Who here has a Boss OC-3

Thunderscreech · #1 10-16-2008, 09:58 PM

and can tell me something about it? Search yields not much, mainly FS-T and WTB adds.

I've used it at Guitard Center, but I just want people to tell me the good bad and ugly behind it, because it's looking more and more attractive all the time.

ReidoT · #2 10-16-2008, 10:01 PM

i own it. it's really not needed in a band situation, but i love using it anyways. i can sound like a synth! it's a lot of fun. if you have spare cash i'd definitely recommend it. and the poly setting it great, lets you play freely like you normally would without having it fart out on you. lots of fun.

YCBass · #3 10-16-2008, 10:03 PM

I really like mine, I think it's got a great sound. Very versatile with the multiple octave modes and it's got a rippin' overdrive feature also. I've read here that some don't think it's tracks all the great but I've always liked it.

BUT, I do have it up for sale currently because I have no use for it... I find that it really dominates when turned on and for my main band it's not too complementing with a female vocalist. It's really big sounding which is great but I guess not for me at this point.

Funny thing is as I type this I'm thinking about keeping it, haha.

Enjoy!

PunkRocker33133 · #4 10-16-2008, 10:06 PM

I've been messing with it too, and I really want one. It's cheaper than the Micro POG and I personally like it better. The drive feature is pretty cool too.

newbold · #5 10-16-2008, 10:31 PM

how does it sound compared to the oc-2??

paradigm_shift · #6 10-16-2008, 10:49 PM

Different to the oc2. The oc2 is analog does one note played at once well. Oc-3 is digital , can do multiple notes at once. I like them both. For different reasons.

Thunderscreech · #7 10-16-2008, 11:30 PM

See, this is what I couldn't find...

If I get one, I'll have to make sure to post a review somewheres, for posterity

newbold · #8 10-16-2008, 11:37 PM

HOW does it sound in comparison, not WHAT is it as compared to.

How does the sound differ?

Someone please describe it.

I am inclined to avoid digital as much as I can.

almix12 · #9 10-17-2008, 02:02 AM

oc3 tracks a lot better, a lot more forgiving, drive mode sounds actually pretty decent... some people don't like it though
poly mode is handy for sure
i havn't A/B'd them for sound quality on the notes the OC2 does track though.

MakiSupaStar · #10 10-17-2008, 09:45 AM

I have the OC-2. It can only handle one note at a time. Can get some nice organ sounding synthy sounds. I use it in my dub reggae act quite frequently.

**jbybj** · #11 10-17-2008, 10:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by almix12

oc3 tracks a lot better, a lot more forgiving, drive mode sounds actually pretty decent... some people don't like it though
poly mode is handy for sure
i havn't A/B'd them for sound quality on the notes the OC2 does track though.

+1 on the tracking issue. I borrowed and OC-2 for a few weeks from a friend, didn't care for it, because of tracking issues. I have owned the OC-3 for over a year now and find it very useful, in poly or drive mode, the other mode is as finicky as an OC-2. Remember though, the ability to track the incoming signal is very dependent on level and dynamic range. I think it tracks better with a hot, compressed signal.

dakpluto · #12 10-17-2008, 10:43 AM

In my experience with mine...tracks my passive basses fine....tracks like poo on my active basses.

cybersnyder · #13 10-17-2008, 11:07 AM

I have an OC-2 and OC-3. I'll try to do a side by side comparison tonight -- no promises.

J-chot · #14 10-17-2008, 12:31 PM

I use the Oc2 like a fothermucker. I play alone with 2 amps and a drummer.

**CONS:**
-It does not track well on the lower notes or some times open strings (but then again, you don't really need it to!)
-the "2 octaves down knob is fairly useless because it gets pretty muddy on a bass, unless you have a higher range than most. (I plan to get a digitech whammy really soon so I can use it more often!)
-the sound is really fat and heavy, so you might piss off your guitarists....
-needs to be first in the chain. does not track after dist/modulation very well at all.

