Boss DD-3 Digital Delay

ease of use huh ?? well, i guess its as easy as something this great sounding could possibly be. in my humble opinion - EVEN IF THE BOSS DD-3 WAS 10-TIMES HARDER TO USE THAN IT ACTUALLY IS, IT WOULD STILL BE WELL WORTH THE EFFORT !! i got a used one on ebay, went to the Boss website then downloaded and printed the owners manual (thats very convenient actually). i only had to take a few minutes of looking at the owners manual and the front of the pedal itself with its little "roadmap" of " S - .50ms , M - 200ms and L - 800ms " so, after playing with it a few minutes i pretty much thought i had it all figured out, but then, i saw the little "direct out" 1/4 inch jack and it was like "hmmm, i wonder what that thing does??" ........thats when it got interesting.........

let me first say that i bought this thing because recently i have been seeing some live guitarists with incredible tone and i knew they all were using some type of delay. so, i wanted to expiriment. i went to harmony central (like i alsways do before buying gear) and read alot of info about the delay effects that are available. now, i have an older, MIJ, Boss CE-2 that i love, so i went with the older, MIJ, DD-3 (mine is the very first generation, this was mentioned specifically by some of the previous reviews). so..........

i first set it up like this, 1998 PRS CE24 > Boss DD-3 > Mesa Roadster head > Mesa 4x12 cab W/ V30s and let it rip. WOW !! WOW!! is all i can say. there was a guy who said it best in a prior review, this pedal LOVES you, it loves you, your cable, your pick, your guitar, your amp, your tone, your ears, your fans ears, i can not say enough about this thing ! when i get the Roadster really cooking all by itself, guitar stright-in, on the heavy rectifier crunch of channel 4 its an incredible thing, but when i add just a slight amount of the DD-3, like maybe 40ms, with the effect level and feedback at about halfway, it is flat-out rediculous. the chunky thickness it adds to the sound is addictive, i could not stop smiling, then i moved up the neck and started to hit single notes and bends, it is truly spectacular. i also have a line 6 pod XT live i use to direct record with my band, i have used the different delay effects on it and honestly i did not know that the right delay could do what the DD-3 does. ..........now for that "direct out" i mentioned, this thing will let you (if you have 2 separate amps) run the guitar into the DD-3, the "output" will be the "effects only" signal (no dry signal) and the "direct out" will be "dry only" guitar signal so i went like this :
1985 les paul standard>
Boss DD-3> "effects-only" signal to the Mesa roadster, channel 4, all gained out>Mesa 4x12
then i sent the other "dry only" signal from the DD-3 through an entire regular live rig amp/effects chain :
Boss NS-2>
Keeley modded MT-2>
Boss CE-2>
EHX small stone nano>
MXR phase 90>
Mesa Express 5:50 head
Avatar 4x12 cab (2 greenbacks, 2 V30s
set up like above the sonic possibilities were endless.

also, the DD-3 has a "hold" feature, so if your set it right and chop a fast "chug-chug" then press down the pedal (and hold it down) the "chug-chug" will continue forever (or until you let your foot up) and you can play like crazy with the reapeating CHUG-CHUG in the background, fun as hell to play with, i just haven't got it incorporated into a live performance yet.
also, my pedal is not noisy at all.

my pedal is 20 years old, so who knows. i think if it was a weak product it would have died by now. i would gig without a backup because it's just a delay, it's not like i can't play if i don't have it. but, if this thing breaks i will find another exact replacement for it ASAP.

once i ordered some of those funny little round rubber grommets for the battery access screw holes that all boss pedals have, boss had those things in stock, they were expensive, so boss expensive but helpful.

i spent alot of time and money to get to this point, there are many facets that make up my whole guitar sound (amps, guitars, effects, experience, technique) i am amazed by the fact that one single product seems to have helped all of the separate things that make my sound. a hundred bucks for a product like this is basically free.
i don't let this thing go to far so i probably won't lose it and please don't steal it.

I'm reviewing this pedal on the grounds I knew exactly what it was capable of before I bought it.

All mentioned before, four simple controls - effect level, Feedback, Delay Time and delay time mode.

A huge reason I wanted to check out one of these is that I want something simple to use live, no messing around - and I think it does that really well.

