Boss DD-5 Digital Delay

I find that all Boss pedals are pretty easy to use but for this pedal I had to download a manual, not that it's a bad thing because I bought it used. Once I played around with it I was on my way to delay funess.

It's a digital delay and also can affect your tone since it's not true bypass but I've figured out a way around this. I run it through my Psionic Audio Triad (look that pedal up also). The only section where this pedal can be glitchy is in the 2 second sample mode, it's kind of difficult to get a perfect loop, but I don't really play around with that section all too much. The reverse, all delay modes and the tap tempo option are great. I've recently put in an order for a Red Rocket Box "Star Box Tap Tempo" switch. I use it with my Hagstrom Viking and fender Jagstang through a Fender 4x10 Deville. I do get some cool Pink Floyd spacey delays out of this thing and it works great for soloing also. Of course mine sounds a bit cleaner because of the fact that I run it through my Triad. The only effect I have found that it sounds muddy through is intense fuzz, but then again it's fuzz.

I bought this pedal used and it has not given me any problems, but I have own a numerous collection os Boss pedals where they have gone glitchy. But I've always replaced them or sold them. This is my only delay at the moment.

Never had any experience with Boss customer service.

I play psychedelic rock which it works great for. I've been playing for 16 years and also play Psionic Audio pedals, Vintage FX pedals, Korg Tuner, Urso Music pedals, Fuzzie Bro pedals, Farndurk pedals, Vox wah, Hagstrom guitars, Fender guitars and amps. I did compare this pedal to the Line-6 DL4 and it wasn't hard to choose this delay over it. I've played shows and recorded with it, it's a good pedal overall.

You'll need to read the manual 'cuz there are lots of settings. It will take you some time otherwise. The manual is descriptive, and mine came with a sticker with all the settings which goes on the side of the pedal for easy reference.

This was my first delay pedal and I didn't know better. After playing other better pedals I must say the sounds from this one are thin and brittle. Sort of sterile. It's ok for that "brick in the wall" sort of thing if you're into it, but not for much else.

Mine was brand new but after a year and half there was a problem with the power. It would refuse to switch on at random. I've not seen this sort of a problem with other boss pedals. However my older DS-1 also died after 3 and a half years so maybe the QC is going downhill these days. I would look elsewhere.

What customer support?

Sort of OK pedal for a beginner but not something I'd trust for a gig.

You can't get easier to operate.

A bit sterile, but acceptable...

Monte Allums has a DIY mod to make it more 'analogish' but...

No pitch alteration whilst twiddling the delay knob?!Q?

OUtLANDixsh!!!

Don't use a PS with 500ma or more. This pedal will fail...

Boss PSU is 9v and 200ma... learn. X{P>

?

Does Boss supply actual people?

I hate it...

Bought on premise that I loved the DD-3 my friend had. Loved the pitch bend of the delay knob, but the DD-5 'fixed' this 'problem'?!?!

The pedal crams too many features onto a stomp box. The knobs are small and very difficult to change on the fly. You can forget about using tap tempo.

I play a Baker into a Reverend Kingsnake.
My pedal setup is: Budda Wah > Maxon OD-9 > Ernie Ball Volume Pedal > Pigtronix EP-1 > Pigtronix Echolution

The pedal doesn't suck tone or create noise, it sounds like a standard digital delay. If you like the pedal you can improve the tone with a high-cut mod by Analogman.

Features:
There isn't enough delay time (5 seconds) for looping to be constructive. The reverse delay does its job. The short delay times work well for reverb emulation. The tap tempo verges on being useless; it takes too much time to get going. I used the pedal for standard delay and it didn't fail me. Pray that you never have to change the settings on this pedal.

Despite conventional wisdom, BOSS pedals are not the sturdiest. I had no problems with it in terms of reliability.

I play jazz, blues, classic rock, and funk. I have played guitar for 11 years.
The pedal is inexpensive, packed with features, and will seem attractive to many. The pedal, however, is too difficult to use on the fly. I'd recommend investing extra money in a pedal that isn???t mediocre.

The ease of use is the main appeal for this pedal. The external tap tempo is super convenient for keeping up to the live tempo of a song, particularly when using the delay as a short-timed delay. I primarily use it for Christian rock/worship music.

Disappointing. The DD-5 reminds me of the RV-3 which has a thin brittle tone which I absolutely detest. A big reason these are selling for top $ on ebay is for the external tap tempo capabilities (w/o having to hold down the pedal for 2 seconds like the DD6). I don't mind the "clean" repeats that replicate a pristine delay. I just hate the trebly top end it creates on the repeats. Don't get me wrong, I use a Line 6 DL4 for more atmospheric analog stuff, so I don't want the DD-5 for that. I guess I wanted something close to the DD-2 which I currently use, but with an external tap tempo. The DD-2 is a better delay pedal by far tone-wise. In fact, I'm going to radioshack tomorrow to do a high-cut mod in one of my pedal mod ebooks from indyguitarist to try and get the pedal to sound less brittle and warm and more punchy like the DD-2. I will definitely a/b them side-by-side to try and tweak it to just the right treble roll off.

