My thoughts are below! But first, timestamps:
0:00 Ground rules
0:10 RIFFS, IN A LIGHT MIX
0:20 CE-1
0:31 PastFx chorus ensemble
0:41 CE-2w (ce-1 mode)
0:51 CE-2w (standard mode)
1:02 CE-2
1:12 CE-5
1:23 DC-2w (standard mode)
1:33 DC-2w (sdd-320 mode)
1:44 CE-1 (high input)
1:54 PastFx chorus ensemble (high input)
2:05 CE-2w (ce-1 mode)
2:15 CE-2w (standard mode)
2:25 CE-2
2:36 CE-5
2:46 DC-2w (standard mode)
2:57 DC-2w (sdd-320 mode)
3:08 CHORDS
3:22 CE-1
3:50 PastFx chorus ensemble
4:17 CE-2w (ce-1 mode)
4:45 CE-2w (standard mode)
5:12 CE-2
5:39 CE-5
6:07 DC-2w (standard mode)
6:34 DC-2w (sdd-320 mode)
7:02 VIBRATO
7:16 CE-1
7:30 CE-2w (vibrato mode)
7:44 PastFx chorus ensemble
7:58 RIFFS, NO MIX
8:09 CE-1
8:19 PastFx chorus ensemble
8:30 CE-2w (ce-1 mode)
8:40 CE-2w (standard mode)
8:51 CE-2
9:01 CE-5
9:12 DC-2w (standard mode)
9:22 DC-2w (sdd-320 mode)
9:32 CE-1 (high input)
9:43 PastFx chorus ensemble (high input)
9:53 CE-2w (ce-1 mode)
10:04 CE-2w (standard mode)
10:14 CE-2
10:25 CE-5
10:35 DC-2w (standard mode)
10:46 DC-2w (sdd-320 mode)
10:57 Let me know what you think!
I was lucky to be able to borrow a Boss CE-1 and of course, as a huge chorus junky, wanted to compare it with the other Boss chorus pedals I own! Also went out and got the Boss BP-1w to make it a more true comparison. Hope you lovely chorus nerds enjoy the shootout! Here are my thoughts:
BP-1w: The CE-1’s preamp thickens/warms things up whereas in CE mode this pedal seems to have a bit more of a neutral flavor and retains way more fidelity in the highs. Once you get the gain cookin’ a little bit though it sounds pretty similar, although the highs stay more prevalent. And honestly while the CE-1’s preamp sounds heavenly with the chorus effect on, you can’t turn the preamp off and this pedal not only gives you the option to turn the gain up to whatever level you want but turn the effect off whenever you like haha. It's pretty legit, I really like it, plus RE mode rocks.
CE-1: It’s the GOAT. There’s just something special about how warm the chorus is. I can see why it’s still so highly sought after and I don’t want to give it back because the sound is literally perfect to me lol. But at the same time it’s really impractical on a board with its large footprint, power needs, and because when the chorus/vibrato effect isn’t on, the preamp takes a decent amount of highs out of the signal. It also plays weird with certain pedals and buffers in front.
PastFx Chorus Ensemble mn3007: Obviously not a boss chorus haha but I couldn’t not compare it given it’s supposed to be a super accurate clone. To me this one is clearly the closest in sound to the CE-1 (in chorus mode). They pretty much nailed the preamp, although I think it’s got slightly more bass than the CE-1. Without a direct comparison I’d be hard pressed to tell the difference. The vibrato mode on here sounds really nice but not as close to the CE-1 as the chorus mode.
CE-2w: I was expecting the CE-1 mode on this to be a little closer to the original but it does a pretty good approximation especially given the footprint and extra features. In general I think the sound of this one is more in line with the other CE pedals as they all have a more shimmery top end. Comes across as more flangey than the CE-1 to me, but still super pleasant. It’s deeper than the other CE pedals but not as deep as the CE-1. Standard mode sounds a lot thinner than the original CE-2. However, I think the vibrato mode on this is nearly indistinguishable from the CE-1’s. They totally nailed that.
CE-2: Another classic. Doesn’t sound like the CE-1 but still a nice lush albeit different sort of deep chorus sound. More shimmer than the CE-1.
CE-5 (analog): There’s 2 versions, analog and digital. Mine’s the analog one and I think it’s one of the best CE pedals. I didn’t have time to explore every setting for the video but to my ear the waveform on the CE-5 sounds the closest to the CE-1. With the EQ cuts you can sculpt the sound more than the others and I wish I had dialed back the highs a bit because it’d be a lot closer comparison to the CE-1. It definitely has the most low end next to the CE-1. I like how it sounds like there’s not as much midrange push in this as the CE-2/w.
DC-2w: I know I know, it's a different breed of chorus effect but I thought why not include it just in case anyone was curious. It has a somewhat noticeable volume drop when on and in mono sounds thinner than the others. Sounds magnificent in stereo though. I like it best for super jangly stuff!
Gear: Fender thinline jaguar, Fender '65 princeton reverb reissue
Recording: Sennheiser e609, UA volt 276, drums in Garageband
Background art from The Red Turtle (2016)
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