New Boss DS-1 vs Boss DS-1 Keeley Ultra Mod

New Boss DS-1 vs Boss DS-1 Keeley Ultra Mod
1974 Marshall JMP 4x12 cab
Fender Stratocaster

[brokensoul]

Keeley is absolutely brilliant. By that I do not mean he made this pedal sound better. I mean how he convinced so many people by switching and adding a few components that cost a few cents, then charging a $100 convinced so many people that this pedal now sounds better.

[MrClwind]

Absolutely identical. Getting the basic DS1, and forgetting about the mods. Thanks man!

[fisherman]

not alot of difference, I kinda prefer the unmodded one

[MsPastaboy]

i have a new version DS-1 and it Rocks like crazy and that's all that counts. DS-1 Marshall SG

[HemanthAnil]

keeley is brilliant in the sense that he has modded the pedal so that the difference is unnoticeable...haha

[jamesgless]

I have a new DS-1 and was going to get the Keeley mods but not after hearing this.   Other than the great bright blue LED I hear (see) very little difference.  Thanks, how much do I owe you?

[jeffstephenson]

Nobody seems to notice that this pedal has both the Seeing Eye and Ultra mods and is set to the seeing eye version(notice the flashing light below the tone knob). I own this pedal and when it is switched down(utlra) the difference is night and day. Way more low end and a much tighter tone.

[juniorpentz]

they sound very similar but I prefer the stock sound because it sounds a bit brighter than the Keeley

[pippydog]

Ds1 is a good pedal ..no need to mod ..all these 250 pedals are insane.. boss is just as good in all categories

[robertw]

It's amusing to read through the comments and see that everyone who's bought the Keeley adamant that it sounds better, whereas anyone without a vested interest seems to think they both sound pretty much the same... interesting.  

[BrianGay]

I don’t get the rational behind buying an inexpensive pedal that works well as designed, and then modding it (sometimes at great expense) with little (if any) real improvement in tone. I’ve heard pedal mods that sound worse rather than better to my ears.

I figure modding mania has as much to do with bragging rights as it has to do with tone. Stock Boss pedals just aren’t cool enough for some folks.

I’m more impressed by skilled players than by expensive pedal boards.

I know some people like to tinker, and enjoy soldering and customizing, and there is nothing wrong with modding gear if one enjoys it. I’m guilty of doing some speaker swapping myself.

I just find my time is better spent practicing for the most part.

[ETILHK]

In my opinion keeley is more marshall like, and new is more orange like, that's it.

[Ludeguy]

The mod make's it sound between a overdrive and a distortion pedal i find... it's interesting... someone that wants a different sound, this is fantastic!

[tophtoph]

Think of flipping the mod switch ever?

[samguitarman]

well, at the beginning the dist.knob position of Keeley is near 11:00 and the stock stomp is at ''zero'', so it was impossible to compare correctly. thanksfor the video.

[FloridaManMatty]

As good as videos like this are, they really don’t do these pedals justice. I have seven Boss Mods from Keeley, Analogman, and JHS that I got before I learned how to do them myself, along with a couple shelves of stock Boss units. Some of the mods definitely sound better than others and a few are much more obvious, particularly in person.

There is no substitute for your own ears AND A/B-ing mods above bedroom volume. The Keeley DS-1 and TS-9 mods (especially the Tubescreamer) are brilliant pushing the front end of a decent tube amp thats already trying to break up a bit on its own.

The mods were worth the price at the time. They are even more valuable once you learn how to do them on your own. If you can pick up a used Boss DS-1 and SD-1 to try out different mods and to just practice removing and replacing small components, it’s worth every penny.

[DerpRulesAll]

Thanks for allowing me to save my money.

[innocentoctave]

Interesting demo, apart from the failure to show the effect of the switch on the Keeley. The Keeley retains more low mids and bass, so heard in isolation like this it sounds richer or fuller. Whether this is automatically a good thing in a band mix is debatable. And if you don't like the basic DS-1 sound, they'll both sound bad - the Keeley is a mod, not a transformation.

[KrachWerke]

Looks like the Keeley mod is the thing to do!!!

[cebrin]

The Keeley is slightly more organic. Hardly noticeable. More so in the higher gain range. The Boss is a little more compressed. Which at high gain, I don't know why you wouldn't prefer as it makes the notes bloom and sing. To each there own I guess. I think the Boss by itself is great. Why else would it be on billions of records and pedal-boards.