Boss DD-20

This posting is for you looper people out there.

I like to use it for looping - and not just in the SOS mode, which can be frightening if you forget to step on and hold the record switch - you can erase the loop if you are not careful.

You can actually preset a patch to become a looper, with you can then easily turn the record feature on and off, and set the feedback time in order to achieve Fripp-like flexibility: a gradual fading out of old material (you can set the time of the fade or have it not fade at all, with the turn of your feedback knob) so that over time, your looping can become more freeform, and you aren't just stuck with a rhythmic bed, like if you were looping with a Jamman or RC-20 (nice products too, but also limited).

Here's how:


1. Set a delay time to 23 seconds in quarter note mode and save this to a patch.
2. Start to play and press tap simultaneously (either using external or internal footswitch). Make sure you've enabled the record (or on/off) switch.
3. Finish phrase and press tap again
4. Now you can set the decay of your 'SOS' loop.
5. You can also turn on and off what you record in the loop, without fear of fumbling and deleting the loop by not holding down the switch in SOS mode.
6. If you use the pan delay, I believe the total amount of loop time is actually 46 seconds. That's enough, I think.
7. You can also set up your patches to all be 23 second loopers, and then you can record a loop, switch to the next patch, record another loop, and have two going on simultaneously. That's fun. However, once you switch to the next patch, the first loop will disappear.

Clean. A digital delay. I run a multi-effects unit into it, so then I can record different ambient sounds (reverb, panning, delays) to create nice ambient levels.

It is a tank.

It's been great. I've used it to create a stereo image for electric guitar, acoustic guitar, ambient music, whatever.

This pedal is moderately easy to use. I did have to spend some time with the manual, which is quite lengthy, in order to get a decent grasp of the basic features. Once I had a grasp of how to use the pedal, it was quite easy to get several delay settings that were just what I was looking for.

I use this pedal with a Peavey Valve King 112 amp and a an Epiphone Les Paul standard plus flame top with PRS McCarty pickups. I mostly use this pedal on the standard digital delay setting with the level at about 2 o'clock, the repeat knob set to about 7 o'clock, which is just enough to get about one repeat, and the tone knob flat. This setting, allong with a tapped tempo, works really well for giving your lead tone an extra measure of thickness and sustain. The repeats are very faithfull to the input signal and are always clean and clear. The tape effect seems doesn't seem to be a whole lot different than the standard digital delay, but I beleve that the wow and flutter parameters can be adjusted if you want to bust out that manual. The analog delay sounds are a nice approximation of the high frequency attenuation and signal degredation that normally occur with such delays. The warp and and twist functions don't seem very usefull, but are certaintly different than the standart delay types. The dual delay gives you a slapback delay as well as a standard delay. While this feature is pretty cool if you want a twangy type sound, it seems like it would be a time intensive task to dial in just the right delay times for each of the two delays (which again, you'll want the manual to do) for a particular song. The pan delay setting is really cool through a stereo rig, as the dry sound would come out both sides and the delay pans back and forth giving you a swirling sound. However, this setting through a mono rig is a waste of time. I find that the smooth setting sounds really nice on clean tones, giving them a great deal of warmth, but isn't that discernable from the standard digital setting with some gain. The modulate setting is kind of nifty. It puts a chourousing effect on only the delayed signal. This sounds very cool for clean tones. I wish the pedal had a loop so that you could run any external effect on only the delayed sound. The reverse delay is a cool sound, but I find it difficult to use. The sound on sound feature is a very cool extra. I find it to be a great practicing tool for improvization and I have even used it live for a backing rhythm track. It would not do the job if you wanted to make and store several loops and manipulate them on the fly, but if you view the feature as an extra, it is really great to have. Overall, the effects are very quiet and with the addition of a tone knob, you can take the edge off those repeats if you so choose. I find that it gives me every sound I need and then some.

It's a Boss, but it does have a sort of flimsy face plate protecting the liquid crystal display. I havn't had any issues with this, but I could see how dropping something pointy on the screen could ruin it.

Never had to deal with them.

I play blues and classic rock music and it seems to work quite well for these styles. I've been playing the guitar for eight years now and have become a gear freak. I know a great deal about pedals, guitars, amps and the like, but don't have the funds to purchase everything I wish I could. I am a college sutdent, so much of my gear choices are cost to tone comprimises. This pedal was not one of those comprimises! It is my favorite peice of gear other than my Larrivee OMV-09E acoustic guitar and I use it constantly. As far as non-rack digital delay's go, this thing is the way to go. Download the PDF of the manual from the boss website, read up, and then go try one out and hear for your self!

