Electric Guitars   Bass Guitars   Acoustic Guitars   Guitar Amps   Effects Pedals   Keyboards   Microphones   PA Systems   Mixing Desks   Studio   Software   Accessories   Books & DVDs   Home Contact Us FAQ Forums

Boss FDR-1 Fender '65 Deluxe Reverb

 

Review of the Boss FDR-1 Fender '65 Deluxe Reverb by The Man in the Jar  

This is not so much an effects pedal as an amp modeller dedicated to one famous amplifier.    

Features of the Boss FDR-1 Fender '65 Deluxe Reverb

Construction - The Boss Deluxe Reverb seems to be of all-metal construction and certainly has a satisfying weight in the hand. The entire lower section makes up a very chunky footswitch. The finish is a rather lovely textured black.  

Ins and Outs - There's a single input and a single output.

Power - One 9 volt battery or optional power supply (not included). The black knob visible on the footswitch unscrews to allow the footswitch to swing upwards to allow access for changing the battery.

Controls - There are four knobs with the outer two being dual-concentric (a lower collar rotates independently from the upper section allowing two parameters to be controlled). The first knob controls Level and Gain, the second controls Treble, the third Bass and the last one controls Reverb and Vibrato. On and Bypass are toggled by the footswitch. To engage the Vibrato you must toggle the unit on and hold down the footswitch down for more than two seconds. The red light that shows the unit is engaged then flashes between red and green. Rotate the Vibrato knob to the desired modulation speed. Then hold the footswitch down until the light goes back to solid red. Now the speed of the Vibrato is set and the knob reverts to controlling the amount of vibrato added to the "dry" portion of the signal.

 

Sound of the Boss FDR-1 Fender '65 Deluxe Reverb

The original Fender Deluxe Reverb came out in 1963 and became an instant success, being used for all types of pop, country and rock music (up to and overlapping with Marshall territory). The Boss FDR-1 models the 1965 version considered by many to be a particularly good vintage.

It is of course a vintage or classic tone. On top of that it is a stand-alone tone, with the best results coming from the use of a clean channel on your amp. I used the single-coils of a Strat for the test and ran the unit through a clean channel on my Flextone. The brightness and bite of this amp model are remarkable and compliment the Stratocaster perfectly, not only on cleaner settings but also with higher Gain levels set. The Reverb function is superb and really nails the shimmer needed for surf and pop. Hook up a Telecaster and a huge range of honky country tones open up. Flick to the neck pickup and play the blues.

The Vibrato function is a bit tricky to fathom first time around (although the instructions in the manual are clear and concise if you take the time to read them), but once you've got in nailed you can Bo Diddley with the best of them.     

Overall Impressions of the Boss FDR-1 Fender '65 Deluxe Reverb

The Boss Fender Deluxe Reverb is a strange proposition. It doesn't fit into the pigeon-hole of a normal effects pedal because to work at its best it requires a clean amp channel. So unless you use a clean amp channel for your general playing you'll lose the purity of Fender tone when you punch in the Boss. I really see this unit more as an always-on, sound-shaping element of your rig running through a clean channel or even through a power amp set-up. 

It is also a fantastic solution for someone with a mediocre amp looking for a better tone at a reasonable outlay. As long as the amp can deliver a good volume level and stay clean, then the Boss FDR-1 can deliver you to tone heaven. I can also see the Bossman being invaluable in the studio where it would be an instant tone solution in a very small box.

I definitely preferred to use single-coils through this unit and suspect that modern high-gain humbuckers would produce inferior results.

Buy the Boss FDR-1 Fender '65 Deluxe Reverb

What our customers say

Resources

Track TNT Parcel   Reviews of Electric Guitars   Other Equipment Reviews   Learning Resources 
Other Shopping   Bands to See   Studios to Use  

Resource and Learning 

Copyright Musik Produktiv MMV - Home of Electric Guitars Online