Boss pedals last forever.

I bought this pedal because a lot of well-known christian bands use it. Now I wonder if they like the convenience more than the tone. I think I'd like the pedal more if I never had the DD-2 to compare it with.

I've been playing guitar for a little over 10 years (blues, rock, christian worship/rock, funk) and I confess I am a gear junky. I do a lot of modding to pedals and tweaking to taste and have thus reached a point where I love all the pedals I have currently on my pedalboard. So, I definitely know what I like and do my comparisons based on these. If this were stolen, I don't know if I'd replace it... probably would if I dig the tone after I mod it, can't say otherwise.

Soo easy to get the sound u want. It does exactly what you tell it to do unlike some other boss delays.

The pedal sounds hectic for what we play. As i stated before ive ran dd6's and dd3's and delays from many other brands and none of them sound lyk crap compared to the dd5. I dont no wot it is but it just in my oppinion is a much better pedal than the rest which is why i spent so much on tracking one down for myself.

Nothing ever goes wrong, its soo simple to use and incredibly reliable. It will do what i want it to do straight away unlike the dd6.
The simple on/off footswitch i like too as having an external tap is no problem for me.

never had to deal with them

I play in hillsong united and all our guitarists are total delay freaks. So far ive had a dd3, everyone looked at it and laughed, i then owned a dd6, discovered it would never do what i wanted it to on the first go on stage and at times this could prove to be extremely frustrating. It sounded ok but the one pedal everyone from hillz were in love with was the dd5. Its sooo much easier to use, pretty much we just set it to doublings and have an external tap for the tempo which proved to be incredibly convenient on stage. An easy on/off switch unlike the dd6 in which u have to press and hold!!!

It was really easy to use.

It sounds good. Used it to play some Mars Volta and it sounded nice.

For Sure.

Haven't had to yet.

Best pedal ive ever bought....and the only one. Sorry guys I kind of got a steal on this one.

I bought this 2nd hand and so have no manual. As other users have mentioned the knobs are a little small to handle all the functions. However mine does allow you to change delay range/type while playing so not sure what a previous reviwere was referring to. With over 10 functions it is not simple but that's not why you buy these multi delays - lot's of stuff to play with! It would be nice if the tap tempo could be operated on the pedal and not need another footswith to operate.

Right, this is a large-scale manufactured DIGITAL Delay and sounds like one. If you crave the warmth and decay of a boutique analogue delay run as far away from this as you can, they are very different animals. If your idea of tone ecstacy is the purest signal going into valves polished on the thigh of a cuban virgin driven amp this pedal will not cheer you up.

However, if you want a reliable & practical delay this is a very useful pedal. There is a massive range of delay (upto 2secs) as well as reverse and hold function. The hold function is pretty useful for lonely guitarists as it allows you to loop upto 2secs and then play over the top. Unfortunalty you can't totally cut the dry signal when using the reverse but it's still fun to piss around with.

From a reasonable "slap echo" to non-sense runaway etheral feedback this pedal wil capapbly look after you everyday needs.

Mine is old, still works. Boss are pretty consistent

No manual avaliable from Boss. I know you don't make it any-more but that's hardly fair!

I bought this to make huge long swooshy noises and it suits this pupose admirably. As delay tends to radically change your whole tone I can't say any of my kit seems to get along with it any beeter than others. Humbuckers and Single coils all get the same treatment. I have found that using huge delaytimes and feedback can be a bit much for my little 5W combo and it's 8" speaker. If you going for noise, you'll need a bigger boat!

There are a huge number of things to change and set, so nope, this stomp box is not easy to use, but it's a whole load of fun playing with all the settings. Well you can't expect to have just ONE control on your digital delay, it's not a phaser or a simple volume pedal, so in all fairness I'll give this a 8.

I use it with a standard Japanese strat with 011 gauge strings. It is not noisy, just very clean and nice sounding. Remember folks this is a DIGITAL delay, yes d.i.g.i.t.a.l, not analog, so don't expect this to sound like your old analog delay unit. I used a capacitor across the feedback pot and got a bit of high rolloff and it does sound like an analog delay after that change, though it's a real right royal pain to unscrew everything and access those leads.

It does what it's supposed to, and does a great job. I've had mine ... I dunno how many years, probably 6-7 (?) and it has never given me a problem.

Never any problem so far, I'd gig with it.

Never needed.

