Let's Talk About The Boss Blues Driver
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 6 фев 2025
- Why do I use a stock Blues Driver...and have for my entire career?
Hey! Want to support my channel? : www.buymeacoff...
Fund my coffee addiction and keep me awake during video editing :)
![Blox Fruits Dragon Rework Update [Full Stream]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/EqDAp8udhm0/mqdefault.jpg)
Finally someone has the sense to demonstrate his amp sound prior to using the pedal , thanks much appreciated.
+1000
Drives me nuts when people don't do this. Which most don't
Right on. I wish they'd do this more often. I want to hear WHAT signal is being boosted. I also love that he's doing it with a very clean Twin Reverb. It shows you just what the right pedal can do.
It is great when people review gear they love and use instead of just seeking views. I love this video, great job! I'm getting one and they should pay you.
I love how this pedal brings your guitar to life, I always run solid state amps and this blue little guy just makes everything more enjoyable, a truely "always on" pedal. Boss really nailed it with this model and it's so underrated...
What magnificent giant rock tones you get with this pedal and that Twin. Truly monumental. Majestic. Soulful. A rock and roll as it gets.
Of all the $2-300 boutique overdrives, if I could only have one, it would be my Waza Blues Driver. It’s so crispy and fun to play.
Your guitar work is incredible, love your playing so much, and of course all them witches
Thank you!
I am a Stratocaster player. I just got a huge appreciation for the Les Paul!! Now i want separate volume controls for my pickups.
I liked the simplicity of your filming. I love flash but sight distracts the ear.
I was already going to buy a blues driver but I just got a great perspective using the pedals I already have.
Thanks for making my Sunday afternoon!!
Jared Keene NH, USA
Right on! The best example of why this pedal is special I’ve seen. Great playing
✨🔊✨
I love running a Blues Driver in front of an amp that already has a bit of grit. It helps you get a smooth, musical distortion that cuts through and helps retain great note separation. My second favorite boss pedal is the SD-1, followed by the old DS-1. The Blues Driver is the smoothest of all and the pedal I'd recommend to most players.
This is one of the best pedal videos I've ever watched. Fantastic! 👏
Well done Ben, I stayed till the end. Also what a great band you have. 4real mon. Saw you in Austin. You all really inspired me to get playing again. Thank you
Hi Ben, Thanks for reaching out to us. Love my BD2. Tucson, AZ
This is a great illustration of a good stage setup: clean amp, and BD-2 set in the sweet spot where it cleans up with the guitar volume control. I use mine with remarkably similar knob positions, most recently into a 1989 Peavey Bandit.
I do exactly the same... Same settings, and for the past 9 months I've been running it exclusively through a Peavey Bandit. Albeit one of the newer ones.
Great video Ben, big fan of ATW, great to hear all these familiar licks dude, next video let’s see you playing brother. All the best ❤
Wonderfully demonstrated and very inspiring Ben . Thanks
Thank you, thank you! I've watched a lot of videos concerning this pedal. Hands down, you did a great job showing just what this pedal can do. Great explanation and great playing. 😊 Think I'll pull the trigger on it.
Love your sound, love your tone. I have used a BD-2 for 12 years and love it!!
Best guitar pedal demo hands down. Thanks!
I hear your true love for this pedal & you showed all its true values..So much so lm about to order this pedal..lm.excited about what it will add to my playing..Thanks mate..Brett from Oz
I worked in a guitar store when the BD-2 was released, and I said it would become the new ‘Tube Screamer ‘ at a lower price… and it did!
Have it and tried it and I'm not really sold on it. Doesn't change much in terms of its sound, fucking expensive tiny ass change to my guitar's sound
@@starshot5172 : It’s more an alternative for the ‘ Tubescreamer ‘ freaks. It’s at it best as a booster avoiding the tone change ( which TS909 lovers desire) . In those days, the price of the BD-2 was way under those of the TS’s variants, even second hand ones.
I’m more of a rocker, just slightly more dirty, and if you’re going stack your drives this one is probably perfect, works great with screamers, boss ods, or Klon types equally.
@@starshot5172something isn't right with your gear then.. The BD-2 is an excellent pedal with tons of tone.
I wouldn't call it that. I like the BD because to me it responds so differently than a TS would. I've never liked TS pedals or their clones.
