Boss GT-3

*** READ THIS REVIEW FOR HELP GETTING GREAT DISTORTION SOUNDS FROM YOUR GT-3 ***. As for ease of use I'm going to say this time around, having owned the GT-3 for 6 months now, that it depends. For example, it is fairly easy to get decent clean sounds since most people don't tend to be as picky as in the case of distortion. In the case of distortion, it seems that there are so many endless variations that people may try to achieve, that perhaps even the best processor ever to be made will always leave some people unsatisfied. I believe that just as any pro uses various tools to create a unique "trademark" sound for his or herself, we too can create the same using the many tools we have in one unit- namely, the Boss GT-3. The trick is not so much in knowing how to use the GT-3, rather in knowing how to use various tools to get great sounds. Therefore, for the average user, I do not believe it it easy for many people to get great sounds, even though they are in the GT-3. Lastly, the manual is so sparse on this subject, that I have to wonder how much business is lost by Roland simply because they have failed to aid users in a much more specific manner.

Currently, I am playing a Les Paul Classic with a Lonestar Strat as a backup, into the GT-3, and then going from there into the EFX return of either a 30 watt Marshall, or a Peavey Classic 50. As with any processor that increase gain, the GT-3 is not noiseless. However, the noise gate works extremely well. My opiniopn is that the GT-3 gives us the capacity to approximate many of the sounds of popular artists, past and present, as well as the ability to create our own distinct sounds. I have effectively done both. Compared to what I've seen availible in its pricerange, my opinion is that the GT-3 is unbeatable. Though I do have a small amount of my own qwabbles with the unit, which I'd rather not disclose again here.

I never feel safe in front of 500 people with nothing between me and the fruit and vegetables in their hands except a computer. Do you? (However, sometimes that's just tough-titties, isn't it?) Generally there's no question that it's solid and well built.

I couldn't care less.

The GT-3 is a wonderful and amazing unit. I feel that it has rekindled my desire to play the guitar. I feel that I can get perhaps 90 percent of the sounds I'm after. The trick is in knowing how to get good sounds in the first place, and then applying that knowledge to the GT-3. If any of you would like to share my theories concerning distortions and tones which Ive learned over the years, I am now putting together a document, free for the asking. email me at: sauceydog_2000@yahoo.com (don't forget that underscore), and I'll send you a text document. I hope to help people at least understand some basic principles in understanding ways to get better tones from the GT-3. If I lost it, I'd buy no other!!!

The Dialog box for this section asks " How easy is it to get a good sound out of it?" The best way I found was to unplug it. I have never been so dissapointed in a piece of gear in my life besides an ART piece (guitar processor) This thing does have some nice sounding preamps built in but they sound nothing like what they are labeled. If a 5150 sounded like that Eddie would shoot himself in the head. But more on this later. It is easy to use, Trust me , I have even read the manual to make sure I was doing everything correctly. Fairly straight forward. It s the typical , push effect button, scroll through parameters with left and right buttons and set value with wheel. Easy

I tried a dozen combinations from 150.00 headphones to My Marshall 2550 direct, also in return of loop, I tried a stereo tube power amp direct into my 4x12, I tried a QSC power amp into my 4x12, Through PA cabinets, Into my Mixer then into headphones and all this with a half dozen guitars and numerous cable checks in between. I almost actually believe there is something wrong with this thing. Some of the cleaner settings sound real good with an excellent chorus but the majority of the sounds are so bad that they would have to improve just to suck. The EQ was all wacked out, Horrible tinny sound with overly processed sound. 3 of 4 presets are totally useless. I tried to build a usefull preset but could not get past the distortion sounds. The nice clean sounds and chorus/reverb/delays are not worth the asking price. It is full of the gimmick sounds that the engineers at Roland think we get off on. Crap Crap and more Crap. The acoustic setting are laughable. "Shrill" comes to mind.

I'm sure it will be reliable and sound consistently bad for years to come.

I don't think anyone has ever needed Boss/Roland for customer service. It does not generally break unless you really try.

Thank God I bought this from a mail order house and can return it. I am absolutely unsatisfied. After 20 years of playing I know a good guitar sound when I hear it and this isn't it. Yes, some parts of it have their strengths but as a all-in-one processor it really misses the mark . I would much rather use my Sterile sounding Line 6 AX2 than this GT-3. I would strongly urge anyone who is considering this piece to TRY IT FIRST!

Yes, it is quite easy to operate and get sound out of it, but you get confused to what exactly you want to hear. Editing patches is easy and the manual says the basics. no upgrades known.