**PROS**
this thing is f-ing AWESOME! I pretty much write songs around it (high registry parts with it on, verse with it off) I run it through a boss ODB-3 (ol dirty) cranked all the way up for the most part. fairly metal tone, I would say. listen to dracula mountain and 13 monsters by lightning bolt and and you can get an idea of what it sounds like behind super heavy distortion (all 3 octaves no less!)

I have not tried the oc-3 in person, though I'd be surprised if it sounded as good as the oc-2 (since analog-sourced signals tend to be more flexible/responsive) the youtube demos sounded pretty good to me...

cybersnyder · #15 10-17-2008, 09:23 PM

Ok, did a mini shootout through headphones because the kids are sleeping. MPG Level 4 with P/MM Nordstrand PU and Sadowsky preamp. The contenders:

1) Boss OC-2
2) Boss OC-3
3) MXR Bass Octave
4) Digitech BSW, mode 7

Last place is easily the MXR. Tracks terribly but I'm going to go back to it later because I remember it sounding pretty good before. I'll try with a different bass.

The Digitech sounds decent, but doesn't have the tone of the last two.

OC-3 sounds pretty good. The poly mode tracks very well but doesn't have the same classic oscillator sound of the OC-2 mode or the real OC-2. Many times I couldn't tell the difference between the OC-3 and the OC-2 when set similarly. Had a done a blind test, I'm not sure if I would have been able to score very high in the "Name that Pedal" game. I dislike the drive mode, YMMV.

The OC-2 sounds great, simple to use and tracks well as long as you stay away from open strings and reasonably high note-wise. I'm giving it the nod as the winner, but you really can't go wrong with the OC-3. I'll have to try an EBS at some point.

Thunderscreech · #16 10-18-2008, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cybersnyder

Ok, did a mini shootout through headphones because the kids are sleeping. MPG Level 4 with P/MM Nordstrand PU and Sadowsky preamp. The contenders:

1) Boss OC-2
2) Boss OC-3
3) MXR Bass Octave
4) Digitech BSW, mode 7

Last place is easily the MXR. Tracks terribly but I'm going to go back to it later because I remember it sounding pretty good before. I'll try with a different bass.

The Digitech sounds decent, but doesn't have the tone of the last two.

OC-3 sounds pretty good. The poly mode tracks very well but doesn't have the same classic oscillator sound of the OC-2 mode or the real OC-2. Many times I couldn't tell the difference between the OC-3 and the OC-2 when set similarly. Had a done a blind test, I'm not sure if I would have been able to score very high in the "Name that Pedal" game. I dislike the drive mode, YMMV.

The OC-2 sounds great, simple to use and tracks well as long as you stay away from open strings and reasonably high note-wise. I'm giving it the nod as the winner, but you really can't go wrong with the OC-3. I'll have to try an EBS at some point.

Thank you.

Awesome review!

cybersnyder · #17 10-18-2008, 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thunderscreech

Thank you.

Awesome review!

My goal for this weekend is to figure out a way to record on the laptop so that I can post some samples. Should be able to do something simple like use the X3 as an input to GarageBand. I'm not going to record and album, just a simple set of sound clips. That's just the goal. Laziness may set in and I'll end up taking a nap. ;-)

tomvelsor · #18 10-18-2008, 10:52 AM

my guitarist friend has one.

i wouldent pick it over an oc-2..dont fix what aint broken?

Joe P · #19 10-18-2008, 12:26 PM

No one has brought up the value of the Range control in Poly mode. For fretboard tapping, especially, it's very cool to have a thunderous bassline, at the same time as more bell-like chords/arpeggios. It's a very sharp cutoff on that; you can dial it in to have the octave go from full to gone in just a few half steps!

I sold mine to my brother when I got the POG. That was BEFORE I figured out that the single-stop tone of the OC-3 is superior to the POG (The POG has better polyphony across the board). Plus (what was I thinking?!), you can't do the 'range thing'.

So I'll have to go buy another one now.

Joe