The pedal is intuitive, once you have read the manual! The manual is comprehensive and well-written. I was able to demo each mode/variation with ease.
There is an on-board preset storage for up to four presets. Sadly, there is no facility for downloading or uploading any settings as there is no MIDI or USB connectivity.

I used a Cornford Harlequin with a LP standard to assess the sound quality.
Though extensive permutations are offered by the DD-20, I felt the general tone of the delay was lacking in faithful representation of the input signal. There's an apparent bandwidth restriction resulting with harsh, cold repeats. When used with through a driven amp, the delays became increasingly muddled.
I connected the straight to my Mackie mixer to access the sound quality through my studio monitors. The difference was remarkable, unfortunately I have no requirement for outboard effects.
The best mode was probably 'Tape'. The worst without doubt was 'Warp', a kind of pitch-up oscillating effect that goes 'down' when pressure is released from the pedal. I don't know what Boss were thinking when they created that one!

No comment

No comment

The DD-20 attempts to cover every variety of delay. The interface and manual make the pedal accessible. It has a clinical timbre with some evident narrowing in bandwidth.
It proved to be more suited to direct-line than connected to a valve guitar amp.
I would have been happier with less functionality and better tonal quality for live use. This one is going back to the shop!

Well, it's not the easiest unit to get around, but it serves it's purpose well.

Ediiting patches is a breeze, and always has been with boss products, but really all your saving is 'mode' 'tempo' and 'beat' settings. I do wish that 'tap' tempo was easier to get too, I find myself setting it into 'tap' mode right after boot up, and then when I need to change patches I lean down and select them. It's just faster that way, live or in the studio.

The manual is pretty good, better than others out there, but not as good as some. It's got a lot of functionality thats for sure, and some hidden features that the manual reveals.

I'm pretty disapointed...but at the same time it's what I expected. Considering the price of the unit compared to the DD-6...I find that they sucked out some tone and put in more functionality. But even then, it's nothing like that of my Maxon AD999 still in my board or the TC Electronics VDP Vintage Delay I used to own.

The repeats are lifeless, and the pedal sucks out some highs and compresses the low end too much for comfort. I'll be surprised if this unit dosn't find its way back to the shelf if I can't find more value in the features before I get frustrated with tonal quality.

Don't get me wrong, it's a great digital delay for the price. Compared to the DD6, Line 6 DL4/Echopark, and Marshall Echo head it's on par...compared to the TC Delay or Trex Replica... it definatly falls short.

However, the delays always ring through clean no matter what pedal I'm using with it!

I'd honestly give it a 6.5 because I can't give it a 7, but it dosn't deserve a 6 either...

Boss stuff is always dependable. I got a BD-2 from the early 90's thats TRASHED, modded by Keeley, and TRASHED some more... still works, no repairs made... I would not expect anything less from this unit

never had to deal with them for problems, however I know the local rep and he has always bent over backward for me!

I play a good mixture of various styles of rock music. Hard, soft, metal, emo, punk, alt, 'canadian', I mix it all up and go for it. Until now my rig has been comprised of mostly botique or analog gear.

(rig one)
Gibson LP/335 -> Ernie Vol Jr. - Vox V847UJ wah - Fulltone Fulldrive 2 10th Anniversary Mosfet - xotic RC Booster - Crowther Hotcake Bluesberry - Fulltone OCD v2 - MXR Phase 90 block logo pre-Dunlop - Dr. Scientist Tremolessence - Maxon AD999 Delay - Boss DD20 - 1973 AC30TB

(rig two)
Warmoth VIP/Gibson LP -> MXR Dynacomp pre-dunlop block logo - Crowther Hot Cake - Boss/Keeley BD2 - Maxon AD9 - 1985 Fender Twin

As far as what I do this pedal has some good qualities, but it's hardly worth replacing with another DD20. I'll use it for quite a while, but it's only renting space on my board instead of taking out a mortgage. I'll probably replace it with a Replica or TC Delay when I have the money again.

for the money, it dosn't really shine, but it's not a throw away either....

