Boss PH-3 Phase Shifter

From a local guitar shop; effect was brand new($109).

Me being into extreme sounds at this point in my guitar career, this effect was a jaw-dropper. It allows you to emulate sounds as though you were underwater and breathing bubbles,in space,or jumping around a level of Super Mario. All of this, AND is an actual phaser pedal. 2 in 1 I guess you could say.

To be honest, it was sort of an impulse buy and I don't use it as much as i used to. But you're not me so whether I USE it or not is irrelevant. Also, if the effect you have on is very deep or extreme, when switching the pedal off you'll get that little unnatural switching noise...the one where everyone can hear that you just hit a switch.

It's a BOSS...self explanatory. But just in case you aren't familiar with BOSS, the thing is indestructable. You're good for like...50 years I'd say.

It's a fantastic overall effect, just decide whether you'll use it to it's potential before purchasing it.

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

The Boss PH-3 Phase Shifter is a phase shifter in the form of a guitar stomp box. It is an analog pedal and has a 1/4 inch input and output for your amp and your instrument. It is also built well and should be functional for a long time if treat it right. It is not rackable as it is a pedal.


UTILIZATION

The setup and general configuration of the pedal is extremely simple to follow. It is also really easy to get a great sound from this. It has a knob to control the rate of the phaser and has a switch to change the color. I don't have a manual for, but controlling and set up this pedal couldn't be easier.



SOUND QUALITY

While this isn't the most versatile phaser on the market, the simple phase shifting tone it produces is quite warm and is rich overall. I have only used this with guitar, but have heard of others using it with electric keyboards with great success. By varying the rate, you can get a few different phaser flavors and the tone color switch is also helpful when trying to vary your tone.


OVERALL OPINION

Overall, I have found the Boss PH-3 phase shifter to be incredibly useful over the four years that I have been using it. Not only is it built extremely tough and looks great, it is a great sounding pedal that is as easy to use as they come. Its more versatile then its competitors by far. The price isn't too expensive and I have grown to love the unique and rich sounding pedals that Boss makes. If you are in the market for a phaser, this is definitely worth a try. Look around online for these, for some reason people are selling them pretty cheap, that’s their loss. Because this is a great pedal at a great price and it will last you along time.

This is first phaser top boss pedal that doesn't feature in analog base to circuit. This is all digital circuit design that is very different in design and sound from its previous models. This phaser has a four 8, 10, and 12 stage phaser that is very different from the previous models which gives it a little bit more versatility in town. You also have a three new modes called the fall, rise, and the step. The rise and fall creates a misdirection phasing sound which kind it is uncontrollable at times. The step mode gives a set of filter modifications that allows to add some envelopes filtering modulation in the circuit tone. This gives it a unique style of phasing and you wouldn't hear on many phasers that preceded this one.

Features

Compact pedal with vintage BOSS phasing effects.
"Rise" and "Fall" effects for unidirectional phasing sounds.
Includes classic 4-, 8-, 10-, and 12-stage phasers.
Realtime control of rate via Expression Pedal input.
Tap tempo sync of phasing effects.


UTILIZATION


Specifications

Controls: Pedal switch, RATE knob, DEPTH knob, RES knob, STAGE switch (4, 8, 10, 12, FALL, RISE, STEP)
Connectors: Input, Output, EXP/CTL, AC Adaptor
Current Draw: 45 mA (DC 9V)
Weight: 420 g (15 oz.)
Nominal Input Level: -20dBm
Input Impedance: 1Mohm
Nominal Output Level: -20dBm
Output Impedance: 1kohm
Residual Noise Level: -92 dBu (IHF-A, Typ.)
Recommended Load Impedance: 10kOhm or greater
Recommended AC Adaptor: PSA Series


SOUND QUALITY

The tone of this pedal is very unique in its design but very unique and sound it gets the classic phaser tones but also has its own phasing situation going on if you need a pedal that will give you some of the most obscure and crazy sounding phasers other than the ADA pedal. this would be it.

This effect will sound good in any application you you can find. It will take some time figuring out what your perfect phasing situation is for this pedal. So this isn't exactly a plug-and-play pedal even though you can get a good sound by simply just plugging it in and having the controls where they lie. The stage mode control knob is where you get into some crazy facing situations. It can give you hours of creativity or can cloud up some of your own guitar playing skills.

OVERALL OPINION

These petals come in new right at around $130 which isn't that bad of a price for a cool and unique sounding phaser pedal I would recommend this pedal to someone who wants something little bit more versatile in a little bit more crazy sounding in their freezer units.