Boss PH-3 Phase Shifter

Quite a few settings, all of which are fairly easy to use. This is the best part about the pedal. On the other hand, sometimes I run into some problems with the tap tempo feature.

I use this through a Hotrod Deville and either a Highway One Strat or an Epiphone Les Paul. The first thing that I noticed when I plugged this in is that I get a huge volume drop from it. Aside from that, the sound quality isn't that great. I like the fact that I have several settings to choose from, but they are all kind of cold and digital sounding. Also, it doesn't really sound that great with any kind of distortion or overdrive. I think it deserves a 7 because although it doesn't sound that great, you can get a lot of different sounds out of it and it can add a little something to recordings.

Built pretty well. I've had it for 2 years without a problem.

N/A

In all, it's just a mediocre phaser. I prefer a Ross phaser or a Phase 90. I've actually been trying to sell it on craigslist for $50, but no one is buying it. I definitely could have done without spending $100 on this thing. The only reason that it's getting an OK rating is because of all the different modes to choose from.

It's FAIRLY easy to use but if you don't have the manual to explain what some of the settings are then you're going to spend a long time spinning dials trying to hear what the subtle changes are. I bought mine new so I have the manual. Can't give this one a 10 because it's NOT nearly as easy as some other pedals to figure out.

Holy smoke! I saw someone on here gave this thing a 10 for sound quality! WHATEVER! That person just wants a phase EFFECT and quality isn't their priority. This is such a SUCKING monster that I'm pretty sure that if you turned this pedal on and left it unattended, it would vacuum your carpets.
For the set up: I have a '93 American Standard (Fender Strat) with some hot Seymour Duncan pick ups. I play through a Marshall amp. Guitar volume at 10, clean tone, no EQ or effects, pedal off...to start.
Kicked the pedal on and instantly had a MASSIVE volume DROP! Side by side comparison with the pedal OFF and ON revealed that turning the pedal ON is equivalent to turning my guitar volume down to 6 (from 10). A FOUR (4) level drop!
I had this SAME volume drop when running the pedal directly between my guitar and the amp (not using the effects loop) too.
But wait! That's not all...
With NO other pedals or effects running (including no EQ), this pedal removed my MID range...scooped it and tossed it out the window!
So this pedal will steals volume AND mid range EQ frequencies...and all it's supposed to do is provide a phase shifting effect! I had this same problem whether using the effects loop or running direct in!
Can you get cool sounds with it? Sure.
Can you get the classic rock phase sounds (think "Barracuda" by Heart)? Sure!
Do you want to give up nearly 1/2 your volume and a sudden change in your EQ settings for that?!
I'll give it a 4 because it does have some cool options and can make some cool sounds; otherwise, I'd give it a 1.

These Boss pedals aren't "tanks" or "bricks" or "weapons" or all that silly crap that the kids like to repeat over and over again. They are electronic pedals. The housing is sturdy; the insides are fragile. I've had Boss pedals fall apart before. The PCB board and the jacks are the weak link. Overall, Boss pedals are pretty sturdy.

Never dealt with them.

I have to really kick it in the balls overall because who wants an effect pedal that's NOT a volume pedal OR an EQ pedal and yet changes both your volume and your EQ?
There has to be better choices on the market. I don't use the effect much (who does? it's a phase shifter for crying out loud!) but I know that I would not want to gig with this thing in any case.

Very easy to use. Make sure you check out the tap tempo, very fun to make a lengthy wave as well as a short one. No need for any help in using. Just take time to play with it to find the sound you like.

I gave sound quality a 6 for one single reason. While I like the PH-3 I think that the PH-2 is so much better. The wave lengths you get from the PH-2 are much clearer and without feedback. And I would recomend a PH-2 rather than a PH-3. That being said, I still had much entertainment from the awesome tones I got from it.

As someone said "It's a boss pedal"

Never had to deal with them

Its a good pedal, I can't deny that. I had hours of tweaking it and getting great tones out of it. But like I said... I much prefer the PH-2

its not terribly diffucult to get a good tone out of it but to find "your" tone it can be slightly challenging

i use it on my board in this order fender telecaster mim w/lindy fralin pickups, boss tu2, dunlop jimi hendrix fuzz, fulltone fulldrive 2 mosfet, danelectro fab chorus, boss ph3, 2 digitech digidelays, dunlop crybaby wah, into a 1973 twin reverb and it fits perfectly for my ambient/prog rock sound i use it mainly for adding some extra texture to lead lines and such

its a boss

havent had to deal with em yet and hope never to have to

not a phase 90 which i want to get for its own thing but for neat sounds it does a great job

im gonna keep this short cause it should be.

the controls are easy. this section really shouldnt pertain to half the pedals out there. if you cant figure out most pedals how the hell can you play a guitar?

