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Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive Pedal
Smooth, round, fat distortion. Great overdriven tube sound.
"A superb pedal for rock musicians"
Feature:
It's got a LEVEL, TONE, and DRIVE knob. That's really all you need for this. Adjust the DRIVE to crank the intensity and the TONE to decide whether you want to play the highs or the lows.
Quality:
This is a BOSS pedal. These things wouldn't break if we had a nuclear war. You don't have to worry about it breaking, IT WON'T. Just be sure to only the right type of power supply (9V battery or BOSS AC jack). Mine came with the AC power supply free.
Value:
$50 bucks for an overdrive pedal isn't bad at all. You really get what you paid for.
Desirability:
I don't really care what it looks like, but I wanted it pretty badly. I had listened to demos of it and knew it was what I was looking for.
Sound:
I would give this a 10, but if you crank the drive you can sometimes get a little hum. Other than that this pedal is INSANE! You can get a clean, boosted sound with this or you can get a really dirty grunge sound. (Oh yeah, and everything in between!) Minus the minor hum, you almost always get an incredibly crisp sound. It's fantastic!
Ease of Use:
It's really easy to use. You can read the manual, which is helpful. But I really just enjoyed opening it, sitting down with it, and messing with all the knobs. Turning them this way and that, I was able to get the sounds that I desired with little or no trouble at all.
Support:
Haven't had to deal with them and I don't anticipate I will have to.
Overall:
I probably won't replace it. Even if I become a professional musician, I don't think I'll ever have to replace this pedal (or want to for that matter).
It's got a LEVEL, TONE, and DRIVE knob. That's really all you need for this. Adjust the DRIVE to crank the intensity and the TONE to decide whether you want to play the highs or the lows.
Quality:
This is a BOSS pedal. These things wouldn't break if we had a nuclear war. You don't have to worry about it breaking, IT WON'T. Just be sure to only the right type of power supply (9V battery or BOSS AC jack). Mine came with the AC power supply free.
Value:
$50 bucks for an overdrive pedal isn't bad at all. You really get what you paid for.
Desirability:
I don't really care what it looks like, but I wanted it pretty badly. I had listened to demos of it and knew it was what I was looking for.
Sound:
I would give this a 10, but if you crank the drive you can sometimes get a little hum. Other than that this pedal is INSANE! You can get a clean, boosted sound with this or you can get a really dirty grunge sound. (Oh yeah, and everything in between!) Minus the minor hum, you almost always get an incredibly crisp sound. It's fantastic!
Ease of Use:
It's really easy to use. You can read the manual, which is helpful. But I really just enjoyed opening it, sitting down with it, and messing with all the knobs. Turning them this way and that, I was able to get the sounds that I desired with little or no trouble at all.
Support:
Haven't had to deal with them and I don't anticipate I will have to.
Overall:
I probably won't replace it. Even if I become a professional musician, I don't think I'll ever have to replace this pedal (or want to for that matter).
"A stellar pedal for a stellar price"
Feature:
This pedal lacks features for one reason: it doesn't need alot of features to do its job. I didn't find this as a displeasing at all, but rather better. I gave it a 7 as it's not a completely flashy pedal. I don't wish it had anything more.
Quality:
I love Boss pedals after I first bought the MD2 - which later turned out to be not so amazing after I discovered palm muting sounded awful on it - but after my slight experience with the way it was built like a tank, I expected no less, and no less were my expectations correct. It feels rock solid, the dials have a very unique quality to them, the finish & color is very recognizable (and that's a Boss thing; and I love it), and the sound, last but certainly not least, is better than my amp's overdrive channel in that is sounds very deep, resonant and natural. Suffice to say, it's very pleasing to have the SD1 in my loop.
Value:
I find it extremely - amazingly - worth the price at any retailer. The price I paid was modest and still kept close to the retail value, and I would pay just about anything close if I had to buy it again.