I love this pedal....I use it all the time with a Boss eq and a DS 1 and between those three pedals I can get any gain tone I could ever use. I've used the same 5 boss pedals for many decades...they are indestructible. Great demo!
what are the other 2?
Boss DS 1 and Boss GE7 my board has those two plus the Blues Driver BD2 a Boss DD2 digital delay and a Boss Dimension C (chorus) Sometimes I'll put a Boss compresssor in the front of everything but my main board consists of those 5 pedals...a tuner and a power supply..it all sits in one of those old molded case BB6 pedal board cases. I have now other Boss pedals to plug in but rarely do such a wah wah and reverb and flanger. I use reverb on my amp and rarely use the other's anymore
@@gregmock6808 It's not too noisy? Thinking of getting the exact same setup, eq into bd, then into ds1. I have a modded GE7 ordered and im considering the blues driver. Currently just using a tube screamer in front of my ds1, it makes the ds1 really shine. Can the blues driver do the same as a booster? Does it have more clarity?
@@marcrchz I prefer the Blues Driver to the Tube Screamer...I run the EQ into the DS1 into the Blues Driver....I've recently also used a Nobels mini in front of the EQ and it's amazing as well. Play around with it and you''ll find you can dial in a wide range of tones ...I've put the EQ in the front, middle and back of gain pedals....right now I'm using it in the effects loop of my fender tube amp and I put a Tremelo on my board where it used to be. The GE7 is a great attenuator so you can crank the amp and lower the output with the EQ. The Blues Driver has more clarity than a Tube screamer to my ears and is clearer, less mid focused gain stage. The Nobels mini does what the Blues Driver does as well...with both I can set one as boost and one with more gain. The DS 1 I use with very little treble if any and the gain below 12 oclock
@@gregmock6808 Thing is, the ts works amazing as a boost for a ds1. On it‘s own tho, it doesn’t sound that great at all but rather muddy. I‘m thinking maybe with my eq pedal arriving I could use that to bump the frequencies and wouldn’t need a ts, but I’m also worried that a blues driver might be even more ice picky and be too fizzy with a ds1 and that I wouldn’t get that big distortion sound without a ts.
What a gorgeous looking thing ! I would love one myself 😊 yes its a lovely rug ( and i like the pedal too )
I keep my BD 2 on all the time too. I play R&B, so I keep my gain way lower. It adds so much character to my tone while still staying really clean!
New to electric guitar here,I know nothing about pedals but this to me sounds amazing from one pedal
Great review 👍
Seasoned musician laying it down the way it shld be … key phrases : ROLL BACK THE VOLUME .. .PEDAL CLEANS UP … USE THE VOLUME N TONE ON UR GUITAR … THEY R THERE FOR A REASON….if u didn’t understand before …u shld now ,this is soooo much more than just a pedal demo … cheers bro
Great demo. Everyone should have a Blues Driver. One of the best dirt pedals ever IMO.
This video has changed my approach for live blues rock guitar 🎸- I play a SG --> Boss BD-2 Blues Driver
Great demo and playing! Thanks for the tips.
Great video
BD2 stock &
Johnny Hiland sweet spot super drive.
Are my favorite 🎸
Great video and playing. I too have used a bunch of different pedals and have liked my blues driver so much I’m gonna get a second one for solos and one for always on. 👏
Really interesting how you use the guitar's controls for each pickup to master your tone. Coincidentally, I just bought a Boss Blues Driver to replace some wilder overdrives, so your video is incredibly helpful. Rock!
I have about 15 boost pedals (many boutique)and the BD-2 consistently stands up against the ones I paid 3x as much for. Everyone loves the SD-1, but I have the SD-1w and I think the BD-2 drives my Mesas with a "wider" group of frequencies.
I don't know why I took so long to get one of these.
They're awesome.
I paired this with ProCo Rat, though. I didn't like it boosting the Rat. :( Unless I didn't know how to set the knobs of BD-2 and the Rat. But I tried every settings and still doesn't sound good.
However, I paired the Rat with a blues breaker clone and it was spectacular! So maybe I just need a low gain drive to boost the Rat. BD-2 is considered as a mid gain drive yes?
