Flight Time FT-2Y - Digital Delay

Delay fans will surely remember the Providence Delay 80 which became a benchmark in Japan over 10 years ago. Yukihiro Hayashi then designed a delay in the vein of the famous TC2290. It was at the end of 2014 that Yuki came back with the Flight Time, a Dolorean-style delay (if that reminds you of something). 2nd 2017, the brand releases version 2 by adding some small well-felt functions. Externally the pedal adopts the same type of case as the rest of the range, anodized and light. It is also manufactured, exceptionally, in northern Japan and not in Yokohama, in order to support the local economy which suffered greatly following the events of 2011.
On the front, there is a set of screens which may seem "busy", but which in fact turn out to be of formidable ergonomics and simplicity :) Finally, let's remember, it's important: the Flight Time is designed in a 100% original way with exclusive functions, and above all, the admitted goal of doing better than the TC2290 and its predecessor the Delay 80!!

Stratocaster and Les Paul in hand, plugged into a high quality clean Two-Rock, a quick tour of the owner is in order. The Flight Time has full MIDI support and 99 presets. The two footswitches allow you to activate the effect and enter a value for the tap tempo. And also to scroll through the presets after pressing the TAP switch for 2 seconds. The mode of operation of the dials is very simple. Simply press one of the buttons to activate the dial concerned. We can then adjust the output level, the feedback, the presets etc... All by simply using the + and - and Enter keys. Simple! In the center you can access the modulation settings and the filters. Top right the rhythmic subdivisions. And finally, we will find some buttons for trail, repeat and phase mode.

What to say? On a clean channel at the top... It's... FAT, rich, enveloping and pure. A clean crystal delay, but with a sound signature and a very warm color. We typically find the character of the 2290 (without the possibilities of the rack of course, we are only talking about the sound signature) with a "we don't know what" more... The modulation is just huge, it brings thickness and spatialization. Filters are awesome! They actually allow you to tune the echo response very precisely. We also find the Free The Tone key because they remain very musical whatever the setting adopted. In the digital delay style, that's all you can hope for. The Flight Time being a "pro" tool, we will also find a Kill Dry which will be well seen by those who use the pedal in a parallel loop, and the phase function, which will allow you to make yourself heard in a complex mix. / charge.
The icing on the cake, Flight Time is equipped with a BPM Analyzer. So what is it? Well if you're not perfectly in place when you play in a group, this one will vary the BPM on the fly and automatically correct your small differences ;) Nice!

In conclusion, the Free The Tone Flight Time 2 is an elite timeframe. It does one type of delay, but it does it perfectly. If you are looking for an enveloping and complex "studio" type delay, this is THE reference delay in pedal format. Version 2 brings a Midi Out, a Line and Instrument Level switch, a 9V voltage and a slightly reworked circuit to make it, definitively, one of the best references on the market. A must!