Desirability:
If I didn't have this pedal I would be working myself to death trying to get money for pickups, then I might decide they don't make my guitar sound any better and I go out in search of a pedal, but I can't because I'm broke as I just bought new pickups. Needless to say, I now thrive on this pedal simply because it gave me an amazing shortcut in my tone, altogether with the price I paid for it, I feel like I got my money's worth, and plenty more than that.
Sound:
I originally came into my local music store two/three weeks agolooking for the SD1 - after buying Digitech's Bad Monkey, returning it and finding the SD1 newly in stock, I quickly returned the bad monkey and scooped it up - and how glad was I! The tone is miles ahead of the shrilly digital sound of the Digi overdrive - whereas three simple knobs can make such a difference. It took a few days of tweaking and experimentation, but just recently I dialed in the perfect tone on my Crate Flexwave 120FW - and the sound I get when I stomp the boss is so pleasing I'm scared to touch the solo knobs! Overall, with a little tweaking, this pedal has enough.
Ease of Use:
With three knobs, how could you go wrong? My justification for buying this pedal was I didn't really want to be swooned to spend $100 dollars on a Tubescreamer when that in itself could buy a new pickup if need be. For $50 and less in some places (in my case, as it was $45), and with Boss, I knew I had to atleast check it out. All in all, you don't have to be a good guitarist to get any type of moderate distortion you want.
Support:
I have never dealt with Boss at all, but the stamp of approval on its' 5 year warranty on the box practically speaks for itself in matters of support.
Overall:
I have never tried another overdrive (beside the Bad Monkey); and although this is no original vintage TS808 or TS9, I'll give it a 9 because it isn't the best overdrive in the world. If I had to replace it, I wouldn't think of buying anything else unless I had to, and I could afford it. Because It feels like it could withstand nuclear war, this pedal isn't going anywhere out of my possession.
This pedal lacks features for one reason: it doesn't need alot of features to do its job. I didn't find this as a displeasing at all, but rather better. I gave it a 7 as it's not a completely flashy pedal. I don't wish it had anything more.
Quality:
I love Boss pedals after I first bought the MD2 - which later turned out to be not so amazing after I discovered palm muting sounded awful on it - but after my slight experience with the way it was built like a tank, I expected no less, and no less were my expectations correct. It feels rock solid, the dials have a very unique quality to them, the finish & color is very recognizable (and that's a Boss thing; and I love it), and the sound, last but certainly not least, is better than my amp's overdrive channel in that is sounds very deep, resonant and natural. Suffice to say, it's very pleasing to have the SD1 in my loop.
Value:
I find it extremely - amazingly - worth the price at any retailer. The price I paid was modest and still kept close to the retail value, and I would pay just about anything close if I had to buy it again.
Desirability:
If I didn't have this pedal I would be working myself to death trying to get money for pickups, then I might decide they don't make my guitar sound any better and I go out in search of a pedal, but I can't because I'm broke as I just bought new pickups. Needless to say, I now thrive on this pedal simply because it gave me an amazing shortcut in my tone, altogether with the price I paid for it, I feel like I got my money's worth, and plenty more than that.
Sound:
I originally came into my local music store two/three weeks agolooking for the SD1 - after buying Digitech's Bad Monkey, returning it and finding the SD1 newly in stock, I quickly returned the bad monkey and scooped it up - and how glad was I! The tone is miles ahead of the shrilly digital sound of the Digi overdrive - whereas three simple knobs can make such a difference. It took a few days of tweaking and experimentation, but just recently I dialed in the perfect tone on my Crate Flexwave 120FW - and the sound I get when I stomp the boss is so pleasing I'm scared to touch the solo knobs! Overall, with a little tweaking, this pedal has enough.
Ease of Use:
With three knobs, how could you go wrong? My justification for buying this pedal was I didn't really want to be swooned to spend $100 dollars on a Tubescreamer when that in itself could buy a new pickup if need be. For $50 and less in some places (in my case, as it was $45), and with Boss, I knew I had to atleast check it out. All in all, you don't have to be a good guitarist to get any type of moderate distortion you want.