This is a great delay, but my only concern is power consumption. When I measured using an ammeter, this baby was up to 59 milliamps, while most other pedals were around 8-15mA. I believe the DD-6 consumes less power. This may be a concern when daisy chaining the power supply. I looked at the Boss charts and it says this pedal takes 62mA, so mine is in the ballpark.

Yeah, it's a great pedal, but if lost, I'll take a look at the bazillion other delays out there, maybe there's something which I'll like more.

Mine is a Humphrey Audio analog MOD unit, MUCH better tone!
Easy to use if you know anything at all about what you want in a delay unit.

I own 6 of his modded pedals. JUST DO IT!
He can get all the best out of your stuff. He also sells new and used pedals that are modded.

5humphrey@charter.net is the contact.

I use an original Dean ML, A newer Fender MIM Strat, A Carvin Bolt, and a Gibson FireBrand SG from the early 80's.

I use a Carvin Legacy combo as my primary amp

Mark Humphrey has taken what was an OK delay and made it great with his Analog MOD. Now the repeats are a little darker sounding and that digital /Thing' is gone.

Very heavy pedal, well built.
I trust Humphrey's internals also, so I'm not worried.

Mark Humphrey answered every question I had before, during, and after I purchased pedals from him, or had him work on mine.

I know I have a friend in tone!

I play southern rock and blues stuff all the way to '3 Doors Down' and everything in between.
Started playing in the mid 70's, haven't let up yet. Had about every guitar, amp, and effect out there.
This is the best sounding delay I've had by far.
Now that Humphrey took the edge off it, it sits sweet in the mix.
It's a keeper.

The small "Boss knobs" do not suit this pedal very well. It can be frustrating selecting between 8-10 modes with a small knob that isn't labeled. Well labeled knobs and a digital screen are a necessity in a pedal that has this many functions. See the Boss DD-20 Delay Pedal. The ability to use the Stereo Outputs is a nice feature.

This pedal gives your clean guitar signal a sterile robotic sound. When switching through the modes, the sound is cut off. That makes on the fly delay changes impossible. A very poor design.
After playing the Boss DD-20 I've realised that all Digital Delays are not created equal in the tone dept. The Boss DD-20 has a much fuller and more natural sound. It also has a "Tone" knob that allows you to change the color of your sound a bit. If you play strictly distorted notes through this pedal you may not notice. But clean guitar suffers coming through this unit.

Boss pedals are built like tanks. I've never had one die on me. But be careful with the knobs. They could break off fairly easy.

Boss has a nice website. I've never had to deal with them. 10 pts. for an imformative website.

I've been playing guitar and creating music for over 7yrs now. I'm a versatile guitarist, but I really enjoy playing music in the vein of Bloc Party, Coldplay, U2, Doves, and Blur. I play 2 Fender Teles through a Fender Blues Jr. at practise, and a Fender Hot Rod Deville live. I'm very picky about my gear. I look at Build Quality, Sound Quality, and Price. I found that you always get what u pay for. But I always find the best equipment used.
I bought this delay because of its multiple functions such as: Reverse, Stereo Outputs, ability to plug in external pedal for tap tempo. Currently I've found the Boss DD-20 and it blows this pedal away hands down in every category.

If you want a digital delay that has many functions, I highly recommend the Boss DD-20

If you want the digital delay sound, it can be had for much cheaper than this unit.

Use your ears and decide for yourself. Good luck.

Easy enough to get it to work at all. Utterly simple to make it sound like The Edge. A lot trickier to make it sound in any way good.

I use a Tele, a Marshall Ed-1 Compressor, a standard CryBaby and a Boss OD-1 through a Marshall AVT20. First of all, this thing is indeed robotic and mechanical if you don't treat it like the snivelling little electronic scumbag that it is. At settings 1-2, if you're trying for that 50s-retro slapback echo Sun Studios thing, it sounds, frankly, terrible - not retro at all but with horrible clipped digital distortion. Open up the delay time and crank up the effect level and you just sound like U2, which is not my idea of fun (when I was in school in ireland in the 1980s every guitarist except me wanted one of these damn things). Turn down the effect level, until it's just a faint whisper in the background, and it's quite nice for that I'm-in-a-poodle-rock-band-wailing-away-in-a-stadium feel. Like John Sykes on a late Thin Lizzy album. I can't get the damn sample/hold thing to work rhythmically at all, having neglected to learn to play guitar with my feet.

My favourite effect is probably the much-hated reverse echo. Turn up the volume and have a go at playing "Within You Without You" and it's almost like there's a sitarist in the room! But not really. It's slightly nauseating in a bad-acid-trip kind of way that I like.

Neat trick: if you turn the effect level and feedback up to max, and the delay time down to minimum, then play a phrase, it will repeat as a very slow-decay backwards loop - and if you now turn the delay knob all the way up to maximum, the loop will slow down in speed and drop an octave lower! The opposite is also true, in that if you start the delay time at maximum, play something and turn the delay to minimum, your little loop will speed up to amphetamined chipmunk velocity. Oh how we laughed.

