Boss BR-1600

DON'T BUY THIS! The interface is horrible, they should have created, a usb interface for your computer. So get ready to pan through a bunch of buttons on a small lcd screen. Fairly easy to use.., you WILL need the manual! Get the software upgrade. (it helps a little) Add the extra drum beat disk!, because the standard drum beats suck. Also, not only is the drum machine a pain to work with, YOU CAN'T CHANGE TEMPOS in your songs. So what's the point of putting a drum machine on this thing??????
BIG MINUS FOR BOSS ON THAT ONE!

Boss makes great effects and thats about the only good thing about this machine, some nice guitar to bass effects. Don't expect to make great recordings with it. I've taken it to live shows and band practices with varying levels of poor results. Most of the music I've recorded sounds great while recording, but the playback quality is seriously lacking!!! Even file transfer by disk or usb to my computer for mastering is terrible. (POOR QUALITY RECORDINGS!) Especially with any kind of distortion!

It's fairly reliable and has better ratings with it's hard drive than some of the other recorders in this range. I took it on gigs, doesn't do that well, but if you just wanna get a taste for what you sound like live, take it. I would Not use it on a serious LIVE recording.

Boss is a great company, great pedals! Their hybrid guitar stuff is pretty weak for the most part. Never had to repair any of my boss pedals, and I just gave away a Heavymetal II pedal to a friend that was 15 years old, and it still works like a champ.

I play Death Metal, Metal, Contemporary radio stuff (Tool, ect..), Acoustic. Been playing for over 20 years. I would not replace this machine, not even if it's retail price was $300.00 dollars which it should be!!! It's ok for some simple writing purposes, too take to the band, or so you don't forget that great riff you wrote last night at 2:00 in the morning. LOL.. I compared it to everything in it's class. What I wanted was simple GOOD clean recording capabilities with a nice expandable drum machine. What I got was an effects box, with a bunch of other useless crap on it. Save your money and record in a real studio, or buy Pro-Tools. Otherwise buy a crappy 4 track cassette recorder at your local pawn shop. LOL.....

If a machine was actually 'Easy to Use' you wouldn't need a manual! But its reasonable to expect a balance between having to read-up on some feautures, and being able to 'Just Do-It' with others. The Boss 1600 gets the balance just about right. I would rather spend time recording than reading, and so for many operations I just guessed it and got quite far ... The steepest learning curve is creating bass and drum arrangements and programming the chord-map. But the very fact you can create a realistic sounding backing track right on the machine real is a huge feature for solo singer/songwriters.

Compared to the Yamaha AW16G this machine is a walk in the park. Far easier to use, and far easier to get a good sound.

The machine knows if you plugged in a guitar or a mic and helps you out by setting up an appropriate effect - it also keeps a record of this on the track information. Again this is great compared to the Yamaha where you might spend hours tweaking effects trying to make your guitar or voice sound decent.

For the main operations this machine is very easy to use. For the more in depth it can get quite skill testing. There's room for improvement, but its on the brink of greatness. If the next version of the machine could auto-create a chord map based on your guitar track it would be the greatest invention since Reverb!

On my scale of Easy to use, a 10 would mean never having to read the manual - so 8 is still pretty high!

Sound quality is excellent. A good tip though, is don't overuse anything. Consider halfway as the maximum Reverb/Chorus/etc and you will get a real sound without artifacts. Tracking Acoustic Guitars and vocals is great. With the standard effects (JS-120 I think) your acoustic already sounds good. Tweak the chorus and reverb a little more (those two effects have dedicated buttons on the front panel - as though The Boss knew just what you'd need) - very smart design!

The different effects guitar and vocal are superb and wide ranging. I didn't even bother to take out my electric for my first lead guitar parts - I plugged in my Tanglewood Sundance Electro-Acoutstic and selected the 'Fat Strat' setting and you would never guess it was played on an acoustic.

One bug though - and I consider it a big one - is the 'Auto-Punch'
Sorry Boss, but I expect more from this level of machine. We need multi-takes, auditioning, and seemless (which its not) punches! That's what the competition (Yamaha) have.

The saver is you can't really hear the ropey punches in the mix - but you can hear them on the target track. I've used sever much lower machines and had seemless punches ... need a software patch please.
Sounds like there's a micro delay at the punch in point before the new sound is applied ...

The rest of the machine is so strong it blows by the competition despite this ...

Only had it 2 months - so far no problems
Works in my cold garage too - but will be moving it indoors to avoid any condensation issues on warm-up

Called them on the 'Auto-punch' weakness. They were supportive (and that's the main thing in my book), but didn't have an anwser. They did offer sound advice though on trying to find the quiet spots to punch in ...

