Boss DS-1

Boss DS-1 distortion pedal

The Boss DS-1 is a distortion pedal for guitar, manufactured by the Roland Corporation under the brand name Boss since 1978. The first distortion unit made by Boss,[1] it has become a classic effect, used by many notable guitar players.[2] Boss produced a successor, the DS-2.[3]

DS-1

Circuit design

The DS-1 has a very simple circuit, based on a single op-amp. The distortion is produced using a variable gain circuit with diodes shorting the output to ground to produce hard clipping of the input waveform similar to the Pro Co RAT distortion pedal. This distortion stage is followed by a passive tone filter and volume control. The tone control is scooped in the midrange. It consists of a simple fixed -6dB/okt low pass filter and a simple fixed -6dB/okt high pass filter using a potentiometer to mix the two signals.

Notable users

DS-2

The Boss DS-2 Turbo Distortion is a developed version of the Boss DS-1 with two modes producing a distinctly different sound, "DS-1" and "Turbo". These can also be selected via an optional footswitch.

Notable users

References

  1. ↑ The Boss Book: The Ultimate Guide to the World's Most Popular Compact Effects for Guitar. Hal Leonard. 2002. p. 78. ISBN 978-0-634-04480-9.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Brewster, David M. (2003). Introduction to guitar tone & effects: an essential manual for getting the best sounds from electric guitars, amplifiers, effect pedals, and digital processors. Hal Leonard. p. 20. ISBN 978-0-634-06046-5.
  3. ↑ The Boss Book: The Ultimate Guide to the World's Most Popular Compact Effects for Guitar. Hal Leonard. 2002. p. 88. ISBN 978-0-634-04480-9.
  4. ↑ Kitts, Jeff; Tolinski, Brad (2002). Guitar World Presents the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time!: From the Pages of Guitar World Magazine. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 187. ISBN 9780634046193. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
  5. ↑ Gold, Jude (June 2007). "Mike Stern". Guitar Player. pp. 28–30.