All user reviews of 3/5 for the Boss CE-3 Chorus (Japan)

The BOSS CE-3 Chorus pedal was made from 1982 to 1992. The model that I have is a Green label that was Made in Japan. The feature set on it is pretty standard, but there are a few interesting things. The features are as follows:

- Mono in, ability for Stereo out.
- Runs off of either a 9 Volt battery or a 12 volt power supply, but can easily be modded to run off of a standard 9 Volt PS if desired.

It has three controls, which are:
-Rate: Sets the rate of the chorus, IE how fast it moves around.
-Depth: Sets the depth of the chorus (No duh eh?)
-Stereo Mode: This is something a bit different from other chorus. In mode 1 Output A (The main output) outputs both the Dry and Wet signals. Output B then outputs only the Dry signal. In Mode 2 Output A sends out the Wet signal only, and then Output B outputs the Dry signal only.

UTILIZATION

Tweaking the sound to how you like it really couldn't be much simpler. Just set the Rate and Depth knobs to taste, and if you are running stereo set the mode knob to what you want. Simple eh?

Since I got it used I can't comment on how clear the instruction manual is, since it didn't come with one, but you don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure it out. I will say that this pedal is the only BOSS three knob pedal that has the knobs in this configuration. That is because with the knobs like they are on the CE-3, it blocks your view of the LED indicator, so you can't visually tell that it's on unless you are standing up and hovering over it. That's why all three knob BOSS pedals now have the controls in a "V" pattern.

SOUND QUALITY

I run a Peavey Ultra 60 watt tube amp that pushes a 5150 Straight cab with V30's and G12T-75's. I mainly play Thrash metal with some drop-tuned stuff thrown in. My main use for chorus is to add depth to leads and cleans, so I don't really use it on any distorted rhythm stuff.

The CE-3 sounds decent, not amazing, but not bad either. It is a pretty natural chorus, and not cheesy sounding at all, so if that's something you are looking for this may be the chorus for you. It just never really jumped out at me as sounding all that amazing, and in fact, I've got an DOD FX-68 Super Stereo Chorus that I modded that I use often, which, in my opinion it sounds better than the CE-3. That being said, the CE-3 is still a decent chorus, so I'd suggest you check it out.


OVERALL OPINION

Overall, my opinion of the BOSS MIJ CE-3 is that it was pretty mediocre. Not anything especially good about it, but nothing especially bad either. I got mine in a trade, so I really can't comment on if it was a good value or not, but looking on Ebay they seem to go for $50 and under, so they might be worth checking out if you are interested in them. I like that it has different ways to implement stereo, and I dislike that it really doesn't stand out at all.