BOSS Pedals!!

[James Rock]

Got to try four BOSS pedals today and overall very un impressed. I played the PH-3, DD-3, BF-3 and CH-1

PH-3
Weird step effects while kinda cool were quite annoying and no warm classic phaser sounds while clean sounding it was sterile and one dimensional not what I want in a phaser.

DD-3
It was ok not a harsh sounding delay but it degraded to quickly for my taste it seemed that the second repeat (even with delay volume on full) was a lot quieter then clean and the delays didnt drop off much after that but i think it was more of a personal preference. And this is a japan made DD-3.

BF-2
This was weird I didnt find the ultra setting that 'ULTRA' and I couldn't same to get a very good classic flanger sound it was similar but a little thin for my taste. The Gate/Pan setting was my favourite as it gave almost keyboard like sound while still keeping the guitar sounding like a guitar.

CH-1
Straight out the best a nice kinda warm chorus (much better then the digitech multi chorus) it did lack a little depth and versatility but it was not obvious which i give as a big strength as it doesn't get in the way of the tone.

I only played with each pedal for a little while and I'm sure I could of found settings I liked better but with the exception of the CH-1 I thought all the pedals sounded a little boring generic and thin. I'm assuming the CH-1 was the analog version b4 the digital ones came out (if im right in what ive heard).

Anyone else find BOSS a little overated or am I expecting too much.

 

[millsart]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

You really didn't get a taste of the better Boss products. Many of their current pedals are rather poor, mainly I feel to their making them digital such as their newer phasers and chorus etc. As with the ph-3 for example, I can't see the point of all those step modes and other "features" when the basic sound is horrible and totally digital.

Boss does make some really good stuff though. After all you don't sell as many as they have over the years without some good ones and theres plenty of artist who still use their stuff to this day.

Check out the CE-1, CE-2 chours, PH-1r and PH-2 phaser, BF-2 flanger, DM-2, RE-20 and DD-20 delays, SD-1, DS-1 and DS-2 dirt pedals, CS-2 comp, VB-2 vibrato, RV-5 reverb etc for a taste of some of their better offerings

 

[James Rock]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

Have played a ds-1 and sd-1. I'm even planning on getting a modded ds-1 and the sd-1 wasn't bad at all especially through a semi dirty amp although i could see where it could be improved. I've also played the RV-3 which sucked in my opinion. I know older stuff is better I thought I'd just share my experience today even if its not that credible. I've played both a japanese ds-1 and a taiwan one and while not head to head the japanese was better.
Also I have played the DM-2 and can say that was very nice gave that great analog short delay sound.

 

[fenderiarhs]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

Ιnstead of those pedals try these, much better:

Boss PH1r (used)

Boss DD20

ElectroHarmonix electric mistress deluxe

Boss CE2 (used)

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

The PH-3 is an odd beast . . . it took me a couple of months to really be able to dial in the sounds that I wanted. Everything is in that box, but there are just so many options to go through that if you don't take a lot of time with it you probably won't find something you like. I've found that I'm not a huge chorus/flanger kind of guy, so I can't really comment on those pedals that you tried.

 

[WhoFan]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

like all pedals i've found some work better with different guitars and amps...

 

[Rich_S]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

+1000 on the older pedals being better. Boss lately has tried to make all their pedals Swiss Army Stompboxes. They're all getting turned into 4-knob, super-verstile, do-it-all beasts that don't do anything particulaurly well. I much prefer the old 2- and 3-knob pedals that do their one particular thing and sound hgreat doing it.

Granted my taste and playing are stuck firmly in the 80's, but...

CE-2 sets the standard for chorus sounds. The CE-1 might be a little better, but its size, age, and power requirements make it impractical. The CE-3 is really good, too, but I think for mono applications, the CE-2 is a bit better.

BF-2 is great all-around flanger. I've been using them for years. Sure, I'd love to have a nice ADA or MXR. I know my hero Andy Summers used an Electric Mistress, but the BF-2 does a good approximation of ALL of those, and takes up very little space and very few $$$. It is kind of noisy, but I've learned to live with it - just turn it off at the end of the song.

DD-2 is a lot of delay in a small package. Delay is the one effect where I believe digital is better than analog. I owned a DM-2 back in the day: it was noisy and I always wished I had just a bit more delay. The DD-2 and DD-3 provide more delay than I'll ever need, and do it quietly. Yes, they tend to be overly bright, but an easy one-cap mod to the feedback circuit can fix that. The newer, bigger, badder DD-5 can't be modded easily. I've never felt the need for a programmable delay, as long as I have two on my pedalboard. These days, I have a Short Timer and a DD-2.

TR-2 is a value-leader in trem pedals. Since it's an older Boss design, it's easy to mod, which is a good thing since it has a volume drop. One resistor put the volume where I wanted it. The TR-2 doesn't sound quite as good as the silverface Vibro Champ I owned a while back, but the Boss lets me use tremolo on my Marshall.