Eats batteries. I wouldn't use it at all without a power supply. Seems pretty sturdy though.

I can't quite remember why I bought this. Now I own it, I can only imagine using it for very recondite purposes. The digital distortion and "stepping"effect as the echoes die away is remarkably ugly, and it gobbles up battery power. But if I ever find myself in some sort of trance/ambient/coffee table electronica ensemble, I'm sure it'll come into its own. The older I get (been playing for 20 years) the more I just want to plug a guitar straight into an amp and do all the rest with my hands.

This pedal is so simple to figure out. The manual is easy to understand. The tap tempo pedal(FS-5U) is easy to install. Just tap 4 times to set your desired tempo.

Les Paul Classic=Crybaby Wah=TS9=Fulldrive 2=Boss TR-2=Ernie Ball Volume Pedal=Boss DD-5(taptempo)=Digitech XDD delay====Behringer AC112 Vintager(65 watts)

This pedal sounds awesome, it's very clear. It's not noisy at all.
You can get the sounds of U2 & Coldplay with the tap tempo. It compliments my overdrive. It's sounds awesome with volume swells and with the Ebow.

It's built very well, like every other Boss pedal.
I've done many gigs with it and it never fails me!!!!!!

I have never dealt with the company.

I play alot of colplay, u2, and hillsong songs, so it's perfect for me. GET THE TAP TEMPO PEDAL!!! I can't live without. I always leave it on mode 9, which is a dotted quarter note. 8,10,and 11 are good too. The reverse is cool, u just need to master it at the right tempo. I have a Digitech XDD delay too and it sucks compared to the DD-5. You have to hold the pedal down for 3 seconds inorder to use the tap tempo, which is a pain in the ass when your playing live. The DD-5 can be bypassed, and you can set the tempo even when the pedal is off and it will save it when you turn it on. I LOVE IT!!!
I will be buying another one very soon and I will get rid of my Digitech XDD!

For the number of thing which are possible with this pedal, the knobs are too small and it's hard to see which position your switches are in. I was looking for something a little simpler.

This is wher the thing really falls apart. I've got a THD UniValve and usually play my Ernie Ball Music Man John Petrucci guitar through it...once in awhile I'll play my Peavey Wolfgang. Alone I just love these combos but plug the DD-5 in and all hell breaks loose. The sound isn't predictable any more. As you turn the volume up on your guitar, theres a brash raspy sound that comes up with it. Almost sounds like the snares on the bottom of a snare drum buzzing in the background. It totally destroys the sweet tube sound of an over driven amp. The sound gets very harsh but not in a good metal or rock way...just nasty.

I'll bet this thing lasts for ever. It's sturdy for sure.

Didn't try it.

I play mostly classic style rock. I've been playing for about 15 years.

Amps: Peavey, Mesa Dual Rect., THD Univalve (excellent amp!), ZVex Nano-head
Guitars: too many to list, 17 electrics and 4 acoustics.

If it were stolen, I would not replace it. I was looking to simply add a little ambiance in my dry recording studio but this thing is not usefull for that pupose.

I tried a couple others,...Line 6 stomp and the GigaDelay but it was in a very noisey guitar center (you guess which one). The sales guy said take it home, if you don't like it, bring it back...gues what's happening tomorrow.

I also bought the Digital Reverb DV-5 and yes, I do know the difference between reverb and delay. For what it's worth, the reverb unit isn't much better but is a little truer to it's implied use.

Not very difficult to use. If you are player using pedals, then it's just another delay else ask some guitar buddies to help you out.

This is where Digital Delay sucks. It sounds extremely artificial and the repeats are so distinct without adding that slight ambience that Analog Delays do. The decays are not natural and it decays in exact fixed steps like it's being programmed. The fact is it must be that way. There is no ambience or warmth added. No reverb kind of feeling. If you play like a lifeless mechanical robot then please go ahead and buy this one. It will suit you. If you think life exists in music, then throw this shit brick.

Solid. Built like a tank, blah, blah, ...

Never dealt with them.

If you just want a pedal that is built like a tank then get this one. If you expect it to sound good, then forget this stuff. Total junk. I have a Rocktron Short Timer which is also a Digital Delay. The feel is totally different and pretty much closer to the sound of Analog Delays. This one is 100% junk. No wonder only mindless shredders use this and are happy about it. Suits their lifeless music.

4 knobs. Delay level, Feedback, Delay time, Mode. 1 Input, 2 Outputs for Stereo delay, Tap tempo input.

Mode 1-4: Delay times 1 ms - 2000 ms
Mode 5: Hold mode, Loop over yourself
Mode 6: Reverse Delay
Mode 7: Stereo Delay
Mode 8-11: 4 different types w/ tap tempo, doesn't use delay time knob.

