"FUCKING YES!" - the Boss RE-2/202 hype thread

[JVG]

I eventually got one, after several months of lusting.

It’s a great pedal. I’m not qualified to compare it to a real Space Echo, so I won’t attempt to.

It’s easy to get good sounds from, and the ability to visualise which ‘heads’ are engaged always makes rhythmic delays more user friendly. The repeats are nice, and there’s heaps of tonal variation available. The default reverb is pretty full-on; it sounds good at low levels, but at higher parts of the dial is a bit much for me. I haven’t played with the other reverbs yet.

It’s big. it’s heavy for a modern pedal. It’s beautiful to look at.

So far I haven’t utilised it to it’s fully capacity, and i’m not sure if i will. I find myself repeatedly (haha) drawn back to the Waza Delay, which i have been totally in love with for several years now - the repeats sound beautiful and it is good in any knob position. Of course, the DM-2w and the RE-202 are not intended to do the same thing.

In short - the 202 is a fantastic pedal, but i’m undecided whether i’ll keep it because the DM-2w has spoilt me with its simplicity and sweet repeats.

My advice: if at all possible, try one first.

[Telliot]

To be honest, this is exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for. I had a DM-2w for years and loved it, and I'm not completely convinced the 202 will give me enough extra to justify the price. I understand they're different, and the preamp/tape aging/subtle lo-fi reverb could be something cool, but at more than twice the cost? I'm not so sure it's worth it.

[doctor_capleson]

I've had the RE-2 for a while now. It's pretty cool. I've used an RE-150 in the studio (tape echo, no reverb) and this is *very* close, if not identical.

I use it at home for demos or just playing for fun. This was a "cool to have" purchase for me; I don't think this is something that I will use in a band (already have a DD-500 & RV-500, so the standalone pedal doesn't add any capability)

The only feature the 202 has that I would want on the RE-2 is the tape saturation control. Otherwise, the 2 does everything I would want from a compact Space Echo. The pre-amp emulation on the pedal is okay. It sounds great going into analog amps, but it makes things a little "metallic" going into a digital interface, IMO. I also don't use the best gear or software, so that could be part of the problem.

[hulakatt]

because the DM-2w has spoilt me with its simplicity and sweet repeats.

The DM-2w spoilt me on my TTE. Sold the TTE and bought a 2nd DM-2w.

[jorri]

I am thinking it could be a good replacement for my rubberneck (big, awkward footswitching, sounds like yer tone knob is rolled off which is sometimes bad, sometimes cool, not really capable of more than 'washy', certainly not percussive!). I basically want small form with modulation. Decided a DMM wasn't enough, despite sounding perfect at the particular things it does well (long times, or clear? Not so much).

Confused by the modulation though, no rate control,but maybe it varies with delay time. Seems about the right sweet spot and potentially enough for extremes. Don't know what the tone knob can do either really. Nor how the buffer sounds, like is it a good idea before a Rat clone like i currently use delay? I haven't owned a boss in years.

Just weighing up whether i’d regret not having analogue, or whether analogue is the problem! I tend to use a tape plugin on everything when recording! (I notice TC have a super-cheap bucket delay now, i could additionally get that by selling couple of other dumb -cheap TC series i dont use just to say "look: analogue!" ).

[Chippertheripper]

I have high lust for this thing, although I would totally fiddle with it till it sounded like the delays I currently use, and then probably leave it set right there forever.

[hulakatt]

So, to the guys who have these, how do they sound? I'm not swayed as much by features as much as the pedal actually sounding pretty damn good.

[Telliot]

So, to the guys who have these, how do they sound? I'm not swayed as much by features as much as the pedal actually sounding pretty damn good.

I’ve been hoping for similar feedback. I definitely am lusting over it but hesitant to pull the trigger without some hands-on opinions. One thing I’ve heard is that it sounds much better through an amp than it does straight into an interface. That might sound like a weird comment, but I record straight in or use my effects as outboard gear quite a lot.

[jorri]

So, to the guys who have these, how do they sound? I'm not swayed as much by features as much as the pedal actually sounding pretty damn good.

I’ve been hoping for similar feedback. I definitely am lusting over it but hesitant to pull the trigger without some hands-on opinions. One thing I’ve heard is that it sounds much better through an amp than it does straight into an interface. That might sound like a weird comment, but I record straight in or use my effects as outboard gear quite a lot.