The auto-punch is the only chink in the armour. This is overwhelmed by a professional sounding machine that's pretty easy to use for all the main operations.

I had the Yamaha AW16G for a month, and the Boss dances rings around it!

Like I said before, this machine is close to Greatness!

I recorded a song the first evening with the BR-1600. I found it incredibly easy to use, although I have not messed around much with the rhythm track programming features.

The sound is brilliant. I was previously using an Mbox and Protools. I liked the preamp on the Mbox a lot(I think it is a Focusrite). The preamps on the BR-1600 are equally pristine. I record mostly acoustic guitar and vocals--folk/rock kind of stuff. I play an Olson SJ acoustic--very high end. The sound is captured through a Shure SM32 condenser and Rode condenser mics. There is a plethora of effects, compressors, etc. Really, I think I am only limited by my imagination.

I was toying with the idea of getting the Boss BR-1180, but ended up going all the way for the 16 tracks and the ability to record 8 tracks simultaneously. I'm really glad I did. I'd like to record bands sometime with each instrument on its own track.

The mastering toolkit is a wonderful plus for this unit. Within an evening, I had recorded and mastered a song that approximates the one album I cut in a professional studio. I know I can learn to use this thing more effectively, but after one night I was quite impressed.

It is too easy to say about reliability. However, I had (and still have) a Roland VS840 that still works. Never an issue.

Never had cause for contact.

I've been playing guitar for 25 years. I am well aware that computer based recording has many advantages over a turnkey product like the BR-1600. However, I wanted something dependable, with no latency issues, to focus my efforts on making music not figuring out the endless complexities of computer based recording. If you are a techy, you likely have the patience to learn computer recording. I don't and find this product to be exactly what I've been looking for. I've owned it for almost two weeks now. The opportunity to return the unit expires in two days. Guess what? I'm keeping it.

I have had the unit for a month, and in general have found it easy to use. There is a bit of a learning curve, but after the first weekend, I had recorded and mixed 4 songs. There are 2 manuals, a small one to get you started and a very detailed one for advanced use. One thing I wish it had is an explanation of what each guitar setting is simulating. I can infer them and of course listen, but I'd like it written out. That is a minor criticism.

9 For what is essetially a processer, I think the sound quality is quite good. I have recorded in 3 professional studios, both in analogue and digital, and the final mixes I am getting match those. I would say the sound is less organic, but I think that is partly due to fact that I am layering guitars, percussion and vocals whereas in my studio experience we went for a "live" sound. There are many useable guitar effects, and many I'll never use.The drum machine has a good sound, and I have been pleasantly surprised by the bass simulation. I don't own a bass, but I am getting a good sound from my Strat dialed into one of the bass simulations. I do think most of the vocal settings are the unit's weak point. I have found one or two settings I like, but for the most part, the rest are not useable for my purpose, especially the pitch correction and the harmony and chorus setings. I am using a Shure 58 and I an sure part of the criticism I have of the the vocals has to do with the quaility of the mic. In my last studio experience, we used a $2,500 Neumann mic that was great. I am getting a decent vocal recording with the Shure and after adding the reverb, the vocals are acceptable, but that is why I give it a 9 and not a 10. I guess I expected more from some of the vocal settings. The guitar sounds are excellent, easy to adjust to get the right sound if you're willing to sit and dial it in. I have used quite a few of them successfully, from an acoustic sound to hard rock. This is a guitarist's dream machine.

I have had the machine a month. The only comment I can give here is that it is finicky about the CD-R's. I have been using Sony and the machine has rejected a few giving me an error message. The Roland tech told me to use TDK. I got a pleasant enough response from Roland when I asked about that as well as some other questions I had. For the price, I expect it to be dependable. However, the manual does state early that like any hard drive, it is subject to crash!But so far so good.

Roland tech was helpful and knowledgable when I asked him my questions.

I play rock that has an acoustic guitar rhythm. I have been playing for 20 years, have performed for many years, have recorded in 3 professional studios, and I have always wanted a home studio, but never wanted to pay the price. This is the toy I have been waiting for. I am using a Fender Strat, a Martin D 35, and an Alvarez FD something or other that is a cutaway. I also plan to experiment witha keyboard at some point. I don't plan to take it out of the house, but it satisfies my lust to make music. In fact, even though I have written and performed my own music for years sometimes to ethusiastic response, sometimes not, I have been having the most fun with music I think I have ever had in the last month. Here in this month I have recorded an hour's worth of songs and have been very pleased with what the results. Each song has 10 or more tracks and satisfy my desire for recording. If you're willing to put some time into it and you have some chops and creativity or you want to record demos, this is the tool you need. I am very happy I bought this unit. Of course, now that I have it, my desire to go out socially has declined and I have shown a tendency to "check out" with headphones, but I love this thing.

