Instant groove and percussive-melody generator. Chop, groove, beat-make your instrument phrases in real-time.
2 People rated this product : 6 out of 10
|
1 Person wrote a review : |
Read all Boss SL-20 Slicer Audio Pattern Processor Pedal reviews... |
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() 4 out of 10
|
![]() |
zZounds has verified that this customer bought this product from us. |
Feature:
Meh... a book and a wall wart... The features in it, like the extra effects, and the possibility of switching between mono and ping-pong and so on are kinda cool. But seriously folks... look at what this thing is... it turns an audio signal into a preprogrammed beat loop. You could play a kazoo into it, or hum incoherently into it, and it would come out like a preprogrammed techno riff. If you want robot music, then there's plenty of features on this to make it that you don't even have to know how to play chords to sound all awesome and 'in the pocket'. It's like the guitarist's version of the 'auto-accompaniment' on beginner keyboards. I could sneeze into it and get a cool rhythm track. But after a while the rhythm gets old and you really should just use this guy as a 'icing on the cake' kind of effect or it will drone on and on and on until it becomes annoying. On the plus side, I messed with the 'hold' looping stuff and that became the basis of the song we were jamming, when I just turned the loop recorder off and played over it in the 'input level', but you have to remember to turn the loop off when you want to play a change or it will start to drive everyone nuts.
Quality:
It's solid chassis. The knobs are sticking out a bit so they may get busted off if you lug it around with gear though.
Value:
honestly, although a cool toy, it doesn't do much more than add a gimmicky sound to your live act. Anything you want to do in a studio (even a home studio) setup you can emulate by chopping and pasting in audio editor programs. As for live jamming... yeah it's a fun little toy on par with a digitech whammy or a bassballs for just adding something wierd and intense for a second in a song. If you want to design your sound around this thing though, then guitar playing as an art form has become as punked out and pathetic as drum machine pattern switching. Now anyone can sound like they got groove, without even having to strum in tempo, the machine can do it for you.
Desirability:
I think it's a copout. An excuse to dumb down guitar playing even further. However, if one was handed to me, I would add it to my toy box
Sound:
It is nice bossy quality hi def clear sound you put in, hi def clear sound you get out, after being recombobulated by the 'effect'. The Harmonizer effect is nice, seems a bit like the Zoom 'step' auto harmonic effect, just sliced through a midi tremolo too, which is cool because it is doing it all in one pedal. I recommend stamping on it in an intense jam session climax, but not relying on it throughout a song or your guitar will begin to sound so rhythmically precise. like a cheesy backing pattern from a casio synth after a few minutes. If you are playing in U2, that's just fine, but a delay and a linked tremolo at the same tempo accomplish te same thing. I can't call it 'bad' because it is nice and clear and does what it says it will, but after a while (for anyone who has ever experienced the 'insistance' of drum machines curbing their groove, you will understand.) it gets kind of like it is bludgeoning the way you play into its little beat pattern. Keep it off most of the time, and engage it for some power climax crazyness, dont bass a whole song off of its rhythm patterns.
Ease of Use:
I am not a big fan of tap tempo or tempo knobs. I want a definite number in milliseconds to work with, this way I can configure ALL my effects and stuff to the same beat. I don't like that the only way for exact sync is through MIDI in. especially with a machine intended to turn any audio source into a beat pattern, you would think they would let you dial in an exact tempo, instead of the human-error approach of tapping it in or twisting a knob.
Support:
boss is cool
Overall:
it's a gimmick. a toy.
Submitted: 6/24/2008
Style of Music: alternafunkadeathtechghettorockgarageskungeternative
|
6 of 12 people (50%) found this review helpful. Did you?
|
|
Read all Boss SL-20 Slicer Audio Pattern Processor Pedal reviews...
30-Day 100% Satisfaction Guarantee Applies On This Item - Buy it, and if it isn't just right for you, return it!
"zZounds is awesome! The best place online to buy instruments." - customer on June 22, 2009
Free Catalog |

Sound & Vision offers accessible information on home theater, audio, video and multimedia products.
This is not a free trial offer and you will never get a bill. The subscription is included with your purchase.
Please allow six to eight weeks for subscription to begin. If you'd rather not receive the subscription it can be removed from your cart.