You use this to boost your mesa? I recently got a Mesa studio pre from my uncle..I'm having a tech take a look at it and then buying a power amp and cab...gonna try to use this pedal with it. I loved this epdal with my hiwatt combo
I have an burgera 5 watt tube amp and this direct warm overdrive Sound from the burgera is even warmer and better than my boss blues driver the soft dynamics are insane even if you boost it up to maximum but i believe nobody knows it, cause boss having the big name and also the direct out recording from the bugera takes automatically the warm tube sound into your daw system i bought this amp on amazon for 180 euro's i recorded the same solo's with both and nobody believed the sound was from the 5 watt bugera!!
I have about 17
Ben has Tone Tips and Talent !!
Randomly clicked on this video because, well, I wanted to talk about the Blues Driver. First riff sounded very familiar, but didn't think much about it. Same as the 2nd riff. 3rd riff and I'm thinking, this guy really has good taste in music if he's using ATW songs as examples. Then I exited full-screen and saw the name. Subscribed...
I just bought this pedal and started experimenting with it after researching. It is exactly what I needed. The tone is important to the overall sound just dial it in and then adjust your guitar volume it works perfectly. I have a 2 channel 5150 combo amp and this adds a third channel between the clean and the highest gain, then adjustable almost infinitely. It is awesome.
Thanks, nice tip with the selector switch at the end
Came for the Blues Driver, but I stayed for the music 👍🏻
Great video. Along with a clean amp with reverb, the Blues Driver and the CE-2W is all I need. I’m now playing through a Bkackstar Debut 50. Though solid state, the BD adds warmth and a nice tube like breakup.
Best demo out there. Buying one immediately. Thanks
The best pedal, I used to look down on them because of the title and the color. One day in a shop i tried one just the laugh, and I felt extremely stupide. Haha now it’s on my board, one in my gig bag for jams, i was so excited when I saw you were using one!
Stellar playing..and tone! Gonna look into one of these now.
Great tone!! Great playing!!
One is arriving the day after tomorrow. Can't wait. Boss pedal breaking? I have an original Chorus CE-2 that I bought in 1980. Still works great. Thanks for this really useful demo.
This and the Digi Screamin' Blues are my to favorites. Great video!
Great video and tones! Love your tonal examples. I’ve had my BD-2 for decades and it’s always on any iteration of pedalboards I make. Definitely a go to and staple in my sound. I also used the Dude pedal from JRockett. Those two with a boost pedal created my rhythm and lead soundscapes. For a while I was using an ODR-1 too but it’s not currently on my board. That BD-2 delivers every time!
I'm using this after the EHX SoulFood or any other Klon-type OD. Even though I don't use it so much on leads, because I'm in a punk/alternative band, I use it in rhythms.
Nice I use SoulFood as a drive going into a Tube screamer acting as a boost. Nice lead tone.
Nice. Thanks for posting. Been listening to All them Witches for a few years now. You guys are awesome. 🤟
Thank you so very much. I own a blue driver and have? Been. Having issues of getting? It to sound right but there's really no videos that offer any tips or tricks except for this one. I really appreciate it I am going to try these settings. And say hi it works out for me again thank you have a blessed day
Thanks for making this video. Always loved your tone, especially on Diamond. Killer song by the way. I was thinking about getting a Blues Driver, I have a few other ODs but they are either too mid range heavy or they don't clean up the way I want with the guitar volume. After hearing you talk about the way you use your Blues Driver and hearing the results, wow. I think I'll have to get one. Great video. Love your band. Thanks again
Amazing sound.
Great video man. The jhs @ pedal is damn goo as well.
Boss should pay you royalties - you sure sold this pedal to me !
And...now I need one. Thank you Ben! 😁
such a versatile pedal, can function as a clean volume boost to an almost fuzz pedal and everywhere in between
the clean compression and tube amp-like sparkle it adds honestly makes this my favorite to place at the end of the gain section as a vol boost to push the amp just past break-up into that musical distortion range that just sings!
Just bought one. Waiting for it to arrive.
I find a BD is great into a valve amp that has to be set too low (neighbours, for example) to give just that sense that the amp is working harder than it is. I will still use it when playing louder, but I tend to turn the Gain down a whisker. I really don't use it to get distortion/overdrive/whatever, certainly not enough to call the sound distorted. But it gives an excellent feeling of hair, just a little bit of peach fuzz. I also have a Klone and a Pi, and these actually go into the BD. As I'm only using the BD as seasoning, I still get the full Klon/e or Muff sensation when I switch them on. I can't believe I'm using 3 (4 if you include the gain on my amp) separate distortion elements!
