All user reviews for the Boss DF-2 SUPER Feedbacker & Distortion

I've been playing guitar for over 30 years--both with & without effects. Currently you'd most likely find me playing a 12 string at church. (no distortion though.)

I got this in the mid-80's. I already had a DS-1 & the distortion is the same as the S-1, but they added in the feedbacker part--and it's great! I tried it in the store, and as they had a 50% sale that day--I bought it. I forget how much it was--but it wasn't a lot.

It's a great distortion sound--from fuzzy to edgy to sharp.
The feedbacker part is great to have fun with--as long as you keep your foot pushed down on the pedal the note sustains! So you can play licks over the feedbacking note--or do some other tricks with it--it's a lot of fun!

There's no volume control for the feedbacker part, so you can't have it in the background while you play a lead line or riff or chords over it. it will be the same volume as the rest of it. (Although sometimes I get around that by going through my echo which has a stereo output--I put the DF-2 in one channnel where the amp is set on a lower volume. You could also put a volume pedal after the signal is split.)

Sturdy case--like Boss pedals tend to be--it's been knocked around and still works.

An excellent tool & toy, although in some ways it is more toy--but it is a lot of fun to play and use the feedback--You can use it which other effects too. It works great with echo.
If you have a DS-1 and like it, maybe try one of these if you see one available--just for that something extra. if you use a different distortion pedal or use the amp to overdrive your sound, then maybe try this for the feedbacker part. Anyway--it's a lot of fun.

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

Pedals for distortion + feedback, analog, produced more, mine is made in Taiwan.

UTILIZATION

4 knob, with names too hard to understand as volume or tone ... It's simple, it's Boss. I have never seen the manual, y'en not need all fawn.

SOUND QUALITY

Config is: Fender Fat TARS -> DF-2 -> various pedals -> Mesa studio preamp
Washburn WI64 -> DF-2 -> various pedals -> Marshall JMP-1

Feedback is very musical when it is used with another distortion APRS, noisy solos for the Sonic Youth.

Used alone, the distortion is yucky and draft, a sense be derived from the DS-1, it does not happen ankle, she eats the treble and the dynamics and produces a breath really irritating.

Nirvana sound ... Mouai Ok but then on the worst pirate lives saved in voice recorder. I would love to try a "Made in Japan" to compare.

7 for the feedback, 3 for the distortion: 5 verdict.

OVERALL OPINION

I bought it in 2003, qualitprix good value, I like feedback with 0 at the disto RULES Tone 2 hours.
Since I manufactured a clone of Sonic Annihilation, which is a real feedback and does not really the same rsultat (the DF-2 is easier to grate, but sounds more synth. I would do the same choice since it is the only pedals in its class.

Nothing to add is a distortion with feedback Intgr what.

UTILIZATION

There is nothing complicated the pedals. Manual useless.

SOUND QUALITY

So yaa say s it.
For the distortion, well it's the BOSS.
Mine (bought used) is a Japan, so the distortion is not too bad, although relatively mtallique by snoring and cons ca ca ds breath a lot to be pushed a little bit And that's trsdsagrable.
I especially bought for the feedback, which is good trs. With the possibility of adding more or less harmonic feedback, your exact trs is satisfactory. Moreover, the distortion I always leave 0 and I only use the feedback.
With Pitch-Shifter or trmolo derrire (gender PS-5) can be really funny stuff. (Except to do a bit of balance because it was one on each foot pedals).
Basically, the note is primarily for the feedback, not for the distortion.

OVERALL OPINION

Feedback is an effect may rpandu version pedals. Besides this MODEL is no longer produced and has not emerged from BOSS equivalent.
So no regrets for having bought it does not use it every day from this type of effect, but you can place it in a solo from time to time, the effects vary ca.
CAUTION: There were DF-2 Taiwanese significantly worse than the Japanese-made, be careful when you achte one occasion.

J "have the Japanese version is marked behind, and highly rated in order:" super distosion and feedback. "Purchased in 1988 about the time when the transistor amps there was no distorss incorporated too, now it's different. The feedback was more compared to the simple distortion pedal.
For manufacturing, it's the boss, so it's solid, impeccable and it works 20 years later.

UTILIZATION

Two effects, which can be combined.
No difficulty in understanding .....