I use it with a custom made strat and it is Ok, although the amp modeling and pickup simulator isn't so convincing. Some fx have not as many parameters as i'd like... I usually use it throught a Stack Marsall loaded with 4 12'' spkrs. Its not silent but its not very noisy to. The exp pedal is not very accurate. The distortions are not so good and I feel that they are "week". some effects are there just to impress and have no use at all (such as auto riff). I love that there's a sub eq and a short delay! The patches have no equal output and I have to sound check more than an hour to get a sound that doesnt freak the sound man....! And some presets are only for feedback and nothing else!

Yes the only sure thing is that it is very relieable and never need a backup. I used boss pedals for more than 10 years and never had a problem.

I play in a band that plays almost anything from jazz and blues to drum and Bass and folk - traditional music. I think that if you spent a certain amount of hours on it and memorize 340 presets you maybe be able to play almost anything... I sold the pedals i owned after buying this baby... If it was stolen or lost probably i 'd buy something else as it is in a category with many competitors. I bought it as it was a good deal. As for making music with it i dont recomend because you get too confused trying to control the sounds and you forget what you originally wanted to play.
I suppose I have a love/hate relationship with it!

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Took a while to learn everything. terrible in live situations when you have to tweak a patch... i fould it painfully slow. the manual isn't terrible but not perfect... I used it on my computer with the midid cable so thumbs up there

Fender Fat>Carvin SX100D (no cabs)
Nice sounds. after tweaking my amp and guitar a bit i got some
awesome clean 'coustick sounds to driving metal distortions. Good pickup simulator for more twangy sounds.

I would not go to a gig unless i tested the volumes and eqing 10 times. it's suprising the sound different on headphones and you amp :)

Boss products break?

Good pedal. play around with it before you commit. I would consider a korg ax1000g too... nice little thing.

It's very easy to get a great sound out of the GT-3 after browsing through the manual. It's very logical and I was creating patches within 30 minutes of setting it up. the manual is typically BOSS and it really isn't that great..but it'll get you into the basics and by them you'll rarely need to refer to it.

My unit has the 1.01 software revision and I believe that there is a version 2.0 out but I don't know what new features it offers or which bugs, if any, it addresses

I am using several different guitars (all Carvin) and a Peavey Bandit Transture 100 watt amp with the SX-112 extention speaker about 7 feet away from the amp to give me a big sound.

There is little, if any, noise from the GT-3. It's a quiet unit. The factory effects patches are pretty nice but I really wasn't thrilled until I tweaked some and made up my own and put them in one bank. I set a Distortion (based upon the Matchless Lead 18-1 patch)and A chorus, a clean and a phaser patch (based upon the Black Panel patch 26-3) These are all minimal effect sounds as i am not a big fan of heavy effects...they just give me a nice warm realistic clean amp sound. These are just right for backing up my vocals since I am a soloist and don't have to compete with other instruments to be heard.

I have not tried to emulate other artist's sounds but I am sure that you can get really close to whatever sound you are looking for as long as you are willing to spend some time tweaking the unit.

The distortion sounds are killer and you don't have to tweak much to get a great sound. I have a few GS and XG MIDI modules hooked to my computer's MIDI OUT and i like to jam to sequences. The dirty sounds on the unit will cut through anything and always sound good to my ears.

The GT-3 has a metal chassis so it is pretty much bulletproof. It's not waterproof though so I wouldn't wanna spill any liquid on it.

I feel confident using this without a backup unit..if it ever did go out on me it would be easy to just plug into my amp and get a decent sound anyway.

never had to deal with service but I imagine it would be decent just because of the name BOSS..they make good stuff

I play rock, metal, jazz, blues, country and ballads and it handles all the sounds I need very well.

I have been playing for 30+ years and have a lot of different amps and guitars, most of which is name brands like Peavey, Carvin, Roland, Yamaha, Boss, Alesis, Lexicon. Tascam, etc. The GT-3 interfaces with them all very well.

If it were stolen I would have to replace it because it has the sounds i need and they are easy to access in the GT-3.

I originally was looking at the Digitech RP-2000 but after comparing the two I decided on the Boss because if offered more options.

One thing I would like to share. In my humble opinion I think that the way to get a good sound out of an electric guitar is to let the amp do the work and control the overall volume from the guitar volume control. I rarely if ever turn the volume on the guitar to 10 when using clean sounds. Keeping the volume backed off a bit cuts down on the high end of the sound spectrum and keeps the treble under control. i don't have much use for treble sound when I play. I do like to turn up to max volume on the guitar when playing dirty to get the most response from the pickups.

One thing I have noticed with all effects units is that I must keep the guitar volume on 10 to get the best sound outof the unit..I keep the volume controlled from the footpedal on the GT-3.

this trade off on technique and method is more than compensated for by the GT-3's killer sounds so I don't feel like I am sacrificing anything at all.

