Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor

Simple. Two knobs that get rid of noise. Threshhold sets the amount of noise that is allowed through the noise gate, and decay decides how fast the noise suppression snaps on.

This pedal does its job, and very well. At the moment I play through a Laney LC-50 amp that's blown one of the preamp tubes and has lost some volume. If set incorrectly, the pedal can chop off some sustain, but when you find your perfect setting forget about the pedal, crank your amp and play. I use a Yamaha Pacifica which is good, but I also use a Kackson PS3 Randy Rhoads copy, which is great for heavy stuff but gets feedback galore when I'm not playing. This pedal hushes everything, but I do still get about half a second of whistle every now and then at high volumes.

It's a Boss, so of course it's dependable. I'd use it without a backup simply because I can't afford a backup, but I wouldn't be worried about usingn it live cos I know it wouldn't break down.

Haven't every dealt with em

I play heavy music - lots of old sabbath, and heaps of metallica and Pantera. This pedal is a must for me. I wouldn' play anywhere without it, and if I did it would be sooooo noisy.
Give it a 9 for this, cos nothing's perfect.

It's a very simple pedal...doesn't take much time at all to learn. Only three simple and important knobs: Decay, Threshold and switch between mute/suppressor.

It's really great to take away all the noise from the effects...but it depends on how the settings are: if the "threshold" is on max it takes away all the noise, but it can also cut away the sustain from your playing....so you have to make your own perfect setting.

Hehe...come on, it's a BOSS!

Have never dealt with them...I've never had a problem with Boss.

I use this pedal with (in order): Boss CS-3 Compression Sustainer, George Dennis Wah-wah volume, Danelectro Fab tone, Ibanez Tubescreamer and a Nobels Tremolo. But I don't use my Boss CH-1 Super Chorus and Boss DD-5 Digital Delay with the NS-2.
Then I a nice black Gibson Les Paul Studio and a beautiful 3-color sunbursted Fender American Standard Stratocaster.
This pedal is totally excellent, but one thing that's negative is the fact that you have to use so many cables, so it takes a longer time to put everything together, but the quality of this pedal is great!

pretty easy. I got it used, so I was not familiar with some of the switch control knob, but for the most part it was easy.

This is basically a fancy noise gate. It does its job, takes out noise when you're not playing, and to be honest it sounds like it takes some out when you're playing too. It doesn't screw up the sound much, either. It will add a slight electronicy edge to it, but if you run it through an analog pedal or an eq pedal or some other effect it basically goes away.

Boss, like a rock

never had to deal with 'em, and lets keep it that way!!

This pedal was VERY useful when I used my Metal Maniac distortion pedal. It really does clean up alot of noise, although it can't get rid of all. I hardly use it now, as I have a Boss MT-2 Metal Zone and it is as quiet as heck. I have been using it in experimental pedal configs and have found it to be very useful.

Easy to use. The manual is ok.

It works great. It does what it's supposed to do,suppress noise. I don't use the Send and Return loop though i use it in line with my other effects. You gotta find the right position in your effects chain to make the sustain sound normal - so that it doesn't get cut off by the noisegate.

BOSS.
Perfect.

I bought the unit used. So i called the support here in germany and they sent me the manual within a few days.

Great,especially if you play live (loud volumes) and with lots of distortion :)
It's just a pedal I do not wanna miss.

It's very easy to use. It works as a noise gate or mute pedal. Mute is used for changing guitars without messing up the amp. or when you need total silence. reduction cuts off any noise when you are NOT playing. and it cuts feedback.

it makes no noise.. (as you guess)

it's cool..

no idea.. I've never heard a boss pedal broken down..

I played death metal for many years and it's really essential especially for that kind of music. if you turn it down for a second, there starts a terrible feedback. For concerts and studio work it's very useful. Not much use if you use it only at home. oh I almost forget the negative point.. the 'return' jack inlet is half centimeter below the input. if you are using more than one pedal (with cordless jacks between the pedals, I dont know its name, just think two jacks put together between two pedals) your NS-2 needs elevation. I put a small book under it.

Easiest god damn pedal I've ever used! 3 knobs: Threshold, Decay and Reduction/Mute. Just turn the threshold 'til the noise is gone! The decay decides how fast the noise reduction should snap on. When you use the mute mode obviously no sound gets through it!

My setup: Fender strat w. single coils -> BOSS CS-3 -> BOSS MT-2 -> BOSS CE-2 -> ZOOM 505 -> BOSS NS-2 -> Amp. Even though I use single coils on the strat this setup isn't noisy at all (that is with the NS-2, before I had some terrible noiseproblems!). I only use the 505 for the good reverb, I don't like most of the other effects!

BOSS rules!

I play alternative, grunge, metal and just about anything else that sounds good! This is great for low noise studio applications! Just be careful with the threshold or else you might lose some tone!

