Description
Lexicon owned the digital effects market in the early eighties with stone-cold classics like the Prime Time, PCM 41 and 224 digital reverb. What set Lexicon apart was audio quality – their units always sounded warm & musical, two qualities that escaped many competing products
The PCM 41 is a simple one-in, one-out digital delay line but the addition of a comprehensive VCO section and feedback controls makes it capable of chorusing, phasing, flanging and pitch-bending doppler effects as well as straight delay and delay hold (infinite repeat)
Like most early DDLs, the PCM 41 uses a delay multiplier control to sweep the delay time from half to double length. Using this control in real-time is the key to getting weird noises out of the PCM 41, particularly when using lots of feedback. The feedback section has a phase reverse button and hi & low-cut filters so it’s easy to dial in a tape-style repeat where the top end degrades over time
Dedicated front-panel controls for every function mean the PCM 41 can be played like an instrument. There are no menus or data entry encoders – just knobs & switches that do what you want every time. For more control over effects the back panel includes footswitch jacks for repeat hold and bypass plus a VCO input jack which allows control of the delay time multiply function using a foot controller
“What I loved about the 41 was being able to quickly switch from a 1/16th note to an 1/8th note and 1/4 note delay once you dialed the basic tempo in”
“The PCM 41 sounds great and is easy to use. It can be simple or whacky, but usually awesome!”
“They are super easy to use and sound awesome. There are buttons for set delay times, but there’s also a knob that lets you adjust the time, but you won’t know the exact time. There’s also a “double time” button which does that, and also makes it sound grainier because it drops the sample rate”
“You can get all kinds of crazy using the modulation section after the delay”
“Make sure you plug in a pedal into the repeat jack on the back of the PCM-41 and you’ll be able to get the RPT Delays of the PCM-42 and PrimeTimes”
“I love my PCM41. The PCM41 is a great delay that doesn’t sound like a CD skipping. Well worth it.”
“The lexicon Primetime is somewhere in the realms between a instrument and a delay.. I’d marry mine if I could”
“love my 41. of all things i would have thought a delay most replaceable by plugins, but i was wrong”
“PCM 41 (and 42 I’m pretty sure) are mono in and out. I have a 41 and I use it a lot. It’s super simple and sounds really great. Dark, kinda crunchy, vibe for days. I doesn’t sound like an H3000. Its also much easier to use than an H3000, one knob one function, a couple buttons and off you go”
“Both the 41 and 42 are nifty. The 41 specifically, which is simpler and cheaper, can yield all kinds of neat delay-related effects, not just classic “delays”. The original manual gives all sorts of cool effects recipes”
“The PCM-41/42 and Roland SDE-3000 have a very warm sound to the repeats. Not to mention the modulation on the repeats sounds incredible.. I have yet to hear anything else like them.”
“One thing I can say about my PCM41 is that it has the most amazing, huge, warm chorus that I have ever heard. And unlike many other digital delays, the Lexicon has a tone to it. It is not transparent and with the way it sounds, I wouldn’t want it to be. It always had enough delay for me too”
“I agree 110%. That Modulation/Chorus from the PCM/SDE delays beats any other Chorus unit i have ever heard..”
“Those old PCM sound great in their own way, it’s quite hard not to like them! And yes used in pair they can make some amazing stereo / “dual mono” effects”
“Well I’ve had the PCM 41 for several days now and have been testing it out. It’s fantastic sounding. Really impressed with the warm tone and clarity of the repeats. For whatever reason I actually prefer the X2 mode, the reduced bandwidth is closer to the BBD-type repeats I’m more familiar with and love. But there are none of the analog BBD artifacts like clock noise, it’s just clean and warm”
“