I plug the GT-3 into my amp's Effects Loop Return so i bypass the Peavey Bandit's preamp section and this is what Boss recommends to get a good sound...they weren't lying about that. It sounds great.

This unit, once you get the hang of it, is pretty user friendly.

I use a Fender USA Deluxe Plus Strat with a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe Amp. That sounds good in the first place, but the GT-3 makes it sound so much better. Though everything has it's flaws, the GT-3 could be better in certain areas, like everything in it's own way. But all in all, this thing ROCKS!!!

As i'm typing this, I've had it 2 days, But it's BOSS and it's built BOSS tough, it's great.

I've never had the pleasure...

Overall, this is an awesome Multi-effects unit, and at a darn good price for what it has. I do wish it had a few more effects, like the reverse and hold on the DD-5, but it's an incredible Value.

This is basically an update to my other reviews.

I think that generally, the sound quality of this unit beats everything else out there, hands-down. My friend has that Pod thing, but to me the pod is not as good, is shaped in the image of an ass-print, and they make you buy their stupid pedalboard separately, which uses ethernet wire instead of a midi cable, which would have allowed them to create it MUCH cheaper.

I'll include this in the next section...

By now (after 4+ months), I'm so dependent on the GT-3 that I'd rather not play without it. However, I am a bit disappointed in the following apparent limitations:
- Sometimes after power-on, all the effects parameters seem to default to their minimum setting regardless of where the pedal's position is. It seems I need to tap the pedal in order for the GT-3 to synchronize with the pedal position in this case. What's really bad though, is that many of my patches use the pedal to adjust the distorton/gain, and sometimes, seemingly at random, the GT-3 cannot recognize the pedal-position upon execution of a patch change. I'll be changing patches in the middle of a song, and I have to also tap the pedal to synchronize! Poo-poo. I'm going to cal the company about this soon.

it is very easy to use. i have had mine for only about 5 days and i
can and have programmed in some real nice patches. including the fact
that when i bought mine it didn't come with a manual.

i use a fender mexican fat strat through the gt-3 into a fender
deluxe 112 plus.(i also have a metal zone and an acoustic sim. pedals
both by boss, but i don't use them much with the gt-3). the sound is amazing! it has the absolute nicest distortion, modulation, delay, reverb etc. i've ever heard on a floor unit.there is not much i can say except it is phenomonal for sound quality.

yes i feel i can depend on it because it is made of sturdy metal, plus
it is made by boss.

the only time i've dealed with was a couple days after i bought this unit. like i said already it didn't come with an owners manual when i bought it (i beieve it is the sores fault though, because it was the on the shelf model so the manual must have gotten lost somewhere in the back) but anyways i e-mailed roland and asked if they could send me one. they politely replied right away and said that they would send me one free of charge. so far i know that they are real good with customers.

this is one awesome unit. you could use it for any genre of music because of how versatile it is. i definetely suggest anyone that doesn't have try one out amd but it.

The unit is very easy to use... if you've owned it more that 90 days. I went through the manual several times to learn how to use every feature but found there's more than meets the eye. Using the control assigns can be tricky and sometimes unable to do exactly what you want. For example: assigning different parameters of one effect to different positions of the expression pedal... ARRRRRRGHH! But, how often do you want to create swelling reverb while diminishing another effect? I've owned the GT-3 for 6 months and can create a patch in a matter of minutes but to get a great sound you'll need other great equipment and a burning desire to get the right sound.

I'm currently using a Fender Telecaster through the GT-3 through a Marshall 8008 to 2 12" Custom Design speakers in a Crate GX-120/212. The Crate sounds excellent but I really like Marshall equipment. I'm definitely planning on purchasing tube amplification in the future possibly using the Marshall 8008 as a pre amp. I love the sound quality overall. The reverb, however is somewhat lacking... Sounds good but there are better reverbs out there. Smokin distortion; love the Metal1 and Turbo. Depending on where you put it in the chain will dramatically affect the sound. Compressor... ok again there is better. I've also heard higher quality units that don't sound as good but that's more than likely due to the programmer than the unit itself. Again, if you put your time in and burn for quality sound you'll get it with the GT-3. Well pleased with all the other effects. The harmonizer is very cool.

Haven't had any problems. Would not hesitate to gig without back up. I regularly back-up the data with a program called Midi-Ox. Of course that won't help with massive failure but if the unit crashed before a gig what do ya do? PLAY!

N/A

I can get any sound I need/want with this unit. I've been playing for nearly 20 years and have grown to like multiple effects. I've grown close to the GT-3 and would certainly replace it. Although I'm considering a Digitech 2120 to use in conjunction with the GT-3 because of it's abilities. Incredible value. Try to buy all these effects separate and then configure them. The Metal1 distortion is tops. I use it almost exclusively in patches with distortion but I don't play metal. The unit certainly enhances my creativity.

