What I would give to have a bearded ambient guitar god playing reverberate tones, in a tiny hazy oval, at the bottom right of my field of vision at all times throughout my day. I feel life would be somewhat more bareable.
I love that you say I won't go into this and yet after listening to you, I have discovered more in nine minutes than I have understood in two years of playing with my RV500. Thank you .
Man! I love your videos! and the fact that you try to answer questions asked at the comment section. Great work! keep it up. - Greeting from Melbourne Australia.
Very helpful to see someone loooking at this unit from an ambient perspective. Thanks for giving us an insight into the capabilities of this machine. I am looking for a "do-everything" reverb unit for playing ambient/post-rock music right now, and I have to say I'm very tempted to buy this.
Definitely worth considering for ambient/post-rock! I'll be doing some more vids of it over the next couple of weeks. Is there anything in particular you might be interested in hearing?
Hi Chords Of Orion, thanks for that. There are two things I think would be worth covering in a bit more depth. Firstly, I have read that the reason there is no "RV-5 style" Modulated Reverb setting on the RV-500 is because every reverb mode can have modulation added. It would be really useful to hear some patches that use the modulation well, and maybe to quickly see how to edit the modulation settings. Secondly, most of the reviews I've seen have been fairly dismissive of the Shimmer mode. I guess some folks think that shimmer is not very useful, or maybe last year's fad. Well, it's a pretty important part of my effects setup. I'd really like to hear the range of shimmer effects the RV-500 can produce, and how much you can tweak it.
I thought I was set with my Walrus Audio descent (and it IS beautiful, no doubt about it), but there are SO MANY OPTIONS HERE! Absolutely going to get an RV-500
Beautiful playing as always Bill. A really nice pedal (like I need another reverb pedal). I hope you team this up with the DD500 on a future clip. All the best - Cheers
Subbed, liked, and will be going through your Ambient Tutorials just as soon as I snag this pedal (and the Delay and Modulation pedals as well). In the market, was looking at Strymon, but this pedal has Storm, and that suits me fine.
Moonlight and Para Para patches sounded intriguing. Shimmer has a different tonal voice than Strymons to my ears; not necessarily better or worse (but much more usable than the DD-500 shimmer!).
A question, I was wondering if you ever used multi-effect devices for creating ambient music (in my case a "Zoom G1Xon" a basic muti-effect pedal with capability of changing 5 effects at the time)? And if you think unsing a multi-effect device is not a good idea or you haven't experiment with it, what reverbe and delay devices would you recommend which is budget friendly and also easy to use? Thank you.
I own the Line 6 AMPLIFi FX100 and it's pretty great for ambient sounds. Here's a playlist with all the vids I've done with it. ua-cam.com/play/PLseB5HzFJKVx0kwKqA632I-EIDSZGVkXj.html. Definitely recommend as a cost effective option!
Do you mean presets? Assuming so, yes, there is a good selection of presets that can be the starting point for creating your own patches or to use as is.
The patches on this video are just the ones that come with RV-500. Do you run stereo or mono? If mono, that might be the difference, as I run in stereo. Also, here's a recent video where I feature the RV-500. All the settings are in the video description. Hope this helps!! ua-cam.com/video/JZDWJ-fB-sg/v-deo.html
You just have to dig in there Ian. Maybe with the manual in hand, set up a medium sized room or hall, and then parameter by parameter, adjust and listen. Maybe even play a recorded loop through the RV-500, so you can focus on reverb. Its almost like programming a synthesizer this thing. Its what I love about it, you can make everything your own.
The manual says that if you are using a "simul" mode, the following applies: Sound that is input to the INPUT A/MONO jack passes through patch A and is output to the OUTPUT A/MONO jack. Sound that is input to the INPUT B jack passes through patch B and is output to the OUTPUT B jack. * If OUTPUT (p. 18) is set to “A:DIR B:EFX,” patches A and B are mixed and output. So it sounds like this is the case, however, I have not tried it.
Chords Of Orion thank very much that’s really helpful! :). Tempted to get one for my Moog grandmother and mother 32. But also interested in empress Zoia and chase bliss mood and of course big sky etc. I’m hoping to do some ambient synth stuff. I do love the idea of the hold mode on the zoom for creating a drone. Do you think the max 10 second reverb tail is long enough for ambient? Thanks for your videos on it which have been very interesting
I've just seen a couple of videos on Chase Bliss Mood and it looks great... taking the hold feature of RV500 further into loop and reverse territory.. sounds like it might be brilliant for ambient!