The 'Hold' function is pretty useless, if it could loop sound a bit longer it would be cool, but I didn't have any plans of using this pedal as a looper anyway.

I use a 50w valve amp, running the delay in the FX loop with a rocktron Tremolo.

I've been looking at delays for months, analogue and digital. I was really close to ordering an EHX Memory Boy but after listening to a heap of sound clips - it's just too dark.
Analogue pedals sound AMAZING when you are playing by yourself, or recording - but they disappear when you are playing live, completely.
I know of a few people who bought Analogue pedals to later sell them a buy a digital pedal for live use.

Now the sound of the DD-3 is very simple and clean, it really does just what it should - create repeats of varying time and feedback, without introducing ANYTHING.

I play mainly classic rock and blues, so I wanted a no-frills delay to do classic delays - slapback short and medium length delays - and it's perfect.
The clean repeats will also be heard live easily.

One thing I was worried about was the bypass, some Boss pedals kill your signal when bypassed - but this pedal is quite transparent, it sounds fine in the FX loop.

I'm going to give this a 9 too, if you know what you want and what this pedal does - its great.
If you want thick muddy analogue echos - you're going to hate it.

Don't get me wrong, I want a good analogue echo - but for live use, this pedals sound and simplicity can't be beat.

Bought 2nd hand and its working fine.

As I said I play Classic Rock and Blues mainly, we do throw some psychedelic sorta parts in there too for contrast.

I play a G&L Legacy, A Modded Squier, through a modded Vox V847 - EHX Double Muff - then Rocktron Tremolo and DD3 in the FX loop of my 50w Ashton valve amp.

All I wanted was a pedal to create simple delays, I want Slapback, medium and longish echos for Pink Floyd kinda lead.
I don't need looping, over 1 second delay, reverse, modulation etc etc.
This pedal is great because it has no gimmicks, it just creates nice clean delays.

I'm thinking I might throw a switchable Low Pass Filter on the feedback so I can darken the repeats.
I kinda wish the Hold function was in some way useful, even then I don't think I'd use it.

In Conclusion -

Buy this delay if you want something which will cut through in a band situation, is cheap, is really versatile in classic style delays, and is simple to use.

Dont buy this delay if you actually want something that sounds different than the signal you're putting in it. It will NOT sound like a vintage delay, EVER.
Don't buy it if you want it to be able to do 100 different types of delays and other crap. It only does simple delays.

compared to rebote/mimic man analog delay which i already had, this is perfect! copies the reproduced sound exactly it was played, unlike analog delay, which the sound decays fast, this one lingers like a nostalgic memory, also it is warm enough to be mistaken as analog.

I was skeptic before purchasing one but I was wrong.

This unit is very easy to use. 4 knobs, volume of delay unit, feedback
and last 2 knobs for the lenght of repeats.

Sound quality on this is amazing. Pristine quality, this is digital, but
its so warm. This unit loves you and your guitars signal. It can make you cry, thats how it sounds.

never had problems with boss units. totally dependable, would use without backup in any gig.

Out of all my equipment, guitars, amps, effect units, cables..
this is the first unit, I knew from the beginning, I will never give up.
Its important to have that little edge, little something added to your guitar sound that doesnt leave it dry, especially, when you play
pop/rock music, coldplay, etc.

Very easy to use

Everything said here positive is true. straight out of the box I started having orgasms. For now this thing is just sweet for me, it sometimes makes me cry, It loves you that much, you and your guitar
this is just warm.. digital, but warm

just bought it

just plain simple digital delay, nothing more nothing less..
but it does it nicely.

the features are already described in the past reviews. this was my first delay and as a newbie i didn't had any problems getting out the sounds i was looking for, it's pretty simple to use.

it's a digital delay, not analog... but still it doesn't sounds that cold or something. i use it with a gretsch 6120-59, a marshall super lead + the boss od-3 (as a booster) and this setup is not noisy. also, didn't notice any significant colouring of the sound.

for now this is my only delay. might get a re-20 in the near future, but not for replacing this unit. i use it at gigs, no backup. it's a boss, it's solid as a rock.

never had any kind of problems with boss pedals... so i have no idea about that.

i use it for slapback or for fattening up chorus's of some songs and it does the job really good. i have it for years now, i would miss it if it was stolen, i'd probably get another one. the other boss dd delays doesn't really interest me as i don't need longer delay times or other options that those are offering. i like the simplicity of it.

