From the Beatles to
Jeff Beck, Santana to Stevie Ray, many guitar greats have embraced the
rotary-speaker sound on stage and in the studio. Today BOSS proudly announces
the newest member of its Twin Pedal series — the RT-20 Rotary Sound Processor.
Employing COSM®-modeling technology, the RT-20 authentically reproduces
classic rotary-speaker sounds. It offers adjustable Rise Time, Horn and Bass
speed, Overdrive, and more. And not just for classic twirl, the RT-20 can be
used to create unique overdrive and Sunday, 4 August 2013
RT-20 Rotary Sound Processor
From the Beatles to
Jeff Beck, Santana to Stevie Ray, many guitar greats have embraced the
rotary-speaker sound on stage and in the studio. Today BOSS proudly announces
the newest member of its Twin Pedal series — the RT-20 Rotary Sound Processor.
Employing COSM®-modeling technology, the RT-20 authentically reproduces
classic rotary-speaker sounds. It offers adjustable Rise Time, Horn and Bass
speed, Overdrive, and more. And not just for classic twirl, the RT-20 can be
used to create unique overdrive and 
RC-50 Loop Station
For those awaiting the arrival of a new industry-leading looper,
the wait is finally over. Introducing the RC-50 — the most feature-laden
Loop Station BOSS has ever built. It’s the best live looping tool ever
built for that matter. Housed in a spacious seven-footswitch floor unit,
the RC-50 lets you manipulate three stereo phrase tracks simultaneously,
with each track supportingTR-2 Tremolo mods
If your tremolo sounds weak we have come up with a mod
to improve the tone and make it stronger too. Stock, they lose
some volume and tone when ON. We have tweeked it to sound just like the
tremolo in my '66 Fender Deluxe Reverb amp. This mod changes
out many of the cheap components and replaces them with better
sounding components too, like our SILVER mod. The mod is $45
and is now on the mod form.
We now put a small TRIM POT inside the pedal so you can set the exact volume you want when the pedal is ON. We set it (and mark it) to the same volume ON and OFF, you can bump it up even more if you want the tremolo to stand out. This mod does not increase the hiss like most other TR-2 mods.
We got this note
MT-2 Metal Zone mods
The MT2/pro mod takes the fakeness away, that cocked-wah
super-saturated big hair noisy distortion. It leaves plenty of distortion
available but you can hear the guitar's actual sound after the mod. On the
stock pedal, if you sweep the mid range frequency knob it sounds
like you are sweeping white noise. After the mod, it sounds like
you are sweeping a parametric EQ or wah pedal. The mod is very expensive to
do and includes a chip change so it is $70. Also it includes most of
our silver mod parts from the tube screamer. The mod also reduces noise
by 5dB with all knobs at 12:00. I don't usually offer sample settings but this one is a little tough so here is how I like to set it for a starting point:
Level 10:00, Low 3:00, high 1:30, mid freq 10:00, middle 1:30, Dist up high.
DD-6 Digital Delay pedal
Boss DD-6 Delay, reverse mode, tap tempo, warp mode, 5 seconds delay,
IN STOCK, $155
The DD-6 does not need our reverse mod, as the BLEND control can get
100% delay with no non-delayed sound in reverse mode, unlike the DD-5.
The DD-6 Digital Delay is the first BOSS delay pedal to offer true
stereo delay and panning effects. The STEREO inputs allow sending
both outputs of our STEREO CLONE CHORUS through the delay and keep
the signal in true stereo! Features include built-in tap tempo capability and a delay/hold time of over 5 seconds (5,200ms). A new Reverse mode makes it easy to get trip
Boss DD-3 Digital Delay pedal
Boss DD-3 Delay, 800mS, hold, 2 outputs, HIGH CUT MOD $178
The Boss DD-3 is made with the same technology as the DD-2 which was
the first compact stomp-box digital delay pedal. Introduced in 1982
using the same chip as the awesome rack mount SDE-3000, the DD-2 was
very expensive. After a few years it was renamed DD-3 and lowered in price
when the memory chips got cheaper. They are very warm and natural sounding
for a digital pedal, as they use the same compressor/expandor
chips as an analog delay, and redo the echoes each repeat unlike
the newer pedals which just spit out the same bit samples for each
echo with a sterile sound. Our HIGH CUT mod really makes this
pedal sound great, TU-2 Tuner pedal
Boss TU-2 chromatic tuner, silent tuning with LEDs, this
is one of the best tuners we have found, can use with power daisy chain to
power other pedals too, new $99. When it's not ON, it does not use much power,
about as much as an analog pedal. When ON and you are tuning,
it does boot up the computer chip so it uses a lot of battery but if you
don't tune for more than a few minutes a night, a battery will last
pretty long. The bypassed tone is quite good, but if you
want true bypass, check into the Strobostomp tuner.