SOUND QUALITY

Well, as in the previous review with which I quite agree, we must distinguish between two effects.
The distorss is pretty metal, not very clean indeed, with the breath, a little overall trend grunge! That's way, it was better before and after. on the other hand, with another distosion chain and this low volume, you can get good sustain without too much extra dirty sound. Each of hacking!
Feedback is indeed unique and quite interesting if we want to stick the ears on his amp to get the effect. We can take to Bob Fripp Treats is effective, but it takes some control over the volume control to get the desired level. I get a sound to die coupled with the vintage of my Peavey distorss and cry baby open, endless sustain and feedback that is chilling.
A single pedal for this, with adjustable intensity and feedback is what makes it of interest.
7 and 9 for distorss for feedback, making 8 ....

OVERALL OPINION

Still far apart for the Argus, this pedal is especially true for the feedback. A good initiative in Boss, surprising that they did not renewed ..... Even if I do not use much more I keep it .....

I have a made in japan "super distortion & feedback", of course analog. A volume knob, one tone, one gain and one to adjust the feedback. Brief solid boss has a habit of making. When you open the beast we realize that the boss has to study the damn thing to get everything there bazard dedant.
1 point less for the inability to adjust the volume of feedback (we'll see below)

UTILIZATION

Frankly anyone who does not know to use it would do well to buy a brain rather than a distortion pedal.
The tone has a scope very Largen, some would say too. It is certain that in normal use it will be used in the middle, but its a very dull, at least it's very interesting, is the most garish. But in fact we can experiment a little by playing on the guitar pickups and the EQ of the amp.
The knob adjusts the frequency of feedback highlighted for you push the pedal to generate the artificial feedback. A kind of tone feedback.
The feedback is activated by pressing the left pedal after the distortion switched on, a little annoying if you want to enable other things at once or make very long but good feedback loop is a bit the price for a pedal compact.

Edit: About the tone it will definitely not too far in the end. On my peavey ultra + has a clean channel very special I trouvasi the DF-2 sounded crap, wrong! In fact everything to build on the amp, the bright switched on, the knob of the df-2 for at least tone it sounds as well as boosted channel of the amp! Only if we make adjustments more "orthodox" Sounds good rotten. I understand why some find this pedal anywhere: you really get the settings, play with the amp and do not hesitate the most extreme stuff!

SOUND QUALITY

The distortion appears Vrau zero at the beginning, finally I was. Besides, I only used it very little, only with the gain to a minimum in order to make use of feedback, but in fact when you learn to discover she's a very interesting feature which is really the amp that used with. On my little Marshall Valvestate I think we approach the mesa's on my randall (lamp) is even more marked, but on another amp sound more british ca. In any case an amp lamp we get a very good result. I heard that this distortion was not top on an amp without trying shit and a good set may, after maybe made in the tawian it sounds differently there anyway I find it very good !
Feedback is excellent but too bad we can not adjust the volume, it is often much lower than the notes played, it must be managed with a pick to do to hear while playing. Otherwise it simulates a really good feedback just all Feedback elsewhere: you can get a result as when we put the guitar on the amp, or against, or feedback micro. In short excellent.
EDIT: I had this test done on normal power supply, battery on the sound changes a lot (PSU PSA / aca done its work ...)! One gains in stack of potato and grain exchange, it is less "molton" more aggressive, more suited to styles more angry, but matter of taste, I like less.

OVERALL OPINION

After several months of using very satisfied, especially for the price! I saw that on ebay america ca partat at crazy prices, apparently was the case here a few months or years, no doubt given the unique feature of this pedal and its its rating is still underestimated.
A single pedal indétronée to date, indestructible and that sounds!

Pedals Distortion + Feedback
Analog Technology
Boss Traditional Casing: 10/10
Knobs:
-Distortion: level, dist, tone
-Fdb: overtone (allows rgler the importance of feedback)
Mine is made in japan. Buy OCCAZ.

UTILIZATION

Traditional configuration of the distortion in any ease.

Simple configuration of feedback: one knob for rgler its intensity.
A must have t bnficier an expression pedals for the feedback, because the effect is when one turns INTERESTED portard.

You push with your foot on the pedals for the distortion Inrush.
It keeps the foot down to the Inrush FDK.

