by moving the DELAY 
wheel.

Supposedly, the FX98 is an 8 second digital delay/sampler with all of these
features. It also has a way in which you can reverse the samples and 
loops. It's
such a tease too. I wouldn't have even heard of it except I saw it 
advertised in
a Guitar Center flyer last year. They had a photo and everything, but the 
pedals
were never shipped. Somebody on the list says he has one, but for the most 
part
they were discontinued before they were released. BAD DOD!! BAD!!

These pedals are great for free improvisation--starting a song with little 
idea
of where it will go. Unlike other samplers, it doesn't give you the option 
of
shortening a loop by lopping off the end or something. That makes it not so
great for sampling drum loops since getting a perfect fit is trial and 
error
every time.

For anybody who has the West Coast CT CD, all of the remixes were done 
using
only a CD player and 2 DFX 94's.