It's not that hard since you have a lot of options presets (really good presets). It takes a while before you be able to know how to program and stuff.

Great effects!! Works perfectly with my WOLFGANG and my amp Fender Deluxe (100W)... I have played with Zomm and Digitec Rp200 before, and they don't get even close...

I certanly can depend on it! I do use it often in gigs and the reactions are great...of course a big part of the credit goes to the WOLFGANG...

I have never needed them...

It's a good match for my style, I have a band that plays Van Halen, Steve Vai and Joe Satriani... I have been playing for almost 12 years... I love about the way I can get close to Satriani's effects with the GT-3... I would certainly recommend, specially if you have a good guitar...

I don't know, maybe this is my second or third review on this thing. I admit it's a love/hate relationship that clearly gravitates toward the love side for me. I'm in a cover band, and I'm using the GT-3 to try and emulate certain guitar sounds. Not only is this completely accomplishable, but I have been able to re-develop my own long-lost sound that I'd developed years ago from old equipment which I can no longer find. If you simply scroll through the presets, my highly biased opinion is that you'll suck. However, if you spend 725 million sleepless nights trying to get the right damned sound, you WILL find it. It seems to be one of those things where, any sound you could possibly want is in there, but really, you need a college education to know how to find it, (and I has me a college educations!). The manual has been all but useless to me, as well as many of you. The problem with the manual is that the dork(s) who wrote it, probably have college educations! (Dahh, so what's my excuse?).Therefore, they expect you to have some amount of intuition. Either that, or they were just lazy whenst they wrote it. Anyway, for intuitability, and user-friendliness, it sucks. But wait, that's not all....

The only way to make this thing sound good is to plug it into the Marshall battery-powered amp!!! (...just kidding, sorry). Actually, I use the unit through several different amp's like Marshall, Fender, and a Peavey Classic 50 2/12. For me the sound quality can come so damned close to your favorite wanker, that I can hardly justify spending any more freaking wads of cash on Marshalls and Boogies. Buy this unit, but dump your social life, (for those of you who have one). Keep in mind that the presets were developed by college punks, and therefore are completely worthless. Awful damned close to tube on alot of stuff, to my tube-ass ear. The things I am NOT willing to accept are, 1) The unit has audio drop-outs which you could measure in milliseconds, when changing from patch to patch , and which annoy me, and 2)You CANNOT use the expression pedal to change amp simulation sounds without scrolling through every amp-sim on the way to the one you want- THAT is a MAJOR drawback in my opinion. (The same holds true for the "MOD" section). So, if you're trying to program the expression pedal to gradually switch from the clean Jazz Chorus, to the Scream of a Soldano, you CAN, except you'll be trucking through all the other amp-sim's on the way there. Otherwise, you have to create two separate patches, and then the change is abrupt rather than gradual. So, the sound quality is freaking awesome (if you can find what you're after), but again, the user-friendliness sux. What would you say, an '8' maybe?

Whelp, I mean-you look at this thing, and ask yourself if they could make a more durable unit without shipping it with its own road case!

I called the company the first 2 hrs. I had the unit. My question was, "why do I hear a faint background distortion when I use some clean sounds, as well as most acoustic simulations?" The college dork tried to help, but was inadequate. The phone bill was an additional $5.00 for the month. You decide... an 'A' for effort maybe?

I play all the modern radio rock, I guess. We do stuff from "Loser" by 3-doors-down, (yes, you can nail that acoustic sound), to AC/DC, which you can also nail. Overall, I would buy no other. I've always HATED stomp boxes in any form, but needed to get cover band sounds and solve switching problems. Short of a full rack unit, this was the best deal.(Rack units are another can of worms, as many of you already know!). If you want to buy a floor-based effects processor, I highly recommend this unit over the others like Digitech- you won't be sorry. But, you have to spend alot of time getting your sounds and getting educated about HOW to get sounds- which can be a very complex subject. If it was ever lost or stolen, I'd HAVE to buy another one, because I'm too codependent on this frigging thing now!

I got the basics in the first few minutes. Its very easy to program, but no so easy to get the right sound out of it /because of the so many possibilities, tweakings and so on. But if your sound is not in there you probably still dont know what is your sound :) /.
After spending some sleepless nights tweaking it and reading the wonderful set-up series docs at the GT-3 users group website I figured out how actually its easy to use.

