Binson Echorec

The Legendary Drum Delay Reborn

Real magnetic drum echo. Four playback heads. Handmade in Denmark.

Some effects are recreated with algorithms.

The T-Rex Binson Echorec is recreated with mechanics.

After years of research, restoration work, engineering, and testing, T-Rex brought the legendary magnetic drum delay back to life using a real rotating magnetic drum, real recording and playback heads, and a custom-engineered drum alloy designed to capture the organic response of the original machines.

The result is not an emulation of a drum echo.

It is a real drum echo.

Installed at Abbey Road Studios

The T-Rex Binson Echorec is available for use in The Gatehouse, The Front Room, and the Writing Room at Abbey Road Studios.

Read the Abbey Road installation story →

A Different Kind of Delay

The original Binson Echorec, developed in Italy in the 1950s, used a rotating magnetic drum instead of the tape loops found in many other vintage echo machines. That architecture gave the Echorec its own unmistakable response: rhythmic, warm, slightly unpredictable, and capable of turning simple notes into evolving patterns and textures.

T-Rex spent years studying and restoring original units before developing its own version around a custom magnetic drum.

That mechanical interaction is the heart of the Echorec.

Four Playback Heads

Four individually selectable playback heads give you far more than a single repeating echo.

Use one head for a straightforward delay, or combine multiple heads to create:

• Rhythmic multi-tap patterns
• Dense repeating textures
• Pulsing ambience
• Cascading echoes
• Swells
• Complex evolving repeats

Each playback head has its own level control, allowing you to determine how strongly each repeat contributes to the overall sound.

This is where the Echorec begins behaving less like a conventional effect and more like an instrument you interact with.

Two Record Heads

The T-Rex Echorec includes two recording heads, giving you access to short and long delay ranges.

Switch between them to change the fundamental timing relationship of the four playback heads, then use the drum-speed control to move the entire echo structure faster or slower.

Change the Speed of the Drum

T-Rex expanded the original concept with adjustable drum speed.

The magnetic drum can be varied by approximately ±20%, allowing you to alter both delay time and pitch behavior in ways the original machines could not.

Use it for subtle timing changes or treat the drum itself as part of the performance.

Because this is a real mechanical recording system, changing speed can produce organic pitch movement and rhythmic variation that feels fundamentally different from selecting another digital delay time.

Repeats or Swell

A dedicated mode switch lets you move between traditional repeating echoes and Swell behavior.

In Repeats mode, the Echorec produces the rhythmic echoes expected from a multi-head magnetic delay.

Switch to Swell and the echoes begin building into denser, more atmospheric layers.

From tight rhythmic patterns to expanding clouds of sound, the Echorec can move from delay into something approaching ambience, texture, and composition.

Shape the Echo

The front panel gives you direct control over the mechanical system.

ECHO VOLUME
Sets the overall level of the echo signal.

RECORD HEAD
Selects the short or long record-head configuration.

DRUM SPEED
Changes the rotational speed of the magnetic drum by approximately ±20%.

RECORD LEVEL
Controls the level being recorded onto the drum.

PLAYBACK 1–4
Selects and individually controls each playback head.

REPEAT
Controls regeneration and the number of repeats.

REPEATS / SWELL
Changes the behavior of the feedback system.

ECHO TONE
Shapes the tonal character of the repeats.

The Magic Eye

The Echorec includes the classic-style Magic Eye level indicator, giving you a visual reference for input/recording level while reinforcing the experience of operating a genuine electromechanical echo machine.

It is functional.

It is beautiful.

And it belongs on an Echorec.

Built for Guitar and Studio

The T-Rex Binson Echorec is equally at home on the floor beside an amplifier or integrated into a professional studio.

It provides both balanced and unbalanced connections, giving engineers and musicians the flexibility to use the Echorec with guitar rigs, recording systems, mixing setups, and other creative signal chains.

External connections also allow control of bypass and drum speed, opening the door to deeper live and studio integration.

Authentic Mechanics. Modern Refinement.

T-Rex did not simply reproduce the weaknesses of a sixty-year-old machine.

The modern Echorec incorporates refinements intended to make the mechanical system more consistent and usable:

• Custom-engineered magnetic drum alloy
• Reduced mechanical noise
• More stable operation
• Adjustable drum speed
• Balanced studio connectivity
• External control capability

The goal is to preserve what made the original extraordinary while making the instrument practical for modern musicians and studios.

Features

• Authentic magnetic drum delay
• Real mechanical recording and playback heads
• Two recording heads for short and long delay ranges
• Four individually switchable playback heads
• Individual level control for all four playback heads
• Adjustable drum speed ±20%
• Repeat and Swell modes
• Echo Tone control
• Record Level control
• Magic Eye input/record-level indicator
• Custom magnetic drum alloy
• Balanced and unbalanced I/O
• External bypass connection
• External drum-speed control connection
• Included 24V DC power supply
• Handmade in Denmark

Specifications

• Type: Electromechanical magnetic drum delay
• Recording heads: 2
• Playback heads: 4, individually switchable and level adjustable
• Input impedance: >500kΩ at 1kHz
• Output impedance: <1kΩ at 1kHz
• Power: 24V DC, center negative
• Center pin: 2.0mm
• Current draw: 300mA at 24V DC
• Power supply: Included
• Maximum input signal: Adjustable
• Controls: Echo Volume, Record Head selection, Drum Speed, Record Level, Playback Heads 1–4, Repeat, Repeats/Swell, Echo Tone, Bypass
• Dimensions: 3.94 × 9.84 × 7.48 in
• Metric dimensions: 100 × 250 × 190 mm
• Construction: Handmade in Denmark

Power Budget

24V DC / 300mA

The Binson Echorec operates from a dedicated 24V DC, center-negative power supply, which is included with the unit.

Because the Echorec uses a specialized 24V supply and an electromechanical recording system, we recommend using the supplied T-Rex power adapter.

This is another useful example of the Power Budget principle:

Correct current capacity alone is not enough. Voltage, AC/DC type, polarity, and connector specification must all match the device.

Handmade in Denmark

Every T-Rex Binson Echorec is handcrafted in Denmark.

That matters here.

This is not a conventional circuit board placed inside a pedal enclosure. It is an electromechanical instrument containing a rotating magnetic drum, recording heads, multiple playback heads, precision mechanical components, and analog electronics working together as one system.

It is built to be used, maintained, and kept.

More Than an Effect

A conventional delay repeats what you play.

The Echorec can transform what you play into something new.

One note can become a rhythm.

A chord can become an atmosphere.

Feedback can become movement.

And the interaction between magnetic drum, playback heads, speed, tone, and regeneration means the machine responds differently depending on how you play it.

That is why the Echorec has remained compelling for generations.

It isn't simply a delay.

It is an instrument.