Boss OD-3

So easy to use...only 3 knobs.

I must say that this Boss overdrive is quite good,very good indeed.
IMHO this is what Boss has the best to offer among their so-so line
of overdrive and distortion pedals.The OD-3 provides a good,strong
crunchy sound that's great for classic or heavy rock.For those styles
of music the OD-3 shines and is truly inspiring.This has been my main
OD workhorse for the last 3 years and i enjoyed it since day one. Much better than Tubescreamer for All-out Ac-Dc riffings.
However,i would only recommend it if you find one dirt cheap.
Mine has now been replaced by that Barber Direct Drive SS which for
about 50 bucks more is vastly superior.But overall the Boss Od-3 is
a damn good overdrive that suffers only if compared to some new offerings.If Boss could come up with a more useful tone control...
and a lower price tag.By the way,have you seen the new line of Behringer compact pedals?That's what i call TOTAL RIP-OFF.

I would not go as far as "built like a tank" but Boss pedals
are strong and hassle-free.No doubts about that.

Roland is a big corporation.Although i never spoke or dealt with them
if i had to,i think it would be waste of my time.

If you play heavy blues,classic rock or hard rock it's a good match.
Don't buy it at full retail price tho,find a used one.
I give it a solid 7 overall-good sounds,reliable,nice yellow colour.
Clearly the best sounding Boss pedal(i tried'em all).
But to me,too expensive like all Boss products.

Simple easy to use. Three Knobs, one for Level, tone, Drive. Its very easy to get a great sound out of the OD-3, works well with my strat clone. My first and only Boss pedal.

Virtually no noise from this pedal. I run it through my strat clone -> Mod Cry Baby Wah -> OD-3 -> Practice Amp. What i like the most about this pedal is that it retains the lower end even if you turn the tone knob all the way up. Its fairly good with batteries. I have found that using the adaptor gives it a slightly different sound (one may want to test, to hear the difference). Cheap Carbon batteries seems to make the Overdrive slightly smoother, if that is something your after. Overall its a great pedal, perfect for Blues or classic Rock. You might be able to get some killer heavy metal type sounds if you run it through a high gain marshall aka. Zakk Wylde.

Now i haven't bought any Boss pedals in the past. But i know they have a good reputation for being quite reliable. However I dont know if was my bad luck but the within the first few weeks i noticed that the connectors went bad and the LED no longer lite up when i plug the jack in. At first i thought it was the batteries, but it wasn't and i was very soon dissapointed to find that my sound had been somewhat altered. A simple thing like that does however make me question the reliablility. Though it does have a warantee so i am not too worried.

I am going to the music store I bought it from, see if i can either get it replaced or repaired. Hopefully all will go well and there wont be any problems. I have never dealt with Boss directly.

I play mostly blues music. I absolutly love this pedal. In my opinion of the best Overdrives out there. Though i have only been playing for aprox 3 years I do know what sounds good, and to my ears this sounds sweet. If lost of stolen i would most likely buy a new one. The only thing that bugs me is the jacks went bad, affected both the sound and thoughts about Boss Relability. Boss makes great pedals there is no doubt about that, i might have just been unlucky :P

Just the normal 3 knobs thang!!

It seems to me that, Boss have done it right this time!
I have been using Tube Screamers, standard and modded, and TS based overdrives like Fulltone, old and new, Maxon, Roger Mayer, etc, for years, and the OD-3 is much better in my opinion.
I use this for SRV based Texas Blues, and I think I've discovered something important here;
I use a '64 Blackface Vibroverb, (15" JBL), and a Mesa Blue Angel with a Weber Michigan 15", both amps running together always.
When I'd use a Tube Screamer it would get thin and fizzy, and chop the bass, I am after all using only 2 small amps!
SRV on the other hand, used 6 or so amps live, sometimes more, and in the studio, even up to 32!!
With all that brutal power, he didn't moan about losing any bottom end, in fact he probably wanted it that way....
With the OD-3 however, I can go from my normal crunchy/clean bypassed tone, to creamy overdrive/boost, without losing any part of my EQ. The sound just gets bigger and fatter, just like when SRV would stomp on his TS.
I tried this pedal once with high output single coils (Schecter/Anderson tappable pu's), and it sounded too muddy.
But now with normal vintage type single coils, made by Harry Haussell here in Germany, it sounds just perfect! In fact, almost Marshally, in a way.
Anyway it gives me much more of Stevie Ray's tone with my set-up, than any other overdrive I've ever used.
My other od's were: TS-9 '83 mod. with Analogman TS-9/808 mod, TS-9 with Analogman's Silver/KWS mods, Fulltone 2, old and new types, Roger Mayer Voodoo 1. The OD-3 is better sounding than all of these other pedals, and at less than a hundred bucks, it's pretty reasonably priced too!
Boss's famous transparent ACTIVE BYPASS does wonders for problems with long cables too! True bypass pedals, only make your cable/chain longer than necessary, and also suck tone too! You have to have an active buffer in there somewhere....

