Let’s face it, live acoustic guitarists have often suffered from less-than-stellar sounds from the pickups in their guitars. If it were possible, I would want to play my Martin through a microphone every time. I used to think that getting that kind of tone in a live environment was impossible. Not anymore! I checked out BOSS’s AD-8 acoustic guitar processor myself, and I’m sold!
I wanted to hear exactly what the AD-8 does to the sound, so I decided to record directly from the balanced XLR outputs of the AD-8 into Pro Tools through my Mbox. To get an accurate understanding of the product, I played a small progression or riff twice, once with all the processing bypassed (simulating the sound of just the pickup itself) and once through the AD-8’s processing. I was blown away. It sounded like I’d stuck a condenser microphone in front of my guitar! None of that flat, dull sound that comes from plugging directly into the system. The AD-8 added depth and warmth to my sound, and the reverbs sound awesome, too.
The AD-8 doesn’t just give you one great guitar sound. You can choose from six different high-end acoustic guitars! Whether you’re playing a solo set, a small acoustic ensemble, a worship team, or an all-out rock band, you need to be able to tailor your sound to the situation. The AD-8 allows you to save four presets of your settings, so you can quickly switch from the warm, round sound for your solo ballad to a nice, bright tone for playing rhythm behind a full band, all with a simple press of a pedal.
With a built-in tuner and anti-feedback control, this is the only piece of equipment you’ll ever need for your acoustic guitar. Take control of your sound! No more relying on the sound guy to make your guitar sound right. You have all the control, and I guarantee the AD-8 will make you fall in love with playing acoustic guitar all over again.
