Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

[Rand-O-Monium]

Thnx

[Rich_S]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

It's the first overdrive pedal anyone should buy, and the last they should sell. (Sorry, I prefer asymmetrical clipping, so I'm a big SD-1 fan boy over the TS). I have BB Preamp on my board right now because it's a bit more versatile, but I spent a hell of a lot of time dialing it in to sound like my SD-1. Kind of silly considering the SD-1 cost 1/4 of what a BB does.

Don't drink the true bypass Koolaid, or at least don't drink all of it. Most pedal setups will be better off with at least one buffer. The Boss buffer is often a good reason to go with an SD-1 over other, fancier, true-bypass pedals. YMMV, depending on you particular signal chain.

The stock SD-1 is great the way it is, some people prefer to "take the blanket off" with the simple C6 mod. There are tons of other mods out there for it, but it pays to keep a stock SD-1 around for A/Bing. If you're going to mod, buy a second pedal off eBay for 25 bucks and mod that. They're so cheap, it's not a big deal to own a couple different flavors.

Edit: Fixed my upside-down "9".

[DeadandBuried]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

I have an SD-1, but I don't use it in this existing band pedal board setup. I used to use it as a boost for solos as I was the lead guitar player in an old rock band. I don't use it as a clean boost on top of an already overdriven sound. I have an Ibanez Tubescreamer for that so they have different uses for me.

[mamm]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

"take the blanket off" with the simple C9 mod

...I believe you're refering to the C6 mod...



Count me in as another SD-1 die-hard fan! The most fun I have had recently (ever?) with a guitar involves a bare-bones signal path: JB w/ a volume control (no stinkin' tone pot, thank you very much) -> SD-1 -> 5W EL84 single-ended amp -> 2x12 closed-back with greenbacks. That's my "shut up and play" rig.

[lucaspaço]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

I love my SD-1. I'm using it before my MT-2 to get a really heavy sound. It took a bit of time to find the correct equalization for those two pedals, but now I'm really happy with it

[Edgecrusher]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

I used the SD1 as my mid drive tone for a long time. It was the first pedal I had that seemed to work with the amp not against it. Before that I had a couple terrible dod pedals but they sounded very much like the pedal and no longer my amp. The SD1 seemed to just add some grind and filth to what I already had. Ive always kept one around its one of my favorite punk tones in front of a NMV amp.

[Chickenwings]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

Boss got this right a long time ago.
C6 mod does add some treble but to my ears it is definitely not an improvement. It just adds white noise in the highs.
Changing c3 can add some bass, but the more bass you add, the looser and woolier it gets.
Increasing the gain reduces the bass, so if you double the gain, you also need to double the bass to get it back to where it was initially.
The other downside of adding gain is that you can end up with the "bypass bleed" thing that people complain about.
BAsically, boss got the recipe right.
HAving owned both vintage boss od-1 and sd-1, i actually prefer the sd-1. I dont know how or why, but it is punchier and less compressed than the od1. Also, ABing a vintage sd-1 with a fulltone fulldrive (basically a hod rodded sd-1) believe it or not, the original sd-1 just hands down slays it. Ive been a fulldrive user for many years and its a great pedal, but just put the two side to side, ignore your bias about true bypass, mosfet mode, flat mids and all that extra stuff. Ignore your USA made bias. Ignore the boutique cred and use your ears. The SD-1 is the all time champion. Easily.
So yeah SD-1 = win.
I even prefer it to the much raved about 808 tube screamer and the analogman brown and silver mods. I prefer the stock vintage sd-1 over any of the mods ive done myself including some kits from monte allums etc.
Basically, roland threw a ton of money into research and development back in the day and they got it right. The buffer works. The knobs are out of the way of your toes. The pedal even feels good and doesn't make a popping sound. Hell, they even worked out that assymetrical clipping sounds great so they patented it before ibanez built its first tube screamer. I love tube screamers too, but prefer the boss. Its the business for working musicians.

Caveat...its been a while since ive used one of the new taiwanese sd-1s, but given that there is pretty much no change to the circuit im sure they are just as good as the old japanese ones.

Bone stock, vintage boss sd-1 is something you will have to pry from my cold dead fingers.

[Lampy H]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

How does a vintage unit compare to the stock setting on the Waza Craft pedals?

[misterwhizzy]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

I hated the stock SD-1. But putting another $24 into it with the Monte Allums GT mod made it into four awesome pedals. It took it from a mediocre, totally unused pedal into one that's almost always on. Now, I love it.

[jball85]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

You can do better....

Just kidding it's great for the money, like someone said the first you should buy.

+1 on the Monte Allums GT mod

[Chickenwings]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

I've done the gt mod and i have the highest regard for Monte Allums and the business he runs as well as the kits he sells. It was my first foray into pedal modding and ive gone on to build pedals based on things i have learned from modding pedals. My personal preference after trying so many permutations on the sd-1/TS circuit is for the recipe that boss came up with back in the late 70s.

[ehdwuld]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

So you are saying the stock SD-1
is your pick?

*(Sent from my durned phone!)*

[IMENATOR]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

My first overdrive ever, my only complain is it can be a little noisy when staking with other pedals or pushing my preamp front end but does the job and I have a noise reduction pedal so I can workaround the added noise. There are better pedals out there but for the price this one does have a good value if you like that kind of texture from od's.

[Securb]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

Steve Vai

/end thread

[DrNewcenstein]

Re: Tell Me About the Boss SD-1

Back before I went to racks, I had an SD-1 and a Y-splitter that fed into an MXR Dist+ and a RockTek Distortion pedal into two 20w Gorilla amps. Set the SD-1 for Level Up and Drive Down, you couldn't find an amp today with so much useable gain

Might see if I can recreate that chain through my Marshall and 2x12, just to hear it at stage volume for once