Like an OC-2, but doesn't get overpowered by a hot signal

[DaveParker39]

As some of you know, the Boss OC-2 tends to clip unpleasantly when being used with hotter active instruments.

What is the closest to it with higher headroom?

(I don't use the 2 octave down function)

 

[bassbrad]

The Source Audio Spectrum and C4 Synth nail the OC2 sound and have lots of headroom. Plus it can cop a wide range of octaver, filter and other sounds.

 

[Colum]

As some of you know, the Boss OC-2 tends to clip unpleasantly when being used with hotter active instruments.

What is the closest to it with higher headroom?

(I don't use the 2 octave down function)

OC-5

 

[DaveParker39]

OC-5

Worth a shot... also wondering about the MXR VBO (M220)

 

[Geddy Claypool]

The Source Audio Spectrum and C4 Synth nail the OC2 sound and have lots of headroom. Plus it can cop a wide range of octaver, filter and other sounds.

Couldn’t agree more. While admittedly I’ve never owned a real OC-2, the Spectrum sounds identical to my ears and the tracking is ridiculously good. Has completely killed any gas I have for another octaver (or envelope filter, for that matter)

 

[Nashrakh]

Owning both the OC-5 and the SA C4, I can say both will do the OC-2 thing very well, but the C4 beats the OC-5 hands down when it comes to flexibility, tracking (!) and tonal options. It will handle hot signals very well because unlike an OC-5, it has a control for input volume. However, it is more pricey ( you can get 2 to 3 OC-5s for the price of one C4)...

 

[ole Jason]

OC-5 is awesome

 

[silky smoove]

3Leaf Octabvre if you can find one. I used to own an MXR BOD that did an okay job of the OC-2 thing at certain settings. Neither of these will do the -2 sounds, but for me personally I never found a use for them.

 

[DirtyDuke]

The new Broughton Octave. Best Oc2 style I've tried.

 

[Dave W]

3Leaf Octabvre. It's the exact reason why I own one (two actually).

 

[JimmyM]

Worth a shot... also wondering about the MXR VBO (M220)

I use one. Don’t think I ever tried it with a hot bass, though. I’m of no help whatsoever right now, but I will try to bust it out in a day or two.

 

[moley6knipe]

Source Audio C4 / Spectrum are excellent suggestions. Also, the EBS Octavers coped well with my Ibby BTB which had HUGE output. Good tracking, excellent sound. For me, better than the MXR. Have never owned a Boss OC series though to be fair

 

[ad9000]

+1 re. 3Leaf Octabvre. I don't go anywhere without mine. I used an OC-2 for years but it got to be too lo-fi for my taste. The Octabvre does a similar thing but better.

 

[DaveParker39]

I use one. Don’t think I ever tried it with a hot bass, though. I’m of no help whatsoever right now, but I will try to bust it out in a day or two.

I mention it because one of the selling points is "cleaner headroom"

 

[DaveParker39]

Well, I tried the Vintage Bass Octave Mini.
It is actually worse than the OC-2 when it comes to clipping with hot signals.

 

[sunbeast]

How old is your OC-2? Just making sure you know older versions were designed to run with 12V power supply and if you are running 9V into one of those you may well be experiencing headroom issues because of that. The circuit itself runs on 9V but for whatever reason Boss made their original standard power supplies 12V and added a diode network to lower the voltage inside the pedals to 9V- if you use a 9V supply these diodes will drop the supplied voltage to the circuit somewhere around 7V like a dying battery. It is a super easy mod to make one of these older Boss pedals compatible with 9V power supply (and many old ones already have been modded over the years, though I suspect many people are playing these older Boss pedals at 9V without the mods and probably aren't even aware).

I can definitely get my OC-2 to clip, but with the basses I have it takes significant bass boost from active preamps or similar to make really unpleasant clipping to my ears. I almost always use a compressor before my OC-2 with a bit of signal boost, even with my active basses, and rarely have issues (though the comp does allow me to attenuate the input signal too if necessary).

