Boss OD-3 Overdrive Pedal Reviews

I've played for many decades and still derive good income from playing electric guitar. I have experimented with guitars, amps and effects practically forever. Currently, my guitar rig is the culmination of the best possible for me. It's an analog/digital hybrid, with the perfect digital pedalboard amp and all analog fx. I have not one, but 2 BOSS OD-3s on my pedalboard, running behind my on-all-the-time AnalogMan King of Tone. One acts as a boost or loud clean, and the other serving as a light crunch pedal. The OD-3 has a special sauce that nothing else can replace and reacts nicely to guitar volume roll-offs. There are many similar to it, but none have ever replaced them, and I've tried. Similar would be, soul food, Nobels ODR, Klon, open road, blue, and several others. Although they sound very good as a stand alone mid to higher gain OD pedal with the drive up to about noon or beyond, I've found other pedals that do that job better. This pedal shines with the drive between 0-9 o'clock for boost and 9-11 o'clock for crunch.

Just want to say, I didn't get mine from sweetwater. That said, the OD-3 is the best overdrive I've ever used. It's smooth, and has a great range of tones and gain. I use it for my base overdrive tone into a slightly broken up amp. It works well with other overdrive and boosts, as well as modulations and delays. It also works well with different kinds of amps and guitars/pickups. For the price I dont think you can get much better. If you've been thinking about this pedal go ahead and get it, it's amazing!

Bought this for my son for Christmas. He loves it.

If you're currently looking for your first overdrive pedal, I would say stop here at the Boss OD-3.
I wish this was the first overdrive I purchased because it is a great benchmark to measure so many others. Coming in at a very fair price point for the quality you get in circuitry, build quality and sonic value.

For the born again tone junkie, this might get you out of some of the many online support groups in your chase for a dynamic, natural sounding overdrive that has more transparency than it does color. The tone achievable with the three simple knobs, sans diode switches or vintage/modern modes is fantastic and rivals many of the independent offerings we have all spent hard earned money on for that Holy Grail end all pedal, only to still be left asking…"did I get a lemon?"

For myself this bumped a DSL MKIII , TS-9 and a Super Phat Mod off my board. For drive I now use the Boss OD-3 coupled with an EP booster and Greer Lightspeed. These both go into either a JTM 45 style combo or Deluxe Reverb and I can achieve virtually any tone necessary in the country, roots, blues and rock realms as needed.

Recommended Buy.

Great addition to my pedal chain. Love the overdrive tones produced by the OD3.

I've been through lots of overdrive pedals over the years including some quite expensive ones, and this is the one I love most. It's a wonderful pedal with huge headroom, and really fattens up the tone of my guitars. Together with my Boss SD1, I have every OD tone I could ever wish for. The nice thing is Boss keeps the prices affordable for the working man. If you can only afford one OD, this is what to get, or the SD1. They sound very different in that the SD1 is almost same as a Tube Screamer with a bit of a mid bump thing going on. This OD3 has a big full sound with nice low end. I bought it assuming that cos it was yellow, made by Boss and called an Overdrive that it would be similar to my SD1, but I couldn't have been more wrong.

I'm a pro guitarist with over 30 years of chasing tone. I've owned, tried and played just about everything out there. The Boss OD-3 is the only pedal that has been on my pedalboard ever since the first time I tried it. It adds a magical tonal quality to every guitar and amp combination I've ever used. It compares to many other pedals (Soul Food, Nobels ODR, Open Road and even Klon and King Of Tone) in its contribution to your sound, but it is hands down the best, especially for the price point. It has no mid hump and does not color your tone other than to add a wonderful smooth bottom end and a plethora of Drive settings. The other best parts are: It works well with single and double coil instruments. It stacks wonderfully in front of just about everything, INCLUDING ITSELF. It's so versatile that it can be used as a clean boost (with a touch of warm color that jazz players would love), an "edge of breakup", a crunch, a smooth lead or a balls out lead overdrive tone that really brings out the pinch harmonics. The tone control is perfect to adapt it to any rig. IT IS NOT A DISTORTION PEDAL AT ALL, but it will give you a beautiful, smooth and warm overdrive lead tone. I ALWAYS have at least 2 of these on my boards at all times and one in the gig-bag in case of emergency (which I've never had to use). I set them in front of some very expensive boutiques and at least one is on nearly all the time. When it comes to OVERDRIVE, it's definitely got you covered. I highly recommend this pedal for players of all genre'.

This has been one pedal on my check list for years. Running through a Marshall dsl20, it pushes the clean channel to give a little grit and the dirty channel it tightens up without pushing it harder. Funny after all these years I kept pushing it back to the end of the line for the better boutique. This one just killed my search for my overdrive. Try it out, don't like it put it on the used market. There's not alot of them for sale there for a reason.