BOSS QUALITY. I don't care about "Made in USA", or "carbon comp" this or "boutique" that, anymore. It's mostly just hype anyway.
Look carefully at the feet of most pro players, and you're more than likely to find some Boss, or other quality mass produced pedals sitting there......
I always use cheap carbon batteries, they make most od's sound smoother, less harsh. And if you take care they'll last for ages.

Not necessary.

I'd get this again if stolen, I can get it anywhere :-)
This sounds better, than all the expensive boutique and modded od pedals I have ever tried.
Save your money and try this, you may be glad you did...
Here's a thought... How come you don't see anyone offering mods for this pedal on the net? Answer: 'cause it's fine just the way it is.
I'm selling all my other od's now.
Also, a rating of average 9, at 88 reviews, is pretty good for a Boss od, don't ya think?
Most reviewers here are unanimous: They got it right at last!!

same as all other overdrives, duhh.

i use a marshall 900 50 w head on stage and i also love yngwie malmsteen,
i have his signature o/d aswell as his guitar and pickups, so i am comparing my new o/d to his.
the difference being, i dont lose any bottom end (good for outdoor shows)
allthough the compression in the od-3 lacks that stratty wild malmsteen vibrato, apart from that they are both very similar (arent all overdrives though?)

you better believe it baby!

heres some advice....
go to a music store,
buy it
if it breaks take it back......

ive been playing for about 20 years now, i play shred guitar, the best way to use this o/d is to run your amps gain at around halfway hot, do the same with the od-3 and you will find how it was meant to be played!
it really helps me get a smooth desireable tone and is warmer than the dod yjm 308 o/d, i do like the tone feature on it too,
its only as noisy as any other o/d pedal,
a final word on this unit, dont go out and buy distortion pedals, they kill your sound totally, get this and you wont be dissapointed, its better than the sd-1.
great for shredders, i play in a cover act and it doesnt let me down.

Standard set-up : Volume, tone and gain knob. Basic stuff...

Oh Yeah! In my opinion this is one of the best mass produced overdrive pedals currently on the market! I've tried a lot of overdrive pedals over the last few years and nothing has come close to the instant gratification I got from this. The first thing you notice is the fact that you don't lose bottom end like a lot of other pedals and the fine balance of transparency to colour, not too transparent, just right. The od-3 is also very versatile so you can go from a slight crunch to rockin' your pants off, and it's also got a lot of headroom in the volume department as well. Forget your ts-9's, kealey mod's, ts808's and all that other overhyped stuff.

Most guitar pedals made in metal cases will last you a life time unless you treat them mean. I've still got my original Od-1 and Ce-2 from about 1981, both work perfectly. In my 20 plus years of playing I have never had a pedal break down on me so yes I do and will keep gigging without back up's.

I've been playing for 22 years I've tried ts-9's, hotcakes, sd-1's, ts808's, fulltone's with dissapointing result's. The Boss OD-3 along with Pro co's RAT, Nobels ODR-1 and my trusty Boss OD-1 are my fave's. I play in an original indy guitar pop band and also play in cover band's to make money. If your after an overdrive pedal try the OD-3, you won't be dissapointed.

Very easy to use, once you get the amount of drive you want, you can then adjust the with the tone control to get that "sweet spot".

I use either an American delux Tele or a 1985 PRS and run through a Peavey Blues Classic. This unit is not noisy and seems to do nothing to my tone or input when it is off. This pedal is good for rich creamy overdrive/distortion with very little buzzyness. I wish the sustain at lower volumes was better but this may be unrealistic. I think that the David Gilmore sound is obtainable with this as are those SRV squalky blues tones (if your using a Strat or PRS). It can get some good rock distortion tones with single coils or humbuckers. My favorite artists range from Hendrix, Clapton 1967-1971, Stone Roses, Happy Mondays, My Bloody Valentine, The Verve, Smiths, The Vines, Strokes, Bowies first two guitarists (Ronson and whats his name) and so forth

I have only had it for 4 months.

