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Hatsubai « The warmer SD1 »
Published on 01/09/12 at 16:49The Boss OD3 is very similar to the SD1. In fact, they're more similar than a lot of people lead on to believe. However, there are some differences. I mean, if there weren't, Boss (probably) wouldn't release two different pedals with different names. The pedal has your basic level, gain and tone knob. It's a FET buffered pedal with the ability to run a 9v battery in case you don't have any way to power this thing. Aside from that, it's pretty much like your standard BOSS pedal on the outside.
UTILIZATION
The knobs are laid out nicely, just like all BOS pedals are. The things are crazy tough, too. I once saw a guy hammer some parts on his guitar with one of these because he couldn't find his hammer in his toolbox. It was scuffed up a bit, but it worked. It's surprising how much abuse these things can really take. As long as you don't spill anything on them, they're pretty solid. Setting it up is simple, and there's no need for a manual for these things. Want gain? Crank it. Want more level? Turn the knob. Want a brighter or fatter tone? There's your tone knob.
SOUND QUALITY
The sound, as mentioned before, is very similar to the SD1. However, this pedal is a bit more on the vintage side of things. Where as the SD1 is a very strong boost that pushes amps into overdrive, this is a bit warmer and fatter sounding. It almost reminds me of a BD2 at times, but it's a bit different from that. It works great if you need to add some warm sounding overdrive to an amp, but I wouldn't use it as a primary distortion pedal as it won't have enough gain, most likely. It really depends on what kind of music you're going for.
OVERALL OPINION
If you're looking for a warmer sounding overdrive, check these out. They're really cool sounding pedals that are a bit different from the SD1 that everybody seems to run today. It's like BOSS's version of a tubescreamer, I guess. Then again, I guess the SD1, BD2 and countless other pedals they have are the same way...
UTILIZATION
The knobs are laid out nicely, just like all BOS pedals are. The things are crazy tough, too. I once saw a guy hammer some parts on his guitar with one of these because he couldn't find his hammer in his toolbox. It was scuffed up a bit, but it worked. It's surprising how much abuse these things can really take. As long as you don't spill anything on them, they're pretty solid. Setting it up is simple, and there's no need for a manual for these things. Want gain? Crank it. Want more level? Turn the knob. Want a brighter or fatter tone? There's your tone knob.
SOUND QUALITY
The sound, as mentioned before, is very similar to the SD1. However, this pedal is a bit more on the vintage side of things. Where as the SD1 is a very strong boost that pushes amps into overdrive, this is a bit warmer and fatter sounding. It almost reminds me of a BD2 at times, but it's a bit different from that. It works great if you need to add some warm sounding overdrive to an amp, but I wouldn't use it as a primary distortion pedal as it won't have enough gain, most likely. It really depends on what kind of music you're going for.
OVERALL OPINION
If you're looking for a warmer sounding overdrive, check these out. They're really cool sounding pedals that are a bit different from the SD1 that everybody seems to run today. It's like BOSS's version of a tubescreamer, I guess. Then again, I guess the SD1, BD2 and countless other pedals they have are the same way...