Just plug in and there you go. Manual helpful. This pedal is set up for a 2 years old. Easy as that

Soung Quality?? Best pedal I've ever bought. No Noise at all.I use a Gibson Les Paul and a Marshall JCM900 half stack.

It's a Boss .That's all I gotta say about that!

Good support.Boss effects rule

An effects must for us effects junkies. Who wouldn't want this pedal. Eliminates all noise and also a power supply. Whoever invented this pedal should get the noble piece prize. Wouldn't go without one for the rest of my life.

Turn the knobs where you want them...forget about it and go.

Not quite as good as the rackmountable Rocktron Guitar silencer. Will explain below.

Totally reliable.

Never dealt with them.

The way I use this pedal is a little different. This pedal is the FIRST thing in my signal path: Guitar - NS2 - Boss GT5 - Amp. I have the controls set to almost full. What I want is the capability of doing fast, snappy chords with NO sound in between the chords. This pedal does this for me but not quite as well as the Rocktron Guitar silencer does (see my review). The Boss seems to allow for the decay of the signal even on full. This can be bad or good...Bad for what I need when playing rhythyms, but great when doing solos so for me, it is a compromise. Also, when I turn the amp up very loud and turn the guitars volume on, there is no sound; the pedal does it's job. But after I play a few chords, the NS2 has trouble re-gating the signal. I'll get feedback when begin trying to mute the strings. Sometimes I'll need to hunt around for the right spot to stand in so the pedal can be effective (usually at a distance from the amp facing away) so this can be an inconvenience at times. All in all the pedal does exactly what it was intended for and I would buy it again. Aside from the very minor work on my part to get it to perform the way I want, it is a great value.

Pretty cool, does its job. Easy to use, the manual actually helped a bit. 3 knobs. Turn on all your stompboxes, set the Threshold until noise reduced/eliminated. Set decay to adjust how quick noise reduction kicks in. I must have a noisy set up cause i've got both knobs almost on max. The Mode knob allows a 'mute' option, where noise suppression is always 'on', and hitting the pedal mutes the guitar. before i got hold of the manual, i had to call to make sure i had it hooked up correctly, because the box has its own sub-effects loop. i run the NS-2 through my amps effects loop (in/out). all the other fx pedals (except delay/reverb) go in the NS-2's fx loop (send/receive). so you've got a couple of extra cables you've got to hook up.
Oh yeah-one last goody. The NS-2 saves you money! Why?-because you can run a 9V daisy chain from the NS-2 and power other pedals. So you can stop buying all those 9V adapters. That's part of the reason I bought this box relatively early in my buying plans.

Noise? that's its job - to eliminate it! i'm playing a '89 US Squire Strat into a 65W solid-state Fender. It's got its own Overdrive. The single-coils into the Fender O/D is pretty damn noisy. I also use a Stereo Chorus and Flanger. i don't think the NS-2 is designed necessarily to reduce single-coil hum; but overall (set at max) it does a damn good job of suppressing all that noise. it doesn't suppress as much while you're playing (that's not when you notice noise), but kicks in when you quiet down, or in between songs. Ya gotta play with the Decay a little, to make the phase-in of the suppression sound natural. Also, if you set the decay to low, it cuts off too abruptly - also chopping off your sustain.

I just started buying my stompboxes, but am quickly becoming a Boss addict. I don't care if i pay a premium. from what i've seen and what i've read in other reviews; Boss is Boss!

I've been doing a lot of research on various manufacturers. Boss has been very helpful. I go to their website frequently. They even have an on-line users group for Boss products. I wrote them a letter telling them i bought a used NS-2 and wondered if i might get a copy of the manual...and they sent it to me! no charge. i also ordered my 9V diasy chain from them cause i was having trouble locating it around town.

I'm just gettin back into playing after a LONG hiatus. I was rockin when Regan was President! Play originals, blues, 70's rock, spacey stuff, but may dabble in some newer rock & grunge. playing as a hobby, for the fun of it. this pedal is a nice addition to my (expected to grow) arsenal. the mute is a nice function, especially for you folks up on stage. the ability to power other boxes is a great feature, and a $ saver. i didn't try other brands. read all the reviews on Harmony Central, emmailed a few players, and ordered it without even trying it! i am happy with my choice.

There's only two knobs..Very simple. I don't even use the mute function.

I use this in the effects loop of my amp to cut back noise.. This is by far the best gate I have used and I've used alot of them.. including Rocktron's 'Hush' and 'Guitar Silencer', DOD's 'Gate/Loop' pedal and Rockman's 'Smart Gate' ..This is the only noise reduction unit that won't clip off notes (Unless you WANT it to), ruin your sound or create extra noise in your setup!! And it's cheap!!

I've had mine for 2 years without problems.. I even bought a spare one foir studio use and it works just as well!

Haven't dealt with them ...Haven't needed to

For $50 this was great.. I've often seen these floating around at this price ..One cool thing about this pedal (that I don't use it for..) is it will power other BOSS pedals.It would be cool if they made a rackmount of this also..