Never have had to deal with Boss

My music is original psychodelic folk rock. Been playing for over 35 years (jeez). I would definitly buy this pedal again. I've used preamp distortion and an old Digitech pds pedal, and an old rat (1970's) in the past but I like this so far the best. I've tried reissue TS-9 and it seemed just a tad bit subtle for me. I would like to compare a DS-1 to this pedal.

knobs and simplicity, two big reasons why I bought it.

I play a MIM fender telecaster.
I like to run a CS-3 infront of it to sharpen the attack,
and a GE-7 after to fine tune the tone.
really lets my hear my own fingers (where real tone is).
I love it!!!! makes my blues driver sound thin and weak!!!
lets not even talk about the sd-1. It's sad to know that I haven't bought it sooner.

It sounds really good going into the rest of my effects. I don't think I could ask for a better overdrive than this.

Boss makes the most dependable, mainstream pedals on the market.

very helpfull with my GT-5.

I'll play anything. rock, funk, blues, hardcore, electronica, alternative, ambient, shoegaze/dreampop, you name it I can feel it. This pedal can do it all. If you like true tone... buy this.
I might even try to two OD-3's for a metal sound or a solo boost.

I gave it a 9 because I won't sing me to sleep at night.

It's a pretty simple layout, 3 knobs, like a tubescreamer or a dozen other overdrives. The manual is fine, but one wouldn't need it. I've heard the Boss OD-1 and OD-2, this is a completely different unit. Much better in my opinion. The tone knob is the key to dial in your own sound preferences.

I currently use this with an American Strat with red, silver, and blue Lace Sensors and a Tech 21 Trademark 60. However, it works well with my Les Paul, Am. Tele, Marshall JCM 800 combo and Nomad 45 combo. It really does the tight crunch sound well. The great thing about this pedal is that is has the right low end (bass) sound; (Tight and crunchy). It can be smooth with the tone turned lower, or bright and tight with the tone turned up. The main reason I'm doing this review is that I want to let tonemeisters know about a good sounding overdrive at a reasonable price. I don't care for any of Boss's other pedals (especially the distortion/overdrives), however I think their delay pedals are good. I use the DD-6.

So far I've had no problems. I don't need a backup as I could turn the amp's volume knob down for a reasonable crunch sound.

Never dealt with the company other than buy their products. The pedals seem very reliable. I bought mine on Ebay.

I play rock and blues. The OD-3 is excellent for those tones. It's not a super high gain distortion pedal, but it does have more gain and much better low end than, for example, a TS9 (I have one and have A/B'd them). I've been playing for 25 years. This is one of the best, reasonably priced overdrive pedals I've had and heard. I would definitely buy another one if this one were lost. The thing I like the best about it is that it has a decent low end. The bottom isn't sucked out like many of the old overdrives did. I don't hate anything about it. The battery life is good also. I compared it to a TS9, a Fulldrive II, a Zoom Power Drive (PD-1), and a Boss OD-2. The FD2 and The PD-1 are also great ODs, but The OD-3 is not as pricey as a FD2 and is still being made, unlike the Zoom PD-1.

this thing is so simple to use. three nobs. volume, tone and gain

ok. i used to use a rat and sd1 . both amazing pedals. ive got and epiphone les paul with seymour duncans on. my amp is a valvestate 150. not the best amp but it does the job. anyway so i try the od3...OH MY LORDY!! This thing is the best thing i have ever used! with the gain on full it gets really rocking but at the same time it remains nice and clear and creamy. i also have a ts9 and the od3 sounds so much better. with the gain rolled all the way off it gives a lovely mellow crisp sound. i also use the sd1 to boost it, this sends it into meltdown! i love this thing. the rat is now gone from my board. well done boss!

its a boss?!

im into big soundscapes. i love delay and reverb so i use loads of it. i love feedback. with this pedal with all of the delays and reverbs my sound never gets muddy. every note is crystal clear. the tone really reacts to the way you play. and the feedback this thing gives off is lovely. overall a very warm sounding, creamy yellow little box of pure joy. i give it a ten overall because i have finally found the overdrive ive always been looking for. thank you boss.

