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bossarea
Forum Admin
United Kingdom
3652 Posts |
 Posted - 04/19/2008 : 18:55:19
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DD-7 Review
The first thing I noticed when I plugged in the DD-7 was that the LED was brighter and almost orange in colour. Not something that means a lot but when plugged in next to a number of the DD-7's predecessors, it makes it stick out. During my testing I set up a pedal board with a DM-2, DD-2, DD-3, DD-5, DD-6 and DD-7. My DD-3 is the version that's identical to the DD-2 so it's really there just for completeness.
Ease of use
The DD-7 has 8 different modes. Mode 1-4 are delay modes and then there's hold, modulate, analog and reverse. Modulate and analog are new, reverse was introduced with the DD-6 and the others have been around since the introduction of the DD-2. Apart from the mode switch, the DD-7 has the 3 knobs that are familar to everyone who has used a Boss digital delay. There's E.Level that controls the level of the delayed sound, F.Back that controls the number of times the delayed sound is echoed and the D.Time knob that adjusts the delay time. It can't really be simpler so even though the pedal has lots of features, it is real easy to adjust. I only had to look in the manual to find out what the modulate mode really is. As with the DD-6, the DD-7's mode switch is labeled directly on the control plate. The DD-5's switch is only labeled with numbers from 1 to 11 which I find confusing despite there being a legend underneath the knobs.
Connections
The DD-7 has now got a jack for an external tap tempo (FS-5U) or expression pedal. I had great fun using an expression pedal in analog mode. I configured the expression pedal to set the feedback and could make the DD-7 go into oscillations whenever I wanted. This is definitley a great feature not found on any other Boss delay. It's a bit fiddly to get the settings right. You need to hold down the pedal while you plug in the expression pedal to get it into expression mode, then set the maximum range of the parameters you want to adjust and finally click the pedal to return to normal. Sounds easy but I failed a few times before I understood how this worked. Maybe reading the manual isn't such a bad idea after all. At first I was disappointed that the DD-6's warp mode had gone but it's actually possible to get the same effect by using the expression pedal.
Delay modes
The first 4 modes are delay modes. Mode 1 is delay 0-50ms, mode 2 50ms-200ms, mode 3 200ms-800ms and mode 4 800ms-3200ms. That means that mode 1-3 is identical to the features of a DD-2/3. This also corresponds to level 1-3 on the DD-5 while the DD-6 is the odd one out with other time limits. There's definitely a hifi aspect when comparing the sound of the delay to the sound of the DD-2/3. Compared to the DD-5 and DD-6 there is next to no difference in these modes. Mode 4 is able to produce a delay sound of up to 3.2 seconds but I never found a use for the DD-5's 2 second limit or the DD-6's 2.6 second limit so the conclusion is that the DD-7 doesn't differ from the DD-5 or DD-6 at all when it comes to normal delay sounds.
Hold mode
The hold mode can sample as much as 40 seconds of sound on the DD-7 compared to 5.2 seconds on the DD-6 and 2 seconds on the DD-5. This makes the hold mode much more usable on the DD-7 but any serious user of pedal sampling would probably invest in a dedicated sampler pedal instead.
Analog mode
The most anticipated DD-7 feature must be the analog mode. The analog mode is using COSM modelling to emulate the Boss DM-2 and that's why I included the DM-2 on my pedal board for this test. The E.Level, F.Back and D.Time controls on the DD-7 corresponds to Echo, Intensity and Repeat Rate on the DM-2. The emulation is not bad but where the DM-2s echos seem to blend together, the DD-7's delays can still be separated. This makes the DD-7 sound more digital than the designers probably wanted. It is however a great feature of the DD-7 that the delay time can be extended beyond the DM-2s 300ms limit and all the way to 1.6 seconds. The DD-7 also emulates the DM-2's ability to go into feedback when the intensity knob is turned up and using tap tempo with the analog mode is a feature I really like. This became very obvious when I tested the two side by side and didn't have to go down on my knees to match the DD-7s delay time to the DM-2.
Modulate mode
Modulation mode is a new feature for the DD-7 so there's no comparison to the others. In this mode a little chorus is added to the delayed signal, making it sound a little bit fatter. This effect is quite suttle and is certainly useful. I can see this being used a lot.
Reverse mode
The reverse mode is very similar to the DD-6 reverse mode. The maximum time has been increased from 5.2 to 6.4 seconds but it makes very little difference.
