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So I take it boss pedals arent that great?

#21
I think they're considered a bit 'meh' around these parts. I'm currently using a TU-2 and a LS-2 (which is a great pedal with lots of useful functions) and I like them. They seem to stand up to a lot of abuse, last month during a single gig my whole board was drowned in cider and had a synth dropped on it and everything carried on working.

I like the Honda analogy someone posted, it's very true.
 
#22
Look at any serious pro pedal board and I can pretty well guarantee you'll see a Boss or 2 on there.

Like any manufacturer, there are some Turkeys (and even that's just personal preference - I think the ODB-3 is awful but there are guys that love it) but generally they're at least o.k. and there are quite a few gems like the OC-2.
 
#24
dra6n said:
I currently have the Boss GT-6B and hate it.. actually trying to sell it off. I made a short list of the pedals I want to get and Boss has them all.. but I havent seen many TBers talk about all their Boss pedals... are they not that great or is there just such a wide variety out there that they dont use them?
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You're experiencing the same thing many of us have with using multieffect units. Besides the learning curve there's just a lot of stuff you don't want/need. Individual pedals are the way I went too.
 
#25
I think Boss Pedals are good as any for live playing ... recording is a different story.
Boss pedals are tough, I've had a CE-2, HM-2 & a BF-2 since the 80's & they have never failed & I have played all over the US & Canada.

I have a GT-6B & love it .. I looked at a 10b but other than the effect loop most of the new features are not anything I want so its not worth the extra money.

I think the secret to Effects in general on bass is to split the signal & always have a dry signal with blended effects going to the amp ... you can make almost any effect unit sound good this way
 
#26
BOSS have made some fantastic pedals, I have a number on my board and I'm not ashamed of that at all. The TU-2 is/was the industry standard tuner and the recent poll showed that it was one of the most owned pedals by Talkbass users, if not THE most owned pedal. The OC-2 is loved by bassists everywhere for its' fantastic sound, their Delay pedals feature on many of our pedalboards (I have the DD-6 and love it), as do their Reverb pedals, Flangers, EQ pedals etc etc. Yes, there is a lot of bashing for certain Boss pedals, *ahem* ODB-3 *ahem* - although I have happily used one for 3 years and has served its' purpose brilliantly. It cannot be argued that they don't make quality gear, they really do, not to say that other manufacturers haven't created better alternatives, but Boss have consistantly produced good sounding and affordable pedals and have been a pioneer in the industry for many years.
 
#27
sillyfabe said:
Boss OC-2 Octave: best analog octaver out there hands down. has -1 octave which can is really synthy and can really bring out the anger of a fuzz. Also sounds great when you mix 50% direct (has a direct knob) for some good overtones.
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right now i feel like the only one who thinks this, i'm really not fussed about OC-2, it sounds too growly for me, i prefer smoother octaves
 
#33
I had a CEB-3 for a while, it's a good pedal, I don't really use chorus though so I got rid of it. I still use an OC-2 for a lot of stuff, that's a great effect.

My main gripes with Boss are the footswitches which I just don't trust (my OC-2 is in a loop so I don't have to step on it, the footswitch is totally unreliable) and the buffered bypass is a bit tone-sucky, but in terms of the effected sounds they make you have to judge them on their individual merits, some Boss pedals are great.
 
#36
dra6n said:
awesome thanks for putting some perspective on them. I've only had my Boss GT-6B and I hate it.. so any pedal will be better. I found pretty much all the pedals I want on craigslist for around $50 each which is really good (about half the price) so I will at least start with them, and when new ones show up in my local music stores I'll play with them and see if I like them more or not..

thanks again!
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Hey man,

I too had the GT-6B and hated it. That said, don't let this experience ruin Boss for you. Since then I've been buying, selling, and trading pedals (starting mostly with EHX and MXR), and I've ended up with a looot of killer Boss pedals.

Right now my board looks like this:

EHX Bass Big Muff Pi
Korg Pitchblack
MXR M82
Boss PS-6
Boss OC-3
Boss BF-3
Boss CE-5
Boss DD-5
Tech 21 VT Deluxe

As you can see, I'm a bit of a fan :smug: Boss makes some great stuff, and they are considered the 'standard' for a reason. Buy a few used Boss pedals in the classifieds and make your own judgment on them.
 
#37
I think people do not generally talk about them because everyone is so familiar with them. Pretty much everyone knows how they sound like, or can test them nearby.

They are the standard which every pedal company needs to exceed. If you cannot find/afford anything better what a Boss pedal can do for your purpose, get the Boss.

Some guy made an interesting point sometime ago that being a gigging bass player, he likes Boss because he can find replacements anywhere he goes. Good sound logic to me.
 
#39
A couple others have brought up good points- ease of replacing, industry standard, etc. In the past year or two I have found myself ditching the gear snob stuff and going back to Boss. I still think the CEB-3 is the best bass chorus pedal on the market. I sold my Analog Man, went back to a CEB-3 (bought a used one), and still had the loot for three sets of strings. I don't regret it at all.

I do feel their multi-effects kinda stink though, for both bass and guitar.
 
#40
thedude77md said:
A couple others have brought up good points- ease of replacing, industry standard, etc. In the past year or two I have found myself ditching the gear snob stuff and going back to Boss. I still think the CEB-3 is the best bass chorus pedal on the market. I sold my Analog Man, went back to a CEB-3 (bought a used one), and still had the loot for three sets of strings. I don't regret it at all.

I do feel their multi-effects kinda stink though, for both bass and guitar.
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Boss multi-effect don't stink at all .. they are aparently to complicated for some, though I personally find them very easy to program even on the fly at the gig.

As with any effects though you have to know how to tweak.

I ran separate pedals for years but at this point I don't think I'll ever go back to separate pedals .. I would have to have about 15 pedals to get what I'm getting out of my lowly GT6-b

I will concede it is easier to get Fuzz/OD/DIS setting with pedals ... but I found the sweet spot on my rig ... did take some tweaking though
 

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