One of the first commercially available tape delay units,[1] the original Copicat model was produced by Watkins Electric Music beginning in 1958.
In 1960, inspired by the tape echo unit on the Marino Marini Quartet's "Come prima", Charlie Watkins, co-founder of London music shop Watkins Electric Music, had the idea for a simple, affordable, portable tape delay unit.
With the help of engineer Bill Purkis, Watkins designed the Watkins Copicat, a compact (12-inch by 8-inch) valve-based tape echo unit with three replay heads and selector switch, and a feedback loop for a variable echo-repeat effect.
[3][2] The Copicat, which preceded other major European echo units like the Binson Echorec, Meazzi Echomatic, and Vox Echo Deluxe, would become one of the company's most successful products, with Watkins releasing various different Copicat models over more than 50 years.
[4] Wavesfactory makes an analogue-modelling delay plug-in emulation of the Copicat called the Echo Cat.