Very simple delay. Just decide how loud you want delays to be, delay time (1 ms - 2000 ms), how many delay repeats you want, and which mode you'd like.

Epiphone Les Paul Standard - Vox V848 - Pro Co. Rat II - Ibanez TS9 - Boss BD2 - Boss DD5 - MXR Micro Amp - Fender Hot Rod Deluxe (1x12 tube).

No noise.
Modes 1-4 sounds good
Mode 5 is hard to control and only has 2 seconds of loop time
Mode 6 is terrible
Mode 7 is useful only if you have 2 amps
Modes 8-11 sound exactly the same as Modes 1-4 except you use the tap tempo to set your delay time instead of the knob.

I only use Modes 8-11 with the tap tempo. It's a must for me to be able to have quarter note, eighth note, or triplet delays that much up with the tempo. If you're not gonna use the tap tempo feature, I'd suggest getting the Boss DD-3 Delay instead. It's cheaper and still has all of the useful features of the DD-5 except for the tap tempo.

The Boss DD5 doesn't have the warm Analog delay sound. The DD5 is much more bright and precise. The DD5 sounds best clean but can still sound good with a little overdrive. The slapback on these doesn't sound the best. I'd want to use an analog delay if I was going for that sound.

Very dependable. They don't make these delays anymore. Because there's about 10 new ones selling on eBay every week, you can see that these delays will last because these aren't new s. I just got mine made which was made in 1995.

Great for all types of music. If all you're looking for is a little slapback or reverbish-delay, I would definetly go with an analog instead. Been playing for 4 years. This is my first delay I've owned but I've tried 3 others out. If it were stolen, I'd buy this one again.

I love the tap tempo feature on this pedal. If it wasn't for this feature, I wouldn't have bought the pedal. I only use the quarter note, eighth note, and triplet modes on this pedal (modes 8, 10, 11). I don't like the reverse delay. I wish Boss would've done a better job in making this mode. I wish you could choose which type of delay you wanted to use like on the Line 6 Echo Park Delay. For instance, you can choose Digital, Analog, or Tape delays.

I've have used the Boss RV-3 Digital Reverb/Delay, Boss DM-3 Analog Delay, Line 6 DL4 Delay er.
-The RV-3 sounds just like the DD5 except there is no tap tempo insert.
-The DM-3 has a great sound but only allows 300 ms of delay, no tap tempo, only has 1 standard mode, unnatural cutoff of delay when turned off, and is much more expensive.
-The Line 6 DL4 has many delays and features, but costs $250, runs off of it's own power supply, and is very big and bulky.

These are the reasons I ended up choosing the Boss DD5. If you're looking for the best digital delay made, this is it. Just find one cheap on eBay. And don't buy the DD6 instead.

To me, this pedal is pretty much a no-brainer, with the exception of the added features from the DD-3. A player could easily not know where to start with all of the features here, however, they are not difficult to figure out how to use.

It's kind of hard to screw up delay -- After all, it is just reproduction of the sound. Hell, Boss does a pretty damn good job here; this is a favorite pedal of mine. However, the sound reproduction is admittedly very quantized, which shows up very clearly if you are not running this in front of a guitar amp (otherwise, it's not so obvious). It kind of sucked when I tried doing some ambient and was recording direct -- very compressed. But, as a pedal in front of an amp, it does the trick. B+

It's a Boss.

Never dealt.

I kind of wish the features option were available in the effects reviews, since that is what I base most of my judgment on this pedal on -- personally, I think this is the best bang-for-the-buck delay pedal Boss has made (it's a shame they're no longer in production!). While I prefer my DD-3 for knob and pitch-twisting (since that has been "fixed" in all settings for the DD-5 except the reverse delay), my DD-5 lets me attach the external footswitch for tap tempo, has a decent reverse delay (if hard to use -- the delay doesn't have any kind of dynamic filter like the rest of the delays on this pedal), has more than enough delay time, and reproduces the signal decently. I've always believed that delay is the most versatile effect a guitarist can have, and Boss really had a gem with this pedal. It's really too bad they're no longer in production, especially since the DD-6 is so damn awkward to operate (that "built-in" tap tempo feature is likely one of the worst things Boss has ever integrated into their pedals -- My PH-3 has glitches with this feature).

this is a follow up to the review I posted yesterday comparing the dd-5 and dd-6. I played with them a bit more and realised you CAN set note values for the tap on the dd-6. I still like the dd-5 more though because the dd-6 is clumsy to operate.

This pedal is easy to use, but it's versatility means that it takes awhile to discover all that it can do. Good owner's manual. This pedal does a TON of stuff.