My setup is Washburn N2 or Samick /its a nice guitar, I just cant remember the model/ ->GT-3-> Marshall all-tube JTM615 amp or a cheap ass solid state crappy amp /I thought that its impossible to make it sound nice but GT-3 did it/. The unit itself is not noisy at all. Of'course if u're using very high gain settings on distortions or amp models u'll get noise, but when Im crankin' all the way up my Marshall I get more noise, its normal. And I cant really get the people thinking that distortions in GT-3 suck. Personally I think that they r awesome. Just need tweaking. As simple as that. U cant get decent sound without decent guitar AND amp no matter what effect u'll get. It can do every sound I ever wanted blues, hard rock, metal, even Pantera - its in u just have to find it. The only drawback is that it hasnt fx loop like GT-5.
Yeah yeah I know that amp models r not so good as the real ones but they sound good enough. And when I want the real tube distortion I just switch to my Marshall.../be honest guys, there's no modelling technology, even POD, that will sound like tube amp. If you want tube sound - its simple - Buy a tube amp./

Solid as rock. Its BOSS period.

I've never needed it. But from what I've heard they r nice and helpful guys.

Im playing just everything - hard rock, funky rock, metal, some blues, jazz, classics - u name it. Been playing already 10 years I found GT-3 one of the most versatile and nice sounding units for the price range. Good sound, versatile, solid built, reliable, good for recording, MIDI and all that just for 350 bucks. Rock on!

I found the gt-3 easy to use, but to get past the basics took me a few hours of messing with it. In a short time though I had the sounds I was happy with right up from twhere I wanted them. There are an awful lot of patches that I will never use and I wish I could figure out an easier way to jump between "banks". Very satisfied with it so far in this category.

I use this run direct to the PA, although I love the way it sounds thru my old Vibroluxes. I have a 66 and a 62, and they sound super warm with the gt-3. I run a Carvin AE185 and a Gibson ES as well as a couple of Takamine acoustic-electrics, and I am very pleased overall with the sound quality. I am using this instead of a board full of Boss pedals that I have had for 16 or more years. It is way more versatile.

Like I said I have 16 or 17 year old Boss pedals, and they have never failed, even though I played on the mud and dust tour doing outdoor concerts for a long time. The beating they took being put on airplanes and buses, and such lead me to really trust this stuff.

I play it all...rock,messianic praise/worship,jazz/blues,etc. This rig fits the bill for me. I can dial in what I need and I am pleased with the result. The longer I use it the more I like it.I have been a player since 1964 so I have used a wide variety of gear.

its really easy

distortions suck,but i run a metal zone through the effects loop,and it uses the metal zone like one of its own distortions,and it gates it PERFECLTY,ABSOLUTELY PERFECTLY

i spilled water on mine,it dried out and worked again,(dont try this)

i bought this,i tune to droppped "b",the friggin thing wont pick up a low b on the tuner,so at every single show and practice,even between songs live,i have to tune my top string by ear!!!you think if it freeking costs 300-500 dollars,it could tune anything, BUT NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!.this might just be the most annoying thing ive ever experienced since feeding back before i bought the damn thing.but if i only used this thing to gate the metal zone,then its worth it.see,you can assign the metal zone in the effects loop to diferet user presets,so when you switch to clean,it turns the gate off for ya!wich ic sweeeeeeettttt.the ten is merely for the gate

As multi-effects go this is a little bit above average for ease of use. The manual gives a good basic overview but doesn't offer any hints on how to sculpt a sound from scratch. That's probably beyond the scope of a user manual anyway.

Editing is straightforward but kind of a pain looking into the unit through the tiny LCD screen. I'm a Mac user so I haven't hooked it up to a MIDI editor as there only seems to be a PC editor out there.

I'm pretty keen on different amp and guitar sounds but I've sworn to stop short of the "audiophile" detour. I believe that a mass market amp can sound good even if it has a PCB inside. That said I do expect a certain quality level in my gear. I find the GT-3 sounds really good, with exception of the medium gain preamp sims. The low gain Twin and JC-120 sims sound quite good but they're more just an EQ curve rather than a clipping sim. The crunch and blues sims are really nasty - I'm not sure I'd ever use them, although I generally like that just breaking up sound in a real amp. The high gain sims, like the 5150, are actually not too bad. That may be because I'm not a big fan of that sound anyway - if I were more familiar with that end of the spectrum I might be more critical.

Fortunately I didn't buy the GT-3 for it's preamps as I already have a Boogie, couple of Fenders and a Marshall in the flesh, so to speak. What I did want was the effects and especially to have them programmable. None of the effects on their own are especially stellar, but when you put them in series and tweak them (especially with the foot volume pedal assigned to different parametres) you can build some really credible performance voices. They're very quiet and each offers the basics you'd expect from an equivalent stompbox. I can't stress enough the value of the synergy when you combine effects. I can get a very credible Holdsworth tone with compressor, turbo overdrive, eq and noise suppression. If you were to go out and buy the individual Boss pedals to get that sound you'd pay as much as the GT-3 is worth.