Very easy to use. Standard Boss stompbox with 3 knobs (Level, Drive and Tone).

Very easy to get a good sound, provided you've bought the pedal for the right purpose (see below).

This pedal produces the best warm overdrive sound that Ive ever heard. Its rounded, responds to my playing and can produce everything from a nice broken clean sound to a thick overdrive. That may sound a little limited but it thats what its for and it does it very well.

I purchased this pedal to give me "that sound" between the 2 channels on my valve combo i.e. clean and saturated valve distortion. I play a lot of tunes where this sound is required (U2, counting crows etc.)The OD3 does this perfectly. Whilst its basic tone is different to that of my amp distortition, because the OD3's tone is so round/full it compliments it.

Boss claim that this unit does sound like a valve amp. I disagree. Whilst it is the best OD Ive heard, its not quite as warms as true valves.

Previously, Ive used a Rat, Turbo Rat, Guvnor, various DOD pedals and a DS1. The OD3 beats them all. Whilst all the others produced a high-gain sound, they were all too harsh and toneless.

A lot a reviewers claim that this should strictly be used to overdrive valve amps. I dont think so. It drives my valve amp well but can also be used as a stand alone overdirve pedal.

Havent had it long but it is Boss. My previous boss fx have lasted me a lifetime.

see above

A great pedal that does 1 trick, but EXTREMELY well. It produces a good, warm OD. Its doesnt go to extremes so beware to anyone who wants saturated sounds.

If you want a pedal to ruffle your current sound - this is it.

all said before, it cannot get easier...

I haven't found a distortion/overdrive pedal that I liked enough, until I got this one. It won't do very high gain, but it's perfect for classic rock and blues etc. Smoother overdrive than other pedals, either in front of an amp (Electar Century 60RD, with a Celestion Century speaker, very under-rated solid state amp with valve preamp), or even in front of my V-Amp for headphone practice and recording!
It respects the tone of the guitar like no other pedal... and switches on/off smoothly without clicks.
If you want mainly heavy metal sounds, this will not be to your liking. But if you want a more warm, less overdriven, classic rock sound, this is the best I've listened to. And at this price you cannot hesitate, unlike those "boutique" pedals...
I give it a 9 for sound.

Never had a problem with a Boss pedal, other than the battery terminal breaking eventually (after much abuse over the years!) but that's more to do with the treatment I give it than the construction. Boss pedals last forever. If there's a nuclear world war, afterwards there'd only be cockroaches... and Boss pedals.

For classic rock, blues etc... if you want a smooth overdrive sound and don't care for tons of gain, this pedal may be for you. It certainly does it for me, but your ears may tell you otherwise... everybody's idea of good tone is a bit different.
I have a rackmount Boss GX700 (preamp/fx) that includes a number of distortions/overdrives based on Boss' own models. I had previously own a Metal Zone MT-2 (good metal pedal, but no good for any other style) and a Distortion DS-1, which I found too harsh. The sounds of the GX700 matched well those of the pedals. Among the overdrives in the Boss there was an "Vintage OD" that was very very nice. It sounds very much like the Boss OD-3, but the OD-3 is a bit smoother. I'd get another one if I lost it, without a doubt.
The sounds, with the price, makes this pedal very good value, hence the top marks. The fact that I can use it in front of my V-Amp and still sounds good was an unexpected bonus... Best od pedal I've heard.. It approximates very well the ideal sound I have in my head, which for #35 is fantastic.

three knobs, a switch, nice and simple, as it should be. Hell, doesn't even need the tone knob.

This is an excellent pedal for signal boosting, and as I've found out, for either tube or tranny amps(much better for tubes though). The first thing that got my attention was the transparency of the sound. It doesn't color the tone from the original, only adding overdrive. I mainly use it to slam the signal down the front of the amp, usually switching off and on DURING a lead to accentuate certain parts. The amp I'm using is a Marshall JCM 800 2210 (100 watt brutal MONSTER of an amp that I've reviewed elsewhere) and the guitars I'm using are an Ibanez RG 7-string, USA old bolt-neck BC Rich Bich, and Fender strat. In the last few years I've gotten away from using Hot-as-Hell pickups because they (a) don't work well for clean tones and (b) usually have no bite, definition, or clarity. Both the Ibanez and Bich are running Duncan JB's, slightly lowered, with the front pickups wired as singles. The Strat is stock. I've found that using this setup, while backing off the gain a bit on the Marshall and using the OD-3 still retains that "bite" with a good punchy articulate tone.

