Boss OC-2 MIJ -vs- MIT

[cybersnyder]

Just received a MIJ OC-2 from TB'er wskorupski (thanks! I'll leave feedback as soon as I'm done with this post). This went head to head with my MIT OC-2 that I picked up from GC for really cheap. Overall, I would say that these pedals are within 5% of each other. They're so close that I'm not going to bother trying to make some recordings as any differences would be lost on less than perfect studio gear or compression when converting to MP3.

Both sound great and with the original signal blended in they sound almost identical if not completely identical. With the octave soloed and with a lot of A/B switching I could detect some subtle differences. At first I thought the MIJ had more lowend than the MIT, but after more A/B comparison, I think that the MIT has a bit more upper content to it's octave than the MIJ. This gives the MIT a bit more punch and the MIJ a bit more smooth character. Again, these nuances were rather subtle and could have been entirely manufactured in my head.

Tracking. Above a D on the A string they're probably equal. Below the D string, the nod goes to the MIT. It definitely held on to the note better than the MIJ. Less warbles and such. But when it comes to tracking lower notes, IMHO, the OC-3 is the king.

Anyways, I guess the bottom line is that if you have an MIJ or an MIT, don't lust after the other. They're both very close and you wouldn't tell the difference in any kind of mix.

[gastric]

I couldn't say first hand. But it could be attributed simply to variances in components VS some design change.

[fitz420]

i also did a thorough comparison of an MIT and an MIJ OC-2. My conclusion was exactly the same as cybersnyder's. I think they sound identical and i used a couple rigs for this part. i found the tracking to be ever so slightly better on the MIT one so thats the one that i kept. the MIT ones also have the standard psa power supply.

[cybersnyder]

Of course I still want to get an Octaver because it will sound different with the extra "r" in the name. ;-)

[BassMan99]

can an OC-3 sound like an OC-2 in its OC-2 mode. IS it really close?
sorry a bit off topic

[cybersnyder]

Originally Posted by BassMan99

can an OC-3 sound like an OC-2 in its OC-2 mode. IS it really close?
sorry a bit off topic

I'll try it now and report back shortly.

Edit: I'm back. OC-3 in OC-2 mode - bigger bottom almost as if there was a bass boost somewhere in the circuit. Better tracking than the OC-2 but the OC-2 has a more musical quality to its tone. You can easily get by with the OC-3 and it's probably easier to use than the OC-2 but the OC-2 wins in the tone department.

OC-3 - more versatile and 70% of the tone of the OC-2.

OC-2 - *THE* standard.

The standard Kjung disclaimer applies (IME, IMHO, YMMV)

[MakiSupaStar]

I love my OC-2 MIT. It's a sweet pedal that you can get great organ sounds out of. I use it a lot as an octave in a synth chain I have on my board. OC-2->GE-7->MoogerFooger LPF101. It's a standard sound on my board. I picked it up for like 30 bucks like 20 years ago.

[warwick.hoy]

Just chiming in because I always want to get in on the OC-2 love. Great sounding pedal and the basis of my synth tones. (OC-2 blended with Fuzz-->Filter).

I think the only design change in the OC-2 circuit was to accommodate the PSA adapter and that occurred in 97.

FWIW,...The "R" was dropped in 1984 and production moved to Taiwan in 1989.

Mine's an '83 OC-2 Octaver that I picked up as an FX noob off of ebay for ~80 shipped which is not bad considering I've seen similar ones going for $150 (BIN). I'd say if you can pick either an MIT or an MIJ for a good price go for it and I agree that unless you are collector; don't worry about where it came from and don't think that the more expensive it is the better it will sound.

I will say that if you don't know you're Boss history,...be aware that older ACA powered pedals require a little different powering than the newer PSA powered models,...either with a battery,...an older ACA adapter,...a Voodoo Lab PPII+ ACA ouput with the dip switch set to 12v or daisy chained off of a PSA powered pedal like the LS-2, NS-2 or TU-2.

Here's mine:



Not bad for a pedal that is nearly 30 years old,..but the footswitch (the internal switch not the treadle) needs to be repaired or replaced (hopefully a job I can do myself). It takes a few stomps to get it activated/deactivated,...sometimes one good hard stomp will get it on but I'm a little too conscientious about abusing it.

Other than that I love it; the OC-2 (and the LS-2) is(are) probably the only BOSS pedal(s) I couldn't live without. But if I had to do it all over again and prices being equal,...I probably would have gotten a newer used MIT one; mainly cause I can't fault the footswitch for not lasting almost 30 years and that likely wouldn't be an issue with a newer model.