My favourite setup right now is plugging the GT-3 into the poweramp in on my Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. That amp has enough low end that it really fattens up the GT-3s output. I've tried it into the guitar input on several different amps but it really sounds best into a combo poweramp.

For direct-to-PA or recording the preamp sims and speaker sims are pretty flat sounding. They would suffice for secondary rhythm parts, back in the mix, but I can't imagine using them for lead or "hooky" parts.

One of the fun things about the GT-3 is that it gives you a chance to try out some more varied amps and effects to see if you want to go there. For example, I've never played a Class A amp and was always curious about the Vox mystique. Having played the sim I know that I'd like to get a Vox amp, even though the sim is pretty lame it gets you into the neighbourhood to see if you like it.

So far so good. Over the years I've owned a fair amount of Roland and Boss gear and had no problems. The physical construction of the GT-3 suggests it will hold up equally well.

I just love guitar so I dabble at a lot of different guitar styles - probably closest to my heart is the jazz/fusion end of the spectrum. The GT-3 does a good job of recreating a lot of the tones in this area. I wouldn't recommend it to a roots player but they're unlikely to look at it anyway. I hear that a lot of the younger guys swear by their GT-3s so it seems that it works for alt rock and metal too. I've been playing for 23 years and have collected enough nice guitars and amps to pretty much the stylistic range: Strat, Tele, LP Special, LP Jr, Howard Roberts Fusion, Ibanez Jackson clone, Guild 6 string, Takamine 12 string, Heartfield DR5 bass and Fender Pro Junior, Hot Rod Deluxe, Marshall JCM600 and Boogie .50 Calibre. I bought the GT-3 because I felt like I had the basic palette covered and wanted to effects in a simple way. I really pleased with the GT-3, even though the preamps are pretty lame compared to real amps.

Use With A Washburn N4 And A Jackson Soloist Sounds Great Once I Killed The Preamp Presets Those Stink I Use This To Beef Up My Amp A Marshall 80 Watt Valvestae Just Using The EQ Chorus Delay Reverb And Compressor For That Its Great Really Thickins The Sound Seperate Patches For The N4 And The Soloist With Diffrent EQs.What Else Can I Say Its A Boss Product And That Speaks For Itself

I Dont Gig So I Wouldnt Need A Backup But If I Did I Wouldnt See The Need For Backup

Never Delt With Them

Damn Good Unit Once You Kill The Crappy Preamp Settings And Just Use The Effects

The gt-3 is slightly more complicated than my old processor (zoom 707) but took me about 2 days to master so anyone can do it i think

I play through jackson guitars and a crate blue voodoo half stack. I use a original crybaby wah on the sude because the built in wah is not adequate for me. The sound quality is outstanding , my only complaint is that the distortion has a harsh kind of hissing noise at the end of notes, but other than that it is beyond what i ever want or need.

this thing can take alot more than i can the thought of having a backup device is just absurd.

I havent dealt with boss directly

I play alternative, rock, metal style stuff and it has more than enough versatility. it is the only effects processor i have ever been happy with. I have always liked boss and i was looking at the ME-30 but dont buy it it sounds horrible , only the GT3 will do!

This is an update of my previous review, which is the veeeery first first review on this page. I've been using this thing day in and day out for almost two years. First off, the GT3 is NOT difficult to use. One thing I hadn't discovered when I first reviewed it is each of the effects has it's own set of presets. These can get you in the ballpark very quickly, and then you can tweak from there. Is this feature in the manual? I lost my manual. Don't really need it after you get the hang of this thing.

All the effects (chorus, harmonizer, delay, etc..) are great, with the only ones in question being the amp models and the distortions. I use mostly the crunch, Marshall, and Metal amp models. I find these are the best for most real world stuff. The bloom is kind of off the rose for me, though. The amp sims are sort of like xerox copy of a photo. The sounds in the GT3 are more "in" the speakers, rather than "in front" of the speakers. They also sound kind of thin (they all seem to need help from the eq section, especially in the low end). Recently I compared the GT3 amp sims to the DG Stomp, and the Stomp sounds much more present and detailed. However, the Stomp doesn't have 1/3 of the features of the GT3 which I've become addicted to. I think it's time for the GT-7, with updated amp models. And this time, how about getting a great wah sound?

Very reliable. No problems.

As I said in my first review, I'm a music director at a church, and we play everything. Loud/soft, old/new, Christian/secular. I even used the slicer once (!) on a Third Day tune and a synth sound for 80's night (Safety Dance). I need tons of versatility with my setup, and the GT3 nails almost anything I need. It's a great pedal. I just wish Boss would make their amp sims as good as Yamaha does.