Simple enough to play with and figure out in a short time.

The DD-3 definitely sounds better than most other contempoary Boss digital delay models. It definitely sounds many times better than the DD-6 I have which sounds far too cold and digital for me.

The DD-3 has a lot more warmth than most digital delay pedals I've owned or tried at stores. Now, it isn't as warm as the vintage older analog delays or expensive boutique models that can be bought, but for around $110.00 it is unlikely you will find a better sounding pedal.

This pedal is QUIET, too !!! There is no line noise, no pop or click when it is engaged, no volume increase or decrease, just a wonderful pedal in this respect.

I wish I would have found this DD-3 before I bought the DD-6, I could have saved $120.00 !!!

For a digital delay pedal, this DD-3 sounds REAL good, and has a surprising amount of warmth to it, not much of that digital coldness that most other digital's have.

I play a 1977 Les Paul Custom thru a Fender Bandmaster or my Fender Twin. The DD-3 sits at the very end of the line in a pedals board with 9 analog pedals ahead of it. This pedal does not change the tone I have grown to love from my Fenders, either.

Boss has a hit with this one, I don't know why they need to make other delay pedals. They really didn't improve on the DD-3 with subsequent models.

No Opinion.

N/A

This is a pretty decent digital delay pedal, and I am NOT a big fan of digital pedals, or Boss pedals for that matter either. Every other pedal I have is either old world Ross pedals or boutique analog pedals. I started with all Boss pedals because of reviews I read on this site and hated every one of them. Digital just isn't the sound I am looking for. That is what surprised me the most about this DD-3. It DOES sound as good as everyone here has stated. I wish Boss made their other pedals as good as this one.

Buy one, you probably won't be sorry. They are good sounding pedals !!!!

For all of you that never had a delay pedal, and are thinking about getting one, they are easy as pie. you have 3 basic knobs on most of them, delay time(range), feedback(repeats), level(delay output) with adition on the mode knob on the DD series, that alows you to choose the differen ranges of delay available to make things easy. just play around two minutes with this one and thats it, every single setting on this box is good for a different purpose, everything its on your fingertips.

i always found it stupid buying a DD-3 instead of a DD-6 and now the DD-7, cause of the price difference and features, now that im more experienced i think that the DD-3 its maybe all you need, depending on the style you play of course, dont spend money in something you dont need. also the quality of sound is not the same with more components in most of the cases.

ok i have a dd-3 that has a blue sticker on the bottom that says MADE IN JAPAN that is really old... dont know about the new ones, but this pedal is awsome!!! alot of components are analog in my box. sounds WAY BETTER than any digital delay found on multi effects, sounds metallic but not ear piercing on slap backs like other digital delays (digitech digidelay). i wasnt a fan of delay until i got this one, i cant stop playing it now!!! i traded it for a ts-9 reissue (i just got a maxon od-9, needed to get rid of the ibanez) i glad i made that move. sounds perfect for what it is, no strange noises or nothing, just good quality delay. i cant explain it, lo-fi but pristine maybe?

im sure is more than 20 years old, no problems at all so far, as i said, no hiss or nothing like that, and previuos owner didnt had problems either, the pedal never got repaired, the only thing is that the knobs are a little bit loose now, no big deal HAHAHA

the best customer support is the one you dont need to contact, all i needed on the past from BOSS i found it on their web site. i think they are great. i work on a call center as customer service and tech support for a dsl and telecomunications company, i know how things work... i dont expect alot, like having my cloth washed and dinner cooked by BOSS. now days this pedal is kind of cheap, if you think about it, you get more than what you pay on customer support thats a 10!!

im not a veteran, i've only been playing for 9 years, i have alot of pedals on my studio, but only 7 on my pedalboard, i dont think i'll remove this one in a while, sounds great!!!

this pedal is extremely easy to use. 4 knobs, all pretty simple.. if you don't understand how to use it, just use your ears. i bought it used so i don't have the original manual, figured it out no problem