I play an american strat or les paul w/p90s thru either a boss dual overdrive or big muff pi into the dd5 to my marshall valvestate 8240. very versatile setup. the dd5 adds no noise. It also adds punch to the signal when I'm already very distorted (as with the muff).
I mainly wanted to share what I've learned re: the reverse mode -- it is excellent for long, slow bends a la albert king. It is especially effective paired with the boss overdrive. the slapback, reverby and edge-like tones are already well-documented.

Eats batteries like oprah eats donuts. I've had the unit for four years. No other problems. (I'm buying a power supply.)

n/a

I have been play blues and rock for 12 years, but this pedal would be great for any type of music.
If somebody stole this, I would poke my eyes out with a pencil, then get another.
I got it to experiment with edge-y delays and found much more. For slow blues/ballad solos, TRY the reverse delay.

ok...so i gave it a 4...not that its HARD to use, but for a boss stompbox, its pretty complex.

Agile Hornet lefty--->ns2-->cs3-->mt2-->sd1-->hf2-->eh2-->dd5--Marshall 15watt. sounds great mixed with every one of my other effects. as far as i can tell, it reproduces the sound perfectly. on light delay, you can get a real nice reverb.

im sure someone has already mentioned what all the settings do...but i have to add that i find the reverse delay to be completely useless. BUT the 2 second loop or hold i think they call it is very cool if ya wanna lay down a 2 second rhythym and lead on top of it. i dont own the footswitch so modes 8-11 are useless to me. also, the "fade out" feature is nice, so when you shut the pedal off, the delay will fade out, and not just cut off.

i also want to comment on the manual...it tells you everything you need to know, and also gives you preset suggestions which sound good.

BOSS! take more stomping than a cockroach

i heard they're shitty, and not to deal with them. personally ive never had to so NA.

i play everything, but mostly metal...sounds very cool with arpeggios. if it were stolen or lost, i might just go for the dd3, since its cheaper and i dont use the dd5 footswitch modes. ive been meaning to get a delay for 2 years now, and i finally broke down and bought one. very happy with the purchase, has more than what i need, and sounds great so 10

only problem i really have with it is that to switch modes, you have to bend over and turn the knob...definately one of those pedals you put up on a stool to tinker with.

NOTE - if using a noise supressor, just make sure to put the dd5 AFTER the OUT on your ns2, and not in between the send/receive.

This is my first delay pedal. It's pretty good and it's easy to dial in your sounds. I flipped through the manual briefly and it took me less than a minute to find the sounds I wanted. It offers quite a lot of delay features too, which is always nice. I primarily bought this for the delay effect itself, but mainly the reverse mode.

OK first off, unlike everyone else I am *not* a guitarist. I play piano and I use this pedal on my Yamaha CS1x synth. I also have a small, maybe primative MIDI studio running too. My current setup is: Yamaha Synth -> Boss DS-1 -> DD-5 -> Roland KC-300 keyboard amp. The synth's MIDI in/out is wired to my PC running Fruity Loops and various VST plugins/softsynths. The quality on this pedal is pretty good, I'd give it a 10, but it's an 8 for making random "popping" noises, regardless if the pedal is on or not. Even if I leave my synth OFF, but the amp is still plugged in and the pedal connected, I still get popping noises. Other than that, this pedal sounds pretty wild on a synth, especially if I'm running a patch with a delay already on it.

So far I haven't done any shows with it, and I probably won't. Like other people have mentioned before, this thing eats batteries. It goes through batteries so fast, it's ridiculous! I saved some money by buying the power supply. also, one day I was playing and it just crapped out on me. I had it for about a month and it just died. I thought it might have been the battery, so I poppedd a new 9V in. It would barely turn on. I didn't touch it for a couple of days, then I got the power supply. It's working fine, except for that annoying popping noise. I thinking of selling it and getting the DD-6 instead. That has stereo inputs, so I'd definitely benefit from that.

Never dealt with them.

I write and play a lot of electronic music. I do a lot of Detroit Techno, ambient, soundscapes, and some downtempo as well. The DD-5 works out very well, not just for the reverse delay, but some of the shorter delay modes too. Lost or stolen? I'd feel bummed because it is a pretty good delay pedal, except for the popping. If I still wanted a stompbox-type delay, I'd probably go with the DD-6, only because it's stereo, and that helps when you're a keyboard player. Tap tempo on a stompbox doesn't serve a purpose for me since I'm running FX and softsynths on the computer.

www.acidplanet.com/piccolo_pete to hear some of my stuff.

I messed around with this pedal for about a week and I got familiar with its capabilities. Its really fun to use and not to difficult to understand if your new to delays. For some a dd-3 would be fine, but if your into getting a bit weirder an arty with your guitar this one would be the way better choice.