For cons, the big problem for Inrush distortion. I delayed embtant trs. the effect is set up APRS for supporting a sec. Sometimes, I support and it does not s'enclanche ... ditto the other way: it does not always stoper the distortion. is not the communteur trsractif. That said, it may be of the age of my pedals ...

SOUND QUALITY

Disto:
Disto quite dirty. a lot of gain. Grunge vein. However, the sound is too synthetic and too rough.

fdb:
Tration effect INTERESTED trs.
In practice, flat and synthetic. Leffet INTERESTED is a bit more when you turn the knob at the same time.
INTERESTED point, cest note that the FDK is required when quon can continue playing normally. But larrte leffet of lack of col. Its not easy to place.

OVERALL OPINION

Tration INTERESTED. In practice, the effect is not of good quality trs and handling is not extrment ais. I quickly put ct ...

I will not repeat it, cf. other opinions.

UTILIZATION

Usage is simple enough, but maybe because I'm used to address me to my board to turn the knobs. We can take the feedback and play with the knobs, as will be explained later.

SOUND QUALITY

So that is the subject of my post. I have since yesterday, but being big fan of various experiments, I tried a few things and I came across a pretty funny feature. I have a MIJ, but I guess it's the same on Taiwan:

When one starts the feedback, the pedal plays a note that roughly corresponds to the root of the chord played. If you release, the feedback stops, but if tamping fast enough, it can resume. So obviously I tried to do something with it, and inevitably at some point I waited a few tenths of seconds more, and the PAF, the note changes! It is more serious, it has nabbed a part of the note of feedback. Even funnier, the new replacing the old notes, we can apply the same effect, and so on.
The great scientists that you will probably eventually realized that out of the audible signal and a distortion (so close to the triangle or square), we arrive at PocPocPoc that resemble Kraftwerk Geiger Counter. So of course we can not adjust the speed as they do, but try to turn the Overtone, and tell me if you regret having read this long paragraph to the end ..

OVERALL OPINION

This pedal is one of the most trippant I have for now (I speak in terms of sonic explorations).
If you are unable to reproduce the effect described, please contact me.

The boss df2 is built like the rest of the standard boos stomp boxes. 1/4" standard input and output, 9v dc input jack, knobs for gain, tone, level, and overtone level. It can also be ran on a 9v battery.

UTILIZATION

Setting up is just as easy as all other boss stomp boxes. It's very straight forward which is probably why boss is so widely used. All you need is two cables and some power then you're good to go. The knobs are all plainly labeled making a manual pretty much unnecessary. The only extra bit of info you need is that holding down the bypass activates the feedback overtone.

SOUND QUALITY

The sound of this pedal is very similar to the classic boss ds1 distortion. It's definitely not the greatest distortion out there but can be useful in some settings and in front of amps that need just a bit more gain to get you where you want to be. This is not to be confused with an overdrive where you can set the gain low and volume high to boost an amp. It never really gets that clean and sounds pretty fizzy when used that way. I think the main crowd this pedal appeals to is the noise crowd that is looking for obnoxious sounds. The feed backer circuit is a fun feature that adds a layer of drone over your playing. Basically you play a note and hold down the bypass and the pedal infinitely repeats that note allowing you to play other parts over it. The feedback or drone takes on a bit of a synth character. It is a bit smoother sounding than an actual guitar.

OVERALL OPINION

Overall it's a fun pedal to have around but not really all that useful for me. The prices are all over the place as it's another "rare" discontinued boss pedal that has had the occasional cult following. There are much berthed ways to achieve a similar sound as the feedback circuit and surely better boxes out there for distortion

Boss has a pedal for everything except scoring a record contract. But maybe they will invent one one day. This pedal is for feedback of endless sustain. It is a distortion pedal as well but the main feature and unique effects to this pedal is being able to sustain a note endlessly until you decide to stop without having to blast the amp to usable volumes for you house of smaller gigs.

This pedal take a 1/4 instrument cable or jumper cable. It is 9v operation and a DC output for hooking it up to your pedal board power.