Okay, I'll preface this by telling you that I have very little experience with stand-alone delay pedals, and I don't usually play with delay. That said, I have a bit of trouble using this thing - but maybe that's because I haven't put in enough time with it. I've tinkered with it while soling (using my toes to twist knobs, etc.). I guess that's not the best time to figure out how to use a pedal. At home, I really only use the SOS (sound on sound) feature so I can practice improvisation. It is easy to get a good sound; all of the echos, slapbacks, etc. have a good sound. It all depends on your playing.

When I think delay, I of course think of The Edge. I haven't figured out how to sound like him, but I really don't want to, either. I'll use delay to add some airiness or extra sustain to solos, but I use it very sparingly. My favorite setting is the SOS.

It's a Boss. A big reason for choosing this was because it seems that the Line 6 DL4's don't last very long.

No experience with Boss.

I've been playing for 11 years, and this is my first dedicated delay pedal, although I've got some multi-effect processors that have some delays. I wanted some delay to use with my stomp boxes, but as far as delay goes, I only need the most basic of units (just for the extra sustain and air delay can provide). I also wanted something to loop riffs so I can practice at home. A Loop Station or Jam Man cost $250, and they only do loops (albeit they loop much more than the DD-20). This pedal does both for $180 brand new. It gives you about 16 seconds to record a riff, and that's plenty to jam with. It certainly does what I want it to. For people who use a ton of delay, this thing has a lot of versatility for both standard delay and tripped-out effects. I would certainly recommend it.

Easy to use. Four knobs on the right side: Effect Level, Feed Back, Tone, and Mode. Knob on the right adjusts the delay time. Push knob in while turning allows for faster scrolling through the delay time. This thing does it all folks. Write and select buttons underneath that for the memory settings.
The manual is pretty cool. Very helpful in explaining how to set the memory and tap functions.

You can get pretty much any delay sound you want out of this thing. Slap-back to phsycadelic and back. It does a good job of emulating analog delay. I also have a Morley ECV Pedal, which is analog, and I can almost duplicate that analog sound on the DD-20. I place the E. Level @ 3 o'clock, F. Back @ 12:00, Tone @ 10:00 and the mode on the Analog setting. I set the Delay Time at 300 ms. Almost spot on. Pretty impressive for a digital pedal. I actually run my Morley into the DD-20 and play 'em both together as if I had two Morley's even though the DD-20 has a dual setting that emulates that. I don't have a problem with noise since I power it from the adapter through a power conditioner. My set up is as follows: 2003 Highway One Strat with Fender Vintage Noiseless P/U's-Boss TU12 Tuner-Crybaby Classic- Crybaby Bass Wah-Digitech Whammy Wah4-Boss SD-1(MIJ '85)-Big Muff Pi R.I.-Boss CE-3(Soon to be Modded)-Ibanez FL9 R.I.-Voodoo Lab Tremolo-MXR Phase 90(R28 Mod)-Morley ECV(Chrome '97 R.I.)-Boss DD-20-Fender Blues Deluxe.

Boss makes some good shit.

Never dealt with them but I hear that they are great.

I've been playing for about 10 yrs now. I started out playing classic rock. Zepplin, Hendrix, Beatles. I play a mix of blues, rock, jazz, and latin. I also like to create sound effects and this works great with the twist and warp features paired with the Whammy Wah. I use delay almost all the time so I would definitely replace this if I lost it or if it was stolen because delay is an integral part of my sound and this does everything I need it to do. Still need how to figure out how to use the reverse mode though. All in all, a great pedal.

This pedal is pretty simple, even for all the knobs... It may take some searching through the manual to figure out *SPECIFICLY* what sound you want, though...
I like that it lets me save settings (and the settings don't get wiped when it's unplugged)... I haven't looked at the manual to comment on it.

It's a delay pedal and has a great range of delay types... I mainly use it for ambient/noise and beefing up sounds... it can do everything from short slight reverb and slapping echo to ridiculously long, never-ending whale-sized delays... I am pretty poor and only have a few other pedals (cheap ones at that) and I play through my PC's speakers because I can't afford an amp... so I can't really comment on "noise" because Playing through PC Speakers kind of MAKES it noisy... I have noticed that it can sort of flatten the sound, and when I use the Sound On Sound function, the volume of the play back is quiter than the original sound (which is sort of annoying)

It's a Boss and so it's obviously reliable... But honestly, tt actually seems more likely to break than Boss's smaller pedals if I dropped it pretty hard... I am very gentle with it and always carry it in it's box though...
I would gig without a back up because I treat this pedal with care... I doubt I could afford to buy another one. Never had a problem yet, though... probably should use it with an adaptor though.

