Boss Overdrive, is it a good buy?

Yogen · #1 11-06-2012, 08:55 PM

A guy is selling a Boss OD at a very good price, but I've watched many videos and it sounds WAAAY very distorted, is like playing with a chainsaw instead of a bass. Is it because of the settings, or that is the "common" Boss OD sound?

I really liked the sound of the Behringer OD, sounds more like what I want, a slight OD to get more punch and "presence" without losing the bass, and costs almost the same as the Boss pedal. But I've read negative things about every Behringer product that is not a microphone, console or speaker.

Can the Boss be tweaked to sound like a slight OD and not an ear killing distorsion? Or is the Behringer a better choice? (for me)

Thank you.

Waldo19 · #2 11-06-2012, 09:05 PM

Cheap but good OD

stratovani · #3 11-06-2012, 09:13 PM

I'm assuming you're referring to the Boss OBD-3 Bass Overdrive pedal. I've got one in which I modded it by replacing some caps and resistors, and it's less like a fuzz, but it's still a buzzy pedal. Oddly enough, my ODB-3 pedal sounds a lot better with my Hofner Icon than it does with my Squier P-Bass!

I'd say it's a good buy, providing you can get it for a good price on eBay, and you can mod it yourself. I've also got a couple of Behringer pedals, they're pretty good pedals for the money, but you don't want to abuse them, since they're made out of ABS plastic.

Down_Low · #4 11-07-2012, 12:30 AM

Owned one, wasn't a fan of it. It's more of a distortion then overdrive pedal.

crapusername · #5 11-07-2012, 02:00 AM

Depends on your rig.
Into a valve amp it can sound pretty useable. I've owned one for years hoping that one day I might find a use for it. I liked it when I used it in an industrial metal band, but have not found a real use for it since. I do try it occasionally to see if I can make it work, but not yet!

Ajak · #6 11-07-2012, 02:10 AM

I absolutely love mine! I just keep the gain at zero and the balance knob around 8-9 o'clock.
But it depends quite a lot on the amp you're using. I love the tone on Ashdown amps but hate it on SWR (these are the only two brands I tried it on).

MilkyMcMilkMilk · #7 11-07-2012, 07:56 AM

I used mine as a bass boost pedal. Set the signal all the way dry and add bass and cut high's. but as an overdrive it's not great.

spector_boogie · #8 11-07-2012, 07:59 AM

It's a bass distortion pedal, so, it provides distortion for bass. If you want overdrive or just a light grind, it's probably not the pedal for you.
I have one and use it for all-out sonic assault and crunch.

topo morto · #9 11-07-2012, 02:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yogen

Can the Boss be tweaked to sound like a slight OD and not an ear killing distorsion?

Unfortunately the control ranges for the blend and gain on the ODB-3 are wrong, so not very well.

Crystalman85 · #10 11-07-2012, 06:34 PM

If you want a decent bass distortion pedal, check out the digitech bass driver. the boss obd-3 is really heavy sounding, but the digitech bass driver is tamed compared to the boss odb-3. the digitech bass driver has decent versatility. it can go from a warm overdrive to a heavy fuzz-like distortion. this pedal I would recommend for an always on distortion pedal for bass. I also would recommend this pedal to those who play hard rock and heavy metal who wants a decent bass distortion pedal.

There's another distortion pedal that sounds pretty cool. it a modded boss ds-1 pedal design by penny pedals. it's a really cool sounding pedal that doesn't really obliterate lows. here's a link to hear sound samples of the pedal.

http://www.pennypedals.com/index.php?page=DS-1-Bass-Mod

Bassmike62 · #11 11-07-2012, 10:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crystalman85

If you want a decent bass distortion pedal, check out the digitech bass driver. the boss obd-3 is really heavy sounding, but the digitech bass driver is tamed compared to the boss odb-3. the digitech bass driver has decent versatility. it can go from a warm overdrive to a heavy fuzz-like distortion. this pedal I would recommend for an always on distortion pedal for bass. I also would recommend this pedal to those who play hard rock and heavy metal who wants a decent bass distortion pedal

+ 1

Its ODB-3 and ProCo sims are pretty convincing, the ODB being better (IMO) than the original. Having a blend knob offers additionnal tweakability. Interesting pedal.

DiabolusInMusic · #12 11-07-2012, 10:26 PM

I love mine, I have no intentions of selling it but I have a B3k, so it probably isn't coming back in my chain. I do intend to a mod to it soon though.

Laurent · #13 11-07-2012, 11:36 PM

It's a great value pedal. Very usable. I like it the best in front of an SVT but it's by no means its only use. Take time to use the blend and dial in a moderate amount of distortion. As others have noted it's more a distortion pedal than an overdrive.
some people do not care for the fizzy top character the distortion has but it's part of the tone of this pedal. Value wise it's to distortion what the EH Bass Muff is to fuzz.
Lots of bang for the buck.

Richard Sabines · #14 11-07-2012, 11:53 PM

woow! a lot of mixed points of view.
I love mine! and YES: it can be a very good light overdrive, actually I don`t use it as a distortion, just as an overdrive. Not a tube kind of overdrive, but that's what I like about it, it has it's own personality, for the tube I have a hardwire CM-2 which is awesome if you want that tubesque drive.

ODB-3 setting:

Blend: 9 oclock
gain: just a bit higher than the blend knob 930 or 10
bass: all the way up
treble: 130pm
level: equal to my signal volume

here you go, great overdrive with great bass tone!

dax21 · #15 11-08-2012, 01:29 AM

I've had one for couple of months, sold it recently.
It's not completely unusable, though avoid it if you have a tweeter on your cab. Pedal has a very grainy/synthy character which works great for indie/alternative rock but sounds to compressed and synthetic for any other genres.
It definitely doesn't work for low gain settings because it either doesn't saturate enough at all or it's too much, there is no sweet spot.

I'd either get a cheap used one and mod it, seems to make a hell of a difference, or just get a Digitech bass driver, it does the thing way better than ODB-3.

Down_Low · #16 11-08-2012, 02:40 AM

If you're after a good sounding overdrive for a decent price, try the Mooer Green Mile.

Ajak · #17 11-08-2012, 09:13 AM

Might I add: I use it as a pretty mild, always on overdrive through an amp with a tweeter and it sounds great.

topo morto · #18 11-08-2012, 09:18 AM

Why these slingers be saying you can use it as a mild overdrive ?

the only way it could get mild for me was if I didn't plug it in.

itsnottruerufus · #19 11-08-2012, 09:29 AM

Its a solid pedal, but its not really a subtle drive. I have one, and on its own it sounds meh, but through a Tech 21 VT Bass, it sounds so much better. Its definitely a little more towards the fuzzy end of the spectrum though, I typically have been using it lately for the bass parts to a couple of Circa Survive songs, on which the bassist uses a Rat

Mad_Phingers · #20 11-08-2012, 09:40 AM

I think people here are underselling how subtle this pedal can be. This is the one pedal on my board that pretty much stays on all the time. I treat it as a boost/sustain pedal. It give my tone just a touch of grind, it deepens the low end, and allows the notes to sustain better.

Settings:
Level: All the way up
Treble: 9 o'clock
Bass: 12-1
Balance: 11-12
Gain: 0-2

Agreed that as a distortion, its pretty fizzy and useless, and my only other complaint is, that while it sounds great through a big amp/cab setup, it's pretty ****** through a DI, which always gives me pause letting a sound guy put me through the PA with a DI at a show instead of mic'ing me.

End game: get the pedal! There is one on craigslist here for $30!