Boss ODB-3 Bass OverDrive

The Boss ODB-3 Bass Overdrive stompbox is a simple, standard, yellow Boss pedal, probably one of the most common (and cheapest) bass overdrive/distortion pedals out there. It takes standard pedal power or a 9 volt battery (just like most Boss single pedals), and it has a 1/4 guitar line input and guitar line output.

UTILIZATION

The stomp pedal on the ODB-3, like most Boss pedals, is wide, large, and extremely durable. These pedals are built like tanks, and they are virtually indestructible. That's one good reason they are the industry standard for guitar pedals. The control knobs are all solid, and the pots behind them never get scratchy.

SOUND QUALITY

There are four main controls on the Boss ODB-3: Level, EQ, Balance, and Gain. Level controls the overall volume output of the pedal, and has no effect on the actual distortion levels of the effect. This is great for balancing your pedal-off sound with the pedal-on sound, so that the volume boost is minimal, or in some cases, there is a moderate volume boost, if the bass player wants to be louder during certain riffs. The EQ control has two knobs (one inside of the other). These control the bass and treble of the sound. If they are set straight up, they are flat, and this allows for both boost and cut of the highs and lows. This allows you to turn up the treble for thicker, more guitar-like distortion sounds, or turn up the bass if the lows are getting lost behind the fuzz. Next, there is a balance control, and this allows the mixing of the dry bass guitar sound with the affected, distorted sound. This is one of the best controls on here, and it allows you to crank up the distortion, if desired, but still retain the clarity of the original sound. This is the control that is missing from most standard guitar overdrive pedals. and what makes most of them unusable for bass. The last knob is the gain control, which controls how much distortion to add to the signal.



OVERALL OPINION

Overall, a great little pedal, that is cheap, but simply does it's job, if you ever want to experiment with bass overdrives, fuzzes, and distortions. Check it out!

Yellow, small single pedal with hard metal casing.

I bought this in late 2002 at a local music store for about $80. I was looking for some good distortion. It was recommended to me over whatever comparable pedal was in the shop at the time, because you can mix the tone two have both distortion and clean sound coming out.

This very affordable pedal is great for simple rock distortion, and gain increase/reduction. The controls are real easy to configure

It only has a low/high frequency EQ adjustments, it would be nice to have a mid also to finer tune your Distortion. Also the batteries will drain as long as it is plugged into a 1/4' jack, even if the distortion is not on. When the batteries start to go the sound quality will suffer significantly, it is good to have an extra on hand, or even better have the adapter(extra charge).

High quality construction, this thing is made of metal and will survive a fall off a truck.

It's a great pedal, pretty versatile distortion, good value for the money; if you want a lot of crazy effects, then you need a different pedal.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I play electric bass in a band from Coburg. We play mostly punk and rock, but sometimes Jack (the drummer) and I like to play a bit of reggae.

I do all my shopping at Allans Music Store. They always give me fantastic deals - and I don't even ask! I picked up this handy pedal for $175.00. That's about half the list price.

I got this pedal because I needed something to completely change my sound, and provide an occasional lift.

The pedal provides you with a wide range of tonal options, from complete distortion, to an aggressive tone with a rough edge. It is of course an 'overdrive' pedal, for those who are unaware of what that means, it simulates an overdriven tube amp. Usually this would tae a range of different effects, but Boss have crammed it into one compact pedal.

If you roll back on the gain and the balance knob, and up te volume, the pedal can act as a simple volume boost.
The addition of a simple two band equalizer means you can change the level of bottom end, without dulling down highs or the lethal gain. If you like, you can simply turn back the balance and the gain, keep the volume even with your amp and use the two band eq to boost your bottom end.

I personally use it occasionally for long distorted intros to our songs, or as a light fuzz for a chorus or an outro.

There's not much I don't like about the pedal.

The only thing that annoys me sometimes is the two band eq. It's fine with a bit of gain, as you can boost or cut your bottom end for a more dimensional sound, but if you roll back on the balance and the gain, it sounds kid of flat and two dimensional.

I did say you could use it to boost your bottom end without gain, but it dulls down your highs and leaves a kind of muddy sound.

The build quality is absolutely fantastic. It may be made in Asia, but it's built like a rock. The steel construction makes it a lot heavier and more solid than it appears. You can drop it onto a hard surface, or down some stairs (I have) and it'll come through with absolutely no damage at all - and it'll sound exactly the same as it did when you first tried it out at the store.

Overall, this pedal is definitely one to stick next to your amplifier.

Anyone looking for something to boost their sound, or add some gain for the occasional distored bass line, should save up and buy one.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I was having trouble getting hold of one of these. I told a friend about this and amazingly he had one that was in near perfect condition that he wanted to sell! I have been after a decent OD pedal for a while (Ibanez and Digitech don't cut it for me.) After I tried it out, I got it for £35. The normal first hand price is about £60.

I like it because it's... fuzzy. If I tweek the settings and ajust my amp/bass eq, I can get many different tones and sounds of it. I notted also that a did managed to get it onto a setting where it almost became a phaser pedal and sustain pedal! I like it because I've used it to do things like the star spangled banner and Cliff Burton solos! It's really useful for covering the role of a rhythm guitar as well. For example, the harmony part on "One" by Metallica. Two guitars playing harmony, clean bass doing rhythm isn't enough. Add a minute touch of growly OD for the bass during that part really makes a difference! Good for RATM + Audioslave songs aswell! The colour is cool... yellow and black. It's like a square banana brick shaped thingy-whacha-mu-call-it?

Funny colour of it can be harsh on the eyes, especially if your hungover! Ummm not much I can say really.

I can't really judge because it's not new, ummm, it solid and I've had no problems with it so far. Sound is awsome. The best OD pedal I've used.

A good pedal, and i'm glad that i got it cheaper second hand cause now ive got more money to spend on other stuff. If your looking for a good distortion, get this. After all, no-one i know dislikes BOSS pedals, and they are quite renound and sturdy (ROLAND company.) I also think that £60 is a fair bit of money so I recomend getting a used one if you arn't keen on forking out a wod of notes.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com