I am using a new orleans custom guitar, fender fm 100h amp, boss me-50, carl's custom tonebender/fuzzface, dunlop vintage crybaby, and this pedal. the pedal is very quiet, no white noise or anything, it seems to work well with my other pedals. i'm trying to phase out my me-50 and use just single effects boxes and i chose this for my delay. it does everything i need it to at the moment. i mainly use the delay for solos. it can achieve pink floyd type sounds, but i only really use it for soloing really. it sounds good, not as good as the carbon copy, but i got this for half the price and money's tight right now

this pedal is build pretty solid. i got it used and you can tell it got smacked around a bit, but it's still in overall good working condition. i assume years from now it'll still work just fine even with regular gigging. however, i don't know how well i'd depend on it if i used batteries. when i first bought the pedal, i didn't have an adapter and this thing uses up batteries in a matter of hours. to keep the battery life lasting longer, you should unplug the input cable when it's not being used as with most all pedals like this. i put brand new batteries in it when i got it and left everything plugged in (the pedal was bypassed) and left it like that all night, and the next morning the batteries were dead. i made a mental note not to leave the input cable in again, but a couple of days later the same thing happened.. so.. i invested in a 9v adapter for it, you should too if you expect to do any gigs with it, i wouldn't trust using it live with just batteries.

never needed to deal with them

this pedal is definitely about as good as it gets for the buck.. i wish the battery thing wasn't so bad, but other than that, it sounds good, pretty versatile.. get's the job done. if it were lost or stolen, i don't know that i'd run out to replace it, i'd probably save up and get a nicer analog pedal like the carbon copy or the deeelay (mcats?) pedal.

DD3. Easy, intuitive and efficient. Instant gratification

I love this pedal, specifically because it doesn't contain the fidelity of more modern delay units. It samples @ 8 Bits, which is why it sounds the way it does. Also it contains a unique QUANTIZING component that rounds off delay time to a small ratio in relation to input material.



I give it a 9, because if it was pristine, it would have no character and suck.

After a nuclear war only three things will be left on the face of the planet:

1. Cockroaches,
2. Keith Richards
3. The Boss DD3.

LOL!

You'll never need it. EVER.

Unique application: 2xDD3's in series:

Not even EVENTIDE, Lexicon, TC can even approximate the amazing configuration of two Boss DD3's in SERIES, in mono.

In this configuration, setting the first delay shorter and the second longer (2-3 ratio and effect level slightly louder), the DD3
performs a remarkable SELF OSCILLATION, slightly quantizing the summed output to a profoundly beautiful and unique and dynamic poly-rhythmic tapping that to this day, no other device on god's green earth can replicate... Seriously, no one has ever managed to come even close to this effect, and for that alone, it's worth every cent.


I challenge any company to attempt replication of this application.

Very easy to use, it's simple, my favourie delay. Mine is an original blue label 1980s MIJ (made in Japan) version.

Amazing, the MIJ is noticably much much better sounding than a normal DD3, it's basically more analogue sounding, and a lot warmer, you can get much nicer sounds with the feedback controll, best delay I've ever owned, even over a WEM copycat tape delay from the early 70s. The MIJ version is the one you should be going for though, it's much nicer. I'd give it 12 if that were possible!

It's never let me down, the only slight thing wrong with it, is the circuit has to kind of 'warm up' so it takes about 10 seconds to first come on, but after that it works flawlessly. The MIJ versions were even better made than any new one, and they are bigger, and more rugged around the edges, even the screw and rim has a much better design, and is made form better quality rubber, it's basically indestructable!

I've never delt with the company, but these MIJ version, don't need it, you won't find a better delay than this one!

I paid more than a new one would cost, and I used to own a new one, and the MIJ version really is so much better, mainly in the way it sounds, it's apparently completley different internally, but this pedal is the pedal I was searching for many a year to find. I got mine off ebay, from Canada, one of the finest purchases I've ever bought! It's just so warm, so full, and unlike the normal DD3, the delay fades in tone with each echo, like an analogue one, yet it's still clear and defined.

It's not a difficult effects box to figure out and you can get some great sounds out of this with minimal effort.