Conclusion
If you already have a DD-6 you don't get a lot more if you buy a DD-7. If your main use is the normal delay modes you won't see any difference at all. The analog mode is better with a real analog pedal and the modulate mode is not far from using a chorus and delay together. If you got a DD-5 or older digital delay you might want to upgrade if you want any of the features found on the DD-6 or DD-7. As most people only use the delay modes, the DD-3 will probably remain the most popular delay for some time. |
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MullyFX
Gold Member
Germany
753 Posts |
Posted - 04/19/2008 : 19:07:42
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thanks for the review... :)
but I guess the RV-2 will remain the only digital pedal I want (for now). |
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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
Posted - 04/19/2008 : 23:43:37
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| Tks boss! |
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FRANZONI
Double Platinum Member
Ireland
3543 Posts |
Posted - 04/19/2008 : 23:55:06
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Nice one .... .. cheers bossarea..... |
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Gizzorge
Silver Member
USA
245 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2008 : 05:28:11
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| Does the analog mode trail off when you turn the pedal off? |
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Dr. Bob
Moderator
Australia
6593 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2008 : 05:33:04
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Hi Bossarea & Guys
Thanks for the in depth report.
Especially going into detail about the Analog mode, & separation of the delayed signal in that mode.
After you have owned it for a bit longer, I will be interested to know,
if the Analog mode is still pleasing to listen to for lengthy periods, or do you get the digital fatigue effect-syndrome.
For now, I will probably be keeping my trusty old DD-2, CE-2 & looking to add an RC-2 into the setup.
Regards Dr. Bob
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Laurie
Double Platinum Member
Canada
4854 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2008 : 06:43:50
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| Bossarea - you have really gone above and beyond. Thank you! Definitiely gonna get one.... |
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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2008 : 08:02:36
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quote:
Originally posted by Gizzorge
Does the analog mode trail off when you turn the pedal off?
I'll 2nd the motion... |
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bossarea
Forum Admin
United Kingdom
3652 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2008 : 10:41:21
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quote:
Originally posted by Gizzorge
Does the analog mode trail off when you turn the pedal off?
Yes, it trails off in all modes. |
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sp-1
Platinum Member
Germany
1454 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2008 : 11:41:42
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Nice review, thanx
Great picture also, with all the DD's in a row. What happened to your DD-4 ?  |
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bossarea
Forum Admin
United Kingdom
3652 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2008 : 12:44:13
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quote:
Originally posted by sp-1
Nice review, thanx
Great picture also, with all the DD's in a row. What happened to your DD-4 ?
It stored in a safe place together with my DD-1  |
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sp-1
Platinum Member
Germany
1454 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2008 : 13:16:00
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Gizzorge
Silver Member
USA
245 Posts |
Posted - 04/23/2008 : 23:04:28
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How do you select the individual parameter you want to control with the expression pedal?
IE: If I just want to "express" on the feedback level, but keep the Time, Level at a fixed position? |
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bossarea
Forum Admin
United Kingdom
3652 Posts |
Posted - 04/23/2008 : 23:48:22
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quote:
Originally posted by Gizzorge
How do you select the individual parameter you want to control with the expression pedal?
IE: If I just want to "express" on the feedback level, but keep the Time, Level at a fixed position?
In this case you hold down the pedal and plug in the expression pedal. Then set time and level to 0 and F.Back at maximum. Click the pedal and then adjust the knobs to your normal setting. The expression pedal should then adjust the feedback from 0 to 10. You can get some really weird stuff happening if you set all knobs to maximum before you click the pedal. Then all parameters will increase when you step on the expression pedal.
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Gizzorge
Silver Member
USA
245 Posts |
Posted - 04/24/2008 : 00:05:34
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quote:
Originally posted by bossarea
quote:
Originally posted by Gizzorge
How do you select the individual parameter you want to control with the expression pedal?
IE: If I just want to "express" on the feedback level, but keep the Time, Level at a fixed position?
In this case you hold down the pedal and plug in the expression pedal. Then set time and level to 0 and F.Back at maximum. Click the pedal and then adjust the knobs to your normal setting. The expression pedal should then adjust the feedback from 0 to 10. You can get some really weird stuff happening if you set all knobs to maximum before you click the pedal. Then all parameters will increase when you step on the expression pedal.
AWESOME!!! CAN'T WAIT!!! |
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August West
Bronze Member
USA
137 Posts |
Posted - 04/24/2008 : 16:08:15
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| Thanks for the detailed review. I'm disappointed that the analog mode falls short of true analog sound. I have a DD-6 and was thinking of getting the DD-7 mostly for that reason so maybe now I'll hold off for a while. |
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Topic |
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DD-7 Review