Ok so lets break it down. i also own a small stone and now i have to let one go because i refuse to have two phasers. so honestly its all in taste. can the boss do a small stone? nope cant. can it do alot of other old vintage phasers, yupe sure can. it can do alot of different phasers and is the best one on the market right now i know of(i am however waiting to see line 6 do a tonecore phaser, when that happens my opinion will change im sure.) it cannot do the subtle analog phase tone. and if that is all you want get a nano stone, or phase 90. that would be your best bet. but if you want a lil bit of everything and are willing to sacrifice a lil bit of tone when pedals engaged then go with this one. its not much. but yes when a/b'd with a analog yes this is a lil noticable. i give it a ten, because it never claimed to be analog. so shuta yo face wit da analog!

boss have made some horrid pedals. but fragile is not a word ive aver heard used with boss.

well when you break it down it goes like this. you want a phaser capable of a lil bit of everything. yes get it why dont you own it. dont buy a pedal and bitch because it doesnt sound like a phase 90. why didnt you just get a phase 90 in the first place idiot? if you want a lil bit of everything yes. if your that specific then go for your specific thing. and yes im cutting loose the small stone. not cause its not as good. but because as much of a bad rap that digital gets. its 100% more reliable and when you can find a digital substitute. you should stick with it.

Note; this is a DIGITAL phase shifter. If you understand signal path you won't have any problem with any perceived volume drop, either. It is easy to get a good sound, in fact I would be surprised by anyone getting a 'bad' sound as this pedal is IMHO an excellent product. Just plug it in and fiddle about; it does Mutron, it does Morley, it does MXR and vintage Ibanez, and it also does its own thing. FYI I bought it mail-order, without auditioning it either.

I tend to use a customised Strat going to a Fender Twin mk II or a modded Vibro-Champ. The unit is not noisy at all and the different phaser stages enable the user to cover nearly all the different types of phasing. An exp to manual control and a mix control would have turned this into the best phaser ever; however the expression pedal input controls the rate, not quite as useful so I won't be chucking my old Morley vol/phase out yet! The Boss also excels at slow, subtle phase sweeps - it's very versatile. There is probably a better phaser out there but it would have to be custom-made by someone like 4ms, for instance. So I'm going for a '9' on this one.

Usual solid Boss construction, 100% proof. Haven't gigged it yet though I don't anticipate any problems.

No comment - Boss are a multi-national so you're not going to get the personal attention that you would from a small firm. If I had a problem I'd call the retailer.

I play rock and jazz and this will be at the front of my fx chain, followed by MXR re-issue flanger and Stereo Chorus; the only niggle for a guitar purist is that this is digital but - see my comments above - if you understand signal path you will realise that there's nothing wrong with digital phasing, in fact it makes an awful lot of sense providing the D/A converter maintains the integrity of your tone when the effect is disengaged. So there.

This pedal has mor options than your usual Phase 90, so it's a bit mor complicated to get good sounds out of it. But it's no rocket science either, so I'll give it a solid 7.

I sometimes wonder how comes that people write so much garbage here?

Ok, so let me clear a few things up:

This pedal is NOT noisy,in facht it's one of the silent ones, though not dead quiet. But a Phase 90 hisses a lt more.

The sound ist good, but different than some other Phasers. It is a digital pedal and maybe they didn't know exactly how to model a Phaser as in certain settings it has some qualities of a Flanger, also. So it is more "chorussy" than some other purer Phasers, but that is a matter of taste and no point for criticism.

As it is digital, you can't use the whole range of the "Rate" knob. In the highest settings it makes an ugly digital "rrrrrr" sound. Whereas with analog phasers you can mostly use the highest settings for Leslie/Rotating Speaker simulations.

When you switch between 4,8, 10 and 12 step phasing, the amount of the low an high frequenzies changes (e.g. 10 step phasing cuts bass frequenzies). You can compensate this to a certain amount with the "Depth" knob (the higher the setting, the more bass and vice versa). So you have to get used to ths thing...

This unit defenitely has some design flaws and odds, but I can live with it. If you need a plug and play pedal, forget it. But if you work with it, it'll reward you with excellent sounds.

To sum it up: Sound quality is as good (or better) than any other Phaser (analog or digital) around. Because these sounds are a bit hard to find, I'll give it 8 points.

Great pedal, I use it as the only modulation effect on my board right now. And believe me, I've tested everything in an A/B comparison against it. This is not the perfect Phaser, but I haven't found a better one at this price, yet. I'm looking for a Phaser that is dead silent (t.c. electronics, maybe?) and has a real pure phasing sound across the wohle range. The PH-3 fails, but every other one I checked so far was worse!

very easy to use. 4 knobs, each clearly labled. if your not used to these types of products just have a play and it will become clear. one minor thing is thate the rate knob is Exponential meaning as the knob is turned the rate or acceleration increases. this can make it fiddly to get the right speed at higher speeds. the manual does show some good settings. i dont use these cos i mainly use it for experimental prog ect. manual also shows clearly how to connect and use exp pedal with it. quite a usefull thing really.