Sounds good (warm) with the extended delay times to tinny with the shorter times. Overall great sound, although I'm no David Gilmore at least I can pretend with this one. Also great for shoe-gazer type rhythms (my bloody valentine & slowdive type stuff) that what I used it used it for until it broke.

It broke when I stomped it during a live performance. Started making terrible cracking and popping noises. Really upset at this because of the high price I paid for this and the fact that I only had it for about a year or so. I don't get all this talk about boss boxes being indestructible; I've had two and they both inexplicably broke.

I don't know, I guess I could have called them when it broke but I hate talking on the phone.

sounded good for the short period of time it functioned properly but it is a really expensive paper weight now.

Bought 2nd hand, worked it out pretty quickly.

This pedal is just excellent.
I've used it for vocals, bass and guitar, sucks the batteries, but with the powerpack, never stops bringing the love.

I have had it for I guess 9 years and how old it was before I got it, no idea.
I have thrashed this thing. It's been gigged heaps, recorded in studios for vocals and bass, never had a box, just kept in a bag with leads and other pedals.
The jacks have never even crackled.

Asked the company for a manual via the net and they emailed me it the next day. Only got the manual because I had a needed a manual for my ME-50 which was all in Japanese and thought 2 birds with one stone.

This pedal is just the best.
If you don't have one, you're missing out.
Delay decay on this is one of the underrated and most important features on these pedals.
If I have to replace it, it'll be because it was stolen. It will probably outlive me.
Hopefully not, in hindsight...

It takes a while to get the time right for the song.

There is no sound like boss delay it is very metalic and tingy. I have a Line 6 DL-4 which I love but there are times that pull this pedal out to get certain sounds I just can't get with the DL-4.

BOSS

I have 4 delay pedals this one the DL-4, a Boss PS-3 and an old DOD delay(not certain if it is analog or digital). I might not replace it only because I have the PS-3 which gives the same metallic delay, if not for that I would replace it if it were broken or stolen. It is a great pedal but it will not give you any kind of analog or tape warmth it is very digital.

It's relatively easy to use. All the knobs do exactly what they say they do.

This is where I might get a bit nasty. I'm going to subject my overall opionion on (specifically) Korean made boss pedals.
Bottom line is, they are generic sounding comsumer grade pedals meant to satisfy the 'common' consumer. They are good enough, that's it. I have owned this pedal for 3 years and I'm finally ready to get something that will actually make me say 'wow, that sounds REALLY good!' First let me say I own a boss cs-2 compressor (Japanese) and I LOVE it and will play it until one of us dies. I also own a boss ge7 equalizer and it does what it is supposed to do but then again, there is no sound quality involved, only functional value. I recently tried a TC electroncs vintage delay and it made the dd-3 look and sound like a TOY. This is generic delay, period. If gereric, lifeless sound is what your looking for, this will satisfy your pedal board. The first delay I ever owned was a dod dfx-9 and even THAT sounded better to me than this thing. It had more character and a more clear distinct delay sound. I have never been happy with this delay and since delay is my favorite effect, I have to say like many other boss pedals I've owned, this is a big disappointment.

I have to give them credit for this, I've never had a boss pedal break or malfunction on me.

Never had to deal with them, which is a good thing.

I may be a bit of an audiophile snob, probably because I have worked in high end audio stores and I prefer to buy the best once than cycle through several models of the same effect to get what I'm looking for. I'd rather research the best delay for example and pay more than settle for 'boss'. Boss to guitar equipment for me is equivalent to Bose or Denon for a home theatre system. Why would I settle for that if I could put my mind to it and get a Marantz, or better yet a Bryston. If your happy with your dd-3 (and other boss pedals for that matter) take this with a grain of salt and don't attempt to try a REAl delay like a tc electronics. If you own a boss phaser, don't try an EH polyphaser and I could go on for any pedal boss has made in the last 15 years. With everyone loving boss so much, its no wonder that 99.999% of guitarists are always looking for that "Magic" tone but never finding it. To do that you have research and spend a bit extra, not settle for this consumer garbage.

This is extremely easy to use. If you cannot get good sounds out of this, please just put all your guitars away and go back to acoustic.

This can achieve any kind of good quality digital delay, from short repeats to long sounds. It does not colour your signal at all.