Bought the unit last week, being my first ever recording mixer. Connected all my equipment to it, and then stared at it without a clue what to do next, so definitely had to use the manuals to get me started. By the 3rd day, was able to record my 1st song onto a cd. I woudl say there is a steep learning curve, but once your past that it seems to be a great product. The manual is simple and well-written.

I have an Ovation acoustic/electric plugged into track 1 which sounds awesome. The array of effects blew my mind - I tried out some Santana numbers, and the sound was perfect. Tried some jazz numbers as well, and the sound was just as good. And if you don't have an acoustic guitar, the acoustic guitar simulators are the best I have heard.

It's only a week old, so can't really comment on this, except to say that I do own other Boss equipment which is about 15 years old and its still going strong.

Not used

An excellent product that will fit any style of music you play/record. Before buying this, I was lookign at the VS2000 from Roland. A friend of mine had the BR1180, but I was never really interested in it cause it only had the 2 inputs, but when they came out with the BR1600, and I saw the demo's on-line, I was blown away. I thought the price was pretty reasonable for the amount it has to offer.

I've had this thing for a week, and it's an absolute monster. In the positive sense. The unit itself is very user-friendly, and a novice like myself can get great sounds out of it immediately. While the drum sounds, and the drum sets, are limited in number, they're very solid and real compared to the toy-like sounds I get from my DR 770. The manuals are extensive, and very logical in their layout, but they leave some things to the imagination. For instance, the long manual claimed that the BR 1600 could not be set up as a slave to another MIDI device, only as a master; I had to figure out a way to make it play the drum sounds I had programmed on my external drum machine. But it worked, and it sounded great, despite the manual's claim. (One other downside: programming drum patterns with the unit is a bit of a pain, as you need to stop one, wait, load the next, wait, then hear it, versus just scrolling through them with a value dial and hearing them all play side by side until you find one you like. If you care about programmed drums.)

My Strat sounds great plugging directly into the Hi-Z guitar/bass jack in front of the unit. You get just a sample of the effects which are programmed into the GT-6, but they sound just like 'em. Some sound better. I had a lot of trouble getting a nice bass simulation effect out of the GT-6 (can't afford a real bass yet, so it's important), but I got a pretty solid simulation out of the BR-1600. I didn't like the perfect, plastic sound of the built-in bass track the unit came with, by the way, but that may just be my taste. Also, the parameters aren't always as tweakable as they are on an effects unit, but hey. One thing I miss, which keeps me coming back to my external guitar effects processor, is the BPM feature which allowed me to synchronize the slicer, delay, Uni-V, tremelo and other effects with the established Master Beats per Minute. With the BR-1600, you've got to play with the settings until you get a fit, or what appears to be one. Unless I can make that a slave to my drum machine as well. Haven't tried that yet.

Overall a very good sound, with nice selection of amp and distortion options to play with.

It's a very solid unit, heavy and well-built, and the sounds are solid as well. The arrangement of the controls is logical. The unit hasn't done anything funky to anything I've recorded--the only strange results have come when I didn't yet have a full understanding of a certain function (e.g., the "spacy chorus" vocal effect doesn't sound so hot when you accidentally send it to the drum track). Only complaint in this department: it can be awfully slow at times. You're stuck staring at the twelve track lights, which are illuminated from left to right as an operation is completed, waiting (for something to load, or something to copy, or whatever). But I've got time, so I won't reduce my rating over it. Just a heads-up.

I've bought a number of stompboxes, an effects processor, a drum machine, and this recorder from Boss over the years, and I've never had a problem with any of it outside the occasional dead battery. So I don't know what their custom support department is like.

I think I play avant-garde rock, but I'm probably wrong about that. The unit has been a great match for me thus far, with everything I've tried to do. The "copy and insert" function makes it a breeze to create techno-like tracks with a beat and some imported phrases--you can even line a sample up so that it ends at a given point in the music, rather than line it up to begin at a certain point (perfect for placing a line right before a dynamic spike, such as a boost in the rhythm). The "scrub and review" function allows you to find a specific spot in a track, and the "mark" function allows you to identify that spot to a fraction of a second for future reference. Marking spots comes in handy for a variety of purposes--copying, inserting, deleting, creating loops. And it's as easy to use as writing a mark on the page of a book--you hit "Mark." Scroll through all a song's marks by hitting "Search."

A lot of the functions sounded very intimidating when I read about them in the manual, but when I finally dove in and tried to use them, I was amazed. Very easy to use, believe me. I'm a tech idiot who's looking for interesting sounds, and finding them with this unit.