Good morning. Having decided to pursue a renewed performing career in ambient guitar music (as normal retirement approaches), I would appreciate your advice and opinions. After watching many videos on UA-cam I think that I have settled on the following equipment: Boss RV500, Boss DD 500, Volume pedal. As I'm on a limited budget, would you recommend that I start with the RV 500, and which volume pedal is the best value/performance balance. Thanks in advance for your time and patience.
Hi Barry - If I had to choose between a delay and a reverb, I would go for a delay first, then backfill with the reverb when budget allows. But this is not a universal constant, it really depends on what you are looking to accomplish. The volume pedal I recommend is Morley. I've been using them for decades and they sound great, have adjustable swell tapers, and are rock solid. I also prefer have an active buffered circuit.
Chords Of Orion Wow! That was an extremely quick reply - thankyou. It's good to hear what your experience has taught you and I now see the advantages of your advice. Once again, thankyou. 👍🏻
Hey Bill, If you have gotten say a new reverb and you like it better than the reverb you were using, would you ever go back and rerecord any older songs you did with the old reverb but using the new reverb this time? Or would you just leave those old recordings to be what they are?
Recently got one of these, learning how to create some patches. was toying with getting the H9 but this is pretty cool allowing delay on all reverbs and being able to stack them is a plus. love the swell mode. trying to get a blooming reverb with this any tips on that?
Excellent! I am still working with mine to plumb all of its depths. As far as a blooming reverb goes, that sounds to me like the early reflection reverb type might be up your alley. Here's a vid I did on that reverb type: ua-cam.com/video/lJ-bOEHtxFA/v-deo.html. Also, maybe playing around with pre-delay settings will give you the blooming tone you are looking for.
Spent today getting into the editor which gets me there quicker. I'll play around with the pre-delay and see what I can come up with. thought maybe that with rolling back input volume may get the effect i want. I like being able to get minus pitches in the shimmer mode and modulating that to get some synthlike tones. Right now using it with Eventides Blackhole plugin gets some nice tones. Running it mono for now since my amps are not with me but want to try it stereo for live sounds.
Just watched your video, thanks that was informative, I'll have to try messing with the early reflection mode. loved the sound you got. Also have tcelectronic's Flashback to get reverse delay. been using that with the swell a note patch for some trippy sounds. good thing i am on vacation this week. this will keep me occupied
Hey, I've just found your videos from looking up the Mooer Ocean machine. I don't have a limitless budget, but I don't mind spending a bit. If you had to pick between this and the OM, what would you go for? Thanks.
If you are looking for a dedicated reverb, then the RV-500 is a better choice than the OM because of the quality and depth of its reverbs. And this makes sense given that all your $$ is going into reverbs, vs reverbs, delays and a looper on the OM.
RV-500 is 100% analog dry path (like Strymon) according to the marketing info. FWIW, historically most Boss reverbs and delays have had analog dry path. MD-500 is 100% digital. (Different thing entirely from true bypass or buffered).
Not arguing with your preference for the Ventris, however, I think the RV-500 has some really great sounds - and it can do dual reverbs too. That being said, the Hall setting is definitely on the conservative side.
Oh really maybe im gonna diggin a lil more into this unit ...Dual Reverb is really cool like Dual Processing The future of Sound Design is to combine new textures / FX like the Mod Reverb/Delay or Shimmer which add harmonics to the reflections to create this unique texture ...this can be done with a multi FX but it is way limited in the overall result since the engineers have been created new algos which provide new capabilities ...I hope new multiFX units will integrate soon those beautiful new algos such as the OffSpring reverb so we wont have to spend a bunch of money buying new units...
Why do act as though all these features are groundbreaking and new? It’s a Strymon ripoff all the way. Sounds are okay, but nowhere near the hall of fame 2!
The RV-500 beats out the Strymon just by virtue of being able to run two presets at once, though. Also, the RV-500 sounds every bit as good as the BigSky if you actually tweak it in the editor instead of just using factory presets and twisting knobs.
Hmm. Can you give me a time index where the distortion/crackling occurs? I just reviewed the video on my studio monitors and it all sounds clean to me and is only peaking at -1dBFS. Definitely would appreciate the feedback, as I take the audio quality of my videos seriously. Thanks!
Ah OK. If you look at a meter, you will see that the signal is not clipping. The mix is the way I wanted it to sound. Guess you just don't like the mix of my performance. That's totally cool with me. All the best!
This guy is the Bob Ross of pedal demos
Which is awesome
yh - happy little accidents in stereo 😂
What I would give to have a bearded ambient guitar god playing reverberate tones, in a tiny hazy oval, at the bottom right of my field of vision at all times throughout my day. I feel life would be somewhat more bareable.