Boss!!

N/a

Really good pedal. One of the best for what it does. Very usable (unless you do not like delay)

Very easy to use, manual was written clearly.

My set up is US Strat>BOSS NS2>Cry Baby Wah>DODFX84>MXR phase90>BOSS Ac3>BOSS DS1>BOSS DD3>Marshall 100W 1959 Super Lead head>Marshall 1960A cab. I found the delay quality to be excellent, everything I play is accurately repeated. Great for getting that U2 delay sound. The Hold feature may be useful to som ebut i dont use it.

Its a BOSS pedal ,no more to say!

Never needed to deal with them

Overall this is great pedal for me. I am the only guitarist in my band, we play funk/fusion and I need to cover a lot of ground sonically an this spedal helps me achieve some extra umph when playing lead parts.This pedal really fills out the sound especiallyas we have no second guitarist to play rhthym under the lead parts. If lost I would replace imediately!

maybe 5 minutes and you know whats going on here.
and another 5 to have a practicable setting to use.

Mh, its Ok, its just a digital delay wich exactly repeats the tones you play! without adding there some " warmth " or " noize " or whatever !! Nothing !! Steril repeatings !! But that is what I want !
You know, I play very " warm " sounding equipment, wich has MY Sound
imaginations, perfectly. So I dont need a delay to manipulate my tone, I need it only to repeat my sound as it is, pure !!
Not more not less !
For that its great. I have a " allround setting " at 600 - 700 msc.
and the volumen is set from 11 - 12 oclock !! Notice ; The Delay must be a part of your main sound but not BE youre main sound !!
So, too much delay kills youre tone ( set it at low Volumen ).
I play a Fender std. Strat and a Thinline Tele, a Prs Single Cut and a Music Man Petrucci ( Piezos ) as my new "Baby". These Guitars go to a Korg Dt 10 Tuner and direct in the Input of my Mesa Lonestar or Engl Souvereign 1x12er Combos.
In the effect loops, comes the DD 3, a Roger Mayer Voodoo Vibe, a Maxon Ts9 ( boost ) and a Cry Baby GCB 95 F. Thats it !! Oh, yes, dont forget the Footswitches for Amp chanels.
With this Rig I play anything from 30`Jazz, 40?? Blues, 50` Rock and Roll, 60?? Rootsrock, 70??Psychedelic, 80`Metal, 90`Grunge or 2000 New Metal....And guess what.... I do play all of it !
Live or in the Studio, the DD 3 works fine for me!
So I think 9 points are enough.

A Good one, Its fixed on my Pedal Board since 3 years and I never had any problems. Locks well build, Feels well build. So maybe it is well build ?!

Never need them....no Points for the unknown

Mh, in my ears, a delay is a " must have ". First comes a great Guitar, second a great Amp and at 3th, a good delay. But the biggest part of making music is youre soul and youre fingers, without that, the biggest Equipment let you sound S*** and nothing can change that, FACT !!!
What can I say ? If you need a " simple " delay and not a tone manipulating - so called " analogue delay " - then Test one of the Boss DD 3`s.
I test it against the DD 5, 6 ( both bad ), the digidelay ( nice toy for only playing home ). Maxon and Ibanez AD 9, AD 900, AD 999 ( good ones but not for my needs ), T REX Replica the same as good ( or better ) as the DD3 but to over priced...And the biggest jokes from Danelectro.
But thats me ! So test your own likings !
Me ? 38 years old, since 16 years Pro ( means I earn enough money to live from music. ), 120 gigs a year, every month working in the Studio, in free times I teache pupils to play....Blabla....

For a delay pedal this is fairly easy: once youve selected the speed range and the effect volume, its just delay time and resonance: if you know what you're after then this is a pretty easy way of getting to it. Delays are a more difficult animal than most effects but this one should be pretty easy to use.

OK, some people are obviously buying this pedal thinking it'll get them that lovely warm tone theyve heard in all those 70s recordings (25 years before digital technology was fast enough to repeat a high quality sound byte within 20 milliseconds) and think that this will do it for them. Theyre thinking of analogue delay pedals (which, in my opinion is a very different effect from digital delay: just coz they both say 'delay' doesnt mean they should be compared).