I'm really impressed with this pedal! I bought one because of the low cost and hype online. I figured it was worth trying. It pairs very well with my 68 Princeton reverb, strats and teles. I use it as a "second channel" with the amp set clean and this as my dirty tone. I match the tone control to the brightness of my clean sound and when engaged the bass seems consistent with a slight boost in the mids. Perfect for fattening up my guitars with dirt for blues and rock tones. With the drive control set around 10 or 11, and volume set to unity, this makes a great little rig, with clean to medium drive sounds, controllable with the volume on your guitar. Increasing the drive past that point gets too compressed for my preference. It nicely cleans up with the volume control for lower gain tones, though it doesn't get "clean" like some overdrive pedals. These settings work well for my needs. In all if you are looking for a natural "amp like" drive tone from a pedal with a clean fender amp at reasonable volumes for home use, this is a great option! I'm sure this pedal has other uses- it could work well as a boost, or for more compressed tones- if thats your thing. At the cost it's definitely worth trying out!

Completely different than the SD-1 in it's tonality.
Seems much warmer in it's bass response.i keep them side by side for varity.

As with many others, I have probably owned at least 30 overdrive pedals over the years and I have borrowed and auditioned many more. This is the one BOSS pedal that never leaves my collection. Every time I get something new and put it on my board for awhile, this one in the end comes back. Between this drive and the Timmy, I am set. It has a better clarity and lower register presence than the other BOSS offerings. The tone control is also more flexible than the legendary SD-1.

Yes, you can spend a lot more on an overdrive. Yes, your friends can be more impressed and chatter more about other drives. However, you know that doesn't make them better. Close your eyes and decide. This one will rise to the top. It sure has for me.

Won't mention the one that started it all, but this one comes in second in my book. I use it for my bass, it is set up to give that extra Jazz bass growl when feeding my SansAmp Tech21 BassFlyRig. That in itself is sitting there guarding its food, but kick in this OD3, it takes the rest of the table's grub. Used on bass the tone control lowers enough to not be bitting or brittle in the high end spectrum. Both Drive and Level controls have a wide range to use. Also, when you set it right, the gain is felt on the strings, amp tone gets aggressive or if used clean, more pressure is present. Tonal character doesn't shift thin like some I've tried.

You will not find an OD pedal this good for anywhere near this price. I used the Boss SD-1 for many years, and this pedal is like it, but more everything! More volume, more gain, and a wider range from the tone control. It"s the SUPER Super Overdrive!!!

Nice low-gain OD. Works the best for my sound. Tried Sd-1W, BD-2W and they were too harsh for the sound I was trying to get. The OD-3 is spot on for my needs.

You hear all the hype about Boss pedals sucking your tone. Well they might if you are looking for 100% pure tone, but everything else colors your tone too. This pedal is jusr plain awesome and if you dont think so your way to picky for a non-contracted musician. I have messed with this in many positions in my chain, many settings and had only outstanding results. This stacks extra well, sounds so good I get lost playing once I step on it. Have recorded everything from blues to rock and love the results. Didnt like it as well as a boost, but its an OD so let it do it job. Dial in the tone, dial in the gain, set you level and dig in. You will get the results you are looking for without a doubt. If Boss suck your tone I cant tell. I have 6 of Boss' dirt boxes and love them all!

I own numerous boutique pedals (strymon riverside, king of tone, vertex dynamic distortion, klon, timmy and others) plus the usual compliment of boss, ibanez, visual sound, OCD, Plimsoul, etc..). I play professionally, use Suhr guitars and both tube and modeling amps as needed. I play $$ covers, no metal.

After 40 years of live playing and studio experience, in the final analysis, my pedalboards OD/DIST fx requirements have boiled down to the AnalogMan King of Tone followed by two OD-3's, one set to Drive=0 for boost and the other Drive set between 10 and 3 depending upon the venue and amp system I'm using. I will occasionally add to that for special OD/DIST fx, but KOT/OD-3 is a constant in my rig.

OD-3 is the only Boss pedal that ever spent any time on my pedalboards over the years. It is very input sensitive, cleans up well at low drive settings, compresses just right at higher drive settings, provides a wonderful crunch tone and a very smooth creamy lead tone. It does, however, require tone control adjustment with radical drive setting adjustments, so buy 2 for hands free versatility. It stacks well and is relatively transparent. OD-3 is boutique in my opinion. It will stay on my board, and in good company.