SD-1 is THE overdrive sound for me. I like it better with a few mods, but it's pretty good without them. I like it better than the TS-9. Again since it's an old pedal with a low part count, and room to move around on the PC board, it's a great mod platform and can become a real boutique-killer for half the cost if you don't mind a little soldering.

DS-1 same as above, but I don't think it's great out of the box. However, a DS-1 with Allums Recto Mod kit (plus one more mod courtesy of ErikH) is my #2 dirt box.

So don't assume all Boss boxes are overrated. There are some classics out there, and some are still available new. I wish Boss would concentrate on tweaking their known-good-but-could-be-better classics rather than replacing them with these modern digital whiz-bang things. Apparently the digital-geek engineers are at the helm at Boss instead of players who know tone. In this respect, they kind of remind me of Fender amplifiers during the CBS years. They'd do well to fire a half-dozen DSP guys and hire Monte Allums or Robert Keeley instead.

Still, I loves me some Boss:

 

[millsart]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

BF-2 is great all-around flanger. I've been using them for years. Sure, I'd love to have a nice ADA or MXR. I know my hero Andy Summers used an Electric Mistress, but the BF-2 does a good approximation of ALL of those, and takes up very little space and very few $$$. It is kind of noisy, but I've learned to live with it - just turn it off at the end of the song.

Not to sound disagreeable, but having currently an A/DA, Mistress, BF-2, Ross and Ibanez DFL-10 on my board right now (way too many I know and I'm not keeping them all) I've got to say I found the BF-2 to sound not at all like the Mistress, A/DA or the Ross/MXR.

The Mistress is so very very lush and smooth and organic. Nothing else really comes close to it, BF-2 certainly isn't that smooth or round

The Ross/MXR and A/DA have such a deep sweep and the classic thick jet sweep. BF-2 can't get very close to those sounds either.

What the BF-2 does is a very pronounced, harsh and often metallic flange. That might come off as a putdown to some, and in many reviews it is, but I personally like that aspect of it. I also happen to love the PH-2 which is also a very over the top phase effect.

BF-2 is really great for a very apparently and cutting flanger effect. Its not subtle and everyone in the crowd will know you just stepped on your flanger but its still a cool sound and definatly a classic effect.

 

[ErikH]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

The one thing I have noticed is the PCB material in the SD-1 and DS-1 has gotten a little cheaper the last few years. Doesn't seem as sturdy as in the past, even in pedals from the 90's. For modding, you just have to be careful not to apply too much heat or the solder pads will lift. That applies to any PCB really.

I still love my Boss pedals. Easy to mod, they sound good out of the box for the most part (DS-1 needs a few changes right off, IMO), and are built like tanks. I have an old DD-2 that's still going. It's my favorite delay. Don't use it much these days because my amp has built in delay and reverb. But if it didn't, I'd probably be using the DD-2 as long as it had an effects loop.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

And they had Alps pots back in the days as well.....
My old BF-2 will still be here when I am gone

 

[Aceman]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

i really like the dd-3. it's my fave all around basic digital delay.

Overall, boss makes some solid boxes. that said - they are workhorses, not the be-all-end-all of [insert effect name] tone.

And I generally agree that they have not managed the more-is-more transition the way digitech has....

 

[James Rock]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

My reference to overated BOSS pedals is purely on their stock pedals at the moment in which out of the compact pedals I find the sd-1 probably the best I've played (although I haven't played that many). I agree with the comment saying BOSS is trying to do to many things but I also have to say they don't achieve versatility with this compared to other pedals that seem to do more versatility with less knobs and better sound but we tend to be getting boutique here.

 

[baritone]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

Most of my pedals are Boss. The Boss pedals are the ones I keep coming back to. The BF-3 is one of my favorites overall. It has so many parameters to adjust that I find it difficult not to find a satisfying sound. I prefer my flangers to sound dramatic, since I can resort to using chorus if I want to cool it down a little. Overall, when it comes to modulation, I like the tones to be out there, rather than "warm" or "natural"; that's why I really like the PH-3's Step mode also. But I guess it's a matter of preference.

 

[Sporky McGuffin]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

Some of their output isn't magnificent, but they've done some real gems.

The RE-20 is a particular one - just wonderful.

 

[James Rock]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

The RE-20 is a particular one - just wonderful.

Something I want to try and all the demo's I've heard sound so so good.

I think I'm maybe spoilt cos I liked but didnt love the tone of my dad's script phase 100 that much but I reckon it slays the PH-3 different stuff I know but for that phasery sound that works in a mix well.

 

[Guest]

Re: BOSS Pedals!!

I'm considering getting a DS-1 and I would like John Spina to do his magic to it... does he still do his modding?

I sent him a PM but I'm impatient and when I saw this thread I figured I'd ask here at the same time.