FLASHBACK X4 DELAY & LOOPER User Manual
Table of contents Introduction 1 Important safety instructions Warning Service 2 2 2 EMC / EMI 3 For customers in Canada 3 Unpacking and setting up Ready… Set… Play! Setup example: regular mono signal path Setup example: amplifier effect loop 4 4 4 4 5 6 Delay types Tape Tube Space Analog Analog w/mod Reverse 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 Dynamic 2290 2290 w/mod Slap Lofi Ping Pong 8 8 8 8 8 8 1 – Audio inputs and outputs Audio inputs Audio outputs 9 9 9 2 – Expression pedal input 10 Choosing an expression
The TonePrint concept 14 14 – TAP footswitch 23 Transferring TonePrints to the pedal Transferring TonePrints to the pedal via USB Transferring TonePrints to the pedal by beaming 15 15 15 7 – DELAY TIME knob 16 8 – Subdivision selector switch 16 9 – FEEDBACK knob 17 10 – DELAY LEVEL knob 17 11 – LOOPER/DELAY switch 18 Using the Looper module Using the delay in Looper mode Recording a loop Playing a loop continuously Stopping loop playback immediately Playing a loop once Stopping loop playback
Introduction Introduction Congratulations on the purchase of your new Flashback X4 Delay & Looper. About this manual Flashback X4 Delay & Looper builds on the success of TC’s popular Flashback pedal. It provides 12 delay types in pristine TC Electronic quality, tap tempo and three preset slots for an instant classic. This manual will provide you with a quick overview of how to get rocking fast as well as an in-depth look at the pedal’s more advanced features.
Important safety instructions Important safety instructions –– Read these instructions. –– Keep these instructions. –– Heed all warnings. –– Follow all instructions. –– Do not use this apparatus near water. –– Clean only with dry cloth. –– Do not block any ventilation openings. Install in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. –– Do not install near heat sources such as radiators, heat registers, stoves, or other apparatus (including amplifiers) that produce heat.
EMC / EMI EMC / EMI For customers in Canada This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B Digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC rules. This Class B digital apparatus complies with Canadian ICES-003. Cet appareil numérique de la classe B est conforme à la norme NMB-003 du Canada. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in residential installations.
Unpacking and setting up Unpacking and setting up Ready… Set… The Flashback X4 Delay & Looper box should contain the following items: –– Attach the plug applicable to your region to the power supply. Connect the power supply to the 9V jack on the back of the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper and plug the power supply into a power outlet.
Setup examples Setup example: regular mono signal path Input Modulation Pedals Input FX Loop Send Drive Pedals FX Loop Return 5 Drive
Setup examples continued Setup example: amplifier effect loop Input FX Loop Send FX Loop Return Drive Pedals Modulation Pedals 6
Delay types Delay types “OK… So what does this thing do?” “Glad you asked. First and foremost, the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper is a top-notch delay unit – so let’s talk delays!” TAPE Who doesn’t love the smooth sound of an old tape echo machine? The “Tape” setting makes for an overall great starting point with its mellow and “warbling” sound. TUBE This delay type has been tweaked to sound like an old tube tape echo – much like the “Tape” setting, but with a bit more warmth.
Delay types continued DYNAMIC Imagine you had someone turn up the volume of your delay pedal as soon as you stop playing for a second… and turn it down again when you resume playing. Why not let the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper be that someone? That’s what the “Dynamic” delay type does. It’s especially useful for fast solo parts where you don’t want the delay repetitions interfering with your playing. 2290 Once upon a time… (i.e., back in 1985) TC Electronic released the 2290 Dynamic Digital Delay.
Audio inputs and outputs 1 – Audio inputs and outputs 1 “So how do I configure the Flashback X4 for mono or stereo operation? What if I want mono input and stereo out or…” “Stop worrying – start rocking!” The Flashback X4 Delay & Looper is equipped with ¼" input and output jacks. Audio inputs –– If your signal source is mono, connect it to the INPUT MONO jack. You don’t need to worry about mono/stereo configuration issues.