UTILIZATION

Specifications

Controls: Level, Tone, Distortion, Overtone
Connectors: Input, Output, AC Adaptor
Current Draw: 10 mA (DC 9V)
Weight: 450 g (0.99 lb.)
Input Impedance: 1 Mohm
Recommended Load Impedance: 10kOhm or greater
Recommended AC Adaptor: ACA Series (black label) or PSA Series (silver label)


SOUND QUALITY

The way this thing works goes like this. You just step on the pedal and remain on the foot switch and hold the note of you guitar until you release your foot from the foot switch. You have four control knobs that effects the distortion and the feedback. First you have level for your overall volume of the pedal effect. Then you have a tone knob to either darker or brighten the sound of the pedal. Next you have the distortion control knob which adds overdrive to the pedal. Finally, you have the overtone control knob which allows you to dial in which EQ overtone you want to feedback. this is something that will change with in user's rig whether it be their guitars or amps or others effects they have in the signal.

OVERALL OPINION

Boss discontinued manufacturing of these pedals back in 1994. So the used market is the only way to go to get one of these pedals. These are cool for one use really and other than that not that useful. The distortion isn't the best and not really the reason you would buy this pedal. I have an amp that will feedback endlessly so this pedal is not for me. Might be cool for the recording studio though to get interesting sounds.

The Boss DF-2 Super Feedbacker & Distortion is a unique distortion pedal that is designed for electric guitar which is the only instrument that I have used this with.  The pedal has 1/4 inch connections and can be powered by either a 9 volt battery or power supply.  This isn't a rack mountable piece of gear as it is a stomp box.

UTILIZATION

Using the Boss DF-2 is extremely easy as everything is laid out in a user friendly fashion as is the case with most Boss pedals.  The parameters that this pedal has are split into two sections - one is distortion which has knobs for level, tone, and distortion and under the feedback section is a knob for overtone.  This is pretty much all that there is to this pedal and even those without much experience with pedals will be able to figure out how to use this.  A manual isn't necessary but since I haven't it I can't say if it is put together well or not.


SOUND QUALITY

The sound quality of the Boss DF-2 is pretty cool overall.  It isn't the best distortion pedal in terms of the traditional sense as it gets quite dirty and noisy, but that is the cool thing about this pedal.  It is designed to not only give you a fat distortion but also to give you feedback on command, which is probably its best feature.  You can really get some crazy feedback type noises and sounds and I would really recommend this pedal for this reason rather than for its distortion.  I've used the pedal for recording with a Fender Strat and a '76 Fender Twin Reverb and I find this to be a great set up to use this pedal with...


OVERALL OPINION

There aren't too many pedals out there that are designed to give you both distortion and feedback, so right off the bat this was an intriguing pedal.  While I'm not all that satisfied with the distortion section of this pedal, I think that when combined the distortion and feedback can give you some great instant feedback and a ton of noise.  This isn't an expensive pedal so if you are interested in getting a pedal that will give you a ton of feedback, distortion and noise on command, the Boss DF-2 is definitely worth at least trying out.

***WARNING: THE FOLLOWING REVIEW APPLIES FOR A JAPAN-MADE BOSS DF-2 - NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH LATER TAIWAN-BUILT MODELS WHICH MAY --well, most likely DO-- SOUND DIFFERENT***

It is a DS1-type distortion combined with a unique feature: an artificial feedback generator -- play a single note, hold the pedal's switch and your note is now repeated endlessly, well as long as you don't release the switch at least.

It has 4 knobs -- the classical level-tone-dist, plus an "overtone" feature that allows if need be to make the artificial feedback more bright-sounding, although the more you push it and the more synthetic it sounds. Of course you can keep on playing while the overtone is heard, which gives the impression of two layers of guitar sound stacking up -- hence the name "overtone" for the control knob I suppose.
A few facts about this pedal: The Boss DF-2 was produced between 1984 and 1994, first in Japan and then in Taiwan when Boss relocated its factory there. The first models bore the inscription "Super Distortion and Feedbacker" before Boss changed it to "Super Feedbacker and Distortion" due to a threat by Di Marzio (which owned the rights to the name "Super Distortion" ) to sue Boss for copyright infringement. This explains why the price of "Super Distortion" models is usually much higher than that of "Super Feedbacker" ones, although there's no difference in the way they were built.

UTILIZATION

Well, a 4-knobs stompbox can't be that much complicated, can it!? Regarding the manual I doubt anyone has kept it due to the long time this pedal has been discontinued, but you still can get a .pdf copy of it at Roland's website (yes, for those of you who don't know Boss belongs to Roland).