What this pedal does, what all digital delays do, is repeat exactly what you played at precise intervals whilst degrading at a set gradient. The Boss DD3 is the DADDY of repeating EXACTLY what you played at EXACT time intervals. It doesnt lie and it doesnt cover mistakes and has very different applications from analogue delay pedals, if youre gonna pay #100 for a pedal then you should look into what it does.


My rig goes:
USA Fender Fat Strat/ MIJ Fender Jazzmaster - EHX Big muff-Fulltone fulldrive2-EHX Small clone-EHX Small Stone-EHX Pulsar Tremolo-Boss DM-2 analogue Delay-Boss DD3 Digital Delay-Korg DT10 Tuner-A/B Box with A into a fender hot rod deluxe (clean) and B into a Marshall JCM800 2x12 combo (dirty).

The DD-3 and the DM-2 give me massive variety in delays, where one fails the other can support and both together make the craziest noises ever.The quality of the output has been said to be sterile etc but its just doing what its supposed to, I guess if the 'attack' was lowered it'd sound less mechanical, but for me it does exactly what it says on the tin.If youre rig sounds rubbish this pedal will make it sound worse.

Boss are solid, ive got or had a few of them, and though the japanese ones feel more sturdy (like my DM-2 and ive also got an OC-2) the taiwanese ones are much better built than other similar units. This DD-3 is tiawanese (I think there are only a few japanese DD-3s, but the DD2 was made there and its pretty much the same). Ive gigged and will continue to gig without a backup. IM not rich enough to get another one and i dont think i care enough: if it craps out mid gig ill pull it out and use the dm-2 to compensate and vice versa.

never dealt with them

I like it. Others may not. Im into indie, grunge rock and some other stuff and I really like the smashing pumpkins, sonic youth, nirvana, trail of dead, radiohead, manic street preachers, jeff buckley, PJ harvey, Bloc Party etc etc. this pedal is indespensable: if lost id probably gewt a DD-6 for the tap tempo but I really do like this pedal: boss excel in making stright to the point pedals that do what they are told, thats why the pitch shifters and delays are great but the distortions and modulation pedals suck a bit. If you buy it dont think itll make you sound like gilmour in a second, youve just got to learn to use it. After overdrive this is the most used pedal on my board. Worth it, every penny.

the four controls are pretty self explanitory. this pedal comes with a well thought out manual so you shouldn't have any trouble getting the best out of it.

spot on sound wise. another good one from boss. the signal sounds a little metallic the lower you set the repeat rate but who buys a delay pedal and sets it so you can hear little or no delay. a few people have moaned about the sound of the pedal. these are the people who don't realise that with every new pedal you add to your chain you have to tweak your amp and guitar controls a little. nothing just fits straight in

well its made by boss, you could turn it on and off with a tank

never had to deal with boss as i've never had a problem with there gear.

well worth the money, even at brand new prices this is a total bargain

Only 4 knobs, comes with a manual with how to get a good delay sound. Just step on it to turn it on, step on it again to turn it off. It's not brain surgery.

I cannot really compare the delay sound to any other but the DD-6. To my ears, the delay is very good. It does what it is suppose to do, repeat every note the way it was played. However, I did not buy it for the delay. The only thing I wanted this pedal for was the HOLD feature. The sound I wanted to achieve was the kind of effect Eric Johnson uses on the beginning of "Soulful Terrain". I will say that this pedal does it PERFECTLY and I have no complaints as far as that function is concerned. The ONLY problem I have with this pedal is that you have to keep your foot on the pedal as long as you want the HOLD to last, which if you are on stage can tie you up when you want to change channels/pedals.

I have 2 other Boss pedals, a Blues Driver and Flanger, and both are indestructable.

It is a very cheap delay, considering the prices of most boutique analog, rack mount, and echoplex type delays. You may find a better deal with the Danelectro Reel Echo, Ibanez Tone Lok, or something along those lines, but they do not feature the Hold function. I love how this pedal can make someone sound like a one man band, and is also fantastic for practicing. I know it will make me a better player and sound better and that is what it's all about. Probably the coolest thing about it is how you can hit say, an Am chord, and explore all over the entire neck and find complementary scales and notes that you can use over the key of Am. Overall, a great pedal and a great price.