Please use our new website BUYANALOGMAN.COM for ordering
so you and we can easily keep track of the order status,
tracking numbers, etc. Boss DS-1 Distortion Boss DS-1 Distortion Pedal Review – Best Guitar Distortion Pedal?
This pedal debuted way back in 1978 and has remained a staple in the Boss lineup ever since. It’s one of the best selling pedals of all time. You’ve either played one or know someone who has.
It is also a very popular of after-market modification. You can order custom-modded variations of this pedal from countless boutique peda
Boss DS-2 Turbo Distortion
First Impression
Growing
up and learning to play electric guitar in the mid-1990s, it's pretty
much a given that the Boss DS-2 was my first distortion pedal. They were
everywhere at the time, having been popularized by Kurt Cobain of
Nirvana who famously used one for his buzzsaw dirty sounds on the
squillion-selling Nevermind album. Back in the day, we all
wanted that tone--switching from a pristine clean sound to a
frighteningly loud, super-saturated distortion.
As with all Boss pedals, the DS-2 is built like a proverbial tank. As with its younger sibling, the DS-1 Distortion, the DS-2 comes in the same questionable orange color. In fact, it even sounds similar in its default "I" mode but the reason for releasing a sequel (of sorts) was Boss's addition of a "II" or Turbo mode. It must have come to Boss's attention that some players were using other pedals to boost or thicken the sound of the DS-1, and rather than lose business, they wisely added the Turbo option to the DS-2 to allow players to switch to a secondary sound using the same pedal. Turbo mode basically activates a bigger, nastier distorted tone that is not unlike the Boss HM-2 Heavy Metal.
Also, presumably learning from the mistake that had them re-releasing the OD-2 Turbo Overdrive as the OD-2R (which introduced the option to connect an FS-5U to toggle between normal and Turbo modes using one's foot instead of having to lean over and turn a knob), Boss cut to the chase and baked this option into the DS-2 right from the get-go.
As with all Boss pedals, the DS-2 is built like a proverbial tank. As with its younger sibling, the DS-1 Distortion, the DS-2 comes in the same questionable orange color. In fact, it even sounds similar in its default "I" mode but the reason for releasing a sequel (of sorts) was Boss's addition of a "II" or Turbo mode. It must have come to Boss's attention that some players were using other pedals to boost or thicken the sound of the DS-1, and rather than lose business, they wisely added the Turbo option to the DS-2 to allow players to switch to a secondary sound using the same pedal. Turbo mode basically activates a bigger, nastier distorted tone that is not unlike the Boss HM-2 Heavy Metal.
Also, presumably learning from the mistake that had them re-releasing the OD-2 Turbo Overdrive as the OD-2R (which introduced the option to connect an FS-5U to toggle between normal and Turbo modes using one's foot instead of having to lean over and turn a knob), Boss cut to the chase and baked this option into the DS-2 right from the get-go.
John Frusciante, known mainly for his work with the Red Hot Chili
Peppers, started using the DS-2 after Kurt Cobain's death. The pedal
subsequently became a cornerstone of his sound.
Source: Wikimedia.org
Ease of Use
Like
all Boss pedals, one area where the DS-2 excels is in terms of
operation, which couldn't be simpler. There's also an LED at the top of
the control panel that brightens when the effect is on, and darkens when
it's off.
Aside from the wide on/off footswitch that takes up the bottom 2/3 of the pedal, the DS-2 has four control knobs:
Aside from the wide on/off footswitch that takes up the bottom 2/3 of the pedal, the DS-2 has four control knobs:
- The "Level" knob adjusts how much volume is present when the effect is activated. Turn it to the left to lower the volume; turn it to the right to raise the dBs.