For once the manual is actually useful as it explains some subtleties which may elude you --especially regarding the way to get the feedbacker sound well-- , but once again with only four knobs you'd just have to tweak for a little while before finding your sound anyway.

SOUND QUALITY

The distortion in itself is, well, DS1/DS2-esque, that is just average in itself in my humble opinion. Don't expect anything good out of it with the tone knob over 12:00 to 13:00 (I usually keep it between 10 and 11). Where this pedal really shines is, of course, in providing this artificial feedback which is particularly suitable for noise/punk/grunge twisted sounds ala Sonic Youth.

I use it with a Mexican Fender Fat Strat through a SansAmp, but generally I have it followed by another distortion (TS9 clone, Big Muff or anything else) so that the other pedal should shape the distinctive distortion tone of my overall sound.

Also, the feedback sound is affected by a sort of tremolo-sounding vibration, which you may or may not like... but which should easily be cut off provided you know how to mod effect pedals (the schematics are available on the web).

OVERALL OPINION

I found this box for 45€ used (a bargain!) in a pawnshop some 2 years ago. I had been looking for it for a while then but the price was usually way higher (100€ and more), plus the one I had tested before sounded too "cold" to me (maybe it was a Taiwan-made model? I hadn't checked that at the time).

This model has never been reissued by Boss nor copied by anyone, and in a way it can easily be understood why: it only seems to provide limited perspectives as far as the sound is concerned. Unless you're playing grunge/noise/experimental/punk rock (or eventually electro-rock if you push the "overtone" setting high enough) there's hardly a real interest in preferring this one over a "normal" DS-1. I haven't had the opportunity to try it with a keyboard yet, but I heard it provides good results...

(Originally written by nihilsbajo/translated from Audiofanzine FR)

I have a "Super Distortion / Feedbacker" (analog effect) made in Japan. Volume, tone and gain controls plus a feedback control. Typical heavy-duty Boss manufacturing. When you open the housing you get the impression that Boss had to go to great lengths to fit all those components inside.
I'll take 1 point off because there is no way to control the feedback volume (see below).

UTILIZATION

Someone who doesn't know how to use this pedal should buy a brain rather than a distortion pedal.
The tone knob has a very wide control range, too wide would say some. For normal applications, set this control in the center position. If you want a very dull sound it can be interesting to turn it down to the minimum, for a shrill sound turn it up to the maximum. And you can also play around with the pickup settings of your guitar and the amp's EQ.
The feedback knob controls the emphasized frequency while you step on the footswitch to generate the artificial feedback. It's some sort of tone knob for the feedback.
To activate the feedback effect the distortion must be on and you must hold down the footswitch as long as you want the feedback to last. It's a bit cumbersome if you want to control other effects at the same time or if you need a very long feedback.

SOUND QUALITY

At the beginning I found the distortion sound really bad. I used it very rarely, only with a minimum gain so that I could use the feedback function, but now I've gotten used to it and it can provide a very interesting sound depending on the amp. I discovered that with my small Marshall amp the sound comes close to a Mesa. This impression is even stronger with my Randall tube amp but you'll get a more "British" sound with other amps. Anyway you'll get very good results with a tube amp. I heard comments about this distortion pedal not being that good. But that's maybe if you use a very bad made-in-Taiwan amp and the wrong settings, but with my gear I find the sound is very good!
The feedback function is excellent but I miss a dedicated volume control for it because it often sounds softer than the notes I play and I have to adjust my pick attack for it to be audible while I'm playing. But it simulates all sorts of feedback quite realistically, from the feedback of a guitar placed close to the amp to microphone feedback. Excellent.
EDIT: I first tested it with a power supply but the sound changes in battery operation! When battery operated the pedal has another sound character. The tone is more "aggressive" and fits harder music styles better. But it's a matter of taste, I personally don't like it that much.

OVERALL OPINION

After several months I'm very satisfied with the performance, especially considering the price! I saw the pedal is sold at very high prices on Ebay USA and it was the same in Europe several months or years ago. With its unique features, this effect pedal is really underestimated.
Up to now it has been a unique, indestructible and great sounding pedal!