This thing was used, beat up, and old when I got it. Sounds good. So does my Boss Chorus (it looks even worse!). I think you would have to intentionally destroy it. I wouldn't need a back up because, quite frankly, I don't depend on effects too much. I most often just plug straight into the Marshall, 'nuff said.

Never dealt, probably won't need to.

I've played a little bit of everything in the past, mainly rock, blues, metal, etc. My current band is Death Metal, and yes, I'm a shredder. I've found that when playing at such high speeds, it's best for me to back off the distortion a bit and not use high-output pickups (I know I'm going to catch hell for this!). It creates good definition when picking at stupid fast speeds, and keeps you honest (in other words, lets you know right away when you're making a mistake). The OD-3 provides me with a good signal boost (all the knobs are at around noon, by the way) when I need it, and breaks up the clean channel when I need a good classic rock/blues sound. I'm about to get a DOD 250 for the hell of it, just to compare the two. However, this particular pedal does exactly what I wanted it to do as it is.

volume, Drive, Tone. Only minus point is that i like to turn the knobs with my feet, and the tone gets tricky, but still no marks off for that!

Roland Spirit 30 > zoom505II (for temporary modulation) > TU-2 > RAT II > OD-3 > MXR Phase 100 > USA Strat

Noise: doesnt make a noise when off, but when on, makes more buzzing the higher the gain/tone which is expected

I like to utrn the gain low down sometimes, to dirty up my clean tone a bit for Nirvana songs, and higher gain setting sound dirty but clear - beautiful

note: this is definnitley not a distortion. i wouldnt try to get away with this as distortion

Like all boss pedals, heavy handling wont damage the shell or affect it.

Ive never had any internal problems with it, or any other boss pedals

(i wish i could say the same for electro-harmonix!)

I use without backup. I try to chose pedals in wihc i dont need a back up

never needed to

I play blues, metal, grunge, indie rock and other styles. This is not a metal pedal, however, when paired with fuzz or distortion can suit your needs.
Ive been electric guitar for over 3 years and this pedal inspired me to start getting pedals whose quality can match it.

Very easy. No explanation required.

I use this pedal with bass. I have always been very unhappy with the quality of most bass overdrive pedals. They compensate for crap tonality by adding extra eq (see Boss Bass Overdrive). This pedal is excellent in terms of creating a natural, full-frequency overdrive sound for bass. There is no bass drop, and the unit can be used as a subtle level or tone lift, through to a barking grunty sound. I searched long and hard for a pedal that would sound this natural - imagine my surprise when I discovered that the Boss Overdrive would give me joy.

I would rely on it always. Boss has that one advantage in its favour; in the case of most of its pedals, that's the only advantage.

I imagine Boss would be excellent. They're sold everywhere, aren't they?

With this pedal years of searching came to an end. It's a great subtle overdrive that can be a little boost or a lot of very musical dirt. I use other pedals for other functions, but the Boss OD-3 is ideal for a basic, strong overdrive.

3 knobs, with pretty obvious functions. no secrets, no need for tinkering with it

I use a single coil Fender American Standard Strat and it produces little noise, even on the highest drive setting. Sounds almost perfect, it has some anoying highs with the tone knob turned up, but i guess that's what it's for. Otherwise, perfect overdrive sound, with good dynamc response, turn down the volume and it cleans up just like a tube amp

Awesome pedal, use it for some twangy rock 'n roll sound or as a booster pedal. I also like for adding some mids to my MD-2 Mega distiotion pedal, i use the overdrive before the md-2, with both turned on the distortion gets punkish, with it off it goes back to metal.

3 knobs. Not too tough. The crazy thing is, when I first plugged it in, straight out of the box, the thing sounded amazing... I didn't even have to putz around with it. It's got a manual, but really, there's no need to read it, the pedal tells you what everything does.

