Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

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MechaBulletBill
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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by MechaBulletBill » Sun Oct 17, 2021 1:56 am

Surfysonic wrote:
Sat Oct 16, 2021 10:13 am
'63 Fender Reverb FRV-1 - great for surf, emulates Fender Reverb Unit very well to me. There are newer, better, drippier Spring Reverb pedals out there now (I have some of them), but the FRV-1 still holds it's own and I consider it a classic.
i'd be interested in what other verbs you prefer to the frv1, coz it just beats everything else for me, other than real analog spring reverb

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by burpgun » Sun Oct 17, 2021 5:37 am

The first pedals I ever got when I started playing were Boss and more than 30 years later, I still have a few of them on my board. My Overdrive/Distortion OS-2 always sits at the front of the guitar line and it really is like having multiple distortion pedals in a single box. Still have my CE-2 Chorus but need to find a knob to replace one that broke, otherwise works as well as the day I got it. On my bass board I still have the BF-2b Bass Flanger, but I have to acknowledge that's not a terribly useful effect and may got back in the drawer. I wish Boss would reissue the FZ-2 Hyperfuzz. I've got the Berninger clone and it's good, but I'd still rather have the real thing.

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by Surfysonic » Sun Oct 17, 2021 8:27 am

MechaBulletBill wrote:
Sun Oct 17, 2021 1:56 am
Surfysonic wrote:
Sat Oct 16, 2021 10:13 am
'63 Fender Reverb FRV-1 - great for surf, emulates Fender Reverb Unit very well to me. There are newer, better, drippier Spring Reverb pedals out there now (I have some of them), but the FRV-1 still holds it's own and I consider it a classic.
i'd be interested in what other verbs you prefer to the frv1, coz it just beats everything else for me, other than real analog spring reverb
In direct comparison with my '64 Fender Reverb Unit, I honestly think the FRV-1 nails that sound best. However, some of my surf music friends may prefer more drip, which they feel they can't get as much from the FRV-1 than some modern pedals such as Electro-Harmonix Oceans 11, Strymon Flint, etc. Along with the more distinctive drip capability, these and other modern pedals offer more tonal options. That said, the FRV-1 does exactly what it was set out to do and I think of all my pedals, emulates the Fender Reverb Unit best.

FWIW, I don't really care that much about "drip" I prefer buttery, warm reverb over the ice-picky stuff.

I wrote up a post on The Gretsch Pages a few months back on Reverb pedals. I'll re-post it in a new thread so you can see what I currently use and my thoughts on them - viewtopic.php?f=11&t=120681 .
The doofus formerly known as Snorre...

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by tune_link » Thu Oct 21, 2021 6:25 am

Boss delays are so good. I loved my DD-3 (kinda want to rebuy one), the DM2 Waza, and the DD8 that I have currently. The FZ-2 rules as does the HM-2. Really looking forward to getting my hands on the HM-2 Waza at some point as the HM-2 was my first pedal and was stolen offstage from me when I was playing in a high school punk band and I never replaced it. I love a Boss chorus, I have the CE-2 Waza and every mode on it, including the CE-1 is excellent. I've never played an original CE-1 so maybe there is something extra special about it but I cannot imagine they'd do a CE-1 Waza when the CE-2 has such a good CE-1 mode already. I used to have a CE-3 and it is noticeably different than the CE-1 or CE-2, very good as its own thing but I sold it and now wish I hadn't.

The clunkers for me have been the TR-2 Tremolo, which was kinda noisy if I recall and just didn't do that much compared to modern trems...the Phase Shifter PS-3, absolutely hated it...made me think I didn't like phaser until I got an MXR and realized it was just the Boss one that I hated.

I have literally never owned a Boss overdrive ever. I really want to try one out though but I have used the DS-1 and didn't find anything in it that resonated with me. Thinking I might find a cheap SD-1 and give that a shot though.

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by Sauerkraut » Mon Oct 25, 2021 12:55 am

johnnysomersett wrote:
Fri Oct 15, 2021 4:42 am
The only thing I'd like would be an RE-20 but in single form.
Sounds like you'd like the NUX Tape Core Deluxe.

It doesn't have an expression pedal input though, which is why I'm still holding on to my RE20. Plus I can't deal with having to use the same switch to turn it on/off and set the tempo.

More on topic; maybe it's time Boss tried making a ring mod?

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by ElephantDNA » Mon Oct 25, 2021 10:50 am

I think chorus and both delays are classics and still can hold their own these days even with all the boutique stuff floating around. Some of the drive pedals are very good: SD1 and BD would be two of my favorites. I think some of the other modulations outside of chorus as well as the reverbs - while certainly on a lot of records from the 80's and 90's - those have been surpassed in some ways by the boutique options available these days.

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by JamesSGBrown » Tue Oct 26, 2021 2:51 am

The DD-5's reverse setting (parallel forward then reverse) is essential for me. They've never recreated it.