I've had a lot of different overdrives, this is the one I kept. I'm running this through a handwired AC30, along with a big muff, a rat, a nuvibe, and a space echo delay. The day I got this is the day the my JHS Morning Glory came off the board, along with the noise it creates. Save yourself a lot of time and money, don't buy boutique, don't buy an sd-1, or a bluesdriver, spend $ on this overlooked pedal and you'll have the tone everybody is looking for.

I have had this pedal for 8 years and can tell you it sounds great. These reviews are hard for most of us to rely on because so many things can alter a persons sound and success with any given pedal. If it helps, I used this initially for a month, gave up and bought three rather expensive pedals trying to find that "sound". After keeping it in a box for all this time I dug it out the other day and was blown away. What changed? Amp tubes. Using the same Fender 65 Twin Reissue, but with new tubes (Tung-sol and Svetlanas) I finally got a great OD sound that doesn't sound thin or squashed, and retains my guitar's sound. Lots of volume, harmonically natural and great sustain. It sounds great with unpotted Gibson BBs and if I use a distortion pedal after it in the chain-at very low gain settings the two together are amazing. I can't believe it sat in a box for nearly 8 years, or that I spent so much money on other pedals that can't do what this does. I've never liked Tube Screamers and the Blues Driver by Boss is nice, but they just don't clean up like this can. I would recommend this above most OD pedals, especially if you are using something that is already hot like a Marshall, pushed Vox or the DeVille type amps. A twin at low volumes is hard to breakup by comparison.

i cant believe this pedal is not more popular. i own every Boss distortion, overdrive, and boutique pedal out there, but the od-3 is the top of the heap, especially for live performance.

I've tried dozens of other pedals while the OD-3 was just floating out there. I assumed there was nothing special about it, and figured it was just an SD-1 with a new model number and darker color yellow.

Instead, what I found with the OD-3 is an absolute keeper, and arguably the one must-have OD on my board, if I could only keep one. The key buzz words for the OD-3 are "transparency" and "versatility". Much like the SD-1, the OD-3 will let your guitar's original tone shine through. But unlike the SD-1, and many other "Tubescreamer" pedals, the OD-3 retains the low end presence and has some serious output on tap. I've used this thing as almost a "clean boost" with the gain down and volume up, or I've used it as a stand-alone overdrive pedal that can hit rock chords. Trust me, there are very few overdrives that can do both of those things well.

If it were made by a boutique company and cost $200, it'd already be legendary. Lucky for us, though, the OD-3 has been hiding in plain sight since it came about 15 years ago. Even if you don't like other Boss dirt pedals, give this one a test run.

I have been a faithful user of the Boss OD3 for a long time now, I've use overdrive/distortion pedals that were above $200 under $500 and I either ended up selling them or returning them for refund...

I gig constantly on a weekly basis and this Boss OD3 has proven itself to be the most versatile,transparent,tonefull,spongy feel,everything for a solid state pedal! Weather its use for metal,hard rock, ,twang rock,,blues,etc... and of course that is with consideration of how hot your Bridge pick ups are! anyways its definitely a must have for under $80 you will not be sorry.

This is the MOST UNDERRATED BOSS PEDAL! And this is coming from a tube amp snob! I have two of these cause I have two pedalboards all loaded with Boss pedals. The OD-3 is my main overdrive/distortion sound both for rhythm and leads sometimes I push the input stage with Boss SD-1 for serious solos.

My live amp is of course Roland JC-120 loaded with two Jensen MOD 12-70 or Fender FM212 loaded with two Jensen MOD 12-70 depending on the situation and needs of the gig.....

This pedal painted yellow should be Brown cause it definitely has that brownsound to it! The secret to this pedal is where to set the level and the tone knob, Level at unity gain(around 9.5 O' clock )with my clean channel of my JC-120 loaded with two Texas Heat, Tone knob around 10 O'clock ,drive is max,the EQ on my amp are all 12 O'clock except Bass is max .. During live or rehearsal with this set up and my DD-20 it sounds huge with some warmth and clarity it likes vintage wound bridge humbuckers alot.....

I enjoyed using my SD-1 until I started using the OD-3. It's much more transparent-sounding overdrive and bass response is just much better than the SD-1. Treble is very pleasant and it adds nice glassy chime to the sound. It's a VERY LOUD pedal - I usually keep my level knob around 10 o'clock. SD-1 has its place so I still like it, but during the live I can't help stepping on this one as a default overdrive because I just want to hear it again and again.

Wow! I am quite surprised by this pedal. I hadn't been impressed by Boss ODs in the past. I've tried the BD2, SD1, Dyna Drive... and couldn't find the sound I was looking for in any of them. I finally tried an OD3, and found it to be exactly as described - a nice relatively transparent overdrive. The lows are nice and thick, mids aren't boosted like a tube screamer, and highs aren't shrill or fizzy. Sounds nice and natural.