I primarily use a Fender Telecaster -> Rotosphere -> TU-2 -> DD-3 -> FZ-2 -> OD-3 -> Fender Ultimate Chorus. Frankly, you don't need a tube amp, it doesn't need to be a booster, this pedal sounds amazing on its own. I originally bought it for a signal booster, but when I cranked it up and started playing I practially pooped. It was so clear, and yet so awesomely raunchy. Mind you, I play a lot of classic rock like The Stones, Clapton, but with an extra gain boost you could use this thing to play Nirvana tunes if you wanna... I know, I've tried. It's incredibly versitile.

I own a ton of Boss distortion style pedals including the OS-2 and the DS-2. To this day I have no idea why I bought them, I could never get a good sound out of them. I had almost given up on Boss' distortion units until I bought this pedal. You play chords and you hear every note. You lead, and your picking doesn't get lost in mud. I run the FZ-2 in gain boost mode, and with OD-3 cranked up you get the smoothest rock and roll tone ever. I've never been happier with a distortion unit.

I own TONS of boss pedals. The ones I bought back with I was 13 still work. Amazing.

Never had to call them

For stright up rock and roll, you'll never find a better pedal. It's got great warmth to it, and as stated above, it's clear as a bell. Don't buy this pedal expecting to play Limp Bizkit tunes, you'll get pissed.

I've been playing for quite a while now, and I'll say this, if this pedal were lost and or stolen, I would cry myself to sleep every night until I could get a new one.

This is my new favorite pedal. Pure and simple.

I think I'm going to go use it right now.

Same controls as all the others. Nothing new here, dead simple. However, the Level control is very sensitive around 9 o'clock, and it can quickly get too loud for me.

This is currently my favorite overdrive pedal. Although I am not as much of a expert as some who have written here (I have not owned any of the famous boutique pedals, except the Tonebone Classic, which I hated) I have been playing at a professional level long enough to know what I like. As others have noticed, this pedal sounds better with some amps than with others. This is true of all pedals. When I first got this pedal, my intention was to use it as a boost/slight dirt injector into my tube amps/preamps. With my HRDlx, not very good results (preamp distortion only, I don't play that loudly), with my Tech21 Trademark 60, also disappointing. With my Hughes and Kettner Tubeman, wow! GREAT combination! In contrast, a cheap Carvin TO1 (a Tubescreamer ripoff) sounded MUCH better with both the Fender and the Tech21. This is precisely because of the bass rolloff that Tubescreamer clones introduce. That EQ curve is no accident, folks. Trimmed bass usually helps an overdrive pedal cut through when used to drive an already distoring tube amp. The OD3 does NOT cut off your bass, so in these situations it may not be the right tool for the job. I believe Boss designed the OD3 to have a flat EQ in order to contrast it with its many other overdrive pedal which DID have this built-in curve (OD1, SD1, OD2, etc)
Where the OD3 has really come to shine for me, though, has been as a primary distortion generator, not as a booster. With the gain up to 3 o'clock, tone at about 12 noon, running into a clean amp (solid state or tube) I find the OD3 has an absolutely beautiful character. My biggest criteria: pickup transparency. Does my guitar still sound like my guitar, and do my pickup settings still sound distinctive, yet do I have sustain and a singing quality? With the OD3, the answer is YES for me. This simply was not true of so many overdrive pedals and tube preamps I have tried over the last 25 years, including the $225 Tonebone Classic. Once that pedal saturated, I literally could not tell the difference between different guitars or pickup settings, regardless of where I set the EQ controls on the pedal.
Oh, and the OD3 really rips if you hit it with another overdrive set to slight boost/slight dirt. My Carvin works OK in that roll for now (I'm looking for something less noisy). This combination still gives me pickup transparency, but with mondo sustain and harmonics. GREAT controllable feedback (but use a volume pedal after the OD3).

It's a Boss. I've never broken one before. It's a time-tested, classic chassi.

NA

I highly recomment this pedal for players of blues, jazz, classic rock, country, and for anyone who wants a lead sound that is just like their clean sound, but with sustain and a singing quality, but without fuzz. Not for metal or nu-rock.

Easy to use, three knobs, in out, switch, a basic od box.