Expression pedal input 2 – Expression pedal input 2 Choosing an expression pedal For use with the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper, you’ll want to use a 25 kOhm linear pot expression pedal. Please note that a standard guitar volume pedal has a 250 kOhm logarithmic pot and cannot be used as an expression pedal for the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper. The Flashback X4 Delay & Looper allows you to connect an expression pedal (optional/not included).
Expression pedal input continued Resetting parameters and parameter ranges To reset the parameters and parameter ranges assigned to a Flashback X4 Delay & Looper preset, proceed as follows: –– Set the knobs for the parameters you want to control to the desired maximum values. –– Set the expression pedal to the minimum position. –– Connect an expression pedal to the EXP PEDAL jack on the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper. –– Switch on the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper.
Power input / USB jack / MIDI jacks 3 – Power input 5 – MIDI IN / MIDI THRU jacks 3 4 5 These are standard MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) connectors. MIDI IN jack Connect a computer/DAW (or another device generating a MIDI Clock signal) to the MIDI IN jack to control the pedal’s delay tempo. Type: standard 5.5/2.1 mm DC plug, centre negative (supplied). To power up the pedal, connect the power supply that came with the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper to the power input jack.
Delay type selector 6 – Delay type selector 6 The slots “1”, “2”, “3” and “4” of the Delay Type Selector are “placeholders” for TonePrints. The Flashback X4 Delay & Looper comes equipped with the following default TonePrints: –– Delay TonePrint by Steve Morse –– Basic Delay TonePrint by Bumblefoot –– Basic Delay TonePrint by Doug Aldrich –– Synth Delay by James “Munky” Shaffer The TonePrint concept is explained in detail on page 14.
TonePrints The TonePrint concept “So what exactly is this TonePrint thing?” “Amazing, that’s what it is! Allow us to explain…” When you look at your pedal, you’ll only see a few knobs and switches. However, they actually control a large number of internal parameters. TC has defined the relationship between each knob and all the parameters “under the hood”. But wouldn’t it be cool to have guys like Steve Stevens, Scott Ian or Paul Gilbert (i.e.
Transferring TonePrints Transferring TonePrints to the pedal “So how do I load new TonePrints into my pedal?” “Use USB, Luke – or beam it.” Transferring TonePrints to the pedal via USB –– Go to www.tcelectronic.com/toneprint. –– Select your TC product in the “TonePrint by product” sidebar. –– Download a TonePrint you’d like to try. –– Connect your TC pedal and your computer using the USB cable that came with the pedal.
Delay time knob / Subdivision selector switch 7 – DELAY TIME knob 7 8 8 – Subdivision selector switch Use this switch to choose the note intervals that the delay repetitions are based on. –– Top position: quarter notes –– Middle position: dotted eighths –– Bottom position: quarter notes and dotted eighths. Turn the DELAY TIME knob all the way down for really short repeats. Turn the DELAY TIME knob up until you find your preferred amount of delay time.
Feedback knob / Delay level knob 9 – FEEDBACK knob 9 10 – DELAY LEVEL knob 10 Use the DELAY LEVEL knob to set the desired level of the delay signal. Turning the DELAY LEVEL knob to the right will increase the volume of the delay signal. Unlike the delay level knobs of some other pedals, the DELAY LEVEL knob of the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper will not influence the volume of the dry (unprocessed) signal, since we don’t want to mess with the original signal from your instrument.
Looper/Delay switch 11 – LOOPER/DELAY switch 11 Use this LOOPER/DELAY switch to set the functionality of the footswitches A, B and C. –– When the switch is in the top position (“Looper”), the four switches A, B , C and TAP (UNDO/REDO) control the Looper functions. The Looper module is explained on page 24. –– When the switch is in the bottom position (“Delay”), the three switches A, B and C can be used to access the Flashback X4’s three presets. Using presets is explained on page 20.
