A modern update to a delay classic: the Line 6 DL4 MkII is here

Following what seemed to be a slight whoopsie, with next month’s Guitar World magazine spilling the beans a little early, the Line 6 DL4 MkII has been officially announced. The new pedal updates the 23-year-old delay classic, adding in a bunch of modern features but still keeping the option for the pedal to work just like its predecessor.

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The new DL4 MkII’s enclosure retains a similar layout to the original – a three-sectioned enclosure finished in a, let’s just say, unique shade of green, four footswitches for full control of the pedal’s looping and for inputting tap tempo, and a central control bank. Here, you’ll find the classic Tweak and Tweez knobs for adjusting the more out-there parameters of each delay program, along with more standard delay time, repeats and mix controls.

The delay sound selector knob has all of the original delays from MkI of the DL4, plus a whole new selection of delay sounds ported over from Line 6’s HX series of modellers.

Around the back, the I/O has been brought up to 2022’s standards of premium digital pedals. Like the original, there are stereo ins and outs and an expression pedal/footswitch jack, but these are now joined by an input for a microphone with its own level knob, MIDI input and output/through, a USB-C connector for using software to adjust parameters, and a Micro SD card slot to allow for much longer loop storage.

There are six presets that the pedal can access on its own with hardware preset scrolling, and 122 more that can be accessed via MIDI.

Line 6’s Eric Klein said in a press release: “Certain circles have touted DL4 as arguably the most important pedal of the last 20 years, and even after 23 years—an eternity in this industry – we couldn’t imagine messing with a good thing. So, despite its new delays, modern capabilities, and increased fidelity, a single button press literally turns the DL4 MkII into a DL4 – so you can still party like it’s 1999.”

Klein’s not exaggerating, by the way – he’s seemingly referring to this excellent Pitchfork piece, which dives into the history of the pedal and is a great read for anyone interested in the history of the DL4’s most notable users.

The DL4 MkII lists for $419.99. Find out more over at line6.com.