A zillion pedals out there but they all borrow from a few classics like TS's, Rat, etc. This is one of those classics. I do not like boss pedals, I find them too trebly or muddy and never keep them. This is not one of those. It has a nice, mid gain sound that is great for classic rock. If you play hard rock/metal you could use it but would need a boost before it. Think "tush" by ZZtop or "fly by bight" by Rush when cranked.
Also, its a fantastic low gain or boost. At zero gain there is no gain at all, just boost and tone control. I use this at around noon to get a gritty town. Many say Tubescreamers are the best at this but no way, those have too much color. Love my TS808 cranked but its too fat for a gritty sound or boost for me. for low and mid gain why spend a bundle? get this one and spend the rest on a quality higher gain pedal.

Great overdrive, boss quality, plenty of juice. Not a metal pedal.
Dirty boost to nasty boost. Sweetwater delivered fast and well
Packaged. Thanks sweetwater and Boss!

This is an incredible value for an overdrive pedal. It adds a lot of nice over drive without taking anything away from your tone. It sounds organic and full and makes for a nice blues to hard rock sound. It could pull off some metal with the right amp and pick ups. I would highly recommend the pedal.

Great natural sounding OD without that mid hump you get with that green pedal (you know which one). Very transparent, and makes a great booster too. Most people never give this one a second look, due to it not being from a boutique builder. You can save a ton of cash and be pleasantly surprised with this one! Definitely worth a look!

After using several other overdrive pedals over the last 15 years and not being completely happy with any of them (sound-wise) I am thrilled with the OD-3. I read many good reviews on it and decided to try one more. Glad I did !! It especially sounds great with the drive set at around 3 o'clock and the level at noon and the tone at noon. I am very pleased with this pedal and my long search is finally over!

The OD 3 is my new favorite. No mid hump like a ts9. It has a nice full sound. Sturdy build like all Boss. Awesome used with a fender pro jr but it also sounded good as a lead boost with my marshall lead 12 solid state. It is better than many of the "better?" Overdrives out there. Very usable. Sweetwater is the best, as always.

Almost exactly the sound I was looking for.I am not much into pedals,but this one was needed,to get more of a growling tube amp,without sounding like I am
Using a pedal.

I've tried almost all overdrive pedals, I have a bit of an addiction with ODs. The OD-3 is in the top 5 pedals in my collection, it is just an awesome overdrive. Simple and basic design, many have tried to improve on the Boss design, but it is what it is...a great sounding and singing overdrive right out of the box, perfect in a band mix or just noodling at home.

i watched and listened to countless video demonstrations of all the big name overdrive and distortion pedals out there before deciding on the OD-3 and I'm really happy with my choice. I play my 1976 Strat through a 50 watt Marshall Tube amp (a JVM 215C) which sounds pretty good on it's own, but adding the OD-3 really kicks things up a notch (or two or three if so desired). I was looking to get that kind of tight and focussed break-up that I hear on many of the classic rock albums from the seventies (Aerosmith ZZ Top, Zeppelin) and this little box of dirt really does a nice job. For me the sweet spot on this pedal is with the "Drive " knob set somewhere between 12:00 and 3:00. At 12:00 I get a fairly dirty tone and at 3:00 it just becomes a mean nasty little thing without sounding harsh or sloppy. Once again it gives you a really tight and focussed break-up. The recommendation is to set the "Level" knob to match your amp volume with the pedal off and then adjust the "Tone" knob for the desired amount of bass and/or treble and you're all set. The one criticism I have is that, like with many pedals, bent high notes tend to sound a bit pinched, but I'd say that over all the OD-3 has killer tone. Boss pedals are built like tanks so theirs no worrying about dependability and I've always thought the "three knob" configuration really makes for an easy to use and clean design. I've had the OD-3 for a couple months now and haven't disconnected it from my set up yet and don't think I will anytime soon. It's definitely a keeper.

Out of the box this actually isn't a bad pedal at all. I was able to get a pretty decent overdrive going. Nothing too spectacular but not that bad either for a mass-produced pedal and pretty darn good for this price. I think this is the best overdrive pedal Boss makes.
Now thankfully, most of the pedals Boss makes are still non-surface mount and therefore can be easily modified. Spend less than $30 for a parts upgrade kit and 1-2 hours of your time and you'll be blown away at the boutique-quality overdrive you're getting. After-Mod this will take care of every one of your overdrive needs.

If you don't go the mod route, no problem as this is still a great pedal stock. Throw in a compressor and an EQ pedal and you're in for a treat.

Sounds better than the OD-2, better compression feel.