- The "Tone" knob controls the EQ when the pedal is turned on. Turn it to the left to raise the bass frequencies and lower the treble; turn it to the right to mix in more treble and remove some bass.
- The "Dist" knob decides how much distortion is present in the processed signal when the pedal is on. Turn it to the left to clean up the sound; turn it to the right to add more gain and saturation.
- The "Turbo" knob has only two settings, I and II. When in mode I, the DS-2 produces a basic, fairly aggressive distortion sound not unlike that of Boss's DS-1. (Some people insist they're the same; I personally find them a little different, with the DS-1 being a little thicker in terms of tone.) On mode II, the character of the effect changes and acquires a more distorted, almost scooped-mid-range sound common to a lot of 80s metal and 90s alternative rock.
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Performance
As
Frugal readers will probably know by now, I always like to consider a
piece of gear's usefulness in the three main scenarios in which a
musician will find him/herself: solo practice/writing, recording, and
recording.
So let's look at solo writing and rehearsing first. The DS-2 is a lot of fun to incorporate into your practice, although there's more volume and gain on tap than you'll ever use at bedroom levels so it may be overkill for this kind of situation. Unless you have a dedicated rehearsal studio where you can crank the levels, you're unlikely to ever encounter the full range of sounds possible with this unit and it's probably not going to add much value to your practice time or writing. However, if you can let it rip a little bit, you may find that the Turbo Distortion's nasty tones inspire you to write certain kinds of riffs that sound a whole lot cooler when played a) loud and b) with this pedal exclusively.
In terms of recording, as I noted in my review of the Boss DS-1 Distortion, the DS-2 can be a little tricky to capture for all of the same reasons that make it a great live pedal. Unless you calibrate your microphones and gear toward the big, bold, ripped tones you'll undoubtedly be using the DS-2 to achieve, it's spectacularly easy to get a terrible sound when switching from clean to distortion. Additionally, this little orange pedal has a huge amount of headroom in terms of volume and gain, so while it can be tempting to crank it the way you would when playing live, in the studio, it's often best to back off just a bit. Don't worry, it'll still sound nasty but you won't lose articulation of your notes and chords. Unless that's what you're looking for--in which case, dial the Level and Dist knobs high for a super-saturated, sludgy mess of a sound. (It's kind of glorious.)
If you haven't guessed by now, I'm going to advocate for the live forum as the DS-2's most logical application. The contrast between cleaner, quieter sounds and cranked, wildly distorted grind was a huge component of 90s alt. rock, which was gestated in small, sweaty clubs and theaters in the Pacific Northwest. So it makes sense that this pedal found a home among the grunge set: being able to blow an audience away by suddenly hitting a footswitch is a powerful tool indeed. And when you don't have to worry as much about just how much distortion is too much--the heat of the moment is what counts in live music, right?--it's just too much fun to crank the Turbo Distortion and unleash the beast.
Mode I, as noted previously, closely resembles the DS-1 and if you like that pedal, in truth owning a DS-2 is like having one of these plus another pedal. Mode II is, however, where the magic lies and I know several players who exclusively use this pedal in Turbo mode. It's a very unique sound that I haven't really been able to duplicate with any other pedal or combination of other effects.
The Turbo Distortion definitely sounds best through tube amplifiers, as solid state amps don't seem to be able to properly handle it's highest-gain settings and just wind up sounding tinny and digitized. Hybrid amp owners will probably find moderately more success, although there's still some of that "fizz" in the treble end of the spectrum (probably caused by the solid state components that surround most hybrid amps' single tube).
Hotter pickups also work better with the DS-2. Stock Fender single-coils were a little too weak to really take advantage of anything the "Dist" knob has available past 12 o'clock; the tones were just too thin and plinky-sounding. However, on a Strat with a DiMarzio FS-1 in the bridge position, the Turbo Distortion sounded fantastically huge. Likewise with virtually any humbucker, even some of the stock models found in lower-end instruments. I personally found that there was more low-end available on the DS-2 than there was with the DS-1.