I see, yes i mean i do that to, and either the pedal's got to warm it up or the amp. I only started feeling the need for an analogue delay and things like transformer distortion when got a solid state too.
Reverbs i don't seem to mind though, i like them a artificial more than sometimes.
I never know because it has a preamp option that presumably does some Mojoing, or the 202 has drive on a knob but the re2 doesn't???

Still interested if the modulation is slow and chorusy enough, not just garbling the sound. Saw a demo where he cranked the knob and then preceeded to play everything with tremolo arm regardless (and i like that, but don't know what the pedal is doing!), so there isn't exactly an amazing demo out there of the re2.

[Zork]

I bought a second hand 202 today. I intend to use it on my Moog Sub 37 in my live rig. I'm honestly not sure if I'll keep it. I had a RE-20 before and I thought it doesn't cut through - but then it's many moons ago and I didn't know so much back then. I'm using a Line6 M9 at the moment and think it's fine but I'm curious about the Space Echo and somehow really fascinated by it. It'll be here in the next few days. I'm exited but still a bit sceptical, too. Maybe it's its expensiveness. I don't know.

[Zork]

Sooooo the RE 202 came in today. I don't know. It sounds very, very pristine in all settings and I think I would prefer my delay to be more lively. I had the RE 20 before and I remember it sounded more interesting. It was instant dub. Evolving. Like a bloom. The new one sounds almost like a digital delay. I've got an Empress Tape Delay in my guitar setup and it's much more dynamic, too, even though I haven't set it to have tons of modulations or filtering. I also wanted reverb and delay in one unit so I had high hopes for the additional reverb types but they all just mush it together. I will give it a decent test run with the Moog tomorrow but I don't have the feeling it'll stay. It looks beautiful, though.

[Zork]

Testing against one of my trusty old M9s. There is a reason I still have two of them after all these years. I'll sell the Space Echo.2 Don't believe the hype. It's boring.

Edit after calming down a bit: "boring" is maybe too harsh a word. It is to me not very inspiring compared to other delays I have or had in the past. There is not much going on with the delays, which to my understanding, a well maintained Space Echo is supposed to do. Still, that certain quality of those evolving repeats was better captured in the old RE-20 in my opinion. Back then, I found the DD-20 can do it, too, but is slightly better audible in live settings. Since the DD-20 can't sync to Midi and has no reverb it's not what I want in a pedal right now so I'll stick with the M9 but without beeing able to put them all side by side, the best Space Echo I found so far was in the DD-20 I think.

[jorri]

I am unsure of the tones too - tempted by the Catalinbread Echorec or Belle Epoch now but probably the former of the two.

[Sauerkraut]

I am unsure of the tones too - tempted by the Catalinbread Echorec or Belle Epoch now but probably the former of the two.

This is really going to depend on what you want from a delay, but I had an Echorec and an RE-20 (sold both), and I found the latter far more useful. The Echorec sounds fantastic, but one of its main shortcomings is that the mode selector has no indents, which I found a much bigger deal than I initially expected. It also has no expression pedal jack, and controlling the repeat time with your foot is great fun with a tape emulator. I also couldn't get past the lack of tap tempo, but that's a matter of personal preference; I don't really consider single knob delays anymore. The only Catalinbread that would be a contender for me would be a Belle Epoch Deluxe. Those Empress tape delays are super interesting too, but the lack of an expression pedal jack lets it down, at least for me.

Both those pedals are single head tape machine emulators only, which is why I ended up with a Strymon El Capistan, as it can emulate both an Echorec and an RE-201 well enough for my liking and has all the features I need and more (nice looper). Pricewise, used V1s are actually pretty affordable (no important changes on the V2, imo). Considering its features, especially compared to RE-2/202s, the El Cap just seems a no-brainer to me; it's way more versatile and useful, with a smaller footprint than a 202. The only reason I could see for getting Boss' latest offerings is wanting a truly faithful reproduction of the RE201.

I'm still waiting for Boss to come up with something that can compete with the El Cap.

[Jaguar018]

I’ll take the RE-202 over an El Cap every time. Part of this may have to do with the fact that I don’t need to care at all about pedal size.

I got the RE-202 when it came out and have been enjoying ever since. Getting more and more into all of the different options. It’s really really easy to get murky or stay pristine.

Come on all you wafflers. It’s a BOSS pedal. Like… what are you really afraid of? They have made like 20 million delay pedals and RE-201 units over the years. It’s a solid gamble that you’re going to find a lot of sounds that you like, and if you don’t you can sell it on and no lose much money.