Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Delays Delays and more Delays...BOSS DM-3 Delay Pedal



Heres a vintage BOSS DM-3 that I used as my analog delay pedal from '01-'04. Sells on the used pedal market for around $180-200. This has a green label made in Japan sticker. It stood the test of time and still works flawlessly since it was first manufactured 25 years ago. Built like a tank and able to withstand countless stomps. This pedal always has a place in my heart and in my pedal board for it's rich and high defined delays. But what also stands out from this pedal is its "glitch" to self-oscillate that's nice and warm coming from its cold and digital microchip Photobucket

It has only 3 knobs : Repeat Rate, Echo & Intensity. Simplicity is always the best to my opinion. Very easy to dial-in conventional delayed sounds, slap backs and single short-delay. A warm-sounding lo-fi delay that's old school. After selling this DM-3 back in '05 I later replaced it with a BOSS DM-2 for its much warmer tone. I still have two BOSS DM-2 Delay pedals (sells on the used pedal market for around $200-250+) that will be posting on EBAY soon.

The BOSS DM-3 and DM-2 on my board are now replaced with a LINE6 DL4 Delay Modeler. The Line6 DL4 has 12 different delays which also emulates the BOSS DM-2 (Analog echo mode) plus 11 other different delays with 3 patches/settings you can call anytime w/ a single stomp. While Line6 is not as close to the original BOSS DM-2 it serves its purpose well for its smooth, crisp delays and echo plus the added versatility. Heck, John Mayer, Jerry Cantrell of Alice In Chains, John Frusciante of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Robert Smith of the Cure and most notably Eric Clapton to name a few. Photobucket Line 6 DL4 blog will be up soon. Im still figuring out all the controls and sounds this green monster have.

heres a demo of an adjusted trim pot from inside:


beat synced and then some self-oscillation:


FROM GUITARGEEK.COM:
While not as collectible as the earlier Boss DM-2s, the DM-3 certainly holds its own in the fickle world of analog delays. This model isn't as rich or smooth sounding as the DM-2 but has it's own charms by having a more pronounced delay due to some added high-end definition. The addition of a direct out jack and a longer delay time also gives the DM-3 a few bonus points. A lot of pros keep a DM-3 as a backup to their DM-2s but I think this thing has enough individual character to step to the front of the stage. As with most analog delays, this thing really shines when set for slapback and doubling type effects. Surf and Rockabilly types may dig the DM-3 a little more than the older DM-2 due to its punchier delay and tight, focused decays.

FROM BOSSAREA.COM:
The DM-3 was last analog delay pedal produced by Boss. The circuitry is similar to the DM-2's but it isn't identical. The DM-3 has a built in high speed noise reduction circuit and an additional filter. It's also got a direct output that can be used to create a stereo effect. The delay time is variable between 20ms and 300ms just as the DM-2 and the control layout is also identical. The knobs on the DM-3 stands out when comparing to other Boss pedals. They only featured on the DM-3 and early versions of the CE-2B.

Specifications
  • Controls: Repeat Rate, Echo, Intensity
  • Connectors: Input, Output, AC Adaptor
  • Current Draw: 18 mA (DC 9V, D.Time control at center)
  • Weight: 450 g (0.99 lb.)
  • Input Impedance: 1Mohm (FET Input)
  • Residual Noise Level: -100dBm (IHF-A)
  • Recommended Load Impedance: 10kOhm or greater
  • Delay Time: 20ms to 300ms
  • Recommended AC Adaptor: ACA Series
Labels
  • Green - Made In Japan
The DM-3 was sold from May 1984 to May 1988.



Heres a picture when I used it with a BOSS BCB-6 pedal board:


Omnifex Stereo Chorus 704CH pedal




One of the pedal package deals I acquired from '02 was the Omnifex Chorus 704CH.
Sold on EBAY back in '04.
A very straight-forward and usable stereo chorus effect.
It was manufactured by Omnifex from 1987-1993.
Two knobs -
SPEED: controls the speed/rate of the chorus waves
DEPTH: controls the depth of the chorus waves