Get Google glasses?
I always knew Sir Davos was a reverb guy!
I don’t need another reverb, I don’t need another reverb, I don’t need another reverb...
I need this reverb. 😳
it is a good one. The more I use it, the more I really like it.
hhahhahaahahhahaha....same mantra to me...
I love that you say I won't go into this and yet after listening to you, I have discovered more in nine minutes than I have understood in two years of playing with my RV500. Thank you .
Technically, you can get 3 patches per bank by using the pedal in ABC mode giving you 297 total presets :)
WoW! The shimmer sounds awesome.
Yes, I really like the shimmer too!
Man! I love your videos! and the fact that you try to answer questions asked at the comment section. Great work! keep it up.
- Greeting from Melbourne Australia.
Wow.. that Para Para preset section with your playing is incredible!
Very helpful to see someone loooking at this unit from an ambient perspective. Thanks for giving us an insight into the capabilities of this machine. I am looking for a "do-everything" reverb unit for playing ambient/post-rock music right now, and I have to say I'm very tempted to buy this.
Definitely worth considering for ambient/post-rock! I'll be doing some more vids of it over the next couple of weeks. Is there anything in particular you might be interested in hearing?
Hi Chords Of Orion, thanks for that. There are two things I think would be worth covering in a bit more depth.
Firstly, I have read that the reason there is no "RV-5 style" Modulated Reverb setting on the RV-500 is because every reverb mode can have modulation added. It would be really useful to hear some patches that use the modulation well, and maybe to quickly see how to edit the modulation settings.
Secondly, most of the reviews I've seen have been fairly dismissive of the Shimmer mode. I guess some folks think that shimmer is not very useful, or maybe last year's fad. Well, it's a pretty important part of my effects setup. I'd really like to hear the range of shimmer effects the RV-500 can produce, and how much you can tweak it.
I thought I was set with my Walrus Audio descent (and it IS beautiful, no doubt about it), but there are SO MANY OPTIONS HERE! Absolutely going to get an RV-500
It is a great pedal for sure!
Beautiful playing as always Bill. A really nice pedal (like I need another reverb pedal). I hope you team this up with the DD500 on a future clip. All the best - Cheers
Thanks Brendan. As luck would have it, the video right before this one includes the DD-500. Check it out! ua-cam.com/video/b3twKrenuDc/v-deo.html
I bought many pedals like yours because you inspired me, Bill! This is going to be the fifth pedals! ;)
Awesome!
Subbed, liked, and will be going through your Ambient Tutorials just as soon as I snag this pedal (and the Delay and Modulation pedals as well).
In the market, was looking at Strymon, but this pedal has Storm, and that suits me fine.
Have you ever reviewed the Eventide Space. I love that pedal.
I really like the sound of this reverb unit. For $350 it seems to bring a lot to the table!
Agreed. It is not cheap, but there is a LOT there!
Moonlight and Para Para patches sounded intriguing. Shimmer has a different tonal voice than Strymons to my ears; not necessarily better or worse (but much more usable than the DD-500 shimmer!).
The pedal definitely has a Boss tone, not a Strymon. It's funny how there's a brand sound for each.
Wow. Super beautiful. Thank you for the insight. Could you post a video comparing the BigSky Cloud and the RV-500 equivalent?
If only I had a Big Sky...If I ever get one, will definitely do some comparisons.
A question, I was wondering if you ever used multi-effect devices for creating ambient music (in my case a "Zoom G1Xon" a basic muti-effect pedal with capability of changing 5 effects at the time)?
And if you think unsing a multi-effect device is not a good idea or you haven't experiment with it, what reverbe and delay devices would you recommend which is budget friendly and also easy to use?
Thank you.
I own the Line 6 AMPLIFi FX100 and it's pretty great for ambient sounds. Here's a playlist with all the vids I've done with it. ua-cam.com/play/PLseB5HzFJKVx0kwKqA632I-EIDSZGVkXj.html. Definitely recommend as a cost effective option!
If i didn't already own the Eventide Space, I'd be all over this.
I want one sooo bad but it is a bit out of my budget at this time. Btw, does this have an internal library of sounds?
Do you mean presets? Assuming so, yes, there is a good selection of presets that can be the starting point for creating your own patches or to use as is.
thanks...for...this...........................brilliant...as...usual...
Eqd avalanche run + ghost echo or this one?
Excellent review. I'm a big fan of the reverb and delays on the Magicstomp. Can the RV500 do similar? Thanks
You get amazing tones! I am having trouble getting my patches to sound as good as yours. Any chance you can share some settings you like?