Never dealt with them.

I play just about everything BUT traditional butt rock tone-fetish music, so just about any effect is fun and cool for me... I play varying styles of music from 80's Indie to pure noise, and I can find a use for this pedal in nearly all styles I play. I seriously think a kill switch would have been a useful feature, because it might get a little crazy with extreme amounts of distortion before it, set on a long delay... and then you can't stop it unless you switch through other settings really quickly or something... Just try to avoid lots of distortion and high volume before the pedal... it's fine if you can have a distortion after it, and just switch it off to stop it... I suppse I can't really complain, seeing as how I use it for noise more than anything else though!

This is just a response to users experiencing noise problems. I've tried with several adapters and this has in all cases. I'm using a VisualSound 1-Spot. Place the DD-20 first in the chain!!!
- buffers are improved
- ticking with blue tempo led is gone

This thing likes it's power clean. Note: using a PedalPowerII, I had to use a separate adapter.

It is very easy to get a good sound out of this thing, just twist the knobs till you find a setting you like. Editing and saving a patches are a breeze and shouldn't require that you read the manul but good for you if you did. The manual is pretty good, it explains the basics but doesn't go into great detail. I think it does the job though. This pedal really isn't that hard to operate, you might need to read the manual for some of the stranger effects but not for basic stuff.

This is where this thing shines. you can get anywhere from short delays to long crazy delays. A very versatile machine here. I love the sound of this thing-you get a different type of delay tone depending on the type of delay you choose. I notice no tone loss from my amp and I'm pretty picky. I'm running this in the effects loop of my Peavey triple XXX. My favorite short settings are the analog, standard, and smooth, while my favorite long delay settings are smooth and pan. Excellent for crazy deep sounding solo's or just making the rhythm parts sound bigger.

come on it's a boss

I hopefully will never have to deal with them.

I'm really shocked by this pedal. I never was a huge fan of delay until I bought this thing.

I have 2 small problems with this thing though.

first the batteries were dead when I opened the box.

and secondly I wish that in the preset mode it would display what type of delay your using. They could have put it right there on the LCD screen. This is really anoying cause you have to write down your settings to remember what your using. Sounds great though.

The DD-20 is easy enough to use but read the Manual for hidden tricks on some of the functions.

I gave this unit a 4 for the sound quality since I noticed this thing amplifies noise in the signal chain. This unit adds white noise and a pulsing sound from the tempo indicator,to your guitar signal, I heard the noise quite clearly in my non master volume Plexi with no guitar signal. I tried the Boss PSA adapter and the Voodoo Pedal power II+ and got the same noise....... This pedal does alter the tone of your guitar, it was very apperent to me after I put the DD-20 in its own loop. I spent as much as the DD-20 on a Keeley Looper and a Radial PB-1. to get rid of the extra noise this pedal adds to the signal path. I created a loop in which I put the PB-1 before the DD-20. The Class A buffer and the adjustibility if the PB-1 eliminated the pop from the hardwire bypass switch and matched the tone and volume level of my other 2 pedals so when I switch the DD-20 into my signal path I cannot hear any audible difference in tone or additional noise.
I found that Analog, Tape, Smooth and Modulate are very usable, I mostly use tape or analog, I am 45 years old and play classic rock blues and funk.... warp and twist come on Boss

This is my second Boss pedal, the first was the TU-2 It seems built well
at around $180,00 I doubt I would purchase a backup

I sent my DD-20 back for service, They returned my pedal in the same condition in which I sent it in, They stated that my Pedal met factory specfications... Roland USA was very professional in responding to my problem, they were truely professional and very responsive to getting my issue solved however the were not able to recoginize my problem at the factory

Overall for a Digital Delay, the units Delays sound good. I was not too happy with the coloration of my guitar tone by adding this pedal into my signal path but with the PB-1 buffer and the DD-20 in its own loop I was able to fix the tone sucking..... I like the memory features and find them very useful, I can truely say I like this pedal but due to the hassle and expense of the additional gear to make the DD-20 work for me, I would probably not look at purchasing additional Boss pedals. With the money I spent on this project, I could have upgraded to something like a Diamond Memory Lane... Oh well once bitten twice shy.