I dig the Source Audio C4 for OC-2 tones as others have mentioned, though there is some latency in the tracking circuit in any pedal that must actually track pitch to trigger sounds (the OC-2 doesn't actually track pitch to trigger an octave, just manipulates your input signal in realtime so has no real latency) that bothers me too much in the C4 to replace my OC-2 with unless I need a really compact board.

 

[DaveParker39]

How old is your OC-2? Just making sure you know older versions were designed to run with 12V power supply and if you are running 9V into one of those you may well be experiencing headroom issues because of that. The circuit itself runs on 9V but for whatever reason Boss made their original standard power supplies 12V and added a diode network to lower the voltage inside the pedals to 9V- if you use a 9V supply these diodes will drop the supplied voltage to the circuit somewhere around 7V like a dying battery. It is a super easy mod to make one of these older Boss pedals compatible with 9V power supply (and many old ones already have been modded over the years, though I suspect many people are playing these older Boss pedals at 9V without the mods and probably aren't even aware).

I can definitely get my OC-2 to clip, but with the basses I have it takes significant bass boost from active preamps or similar to make really unpleasant clipping to my ears. I almost always use a compressor before my OC-2 with a bit of signal boost, even with my active basses, and rarely have issues (though the comp does allow me to attenuate the input signal too if necessary).

I dig the Source Audio C4 for OC-2 tones as others have mentioned, though there is some latency in the tracking circuit in any pedal that must actually track pitch to trigger sounds (the OC-2 doesn't actually track pitch to trigger an octave, just manipulates your input signal in realtime so has no real latency) that bothers me too much in the C4 to replace my OC-2 with unless I need a really compact board.

I have a Taiwan made OC-2 designed for the PSA 9v adapter. Not an older ACA model. If there is a headroom mod, though, I would be thrilled. I can set it to not clip but it’s a balancing act between my comp and riding my volume and I would rather “set it and forget it” as it were.

 

[sunbeast]

I have a Taiwan made OC-2 designed for the PSA 9v adapter. Not an older ACA model. If there is a headroom mod, though, I would be thrilled. I can set it to not clip but it’s a balancing act between my comp and riding my volume and I would rather “set it and forget it” as it were.

Unfortunately I don't think there is any headroom mod for an OC-2, as the circuit is limited by the voltage tolerance of the components used and they were designed for 9V operation (though I can't say for sure that an OC-2 circuit couldn't handle higher voltages as is- I've never dug into looking at the voltage ratings of the components). The OC-2 has become so vital to my pedalboard in recent years that I have mostly favored the basses and other parts of my rig that really complement it at this point, but really I haven't had much issue- I might just be lucky though. My old G&L basses were a real problem with it back before I really used it much and before I really started using an always-on compressor on my pedalboard

 

[DaveParker39]

Unfortunately I don't think there is any headroom mod for an OC-2, as the circuit is limited by the voltage tolerance of the components used and they were designed for 9V operation (though I can't say for sure that an OC-2 circuit couldn't handle higher voltages as is- I've never dug into looking at the voltage ratings of the components). The OC-2 has become so vital to my pedalboard in recent years that I have mostly favored the basses and other parts of my rig that really complement it at this point, but really I haven't had much issue- I might just be lucky though. My old G&L basses were a real problem with it back before I really used it much and before I really started using an always-on compressor on my pedalboard

Well, my plan of attack now is to set my compressor one way for my Spector and another for my P-Bass and hopefully that does the trick. I also rolled back the trim pot on my spector tone pump, which helped a bit.

 

[sunbeast]

Well, my plan of attack now is to set my compressor one way for my Spector and another for my P-Bass and hopefully that does the trick. I also rolled back the trim pot on my spector tone pump, which helped a bit.

So out of curiosity I did a Google search for "Boss OC-2 Headroom Mod" and came across this old thread with some posts about great mod tips from one of the most knowledgeable electronics guys on TB (Boomertech, owner of FEA Labs): OC-2 clipping .
TLDR- he says the OC-2 should be safe up to 12V with the current circuit and up to 18V with a simple cap swap, he suggests lowering an input gain component plus raising the input voltage plus the possibility of swapping in new ICs and a few other mods will both improve the headroom at the input and the volume at the output. I like my OC-2 as is, but will probably have to play around with these at some point just because!