A direct sequence spread spectrum receiver for operating in a multipath fading channel comprises a rake receiver having plural rake fingers. Each rake finger demodulates a received signal from one of plural channel paths. The output of the plural rake fingers are combined. Each rake finger utilizes a select assigned delay to synchronize to a delay of the one channel path. A searcher periodically performs a channel search on the received signal to detect new delays of strongest paths in the channel. Plural trackers, one for each channel path, adjust the select assigned delays between searches performed by the searcher. A delay controller is operatively coupled to the searcher and the tracker. The delay controller compares new delays of the strongest paths from the searcher to the select assigned delays and reassigns one of the select assigned delays with one of the new delays only if the new delay differs from the one select assigned delay more than a preselect minimum amount.