Im using it with a mid 70's fender quad reverb (not twin) and a tele it sounds really cool. The repeats have a tiny bit of high frequencies to them but thats digital for you. The pedal sounds great to whatever i play with

never EVER had any problem with boss products and if i ever do i won't trust in anything anymore.

never had to talk to mr. boss about anything

I love this pedal and pretty much everytime i plug into play it gets used. if it were stolen or lost i would replace it with a dd-5 for sure. I couldnt imagine playing with out it. The hold feature is kind of a tease becuase its only 2 seconds long but still serves a good enough purpose to be on the pedal. good overall I LOVE THIS PEDAL

if you dont understand how simple this pedal is, you're a retard and you should stop playing guitar. the pedal doesnt suck, you probably suck. that simple.

the sound is amazing. but in your pedal chain of command have it go before any distortions or choruses. but after your noise supressor and octave.

so ive owned a DD-5 for a long time now. but when the DD-6 came out, i had to borrow it. The DD-6 is CRAP compared to the DD-5. to get the right tap tempo, you have to do much more than plug a sustain footswitch into a jack. other than that, its the same effin' pedal.

this pedal is the best delay. i even like it better than the line 6 green monster that everyone is now buying. its simple, and great. just make sure you buy a cheap yamaha sustain footswitch for like $15 and plug that sucker into the tempo input and youre set.

You know the core. Standard delay fare. See reviews below.

Love it. Doesn't color sound, it's quiet and all that other jazz. This pedal is a permanent fixture in my rig. I also use a DD-3 for slap back delay in place of reverb ('cause I think reverb is messy in live situations) but the DD-5 won a place in my heart because of the tap tempo capability. Nothing like a sweet sounding delay that's in time with the back beat. Perfect for sloppy wet sounds and sexy washes. I love this pedal. For me, this pedal can do no wrong.

Doesn't get a 10 'cause heck, nothings perfect.

I agree with one poster who said this thing eats batteries really fast. 'Cause it does. Although, no problems now, I got a Pedal Power 2. Thank you Voodoo lab.

2 years constant gigging no problmes. I gig without a backup.

n/a

I play mostly alternative type rock and blues. Think Radiohead meets SRV. Playing 9 years and counting.

My favorite feature has got to be the tap tempo. My least favorite is the reverse mode. It sounds cool, but there's no way for me to effectively use that live.

If I lost it I'd be pissed 'cause Boss came out with that lame-O DD-6 with no external tap tempo support. Then I'd hit ebay up for another one.

It's easy to use if you know how to use a delay pedal. If you have never used one, it may be a bit more difficult. I bought this pedal when I had no idea what i was doing and just fooled around with it. I find it very easy to use now of course (years later) and the tap tempo is probably what sets it apart from other digital delays.

I find this pedal to be very transparent in my taste. I never thought it would be after reading some of the other reviews on it but it is actually one of the main pedals of my guitar sound/tone. I use all sorts of pedals in my pedalboard but I play a '68 Tele through a '66 Blackface Deluxe Reverb. I find this pedal to be a great asset for me. The main thing about this pedal is how CLEAN it is. Its incredible for that; it's also reacts/works very well with the Boss RV5's hall, room and spring reverbs. I do not find it to be hollow sounding on its own, it is a digital delay though so it will not be as warm as an analog delay of course. I have the line 6 dl4 as well and I actually use the DD5 for all my digital delay sounds still because it the DL4 colors my tone more and reacts weird coming after my TS808. The reasons to buy this pedal: transparent, clean, not noisy, U2-ish, great digital delay sound. It may lack some warmth but you can make that up in other ways for your overall tone.

It's boss...you see beat up 20 year old boss pedals on eBay and they are still kickin hard. It must be reliable.

I give it an A. I think I said it all in the sound quality part.

It's a pretty standard delay pedal. Fx level, feedback, and delay time with a seperate knob that controls different functions that switch between delay time ranges to sample/hold to reverse to tap tempo. It's not too hard to get a good sound out of it, especially if you use the presets the manual provides. Swithcing between several different delay time ranges is a great idea since it would be difficult to dial in a good delay time between 0 ms and 2 seconds with just a tiny knob.

It doesn't get a 10 because as with all Boss pedals, they cram a lot of stuff into their pedals, and in order to modify it (see below) I ran into some problems taking it apart and putting it back together. A few wires popped loose, and it took me a lot of time to figure out where they went.

I run a modified sheraton or modified strat through an array of pedals which always includes a Visual Sound Jekyll and Hyde and either ends with an old Peavey classic amp or a Behringer V amp. The pedal sounds ok through both, but as with any digital delay, it sounds tinny and dry, BUT...

I added a .01 uf capacitor to the feedback knob to cut a bit of treble out of the mix, and it has worked miracles. It even sounds analog through my V amp, which is odd, because that's all digital. It doesn't sound as nice and warm as a real analog, but if you want the versatility and long delay times that digital pedals offer, this is probably the best sound you'll get for the money.