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by parry » Tue Oct 26, 2021 4:13 am

I love my DD7, DD8 and RC1. As soon as they hit my board, they've never left. The single formats are definitely my favourites. I've never been much for large, menu-driven/press/hold type, multi-function pedals. The tap function was a big enough leap forward for me :D
shoule79 wrote:
Fri Oct 15, 2021 11:18 am
For trem, I am a big fan of the PN-2. Stick a tap temp input on a Waza version and I would be a happy camper.
^^^ If that happened, I'd head straight to L&M with cash-in-hand. I had a PN-2 a while ago and liked it a lot!
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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by Veitchy » Tue Oct 26, 2021 2:11 pm

JamesSGBrown wrote:
Tue Oct 26, 2021 2:51 am
The DD-5's reverse setting (parallel forward then reverse) is essential for me. They've never recreated it.
Any idea how that differs from the reverse setting in the DD-8? I was halfway looking at one of those and the reverse setting was a big draw for me.

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by sunburster » Tue Oct 26, 2021 4:31 pm

The pedals I think they've gotten right are:

-PS-2. I love this thing. High-passed repeats with a distinct character, crazy self-oscillation, up to 2sec delay time, and octave up and down.
-DD-3. Simple, classic delay with a unique and pleasant tone on the repeats.
-OD-2R. My favorite overdrive! Absolutely perfect, with a great Turbo mode that is more like a RAT distortion.
-RV-3. Versatile delay/reverb pedal with stereo output and a gritty, lofi sound.
-DD-500. The ultimate Boss delay machine. Hard to beat the Vintage digital engine!

I really like the sound and features of these, but they could use an improvement:

-PN-2. Overall Boss' best tremolo, I love the sound of it and the panning options. However, it is finicky on placement in the signal chain. You have to place it before another buffer otherwise it produces a ticking noise. A Waza version of this pedal with this flaw fixed would make it perfect.
-RE-20. Another great pedal with a unique sound and features, but even when the pedal is bypassed your tone is constantly getting AD/DA converted by a 16-bit/44.1khz chip (the same one in the DD-7, though that pedal has an analog bypass!!). I like playing this one its own, but I can't put it on my pedalboard because it makes my clean tone sound like digital rubbish (yes, I've tried it, several times -- no bueno). If they added a switch to make it have an analog bypass it would be perfect. A smaller form factor would be a welcome change as well.

Ones that just sound bad to me:

-TR-2. Bad bypass tone and the tremolo is just blah.
-MD-200. Everything in this sounded bad to me. Like, really bad. Just a bunch of sterile, lifeless, bland, generic modulation effects. I couldn't return it fast enough.

Many of their other pedals aren't bad but are just mediocre IMO.

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by UlricvonCatalyst » Wed Oct 27, 2021 12:43 am

Veitchy wrote:
Tue Oct 26, 2021 2:11 pm
JamesSGBrown wrote:
Tue Oct 26, 2021 2:51 am
The DD-5's reverse setting (parallel forward then reverse) is essential for me. They've never recreated it.
Any idea how that differs from the reverse setting in the DD-8? I was halfway looking at one of those and the reverse setting was a big draw for me.
Maybe sacrilege to bring it up in this thread, but the Digitech Obscura has a pretty groovy reverse delay setting in a less complex pedal.

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by BearBoy » Wed Oct 27, 2021 1:49 am

mackerelmint wrote:
Fri Oct 15, 2021 10:53 pm
The TR-2 is hot trash. I know some people love it and even swear by it, but that thing sounds like poo to me. It bewilders me that they still make it so that the volume drops, and to me it just sounds dull. Like mush. Like oatmeal that fell on the floor and got stepped in by a muddy boot. Like I need to clean my ears.

It wouldn't be hard to deal with, I dunno why they just haven't.
I thought they fixed the volume drop about 15 years ago?

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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by JSett » Wed Oct 27, 2021 2:11 am

BearBoy wrote:
Wed Oct 27, 2021 1:49 am
mackerelmint wrote:
Fri Oct 15, 2021 10:53 pm
The TR-2 is hot trash. I know some people love it and even swear by it, but that thing sounds like poo to me. It bewilders me that they still make it so that the volume drops, and to me it just sounds dull. Like mush. Like oatmeal that fell on the floor and got stepped in by a muddy boot. Like I need to clean my ears.

It wouldn't be hard to deal with, I dunno why they just haven't.
I thought they fixed the volume drop about 15 years ago?
It's intermittent...





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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by andy_tchp » Wed Oct 27, 2021 4:16 am

johnnysomersett wrote:
Wed Oct 27, 2021 2:11 am
BearBoy wrote:
Wed Oct 27, 2021 1:49 am
mackerelmint wrote:
Fri Oct 15, 2021 10:53 pm
The TR-2 is hot trash. I know some people love it and even swear by it, but that thing sounds like poo to me. It bewilders me that they still make it so that the volume drops, and to me it just sounds dull. Like mush. Like oatmeal that fell on the floor and got stepped in by a muddy boot. Like I need to clean my ears.

It wouldn't be hard to deal with, I dunno why they just haven't.
I thought they fixed the volume drop about 15 years ago?
It's intermittent...





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Re: Pedals that BOSS still haven't got right and ones they've got right

Post by mackerelmint » Wed Oct 27, 2021 9:34 am

Aw shit! :D

If they did fix that volume drop issue, it's news to me. It's still a fundamentally bad sounding pedal to my ears, though.
This is an excellent rectangle

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