The only thing I'm not 100% sure about--and I hesitate to mention this, as I haven't exactly conducted a controlled experiment yet--is the vocal effects. Nothing I've done has sounded very professional so far, in that department. But I'm hoping this is due to my cheap, unbalanced dynamic mike, and that once I splurge on a nice condenser mike and plug it into one of the XLR inputs I'll hear a world of difference.

If this thing were lost or stolen, I would cry like a baby. Then I'd dry my eyes and start working on a budget to find out how long it would take to save another $1494.

You all know Boss. Very intuitve and easy to use! A big plus on this unit is the fact that Boss now includes 4 knobs that allow you to tweak the guitar, bass, and vocal effects with a twist of a knob. The LCD is much bigger than it's predecessors, and below it are 'f-keys' much like a computer keyboard, that make navigating MUCH MUCH easier than any unit before it. This thing packs a TON of features, but many of them can be used with little or no reading of the manual.(Especially if you've used their BR-1180 or BR-864 before. In fact, this thing reminded me of an 1180 on steroids when I had first seen it! The unit comes with 2 manuals, one 73 page "Basic Operation" manual, and another 310 page manual that covers everything in detail. I have the very first unit my music store recieved, so my unit would have to have the very first firmware version. I'm giving this category a 9, since there is still a lot of things that you cannot possibly figure out without cracking the book.

I recently sold my BR-864 in favor of this unit. Although the 864 is big on value, I found the sound quality to be a little two-dimensional. Even adding stereo effects and mastering effects still left my mixes sounding a little dead. Now granted, the 864 and the 1600 are leagues apart, but recently I've found that I needed more than the 864 could provide. The 1600 is fully capable of producing professional quality recordings, and then some! I'm a guitar player, so the built-in amp sims are a big plus. One of the new features Boss touts, is the fact that the 1600 has the Boss GT-6 engine built in. I have kids, and I can't mic my stack at night as they sleep, so recording straight into the console is a definite plus, but I've got to say that the amp sims are VERY useable. In fact, I spend more time tweaking the settings than playing most times. There are a lot of deep editing options, so you can dial in almost any tone you want, granted you have enough time and patience to tweak it. I don't sing much, but with built-in pitch correction, and an auto-harmonizer I've been getting very satisfying results. Nothing's more errie than hearing the computer add a 3-part harmony to your own voice! The unit also includes a new bass generator which also sounds killer! One of the guitar patches is a bass simulator, but it's not very accurate and seems to take a long time before it rests on the right note. The built-in bass sequencer takes a little more time to program, but the sound is much stronger. The built in drum machine is every bit as good as the DR-670 is used to have. It's not nearly as flexable, but it's very close. I wish there was more than 9 kits to choose from, but for having it built in, I cannot complain!

I've owned a BR-8, BR-864, and a BR-1180, and all of them have been extremely reliable. I did have a bad CD burner in the first BR-1180 I got, but my dealer made it right, and I had no problems after that. There is MUCH more to this unit, so there's more to go wrong, but I guess time will tell. Still too early to tell...

I had to call Roland years ago, and it was probably the worst treatment I've ever received on the phone ever. I've not needed to call them since, so it would be unfair to judge them now.

This will (hopefully) be the last recorder I ever buy. The fact is...this thing has more than I will ever use. I'm a confessed gear junkie and have been playing for about 20 years now. I've been looking for the "perfect" recording solution for a while now, and Boss might as well have named this unit after me, because it's got everything I need. Years ago I had to buy an 8-track reel-to-reel recorder, drum machine, bass, master mixdown tape deck, a rack full of effects, and half a house to fit it in to get what I can get out of this console! I love it's intuitive interface, built-in guitar effects, drum machine and bass simulator. I like the fact that they now have the dedicated guitar input and headphone jacks on the front of the unit, as opposed to the rear of the units like the 1180 and 864's. I really dig the icon, knob, and f-key interface. An added bonus was the addition of a USB port on the unit. I can now backup songs and projects in seconds to my desktop. With the 1180 you had to burn it to disk for storage, but not now! My only noticeable issue I have with it, is that it seems much slower than anything else I've used. The demo songs take about a good minute or two to load. Even turning the unit on takes a couple a minutes to complete. On the other hand, how often does someone switch between songs? A minor observation. Before buying this unit, I had looked at the Korg D1600MKII, but the sound quality was a little lacking, it lacked any rythm or bass sequencers, and the interface was really horrible. I also looked at the Yamaha AMG16G, but I've read and heard horror stories about it's confusing and complicated navigation and operation. Prior to this unit, I also owned the Zoom 802CD, but it also was a little hard to use. I really can't think of how Boss will be able to improve on this unit or design down the road. Most any recording musician will appreciate it's features, and ultimately...it's sound. If you are considering the 1600 or 1180, do yourself a favor and spend the little extra money and get the 1600. You CAN'T go wrong! It's always better to have more, than not enough!