This is my rig, B-bender teles, boss BWah, ross phaser, two Od3's, first with gain on 0, as a boost, second with gain on 6, akai phaser, maxon chorus, ibanez sd9 modded, carl martin delayluh, sometimes zfex seek wah, into a boomerang, then boss volume, finally into a fender 75 combo with a boogie 1x12 cab. Let me say that the od3's are one of the best od boxes out there. I have owned fulltones, keely's, and many others, and the od3 just sounds more musical to me. I hear people bashing "cheap" pedals all the time, but this one's a keeper. With two of these, I can get almost any sound I need. The only reason I need the sd9 is for scott henderson like grit, and that's only once in a while. The key is using two of these together. You can have a nearly clean boost, and a light to moderate od, and then run them together and get a singing lead sound that's very Robben Fordlike. With the fender amp and guitars, I can get a very warm blues sound that makes spectators seem to enjouy themselves.

I've played over 200 gigs with these pedals, and they still work fine.

I just want to urge people to stop beleiving the hype of all the overpriced boxes out there, and go back to judging woith your ears. The greats bought their fx because they sounded good, not because someone else told them the only way to sound good is to buy $300 boxes. I love the fulltone, barber and analogman units, but I don't have the cash, and I don't think I need it. The od3's are a close aproximation to any of the aforemensioned pedals, and they make me feel musical every time I plug them in. The only real way to sound like an individual is to find a rig that fits you, and the od3 fits me. Check it out!!

Very easy to use. Three knobs (level, tone and drive) and no more.

I use it with an American Standard Strato and a Tech 21 Trademark 60 amplifier.
It' s very loud (much more than SD1 or TS9) and it's very good as booster as overdrive. You can regulate in very sharp and progressive way the level of driving turning the drive knob after fixing the level one or vv.

No problems. It'a a tank like other boss pedals.

Never needed it.

I play blues and classic rock. I've been playing 'bout 20 years but I'm not a prof musician. I use some Boss effect like CH1 Super Chorus, DD3 Digital Delay and a Dunlop Wha Cry Baby. What I love of it is the warm sound which is never too dry (medium-high) and it's perfect for create vintage sound like '70 and '80.

easy. manual useless as is all manuals for pedals this simple

if you're looking for something to take a good overdriven amp over the top this is the pedal to get. no noticeable bass drop like the SD-1 and awesome as a boost [and much louder than my Maxon OD-9]. don't see any need to get this modded. less noisy than the SD-1

I play raunchy overdriven stuff [Marshall, Hiwatt, Orange, humbuckers] Get this pedal if you want to push you're already sweet overdriven tone.

Very esasy of use. Don`t really need to be explained. I'm from Chile, we speak spanish so I do the best I can whit the english....

I use a 40th anniversary strat with a Di marzio super distortion (bridge) and a PAF Pro in the neck position. Then a cry baby Jim Dunlop, the OD-3, CH-1, and the high sensitivity input of my new JCM 800 2203 (2002 reissue model).
I use the OD-3 for boost my sound, so the distortion is made in a %80 by the JCM 800, oh well...and the SD too....
With this set-up, I get the sound of my favourites (The '80 Iron Maiden, The '80 Judas Priest, Ozzy..of course, etc). That's enaugh for me, and that's is why I buy the JCM 800, and the OD-3.
I can't compare with the SD-1, cause I've never traied with it. However, the sound of this unit is perfect for me, it works great as a booster, and I feel that the natural distortion of my 800 it is not altered.

I totaly depend on my OD-3, like I said before, to boost my sound. I use it on my gig's and I don`t have a back up.

Don' really know. Don't have a month, but I know the Boos pedals, and they do not need customer support....

I've been playing for 12 years, now I've got all I ever dream. Of course I will get other guitar someday (Gibson Les Paul), and maybe a 1959 slp with a line selector for a more clean sound..
I do not thing that I change my pedals, because they work great.
If it where stolen, maybe I would leasten the SD-1, but just to be shure, so I think I would buy the OD-3 again.

already well reviewed

It's all about the right combination: This box mixes very well with the clean channel of a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. ie: The classic formula: solid state overdive plus tube amp. Produces a better sound than any box I've used including TS9s etc. It compresses slightly and sounds even better with a compression unit before it.

Already well reviewed

For blues this is the best pedal I've come across so far for use with Fender guitars: You can set the gain quite high and use the volume knob on the guitar the back of the overdrive. Warm and smooth but lets the Fender edge/bite come through. The voicing isn't too middle heavy either and unlike some pedals it doesn't chop off the bass. Very responsive to how hard you play single coils so you don't feel you're losing expresiveness.
Good value, very smart piece of electronics.