Support:
I have never dealt with Boss at all, but the stamp of approval on its' 5 year warranty on the box practically speaks for itself in matters of support.
Overall:
I have never tried another overdrive (beside the Bad Monkey); and although this is no original vintage TS808 or TS9, I'll give it a 9 because it isn't the best overdrive in the world. If I had to replace it, I wouldn't think of buying anything else unless I had to, and I could afford it. Because It feels like it could withstand nuclear war, this pedal isn't going anywhere out of my possession.
"Gods Gift To Guitarists"
User: a customer from yahoo.com
Submitted: 1/12/2007
Style of Music: Punk, Rock, Ska, Alternative anything interesting ... Little bit a jazz/blues and a touch of lite and regular Metal
Musical Experience: Composer, Recorder, Engineer, All Amateur and getting a few small gigs in the local sceene
Location: Dundalk, Ireland
Feature:
Simple and to the point... twist the nob and your set
Quality:
Its BOSS... Well built, perfect for stage and im in a Punk Band!!!
Value:
I picked it up for £38 stg and thats a steal $50? thats £25-30
Desirability:
Im a fan of BOSS pedals for cosmetics durability reputation and most of all sound...
Sound:
A lot of control over the Overdrive... Tone level and drive what more do you need? and the most important part of the sound... its made by BOSS
Ease of Use:
Come on? You hit it with yoour Foot and it turns on...
Support:
Never Had To Deal Wiith Them...
Overall:
Well its an add on not the last piece before success but well it covers youe overdrive i twin it with a custom distortion on a VOX AD30VT i have total Control
Simple and to the point... twist the nob and your set
Quality:
Its BOSS... Well built, perfect for stage and im in a Punk Band!!!
Value:
I picked it up for £38 stg and thats a steal $50? thats £25-30
Desirability:
Im a fan of BOSS pedals for cosmetics durability reputation and most of all sound...
Sound:
A lot of control over the Overdrive... Tone level and drive what more do you need? and the most important part of the sound... its made by BOSS
Ease of Use:
Come on? You hit it with yoour Foot and it turns on...
Support:
Never Had To Deal Wiith Them...
Overall:
Well its an add on not the last piece before success but well it covers youe overdrive i twin it with a custom distortion on a VOX AD30VT i have total Control
"BUY IT FOR WHAT IT IS INTENDED TO BE"
Feature:
I give it a nine because it is simple, not a lot of features, just the right ones.
Quality:
I have owned it 10 years without any worries, can't say that about the rest of my equipment.
Value:
Great tone at half the price of Ibanez TS9. Why shell out the dough? Save it for strings.
Desirability:
The all metal case is the most appealing. I have owned plastic pedals that have basically been destroyed by use or accidents. Never let the drummer help you load your equipment!
Sound:
The SD-1 is a controversial pedal in the sense that most people buy it for the wrong reasons. I myself fell into that catagory once upon a time. I would read in my favorite guitar mags about my heroes using it in their setup. You know, guys like Zakk Wylde and Eddie Van Halen who are world renown for great tone have this same yellow box on their pedalboards, so I thought this is the key to achieving great tone. This wasn't the case. The SD-1 on its own, with all the controls maxed, is not a high gain affair. So in that aspect I shelved the thing for years. As time went by though I changed my musical tastes a bit, now I lean more towards the classic country sounds of the late 60's, guitarists like Don Rich and Roy Nichols and modern day guys like Pete Anderson and Marty Stuart. Now suddenly I find this pedal to be the cream of the crop. With the drive set at around 9 o clock or less it adds the right amount of grit to a clean Fender Tube amp. Low end licks stand out in the mix much better and it adds a good amount of sustain and clarity for pedal steel licks as well. If rockabilly and roadhouse blues are your thing or if you are looking for a touch of natural sounding overdrive this is the pedal for you. Barn burners need to pass this on by though. No high gain here.
Support:
Never had to deal with the company but I have heard good things.