I give the sound quality a 7 because it needs to be modified to get a good sound.

It's a boss, so no questions on its reliability. I give it a 9 because of the mods I made with it, that the accidents I made and had to fix probably brought the reliabililty down a bit. As we all know, Boss is the standard in this category, so it only loses a point because my work on it wasn't perfect. But I'd certainly gig without a backup (actually, my V-amp is my backup).

I had a few other pedals that are out of production that I found that Boss parts fit, so I found it was easier to order replacemant jacks and other parts from Boss than to try and find vintage parts. In ordering components, customer support has been superb and their prices include shipping. They also have an option where you can send a boss pedal back to them and they'll fix it.

Long story short, it only takes a few minutes on the web to find the customer service number, and calling it usually puts you in touch with a rep fairly quickly, and that rep can get you components and service manuals from them (for a fee). I give these guys a 9 because for the quality of pedals boss makes, they shouldn't need to man those phones at all.

I play just about anything from rock to blues to jazz to bluegrass in a contemporary Christian praise band. I don't use the DD5 enough to warrant buying a new one were it stolen (plus they just released a DD6, so I might upgrade to that or pick up a DD3), but if I did, I certainly would do the "analog-esque" mod to cut a bit of the treble.

If you already own one of these, or any digital delay, I seriously recommend you do a treble-cut mod.

the pedal is fairly easy to use. You can get just about any kind of delay youd want out of it, including reverb-like sounds. The tap tempo feature is nice, but takes a little getting used to. Hence, the 7. The reverse delay is useless in stock form, check into the AnalogMan "KILL" mod. BEWARE: This thing eats batteries faster than any pedal I've ever seen!

I've used this pedal with a variety of amps, and my EVH-ized Yamaha Strat copy. Mainly though, I use my Peavey Rage 158. Don't laugh, I built a custom enclosure for it with a 12" to replace the 8". I get probably better tone than anyone out of that little transistor board. IT'S ALL IN THE PLAYER! The pedal is not noisy, it's digital, duh! I bought this pedal for mainly one thing, getting U2 Edge-like sounds. Set the Level at 3 o'clock, Feedback at 10 o'clock, and Mode on 9 (dotted eighth), use the tap tempo, and voila, you have the perfect "Where The Streets Have No Name" delay with the help of a compressor. (I use my CS-3 with the attack and sustain at around 10-11 o'clock.) My other favorite setting is courtesy of Satch. Set the Level and Feedback at 11 o'clock, D.Time at 9 o'clock, and Mode on 3. It gives a nice airy reverb-like delay that's not too short and not too long. On longer delays 600-800 I can get those Petrucci live solo sounds pretty easily. (If you've heard them, you know what I'm talking about.) Because it's not analog, I'm not going to compare the sound quality to analog.

It's a Boss. It would survive WW III.

Never dealt with them.

I play all kings of music from blues, to jazz fusion, to shred. This pedal is a great match for my setup because it's so versatile. I've been playing for about 7 years and it's had a home on my pedal board for the last 3. As my usual amp does not have built in reverb, I usually keep it on the Satch setting I mentioned above. If it were stolen, I'd probably beat the guy's head in who took it with either my TS9 or CS9, then go buy the replacement DD-6.

I looked at this and an old analog AD9 when I was shopping. For the same price, I got much longer delay times and the addition of the nice tap tempo. Sure, I may have lost that warm analog sound, but the tradeoff was worth it in my opinion.

I have had one of these for over 8 years. The product is very easy to use, but you do have to spend some time with it to be able to use it without the manual. Just use your ear to dial the sound you want (delay time, number of repeats). Once you get used to the knobs you can dial in any type of delay you want pretty quickly (like in between songs during a show LOL). I recommend writing down your favorite settings so you can dial them up faster.

Sound is decent with this item, as with all digital delays it records and then plays back your sound. The quality is good enough for live performance, YMMV when using this for recording (I have not). Some people think that the delay sounds sterile, a valid claim when you are working with anything digital.

This item is very reliable, like all Boss products. However, I had one for a few years and it started making a subtle, regular cracking noise every few seconds. I bought a brand new replacement, thinking at the time it was the best thing around. I have since switched to a Danelectro DanEcho, an analog pedal with a better sound IMHO (you can cut the highs on the repeats to make it sound more like a real tape echo).

Never had to deal with Roland/Boss.

I wouldn't recommend this pedal any longer. The "reverse" delay function Boss promotes for this product just plain stinks. It's quite expensive if all you want is a stock delay pedal. I would opt for a reverb pedal instead, unless you really need some kind of timed delay (like quarter note or triplet delays). Definitely try this pedal out before buying. This pedal does not have a hardwire bypass, for that alone I would say buy something else. I have been playing for 9 years, mostly metal, but this pedal would work with any type of music that requires delay.