The patches on this video are just the ones that come with RV-500. Do you run stereo or mono? If mono, that might be the difference, as I run in stereo. Also, here's a recent video where I feature the RV-500. All the settings are in the video description. Hope this helps!! ua-cam.com/video/JZDWJ-fB-sg/v-deo.html
You just have to dig in there Ian. Maybe with the manual in hand, set up a medium sized room or hall, and then parameter by parameter, adjust and listen.
Maybe even play a recorded loop through the RV-500, so you can focus on reverb. Its almost like programming a synthesizer this thing. Its what I love about it, you can make everything your own.
How is the stereo field on this compared to Strymon or Neunaber?
I think it is roughly comparable. They are all different in their respective sounds.
sounds good.but how would that work on nylon strings guitar?
Indeed it would!!
Can you put 2 mono synths into this and have different reverb for each?
The manual says that if you are using a "simul" mode, the following applies:
Sound that is input to the INPUT A/MONO jack passes through
patch A and is output to the OUTPUT A/MONO jack.
Sound that is input to the INPUT B jack passes through patch B
and is output to the OUTPUT B jack.
* If OUTPUT (p. 18) is set to “A:DIR B:EFX,” patches A and B are
mixed and output.
So it sounds like this is the case, however, I have not tried it.
Chords Of Orion thank very much that’s really helpful! :). Tempted to get one for my Moog grandmother and mother 32. But also interested in empress Zoia and chase bliss mood and of course big sky etc. I’m hoping to do some ambient synth stuff. I do love the idea of the hold mode on the zoom for creating a drone. Do you think the max 10 second reverb tail is long enough for ambient? Thanks for your videos on it which have been very interesting
I've just seen a couple of videos on Chase Bliss Mood and it looks great... taking the hold feature of RV500 further into loop and reverse territory.. sounds like it might be brilliant for ambient!
2:20 I misread it as "smell a note" LOL. I need new glasses...
Good morning.
Having decided to pursue a renewed performing career in ambient guitar music (as normal retirement approaches), I would appreciate your advice and opinions. After watching many videos on UA-cam I think that I have settled on the following equipment:
Boss RV500,
Boss DD 500,
Volume pedal.
As I'm on a limited budget, would you recommend that I start with the RV 500, and which volume pedal is the best value/performance balance.
Thanks in advance for your time and patience.
Hi Barry - If I had to choose between a delay and a reverb, I would go for a delay first, then backfill with the reverb when budget allows. But this is not a universal constant, it really depends on what you are looking to accomplish. The volume pedal I recommend is Morley. I've been using them for decades and they sound great, have adjustable swell tapers, and are rock solid. I also prefer have an active buffered circuit.
Chords Of Orion
Wow! That was an extremely quick reply - thankyou.
It's good to hear what your experience has taught you and I now see the advantages of your advice.
Once again, thankyou. 👍🏻
nice pedal! Nice playing as always. Is there still time for me to send a track for the pedal contest?
Where do i upload it to? Thanks man.
Yes, there is still time (2 weeks to go). Check out the contest announcement video for all the rules, etc. ua-cam.com/video/DiUgn1I7-t0/v-deo.html
Hey Bill,
If you have gotten say a new reverb and you like it better than the reverb you were using, would you ever go back and rerecord any older songs you did with the old reverb but using the new reverb this time? Or would you just leave those old recordings to be what they are?
Just leave the old recordings as is. Changes in equipment does not invalidate what you have done before.
Chords Of Orion you are right ! ... awesome video and playing ! ... :)
Recently got one of these, learning how to create some patches. was toying with getting the H9 but this is pretty cool allowing delay on all reverbs and being able to stack them is a plus. love the swell mode. trying to get a blooming reverb with this any tips on that?
Excellent! I am still working with mine to plumb all of its depths. As far as a blooming reverb goes, that sounds to me like the early reflection reverb type might be up your alley. Here's a vid I did on that reverb type: ua-cam.com/video/lJ-bOEHtxFA/v-deo.html. Also, maybe playing around with pre-delay settings will give you the blooming tone you are looking for.
Spent today getting into the editor which gets me there quicker. I'll play around with the pre-delay and see what I can come up with. thought maybe that with rolling back input volume may get the effect i want. I like being able to get minus pitches in the shimmer mode and modulating that to get some synthlike tones. Right now using it with Eventides Blackhole plugin gets some nice tones. Running it mono for now since my amps are not with me but want to try it stereo for live sounds.