Overall:
Like I said earlier, most people buy the SD-1 for all the wrong reasons. If you want high gain distortion pass this up, otherwise you will submit a report of unsatisfaction. If you want to boost your amp a little without over the top gain look no further. I will also mention that this isn't a cure for lacking tone. You need to establish a decent tone without the pedal first, then the SD-1 will accentuate that. I have tried this pedal on solidstate amps with disappointing results,works best with tube amps, in my opinion anyway.
I give it a nine because it is simple, not a lot of features, just the right ones.
Quality:
I have owned it 10 years without any worries, can't say that about the rest of my equipment.
Value:
Great tone at half the price of Ibanez TS9. Why shell out the dough? Save it for strings.
Desirability:
The all metal case is the most appealing. I have owned plastic pedals that have basically been destroyed by use or accidents. Never let the drummer help you load your equipment!
Sound:
The SD-1 is a controversial pedal in the sense that most people buy it for the wrong reasons. I myself fell into that catagory once upon a time. I would read in my favorite guitar mags about my heroes using it in their setup. You know, guys like Zakk Wylde and Eddie Van Halen who are world renown for great tone have this same yellow box on their pedalboards, so I thought this is the key to achieving great tone. This wasn't the case. The SD-1 on its own, with all the controls maxed, is not a high gain affair. So in that aspect I shelved the thing for years. As time went by though I changed my musical tastes a bit, now I lean more towards the classic country sounds of the late 60's, guitarists like Don Rich and Roy Nichols and modern day guys like Pete Anderson and Marty Stuart. Now suddenly I find this pedal to be the cream of the crop. With the drive set at around 9 o clock or less it adds the right amount of grit to a clean Fender Tube amp. Low end licks stand out in the mix much better and it adds a good amount of sustain and clarity for pedal steel licks as well. If rockabilly and roadhouse blues are your thing or if you are looking for a touch of natural sounding overdrive this is the pedal for you. Barn burners need to pass this on by though. No high gain here.
Support:
Never had to deal with the company but I have heard good things.
Overall:
Like I said earlier, most people buy the SD-1 for all the wrong reasons. If you want high gain distortion pass this up, otherwise you will submit a report of unsatisfaction. If you want to boost your amp a little without over the top gain look no further. I will also mention that this isn't a cure for lacking tone. You need to establish a decent tone without the pedal first, then the SD-1 will accentuate that. I have tried this pedal on solidstate amps with disappointing results,works best with tube amps, in my opinion anyway.
"One of the the best dynamic, yet subtle/explosive pedals ever designed!"
zZounds has verified that this customer bought this product from us.
Feature:3 knobs, that is all. Each one is truly usable.
Quality:
Over twenty years of use without a single problem or "scratchy" pot...'nuff said!
Value:
Value!!! I paid more for this pedal ($60 US) in the early 1980's. The industry has certainly changed!
Desirability:
This pedal has a lot of good settings. If someone does not like this pedal, it is likely that they do not like their original tone. This pedal adds layers of great overdrive. If you have a weak solid-state "bedroom amp", you may not like this pedal. If you want a distortion pedal that sustains tones for days, this pedal is not for you. I got lucky over twenty years ago to find a pedal that does not "clamp"(compress) and merely "fuzz" like Electro Harmonix Big Muff, and not add notchy/cheap/feedback riddled tones like other offerings by Boss/MXR/DOD(Digitech).
Sound:
I have used this overdrive pedal for more than twenty years. This pedal allows you to take the original tone with on/off pedal pedal comparisons and increase the gain to the point that your amp will naturally follow.
Overall:
This pedal has little is integral of my sound. I use it with my 1974 all-tube Sunn Model T, and a Gibson electric guitar. The tone I shoot for is Black Sabbath/ Corrosion of Conformity/ Black Flag/ Down/ Down II.
Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive Customer Review
Feature:
IT doesn't have a lot of features but it doesn't need many its an OVerdrive pedal and it is the best there is.
Quality:
It is a boss, it will still be around long after i'm gone.