I convince myself that I actually use all this flexibility and I suppose I do. What we used to do in the mix I can now do straight into my amp. We are spoiled these days.
Back in the iron age, we considered ourselves lucky if we could get a half-decent sound from some awful 100w solid state amp which was all many people could afford or what the club/pub insisted you use as they often wouldn't let you bring your own amp. This was to keep a lid on SPL. They didn't trust musicians. With good cause, I did a bunch of FoH engineering and there were plenty of bands into the noiseworks thing. Not the band, the noise. I would try to tell them that just turning every knob up to max wasn't always the best way to get impact :D
I have always been wondering why it was called Blues Driver, it has way more gain than needed fro blues or even blues rock. Regardless, it is my most important pedal. It almost always stays at the end of the signal chain, it is brilliant with a Fuzz Face, they clean up really nicely. I mostly use less gain, around 9-10 'o clock-ish with an Ibanez 335 copy, sometimes I run the Fuzz Face followed by a modified DIY Range master into the Blues Driver to get a gnarly sound, sometimes I feed it with a Shred Master and it is always great. It is also a great booster set at low gain, like Tubes Screamers, different sound though. It is also a problem solver in muddy sound situations as it probably has some low-cut. I use a Boss Katana MK1 sometimes, it's clean channel is rather muddy, the Blues Driver makes it usable somehow. Boss magic, love it.
thank you for sharing your knowledge and your personal ideas, thank you very much
Thanks Ben. I have the BD2 and like you use it as my main drive pedal but have never utilised it like you do so will be trying this out with my LP and Katana set clean 👍
Demoing simple sonic constructs is much more helpful than just doing licks. Thank you. BTW, I have a Tube Screamer and when I get my BD-2 I’ll use it as my primary source of overdrive/grit, while the TS will be moved to a different point in the chain.
I have a blues driver on my combo acoustic and electric pedal board. Use for my electric guitar and as a boost for acoustic for lead runs. Just have to adjust a little when I switch over
Thank you for this. I ordered a used one yesterday.
I have a pirate "keeley" modded Tube Screamer and a Bad Monkey. I think the Monkey is probably better. More transparent.
The thing is that clarity with less volume you mentioned. That sounds exactly right.
really great! I use the exact same always-on approach but right now using MojoMojo overdrive. It also cleans up really well and I think is less compressed than BD leading to more volume variation between the clean and full gain sound.
The only pedal I own that I can never be without and they are Affordable. Great review
I love the BD-2! I had it mod'd to get it slightly fatter, and it IS amazing. Sounds and plays a lot like an amp, 100% agreed!
Wow Ben What a helpful video this has been. I just discovered U 👍
love these videos!!
I like the EHX Glove - it does everything but I still have a Boss Blues Driver and I go back and forth between a Caline Pure Sky and the Blues Driver. Between those three pedals I get it all.
I don't want to sound like Dimebag Darrell when I plug in.That seems like what most stomp boxes offer. I'm looking for something between Clapton and Santana and I think you've helped me find it. Thank you, Ben
I’m not a fan of overdrive or distortion pedals but I had to get me a Blues Driver…… The other distortion pedal I like is the Marshall JH-1 JackHammer…… Bought my BD-2 for 50 bucks too……. I agree….. Boss pedals last almost forever…. Bought the DD-3 Delay in 1988….. still works today….
I still have my boss DD3 delay I bought in 1989 and it still works flawlessly and sounds just as great as the day I got it. My boss tremolo from that same time period has a filter cap or something that is bad and you can here the clicking of the rate. I don't use it anymore.
@@fiddlefolk those DD-3s are built like a tank!!!!
@@Bernz66 Yes they are and they sound great!
I have the blues driver and JH-1 jackhammer together n my board but for some reason, my blues is giving me a terrible twangy sound
I have a 1980 boss ds1 distortion, had from new..still great!
A superb video about a superb pedal, with some pretty cool playng to match. Thanks!