the sound quality is well... interesting. make sure you try before you buy cos this pedal is anything but subtle. if your after some modist, easygoing phase this may be difficalt to tame. i find it a little dry on its own but wnen combined with reverb/delay/wah/chorus ect it can make some fantastic watery sounds. I am a big fan of mike einziger from incubus and i have an ongoing persuit for his tone. this pedal has certainly taken me closer to this goal. when ran with distortion or many other pedals you do get static phase through your amp but i find its not really a problem. you just have to think about what your doing and turn it off when yr not playing. some of the step, rise and fall effects are extreemly good fun. some say they are just novelty but i manage to find uses for them in what i play. There is only one major issue i have with this pedel and that is the volume drop when it is on. it is very noticable and quite annoying.

its a boss!!! if money was no object i would build my house with them.

never had to deal with them.

i have been playing 3/4 years and i am in a band with frequent gigs and we are doing studio work in between. this pedal is great for ambiant/experamental music as well as rock/funk. it can be annoying live due to the volume drop but you just have to think about what your doin. i get round it by usin it with a louder distortion or turnin my guitar down in the rest of the song and up when the unit is on. its slightly annioying but not the end of the world. on slow settings the top of the phase is louder than the dip. this is also quite annoying but can be sort of interesting in a sort of swelling volume kinda way. This has certainly helped me make music. it is endlessly usefull in the studio for layering different wierd sounds and speeds. there are some things wrong with it which i have talked about but overall it is fairly epic. i would probs buy it if i lost it but i would look for it cheeper. second hand or sumthin.

how easy is it to get a good sound? impossible. however, its easy to dial in the sounds that this thing is capable of.

this is why im writing this. to warn you all. this pedal is garbage! i do not own one myself, my brother has one that his girlfriend bought him..obvisouly she is not a musician.. this pedal does not sound like a phase. does not even sound CLOSE to usefull! i play mostly funk and jazz (i am a bass player, however i do play guitar) and this thing is useless. i would recommend something more like the MXR phase (i think those go for like $100 these days?) if your looking for an affordable phase. if your looking for a top quality phase..well..then i'd recommend either a Red Witch moon phase or a vintage mutron. really, anything but this. it honestly is the worst phase i've ever heard.

well, now that i've said how bad i think it sounds, atleast its a boss pedal. next to indestructible. very reliable.

have delt with them before..slow responce but overall helpfull.

specifics of my playing and what i like are irrelivant. the sound of this pedal is very low quality, and i'm very dissapointed with Boss on this one. i am a HUGE fan of a lot of their other pedals (all the chorus pedals, the octave, delays, ext.) and i think those all produce very high quality sounds at a low price. i borrowed this pedal for a gig because my Mutron was being modified and not working at the time. unfourtunately, i did not test it before the gig..i thoguht, hey, its boss, ill be fine. wrong. guess i learned my lesson. only reason i did not give it a 1 is because of how reliable they are.

Personally, I thought figuring this pedal out was kind of fun. I just plugged in my guitar and started messing around with it. I wouldn't say that it's really all that hard to use--it just requires some time and some tinkering to get the sound you want out of it. I can't comment on the manual becuase I bought the pedal used and didn't get one, but I don't know that I would've used it if I had one.

Here's my setup:

Epiphone Les Paul Standard/Ovation CU247 > Boss CS-3 Compression/Sustainer > Boss PH-3 Phase Shifter > Boss OS-2 Overdrive/Distortion > Boss EQ-20 Advanced EQ > Boss CH-1 Super Chorus > Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor > Marshall AVT50H and AVT412 cab/House system

Outside of maxing out all the settings (which sounds absolutely horrible), I don't think I've ever gotten a bad sound out of this pedal. The 4-, 8-, 10-, and 12-stage settings all sound excellent, and you can get some cool sounds out of the rise and fall settings. My favorite is probably the step setting, which creates some very, very cool synth sounds. You'd almost have to hear it to understand.

If you combo it with a chorus, it gives the phase a little bit more depth and fullness, especially if the chorus is set to a nice, full vibrato. Overdrive or distortion probably goes best with the step setting, but it doesn't sound terrible on the other settings either.

It doesn't bother me because I use an NS-2 at the end of my pedal chain, but the PH-3 is a VERY noisy pedal. It'll phase even when you're not playing anything, so you'll get a noisy, phased static. I would definitely recommend a noise suppressor if you plan on buying one of these.

I use all Boss pedals, and all of them were bought used. Not once has one of them ever failed on me. I stomp on 'em and they work, no questions asked. I gig all of my pedals without backups--Boss makes tough stuff.

I've never had to deal with Boss, and I don't ever plan on it.

An excellent pedal. It's definitely not a very subtle effect, so if you want something that isn't too noticeable, don't buy a PH-3. I like the boldness of it, though. Very thick and very noticeable--something that'll definitely cut through in any mix.

If this got stolen, I'd have to get another one ASAP because I love the effects this thing puts out. No real complaints with this pedal. Another quality pedal from the guys over at Boss.