Looper level knob 12 – LOOPER LEVEL knob 12 Use the LOOPER LEVEL knob to set the playback volume of the Flashback X4’s Looper module. You can still use the delay effect when using the Looper module. If you do so, use the DELAY LEVEL and the LOOPER LEVEL knobs to balance the volumes of the effect and the audio loop.
Presets 13 – Preset footswitches (A / B / C) Recalling a preset Press the footswitch corresponding to the preset you want to recall (use). Only one preset can be active at a time. The LED of the active preset’s footswitch will be lit. Factory presets The Flashback X4 Delay & Looper comes with three factory presets, but you can overwrite them with your own favorite settings. A This is an Eric Johnson-style tape echo with somewhere between 2 and 3 repeats.
Storing presets Storing presets When you have selected a preset and you have changed parameters (e.g. the delay time), you may want to store your edited version of the preset. To store the current delay settings, press and hold the footswitch of the currently active (lit) preset slot for circa two seconds. The LEDs of the TAP footswitch and the selected preset will blink to confirm that the preset has been stored.
TonePrints and presets TonePrints and presets When you have stored a preset that is using a TonePrint, you can upload/beam a new TonePrint to that TonePrint slot without affecting the preset. This means that the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper effectively gives you access to seven TonePrints, like this: –– Upload or beam four TonePrints to the four TonePrints slots of the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper (see page 14). –– Switch to TonePrint slot 1, adjust delay settings and store the results as Preset A.
Tap footswitch 14 – TAP footswitch 14 To set the desired delay time, you can tap the TAP footswitch rhythmically. This is an alternative to using the DELAY TIME knob (see page 16). Simply tap the TAP footswitch a few times in the current song tempo. To readjust the tempo when it’s a bit off (of course, the drummer is to blame!), just tap the TAP footswitch again in the correct tempo. Please note that the tempo is defined by tapping quarter notes.
The Looper module Using the Looper module 12 Using the delay in Looper mode You can still use the delay when working with the looper module of the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper. This means that you can record loops with delay effects. Please note the following differences between Delay mode and Looper mode: –– When the LOOPER/DELAY switch is set to “Delay”, you are usually working with one of the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper’s three delay presets.
The Looper module continued Recording a loop Stopping loop playback immediately –– Set the LOOPER DELAY switch to “Looper”. –– To start recording a loop, tap the REC footswitch. To stop playback immediately, press the footswitch with the Playback/Pause symbol again. –– To stop recording, tap the REC footswitch again. Playing a loop once You can start and stop recording while the loop is being played back.
The Looper module continued Undoing a loop recording Loops cannot be stored During loop recording, each new recording is added on top of the loop’s previous version. However, if you make a mistake during a recording cycle, you can undo it by pressing the UNDO/REDO footswitch. Please note that while you can store the delay module’s settings as presets, you cannot store loops. When you switch off the Flashback X4 Delay & Looper, the current loop is erased.
Bypass modes Bypass modes True Bypass mode …is a hard-wire bypass that ensures that there is absolutely no coloration of tone when the pedal is bypassed. Using True Bypass on all your effect pedals is the right choice for setups with only a few pedals and relatively short cables before and after the pedals. Buffered Bypass mode The Flashback X4 Delay & Looper has two bypass modes: True Bypass and Buffered Bypass. To set the desired mode, you have to open the device.
Kill-Dry feature Kill-Dry feature The Kill-Dry feature allows you (you guessed it) to “kill” the dry signal and only keep the processed signal. If you use this pedal in the parallel effects loop of your guitar amplifier, you do not want the dry (unprocessed) signal to pass through the pedal, as this could lead to undesired phasing and cancellation effects. To activate Kill-Dry, you have to open the device. –– Unscrew the back plate and look for the two small dip switches shown in the illustration.