[blastjv]

Originally Posted by cybersnyder

Of course I still want to get an Octaver because it will sound different with the extra "r" in the name. ;-)

I just picked one up for a great price. Love it. It sounds fantastic. A little glitchy maybe. I tried an OC-2 a while ago (not sure if it was MIJ or MIT, it was older with the old 9v jack, but I didn't really understand how to use it at the time. I feel like it tracked a little better and was less glitchy than the Octaver, but the Octaver seems a little warmer and rounder and the glitchy sounds are cool so I love it.

Again, these are comparisons that were months apart and with a lot of lessons learned about how to use an octave pedal in between, so they may be meaningless and are only my impressions.


-JV

[blastjv]

Mine (OctavER) seems to work just fine off of the 1Spot daisy chain. Is there something I'm missing? Would it work even BETTER with another adapter (or I can try it with a battery, I guess)?

-JV

[cybersnyder]

Originally Posted by blastjv

Mine (OctavER) seems to work just fine off of the 1Spot daisy chain. Is there something I'm missing? Would it work even BETTER with another adapter (or I can try it with a battery, I guess)?

-JV

I believe that all OctaveR would use the ACA power supply. Supposedly if you have another Boss pedal in the chain, the ACA pedal will work with the oneSpot. I was messing around last night and it seemed that the MIJ / ACA OC-2 didn't track as well with the oneSpot as with the correct ACA power supply set on my PP2. This is based on a few seconds of playing and I fell asleep shortly after that. I'll try to do a proper comparison tonight.

[blastjv]

I guess the best way for me to test is to use the Octaver on battery power with a brand new battery vs with the 1Spot... I'll check when I get home.

-JV

[jamzcl]

Originally Posted by blastjv

Mine (OctavER) seems to work just fine off of the 1Spot daisy chain. Is there something I'm missing? Would it work even BETTER with another adapter (or I can try it with a battery, I guess)?

-JV

My 1982 OctaveR works fine with my 1Spot....so did my 1983 OctaveR

[IanAllison]

I have an original Octave(r) with a switch that needs a'fixin'. Where do you guys go to get replacement switches for Boss stuff?

[warwick.hoy]

Relevant information in RE: ACA powered pedals:

ACA Adapter

The ACA is an unregulated 9V or 12V adapter. For a long time both the ACA and the regulated PSA adapter was available but in the later part of the 90s the ACA adapter was discontinued as all Boss pedals then was designed to run with the PSA adapter.

When a power supply is unregulated, it means that the voltage level will drop as the load is increased. The ACA adapter may give out a full 12 volt when it is powering one or two pedals but if it is hooked up to a long row of pedals the voltage will drop. The ACA adapter is capable of supplying as much current as 250mA but problems keeping the voltage up may occur before the load reaches that level.

The early compact pedals was designed to run on either a 9V DC battery or 12V DC adapter. Because of this the ACA adapter was a 12V adapter. The voltage was reduced to 9V internally by using a 470 Ohm resistor and 1S2473 diode between the minus input on the power jack and ground. The resistor diode pair was later removed and at the same time the ACA adpater was redesigned to output 9V instead.

Powering ACA pedals with a PSA power supply
Powering the older pedals designed for 12V DC input with either a newer ACA or PSA adapter will not work very well. The voltage drop over the resistor and diode will prevent the pedal from getting enough power and its LED will usually only glow faintly. The solution is to use a daisy chain and plug in another pedal designed for the newer ACA or PSA adapter. The lead between the two pedals will short the resistor diode pair and the pedal will receive full power.

Source: BossArea - Boss ACA Adapter

[BassMan99]

Thanks CyberSnyder. I think I will keep looking for the OC-2 I just like that sound.

[meatwad]

Originally Posted by cybersnyder

Of course I still want to get an Octaver because it will sound different with the extra "r" in the name. ;-)

Had one, and call me crazy, but my old Zoom 506's octave effect was just as good.

Anyway, I think Boss is one of the only companies that moved production to cheaper territory and didn't compromise quality. Go Boss!

[Smallequestrian]

I had an MIJ and MIT at the same time. If there was any difference, it appeared that the MIT tracked ever so slightly better, but I don't think anybody would notice in a real world application.

I sold the MIJ for more and kept the MIT.


of course I ended up selling the MIT as well...such is life.

[blastjv]

Checked it out and my Octaver works perfectly with the 1spot. No issues.

-JV

[kevteop]

I keep meaning to get an 'Octaver' just because it would be easier to tell the difference between the two OC-2s on my board, but for some reason the old Japanese models are twice as expensive.

I would rather just respray a normal 'Octave' OC-2 a lighter brown.