So let's look at solo writing and rehearsing first. The DS-2 is a lot of fun to incorporate into your practice, although there's more volume and gain on tap than you'll ever use at bedroom levels so it may be overkill for this kind of situation. Unless you have a dedicated rehearsal studio where you can crank the levels, you're unlikely to ever encounter the full range of sounds possible with this unit and it's probably not going to add much value to your practice time or writing. However, if you can let it rip a little bit, you may find that the Turbo Distortion's nasty tones inspire you to write certain kinds of riffs that sound a whole lot cooler when played a) loud and b) with this pedal exclusively.
In terms of recording, as I noted in my review of the Boss DS-1 Distortion, the DS-2 can be a little tricky to capture for all of the same reasons that make it a great live pedal. Unless you calibrate your microphones and gear toward the big, bold, ripped tones you'll undoubtedly be using the DS-2 to achieve, it's spectacularly easy to get a terrible sound when switching from clean to distortion. Additionally, this little orange pedal has a huge amount of headroom in terms of volume and gain, so while it can be tempting to crank it the way you would when playing live, in the studio, it's often best to back off just a bit. Don't worry, it'll still sound nasty but you won't lose articulation of your notes and chords. Unless that's what you're looking for--in which case, dial the Level and Dist knobs high for a super-saturated, sludgy mess of a sound. (It's kind of glorious.)
If you haven't guessed by now, I'm going to advocate for the live forum as the DS-2's most logical application. The contrast between cleaner, quieter sounds and cranked, wildly distorted grind was a huge component of 90s alt. rock, which was gestated in small, sweaty clubs and theaters in the Pacific Northwest. So it makes sense that this pedal found a home among the grunge set: being able to blow an audience away by suddenly hitting a footswitch is a powerful tool indeed. And when you don't have to worry as much about just how much distortion is too much--the heat of the moment is what counts in live music, right?--it's just too much fun to crank the Turbo Distortion and unleash the beast.
Mode I, as noted previously, closely resembles the DS-1 and if you like that pedal, in truth owning a DS-2 is like having one of these plus another pedal. Mode II is, however, where the magic lies and I know several players who exclusively use this pedal in Turbo mode. It's a very unique sound that I haven't really been able to duplicate with any other pedal or combination of other effects.
The Turbo Distortion definitely sounds best through tube amplifiers, as solid state amps don't seem to be able to properly handle it's highest-gain settings and just wind up sounding tinny and digitized. Hybrid amp owners will probably find moderately more success, although there's still some of that "fizz" in the treble end of the spectrum (probably caused by the solid state components that surround most hybrid amps' single tube).
Hotter pickups also work better with the DS-2. Stock Fender single-coils were a little too weak to really take advantage of anything the "Dist" knob has available past 12 o'clock; the tones were just too thin and plinky-sounding. However, on a Strat with a DiMarzio FS-1 in the bridge position, the Turbo Distortion sounded fantastically huge. Likewise with virtually any humbucker, even some of the stock models found in lower-end instruments. I personally found that there was more low-end available on the DS-2 than there was with the DS-1.
Conclusion
The
Boss DS-2 Turbo Distortion's only real drawbacks are the qualities that
some players will view as strengths: the ability to dial in an extreme
distortion sound that will cost you a bit in terms of note articulation,
but make up for that with a very powerful, saturated buzzsaw grind.
I always felt that the lack of an included FS-5U was a shortcoming on Boss's part, but given that this would likely have raised the price $20 to $40, I can see why they kept this optional. It's a minor quibble at the end of the day, but going from a distorted sound to really distorted sound is one of the great joys this pedal will bring into your life. At least Boss didn't make the same mistake they made with the OD-2, and added the option to connect a footswitch right from day one.
All in all, though, the DS-2 is highly recommended for anyone playing punk, alternative or hard rock just because the pedal facilitates the sculpting of huge, gnarly tones with ease.
I always felt that the lack of an included FS-5U was a shortcoming on Boss's part, but given that this would likely have raised the price $20 to $40, I can see why they kept this optional. It's a minor quibble at the end of the day, but going from a distorted sound to really distorted sound is one of the great joys this pedal will bring into your life. At least Boss didn't make the same mistake they made with the OD-2, and added the option to connect a footswitch right from day one.
All in all, though, the DS-2 is highly recommended for anyone playing punk, alternative or hard rock just because the pedal facilitates the sculpting of huge, gnarly tones with ease.
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