Value:
Wasn't very expensive at all. The technology isn't cutting edge but it doesn't need to be. This is a brilliant overdrive pedal. It lets you rock HUGE while given a lot of transparency so all the little details of your playing, what makes you, you, is still there. It isn't muddled up by the overdrive.
Desirability:
BUY IT! YOU WON"T REGRET IT.
Sound:
This is the best pedal you could ever own. It sounds so good! Put it into a high-powered amp and just let go! I have all the settings on the pedal to about 2 o'clock
Support:
never had to deal with them don't know.
Overall:
As i said before brilliant pedal, it wasn't alot of money and it sounds incredible!
IT doesn't have a lot of features but it doesn't need many its an OVerdrive pedal and it is the best there is.
Quality:
It is a boss, it will still be around long after i'm gone.
Value:
Wasn't very expensive at all. The technology isn't cutting edge but it doesn't need to be. This is a brilliant overdrive pedal. It lets you rock HUGE while given a lot of transparency so all the little details of your playing, what makes you, you, is still there. It isn't muddled up by the overdrive.
Desirability:
BUY IT! YOU WON"T REGRET IT.
Sound:
This is the best pedal you could ever own. It sounds so good! Put it into a high-powered amp and just let go! I have all the settings on the pedal to about 2 o'clock
Support:
never had to deal with them don't know.
Overall:
As i said before brilliant pedal, it wasn't alot of money and it sounds incredible!
"Great and cheap pedal"
Feature:
Everything you need is there.
Quality:
BOSS: Best pedal construction.
Value:
Excelent sound for the money.
Desirability:
Perfect.
Sound:
Excellent sound. Very useful like smooth overdrive or light distortion. Gives an increase in the medium frequencies. The only drawback of this pedal is that it sucks part of the low end response. Good if you want to increase the guitar volume for solos.
Ease of Use:
Only 3 knobs...
Support:
Never had to contact BOSS.
Overall:
Excelent.
Everything you need is there.
Quality:
BOSS: Best pedal construction.
Value:
Excelent sound for the money.
Desirability:
Perfect.
Sound:
Excellent sound. Very useful like smooth overdrive or light distortion. Gives an increase in the medium frequencies. The only drawback of this pedal is that it sucks part of the low end response. Good if you want to increase the guitar volume for solos.
Ease of Use:
Only 3 knobs...
Support:
Never had to contact BOSS.
Overall:
Excelent.
"A tube amp in pedal form!"
Whether it's a Marshal, Fender, or Vox, you can get that natural overdrive that comes from those old tube amps. Sure, it's no tubescreamer. But for around 50 bucks who cares about a stupid tubescreamer. Plug youre strat into this box and it's texas blues heaven. Want to sound like Jimmy Page? Then put youre Les Paul into this and play the riff from Heartbreaker and you are climbing that stairway to heaven. Now it will not make you sound like Metallica or Creed, but what do you expect for an overdrive pedal.
"something every guitarist needs"
Feature:
none needed...its a pedal
Quality:
sturdy, everything is great
Value:
cheappppp
Desirability:
everyone should have this, its a good base sound
Sound:
excellent, the idle humming is barley noticebale
Ease of Use:
3 knobs, could it get easier? pedal goes down easy
Support:
good deal
none needed...its a pedal
Quality:
sturdy, everything is great
Value:
cheappppp
Desirability:
everyone should have this, its a good base sound
Sound:
excellent, the idle humming is barley noticebale
Ease of Use:
3 knobs, could it get easier? pedal goes down easy
Support:
good deal
"Great for warm overdrive at low volumes."
Sounds great with my Texas Special Fat strat (Duncan Pearly Gates at the bridge). All three controls set at mid range on the pedal, guitar volume and tone knobs on 10. Straight into my Fender Hot Rod deluxe, with Jan Phillips NOS tubes, on the drive channel. Amp settings: Drive = 6, bright = on, presence = 6, bass, treble, mid = 12, volume between 2 and 4 (any higher and you need to turn down the drive on the pedal). Sounds great with this setup!!
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