I’ve featured the Gurus Echosex 2 T7E valve-operated Binson-inspired device a few times on this site already - and it was for a long time a contender for my tape-delay choice - before I succumbed to the charms of the Strymon Volante. It was really between the Volante, the Echosex, and the Dawner Prince Boonar - where we are still waiting for Dawner’s own flagship valve-operated Super Boonar Deluxe to materialise.
The Echosex 2 T7E has a single input, while output can be split Out / Wet Out - for a sort of Pseudo Stereo effect. The newer Junior Foxgear version by contrast has full Stereo Ins and Outs and most of the larger sibling’s features onboard - and with a few more advantages of its own. The one thing that is missing is the central gain-generating valve - but its size and overall feature-set more than makes up for it!
The Gurus Echosex 2 T7E’s Controls are - Tone : Bass > Treble, Age of Damage, Motor Speed Adjustment, Input Control, Length of Swell, Mode Selector : Echo/Repeats/Swell, 4 Tape Heads Selection Switch, Echo Volume, Trails Switch, Bypass Footswitch.
The Foxgear T7E Baby’s Controls are - Repeats Tone, Age of Damage, Motor Adjust, Volume, Length of Swell, 4 Tape Head Selections x 12, Mode Selector : Echo/Repeats/Swell, Bypass Footswitch, Swell Footswitch.
So the big miss is obviously the central 12AU7/ECC82 Tube - while in most ways I probably much prefer the newer smaller Foxgear version. The Engineers have made some smart control choice on the new unit and I think it will do rather well.
I’m of course extremely satisfied with my Stymon Volante, but might nonetheless take on the T7E Baby for a rotation or two in my pedal-chain. The RRP on the larger unit is circa €599 or at least was at launch, the smaller Baby unit is at RRP €219/$219 as far as I understand.
There have supposedly been all manner of quality issues with the larger unit - meaning the Baby one has to be the one to get! Coming through to dealers any day now!