Ok, this baby is easy to use if you can read the lettering on the dials etc... Simple on off thing as well!

NO! Not good here. My main problem is that I play vintage music, so whatever famous sound I dialed in, it wasn't right. To start of with, Apache by the shads... each repeat was too clean and twangy when compared to the original input sound... I need warmth. Next up would have to be some Gilmour tones from through the ages, but first a little bit of Syd Barrett in there. Syd and Gilmours main delay for years was the Binson echorec, either set to wicked slapback (which tis pedal can just about do!) Or big long swells made of repeats all cascading around. Sadly this pedal cannot deliver. Gilmour used an echrec to flesh out solos (Think Cymbaline from the KQED bootleg DVD). Sadly the clean-ness of the repeats buggers this right up.

Ok it might be good for U2 fans or Radiohead, but I am unimpressed with this gadget. I own a Marshall Echohead which gets slated as a bad unreliable pedal. It might well be! Mine hasn't done a nasty on me yet, and it seems bombproof and much more interesting. This delay pedal is for shred guys afraid of putting emotion in their music.

Damn, this is 5/10 more because people THINK that Boss pedals are bombproof... they go wrong like everything else.

Didn't buy it.

Its on ok pedal for delay in the simplest sense of the word.

One last gripe! When you turn the time knob while its repeating the repeats speed up and change pitch, now this is common for all delay pedals and is cool. But speed up the Boss and yes the pitch changes, but bring it back to original tempo and the signal is depleated rather badly. Shame that this isn't an analogue pedal or anything.

It doesn't get much easier than this - very user friendly. There's nothing worse for me than to have some sort of digital screen that you have to scroll through to get different sounds - this one is as simple as it gets - four knobs that easily adjust everything you need to be able to adjust.

I find the sound quality to be excellent. I use this pedal as part of my acoustic and electric set-ups and it responds excellent to both. The sound for this model is excellent.

Seeing as it was made over 10 years ago, and I've owned it for about half of that - with no problems - I'd say that it's fairly reliable! I do not use a backup for this pedal (granted my night wouldn't be ruined without a delay pedal).

Never had the pleasure to deal with BOSS customer support.

Overall, an all around excellent pedal. If this one ever dies, I'll be on the hunt for another. I've been saying that for over four years now and it shows no signs of slowing down.

Bought it used with an included power supply. It's the older Japanese model. Quite easy to use. Set the deleay time, feedback, level and play.

I use this sparingly to reinforce my reverb and add a bit of echo. The repeats do sound a bit sterile. I modified mine with a tone control on the effect sound/feedbacks. Using this new control to get rid of some treble on the delay repeats helps this unit a lot. With the mod it sounds almost as good as a nice long analog delay (without the pricetag) and gives me a new option to tweak my sound. It's not particularly noisy but it isn't true bypass so it dulls the sound when used with more than a couple of effects in the chain. I use an enhancer at the end to clean up the mud on a long chain.

Very reliable. Never had a problem. I fix a lot of pedals and the only broken Boss ones are either abused beyond belief or are broken as a result of botched modifications. If you don't know what you are doing, please don't waste your time by opening up your effects.

I fix and modify my own stuff so I rarely deal with Boss support. Ordering parts from them is another story. Boss can be very difficult at times to get parts, especially for discontinued/older pedals.

Good quality delay for the money. Easy controls and above average tone (excellent tone with the feedback-tone mod). Boss has been making these forever even though they have made newer models. I would definately replace it if it was lost or stolen.

perfect setup - nice arrangement with the delay time ranges.

Unbeatable for its price range ($99) - any other delay at this price would not sound as good. If you are more advanced though - this will leave you wanting more . . . more something. You get what you pay for, this is ok for the bedroom but i want something amazing. Good sound but not amazing.

Looks fairly sturdy but i trust my digitech pedals much more - i wouldn't trust it traveling - kind of sounds like tin if you tap it. A little cheap if you ask me - i would probably buy something better sounding if i had a gig booked . . .

i play rock - i want a huge saturated stereo-chorus sound and this doesn't do it - this is too trasparent - i think i will exchange it for something else.