When using this effects processor for the first time it can be done easily. It is different when actually using the effects processor the way that it is designed though. I personally had to get familiar with all the options before setting my own channels. The manual doesn't really help in this situation since it just has an overwhelming amount of features. memorization of the effects is the only inconvenience I had to face. All of effects are quality though.

when using this system with headphones it is amazing. To truly get the sound quality, you really have to be playing on a quality amp. All of the effects are of great quality and can manipulate anyone else's sound. I play on an ibanez guitar and a crate blue voodoo half stack, it really goes perfectly with the GT-3

100% Professional quality, I use it at all the gigs and it can do it all. I rely on it solely for my shows.

I have never directly dealt with the company,I know all warranty info has been established and my boss products are fully warrantied.

I am a college music major and play many styles of music. I have been able to explore more styles and have had more chances to vary the styles I write because of my BOSS GT-3 effects board. I have everthing I need in this board to play gigs or just have fun and write music. This effects processor will still be quality for me to use in ten years with all the effects it has.

This unit is quite easy to use, pretty straight forward, the presets are all available with the turn of the dial. Editing isn't too bad either

I'm using with this with a crate gx-15, yeah i know its just a practice amp, but i'm comparing this unit to my zoom 505 pedal. I will say one good thing, Its pretty quiet, not too much buzzing. However the distortion is absolutely horrible, my zoom 505 has way more balls than this piece of crap. You might as well just poke a hole in your speaker like they use to have to do in the 50's, cause thats what most of the distortion sounds like. (vintage 50's, 60's) The chorus and flanger are halfway decent. And the synth effects were absolutely useless. I worked with the distortion for a long time, the best i could was a really flat grainy sound, absolutely no balls, and no crunch. You might think the reason for that is my amp, but trust me, the 505 kicks its ass.

It looks pretty solid, i wouldn't think it would break easy

I've been playing 7 years and my style is a lot like Static X, lots of palm muting and jud juds so its not something i can use, perhaps you Vintage lovers might like this thing.

In my opinion the Zoom 505 out performs it, although the GT-3 has more effects. I think they should quit wasting time making lots of lousy effects and just make a board with a few very good effects

Love this baby YEAH! Just got it & sounds are just oozing from it. It might take awhile to pinpiont the crucial aspects cuz I'm kinda green on the MULTI-EFFECTS SYNDROME but it doesn't seem to be to difficult. I do like the 'manual' setting though. It's a floor full of pedals in one integrated unit. WOOO-HOOO!

Sound is awesome no doubt, CAN I GET A WITNESS! I take my epiphone LP-100 through the GT-3 & out through my Fender Automatic GT and I'm there. These instruments compliment each other quite well. (I know it's not fair but just hang in there you'll get there someday)I read others talk about 'crunchy distortion' but thats the way I like it, uhuh uhuh. Take off some reverb & short delays & it won't sound too digital, alright? The effects are top-notch & you get alot of them. All-in-all, a tight package for the people.

Stronger than a BULL-DIKE WITH A CREW-CUT!

Great stuff, my retailer doesn't let me down.

You got GAS? (gear acquisition syndrome) Then this unit has got the cure! If it were stolen I would kick their ASS & name their children. Then I'd make them buy me another one in mint condition. This machine is the bulls balls & I would personally like to thank BOSS for putting together the 'total package'.

This is very easy to use. If you know anything about music effects and have been playing the guitar a good while, you wouldn't even need the manual. It's only there for support. On the other hand if you're new at effects and guitar technology, the manual will steer you in the right direction.

Sounds are tight! I've used the boss stomp boxes since I started using effects, then came this unit with almost all the stomp boxes you'll ever want. So, I got the GT3. All the effects sound just like the stomp boxes, so if you like boss you'll love it. You probably won't use half of the stuff in it so it's nice to know exploration of the unit is endless. I play in a band at my church and I do lots of gospel gigs all the time. I can't say that I have anything to compare the unit to 'cause all I ever used is Boss. But, if I had to replace my effects unit I wouldn't consider getting anything else. All effects come so close to the real thing (like the wah pedal) you wouldn't notice a difference. Gospel is all music styles....jazz, rock, metal, country, etc. so, I'm constantly hitting the pedals and pushing buttons. The unit always gives me what I'm looking for. In light of what I just said I do need to emphasize that you must tweak the unit to get your desired sounds. It doesn't come out of the box tailored to your taste. But, you can get what you want out of it. You can even use it to emulate guitars you don't have like acoustics, jazz guitars, etc. Nothing is better than the real thing but it does a real good job. This unit is perfect for studio applications (directly to board/recorder), the days of hauling your amp to the studio are over! I've done very nice studio work with this thing. I use this with my EMG loaded Peavey Predator (Strat), Squire by Fender (High End) Thinline Series Telecaster, and Classical Acoustic Guitar. They all sound good coming out of my Peavey Special 212 Combo amp. The only issue I had with it was the noise reduction, I didn't like the way it sound and I couldn't get a good setting I liked so I had better luck just turning it off. It's not a loud unit so if you have a quiet guitar your unit will be quiet but if your guitar is noisy you may like the noise reduction. I'm positive that with time and skill you can get about 90% of all the guitar sounds out there with this thing. It's on top!