Thank you just bought one great info
never was a big fan of these, but you make a good case for it. It seems better suited to humbuckers. Now that I think about it, I suspect that this pedal internally mixes in some of the clean signal with the overdrive, and automatically dials back the drive when the input signal is lower. but I'm just making that up. It's always jaw dropping when you hear a player whose tone you admire tell you that the secret to that tone is a pedal they keep on all the time that you have always sort of thought was junk.
I like the BD-2 a lot. Enough to have 4 of them. Only 1 is factory stock. Borrowed a friend's to learn how much I like it. Found 1 on Ebay used. Modded by Alchemy and only $80. Great! Now after getting this I kept seeing videos with the Keeley sounding so nice. Found 1 of those used $124. Nice. Week later a Waza used $93. Hey had to get a stock 1 $45. Now I got 4. Did my own comparison test and ended up liking the Alchemy the best. Since I stack drives on my board and have 3 different types on there. The Alchemy doesn't add switches or anything. I use very little gain on my 3 on the board. Gain is noise especially through a board. The Alchemy gets the best low gain tone of any of them. Maybe switches? I don't know. But my 1st choice was best and is on my board 4 yrs later.
I love my blues driver! Use it all the time.
It Does Sound Ahh Ma Zzzzzzing!!! ✨️✨️✨️✨️✨️ Great
Demo. Thank You !
Just saw this a week ago and bought one the next day. You should get a commission sir
A very good presentation of this awsome pedal. I also love it and it is my always on pedal as well 🤘
While I love my Browne Amplification Protein, my Blue Driver 2W has a special place in my heart. Getting ready to put it back on my worship board
I bought a used Blues Driver a couple of years ago and it didn’t find its way onto pedal board. It’s a great pedal and you are correct - it cleans up incredibly nice when backing off the guitar’s volume. And I my settings are pretty close to what you’re using.
at 12:10 I love the way that melody sounds.
Shoegazers love it.
The best pedal, I agree , I have a tube screamer too , it sits on the shelf
So good!! Well done! TY!
Love my Angry Driver. I use the Boss Blue Driver settings mostly without the JHS MIAB switch on.
This pairs fantastically with a nice clean amp. At this point I can't be bothered with the maintenance and expense of a vintage tube amp. This is one of the fastest cheapest ways to make an entry-level modern amp (or pricey ones that SOUND too entry-level) kick like a classic tube amp.
In the alternate, I know how high you have to turn up the vintage tube amps to get the sound you want naturally. Letting this pedal do 85% of the heavy lifting for that creamy tube distortion sound, and taking it easy on the real tubes, is a beautiful way to get something that sounds authentic without destroying your gear.
Cream and Hendrix could afford new amps for every show. We can't.
Cool video! I read an article by Josh from JHS pedals describing how the Blues Driver works and it is really interesting and unique. Worth a read.
Hey, man, I got curious. Do you have the link of the article or at least where it was published?
The article mentions another pedal by Danelectro of the same design “Transistor-Based Overdrives Without an Op-Amp” that uses mosfet transistors. Now I’m curious what that pedal sounds like!
I found it: Danelectro Roebuck Distortion Pedal
Clever stuff with switching pickups for clean and distorted 👍
I run the TS into the BD-2 and use the TS for a boost
Such an awesome video!
Dyaaamn , that thang is saucy !!!! Love that pedal
When I saw the settings at the start of the video, I have just nodded. If you know you know.
Great video! 👏🏼👏🏼🔥🎸
totally agree with you! always loved Boss and still!
ANGRY DRIVER and FZ1 Wazza for me!!!!
Excellent video. Do you have a video all about your twin reverb? That would be so useful. Thanks!
Fun fact is that your preset is so similar to the "blues american" preset that comes with the pedal papers. With the exception that you turned down a bit your tone.
That was my very first pedal, and I LOVE IT!!!!
Great pedal also love my Fulltone OCD
This is a great video!! Never had one, maybe I should get one. Currently I have a pure sky into a tube screamer into a crayon, into various amps, works great, But, this may be a sweet addition!! Thx!💥👍
I love that Fender twin reverb what year is it ; also love the Boss BD-2😮😮😮😮
I use mine in the exact same way... Clean amp, pedal on all the time, cleaning up with the volume. Even my settings are identical. Going from a Strat, to a Tele, to a Les Paul I never feel the need to change anything on the pedal.