Just watched your video, thanks that was informative, I'll have to try messing with the early reflection mode. loved the sound you got. Also have tcelectronic's Flashback to get reverse delay. been using that with the swell a note patch for some trippy sounds. good thing i am on vacation this week. this will keep me occupied
can you set the tap tempo, the internal delay alone without ruining the reverb?
Will this run in an effects loop? The manual does not address this basic issue!
I run it in my Eleven Rack's effects loop and it sounds great.
Any pedal can run in an effects loop.
Hey,
I've just found your videos from looking up the Mooer Ocean machine. I don't have a limitless budget, but I don't mind spending a bit.
If you had to pick between this and the OM, what would you go for?
Thanks.
If you are looking for a dedicated reverb, then the RV-500 is a better choice than the OM because of the quality and depth of its reverbs. And this makes sense given that all your $$ is going into reverbs, vs reverbs, delays and a looper on the OM.
I was in the same boat with this. Thanks for the help, Bill!
Hey Orion, thanks your this review. THose the MD-500 and this RV-500 are dry signal 100%analog through? like stymon pedals?
The RV-500 can be set for true bypass or buffered bypass. I don't have the MD-500, but I would assume the same.
RV-500 is 100% analog dry path (like Strymon) according to the marketing info. FWIW, historically most Boss reverbs and delays have had analog dry path. MD-500 is 100% digital. (Different thing entirely from true bypass or buffered).
Do you have any preference between this pedal and the Strymon Timeline?
The Timeline is a delay and the RV-500 is a reverb, so I have no comparison or preference.
@@chordsoforion Sorry. Got my pedals mixed up. Thanks so much for getting back to me.
Where are you sending output B on the back of the pedal?
I am sending both outputs to the effects return of my Avid Eleven Rack for stereo.
Chords Of Orion oh thanks, the rack has 2 input jacks for return.
Hey Does the boss rv 500 require 9v power supply or 12v?
A 9V power supply, which is NOT included. It also take 4 AA batteries.
In 2023, which would you prefer, the RV-500 or the BigSky?
TBH, I very rarely use. the RV-500, but I need to revisit. It can do many things that the BigSky can't - except sound like a BigSky. :-)
Im a great fan of BOSS ...i currently play thru a GT100... but this Reverb engine sounds way outdated IMO
Ventris is the way to go so far !!!!!!
Not arguing with your preference for the Ventris, however, I think the RV-500 has some really great sounds - and it can do dual reverbs too. That being said, the Hall setting is definitely on the conservative side.
Oh really maybe im gonna diggin a lil more into this unit ...Dual Reverb is really cool like Dual Processing
The future of Sound Design is to combine new textures / FX like the Mod Reverb/Delay or Shimmer which add harmonics to the reflections to create this unique texture ...this can be done with a multi FX but it is way limited in the overall result since the engineers have been created new algos which provide new capabilities ...I hope new multiFX units will integrate soon those beautiful new algos such as the OffSpring reverb so we wont have to spend a bunch of money buying new units...
Lord Davos? Is that you?
:-)
Sorry for the dumb question, but does this pedal have delay in it as well?
there is a reverb type called space echo, which is more delay-like in character, but beyond that, no delays.
AMBIENT GUITAR GOD
I'm going to get to get it so much more affordable than strymon
Certainly a worthy option!
Good gracious, I hate shimmer more and more. Too harsh sounding, too much going on.
Шляпа.. Весь пилборд займет
Why do act as though all these features are groundbreaking and new? It’s a Strymon ripoff all the way. Sounds are okay, but nowhere near the hall of fame 2!
Beau Rispalje you must be kidding me,HOF2 is just ok,RV 500 is light years ahead of it and BigSky is another universe by itself.
Go try them first.
The RV-500 beats out the Strymon just by virtue of being able to run two presets at once, though. Also, the RV-500 sounds every bit as good as the BigSky if you actually tweak it in the editor instead of just using factory presets and twisting knobs.
Another demo with too much input gain. Distorted, crackling.
Hmm. Can you give me a time index where the distortion/crackling occurs? I just reviewed the video on my studio monitors and it all sounds clean to me and is only peaking at -1dBFS. Definitely would appreciate the feedback, as I take the audio quality of my videos seriously. Thanks!
The first 15 seconds. Put on some headphones, it really obvious. I'm not going through the rest of it.
Ah OK. If you look at a meter, you will see that the signal is not clipping. The mix is the way I wanted it to sound. Guess you just don't like the mix of my performance. That's totally cool with me. All the best!
Somethings crunching like mad. It could be lousy converters inside the Reverb, but I can hear it clear as day. It's not the mix.
yeah sounds great to me. maybe fred has some lousy headphones under that fedora