Every setting generates a usable sound (not for all styles though...)

Very good overdrive effect, albeit only vintage sounding. I've tried it with Am Std strat (neck: blue velvet, bridge: SD-1) and with Godin SD (neck: SD Jazz, bridge: SD Custom). Amplifiers used are Fender Princeton 65 (solid state), Fender Super Twin Reverb (valves) and Crate Vintage Club VC5310 (valves).

Sound are ok with all amplifiers and guitars, but excell in general with the strat. I've tried the OD-3 as booster for an already overdriven amp and as overdrive on a clean amp.

It's a good overdrive if used with humbuckers, you can get either a tweed-like drive or a vintage Marshall-like crunch (think AC/DC). If wanted it can add a nice bite to the sound of a muddy neck humbucker.

When used with a strat the boss comes alive; you can go for both a heavy strat crunch or for a slight broken edge added to the clean sound. Outstanding.

Works very well with all amps I've tried it on. Remarkably, it also shines on the hyper-clean Fenders. THere's a very clean drive, with almost no fuzz.

Due to the purchase of this overdrive my Ibanez Tube King has been relegated to 2nd division... it serves now as a mere volume booster... Just not as fat and warm as the OD-3.

Don't know yet. I've had one boss effect before... and it broke down... only piece of equipment that ever died on me though (fingers crossed).
Should it brake it will make a nice paper-weight.

Don't think I'll ever try this... why should I? The shop should take care of this.

Very good. Before purchasing I compared this unit to a fulldrive... the latter has more switching options, but not enough to pay that kind of money.
I preferred the tone of the OD-3 to that of the FDII when played over a clean amp. When used as a booster they were +/- comparable.

Like any pedal with only 3 knobs (gain, tone, volume) it is idiot proof to use. Just play with the knobs until you find your fave sound.

It never ceases to amaze me how using a particular overdrive/distortion effect in front of different amps can give such a varied result. This pedal through a marshall tube amp sounds great but through my mesa/boogies sound sorta ordinary but through my hand built Sherlock class A (review elsewhere here) it sounds sensational! Single coils have a very crunchy strat like sound with a nice compressed feel and humbuckers beef up and sustain for days. I have a DS1 boss distortion, BD2 blues driver (boss), TS10 tube screamer, Guv'nor 2 (marshall) and a mesa/boogie V twin pedal all of which i love for various reasons and i can A/B them all to compare tone and feel and can honestly say its the nicest transistor overdrive i own. It is hard to get a bad sound out of it. It will do a great blues sound, crunchy rock, pushed clean but falls short of a very heavy or metal sound which it was never meant to do anyway.

Boss...never had a problem. Cant go wrong if you use the specified power adapter.

neutral opinion as i never had to contact them

I dont gig and am a live sound engineer so have heard 100s of good and bad guitar stuff and i KNOW my stuff when it comes to tone. I Love this pedal and would definatly buy another and also i recommend it strongly to guitarists i meet. But like all products it wont please all the people all the time but it will please a lot of the people most of the time. Anyone can feel free to contact me for an educated opinion on guitar gear. Cheers

same as stock od03.

I really do like this Indyguitarist mod for the Boss od-3.The sound is more clear,open,less middy.I was basically looking to use this pedal to be used as a booster.I did not want this pedal to sound like Metal zone.It can still be used as a stand alone unit.Nice cruchy chords.Very pleased.

I did the mod myself(he sells the mod kit for around $10).So I guess if anything goes wrong,it will be my fault.One note of caution for those thinking about doing the mod yourself.You do have to know what you are doing.It is not easy to solder on these small Boss pedal circuit borads.Also,you probably should have basic understanding of electronics in this area.If you have never done this type of work,it will be wise to send the pedal to Indyguitarist for the mod.

Very good.Responded to all my e-mails in a timely manner.Seems like a really nice guy.

I have this theory that the Boss pedals in general(distortion,over drive pedals)are EQed to sound good at a low to moderate volume level,at a loudness which most people tryout thier effect.I think you can still get a good sound out of them by tweeknig them,but on some of thier pedals,I find it imposible to get rid of the excesive midrange honk.I can now crankup my OD-3,and let all that clean crunch do the work on my Mesa sob amp.It's a beautiful thing.