This unit is built like a tank! You don't need a backup. I literally ran over my GT3 with my '91 Lincoln Town Car and the operation didn't change at all. All pedals still operated normally, dial was still smooth, and display was still crisp. I've had it for about a year and I see absolutely no need for a backup. Backup...for what?!

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I play all styles. I just finished my jazz guitar demo and this was key behind half of my sounds. I've been playing about 7 yrs. and I think this is the best fx around for this price range. I change roles in the bands I play with all the time (lead, rhythm, fx, specials, funk, pop, grunge, etc.) and this is versatile enough to change with me in the moment of the twinkling of an eye. Only thing I miss on it is the reverse like on the Boss Digital Delay (DD-5) stomp box. It's definitely tight and right!

OK, I started with a GT-5 and got the GT-3 when it came out 'cause it was smaller and had extra effects. It has the same excellent sound as the GT-5, which was superior to all previous floor boxes in terms of realistic amp simulation and qulaity of effects.

Tweaking the factory preset isn't too hard and the best way to learn the insides of teh unit if you're not a computer geek to start with.

All the operating systems found in modern Boss/Roland gear is pretty well thought out. The GT3 has a logical interface BUT scrolling through menus is always going to be tedious on a small LCD display. The main gripe I have is that the display doesn't blink for unsaved patches. This was a great visual reminder on the GT-5 and for some mystical reason the GT-3 doesn't do this. Be wary - forget to save and your patch is gone!

Manual is fine, although it's more of a reference as opposed to a complete programming walk through. Whatever...

My unit has firmware 1.01 - Is there any other?

My setup: Parker Fly Deluxe -> GT-3 -> Mackie SRM-450

No noise! This combination allows for an incredibly flexible and accurate system. Using full range speakers (with the Headphones/Line output setting) the effects sound lush and detailed, the amp models show more character, the piezo pickups on the Fly sound breathtaking and synth-type patches are much more startling.

Previously, I plugged the unit directly into the effects return of a Peavey Classic 30. This was good also - warm, clean valve sound - but guitar amps impart too much of their own flavour on the signal.

Using a PA type setup, it essential to tweak the Speaker Simulator to obtain realistic amp impersonations! It's daunting at first but you just need to listen and tune in the Distortion/Pre-amp/Speaker Sim. section very carefully.

I have been able to create some wild, Reeves Gabrels-style digital shred sounds... BUT, I've coaxed convincing Neil Young approved organic grunge. THe box can do most things, you just have to spend the time to work out HOW.

Solid. I'd entrust my life to this little guy.

Never had a need...

If you play rock, the presets should get you in the ball park.

Of, course it would be great if there was no limits on the effects combinations (pitch-shift, ring-modulation, synth simutaenously would be fun, yeah?), more dynamic effects (ducking delay, etc) would be welcome. AND, why, oh why, do Roland always omit certain effects from the previous processor? The GT-3 gains Slicer, Auto-Riff, Acoustic Preamp etc. but loses the Smooth option on the Delay, Reverse delay etc. ?

Same with the VG-88 vs. VG-8... Keep ALL the old effects in the next box, ADD but don't SUBTRACT!!!

Oh yeah, the price is outrageous... I used to have a Digitech GSP-21 Pro back in the day (around $1500 new) and it could do a tenth of the things this baby can. And evolution wonderful?

Boss GT3 is really simple to use after you have read the manual etc.

Sound quality is very good if you connect it up to your amp correctly.
I use mine as follows: PRS guitar to input of GT3, out of GT3 to input of my Marshall JCM 600 valve head.The amp is run clean with Bass at 5, middle at 5, and Treble at 2.The GT3 sounds very good and i use Vintage Overdrive at 65 and Pre amp MS 1959 1+11, vol 55, bass 30, middle 45, treble 25, presence 0, master 100.This sounds the best for most rock sounds.Do not use in the f/x loop if you want overdrive sounds specially if you have a valve amp, as it will sound crap.

Boss quality, and well built

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EXCELLENT FOR ROCK IF YOU USE IT IN THE WAY ITS DESIGNED