Re: BOSS JAM STATION REVIEW

["The Weg" <theweg@hotmail.com>]

Hi All,
    I spent a weekend with the JS-5 Jamstation and I believe Rick is 
speaking about the RC-20 Loop station which I just purchased but haven't 
used yet.  The JS-5 is a nice "play along with the band" tool which can 
record as well plus has two possible loop setups but I don't think the two 
units are similar at all.  The RC-20 is a looping machine where as the 
JS-5 
is similar to a drum machine with piano and horns added.  I hope this helps

Thanks,


Weg



From: "Rick Walker \(loop.pool\)" <GLOBAL@cruzio.com>
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Subject: BOSS JAM STATION REVIEW
Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2001 02:58:51 -0700
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Hey gang,

      I asked my brother, the looping guitar wizard, Bill Walker to
contribute his thoughts on the new JAM STATION by Boss.   Bill knows more
about effects processing and guitar synthesis than anyone I've ever met
(with the exception of Santa Cruz's own, Miko B) and, thankfully, he
complied with my request and obliged us:
He is not yet a member of Loopers Delight, so if you would like to ask him
about this or any other thing having to do with effects, he can be reached
at: CHILLYB@cruzio.com

yours,  Rick Walker (loop.pool)


REVIEW OF THE BOSS JAM STATION

I just spent a couple of hours with the new Boss jam station and I wanted
to share my  first impressions:

      As an owner of Jammans and line 6 delay
modelers I was interested to see what was different about the jam station.
First there is a whopping 5+ minutes of total loop time.  It is also 
capable
of storing up to 12 loops ( one loop is a dedicated one-shot type), which
makes it the first commercialy available looper with non volatile memory.
( The Electrix Repeator does this, though it may or may not see the light 
of
day, due to financial problems, and software problems. I tried it at  
Winter
Namm and they were still getting the bugs out. It did seem promising
though.)

Back to the Jam station. It also boasts an on board metronome with variable
volume and tap tempo. It is really effective for locking in the rythmn ,
however its static kickdrum/ hi-hhat sound might not prove very effective
for live performance. Luckily you can turn the metronome off for
performance.

     Another cool feature is the ability to change loop tempos on the fly
with tap tempo, without altering the pitch! Fans of the undo function on 
the
Echoplex Digital Pro will find a similar function on the Jam station,
however it only works if you are overdubbing on top of a  pre-stored  loop,
not on a loop that has yet to be commited to
internal memory.

     You can also reverse your loop direction on the fly, and
record in either direction, but you will have to use an additional
momentary switch if you want foot control over this function.

     Ditto for switching loops during performance, you will need an
additional momentary switch unless you want to bend over and grab the 
rotary
knob on the chassis.

     Speaking of chassis, the jam station is small, about the size of
two standard boss effects standing side by side, and it is built like a
boss pedal, very sturdy. It has two boss-style footswitchs that handle a
suprising number of duties; record, playback and overdub for the left side
pedal, playback stop, metronome start/ stop and tap tempo for the right 
side
pedal. Erase is handled by holding down either or both switches for 2
seconds. This multi-functionality takes a little getting used to but is
clever and cool, none the less.

     The manual is typical Boss cryptic, but the jam station is relatively
intuitive. Sound-wise, the sample quality sounded very good. Loops were
clear and detailed with little decernable added noise.

      Sorry stereo junkies, this puppy is mono, but it does have three
different input choices: 1/4 inch phone plug Instrument and Microphone
inputs, and CD/tape input via a mini phone jack. Also, there are two jacks
for momentary footswitches that access the loop advance and reverse
functions. Sorry, there is no midi sync capablilty. Power is provided via
power supply or batteries. Like all
boss pedals, the spec sheet provided little in the way of sampling rate or
noise floor specs, but the loops sounded clean and un-grainy to my ears.

loopingly yours,
Bill Walker
Renaissance /Rick Turner Guitars







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