Boss SL-20 Slicer Effects Pedal Review

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What it does:
The Boss SL-20 is a Panner/Gater with 50 rhythmic patterns some of which have a fair amount of pitch shifting. It really shines in stereo where you can get some pretty interesting panning effects including several "3D" effects where the sound seams to move around you in 3 dimensions (duh). The panning is synced to the rhythm which you can adjust through either; tap tempo, a dial or a midi clock (such as those found on drum machines)
You can adjust the attack, how fast each "slice" rolls on and the duty how long each "slice" lasts.
Additionally rather than a wet/dry mix you have separate volume controls for both the dry (unaffected) tone and the wet (effected) tone.
You can also use a separate expression pedal to control the different parameters such as attack and duty.
O.K. so now we know what it does. Let's talk about how well it does it and how useful the effect is.
Playing through it takes a little getting used to. It works well with creating a groove type rhythm with long sustained notes. It also sounds cool when you "play to" the rhythm as in you strike the note/chord just as the attack is swelling. Poorly timed notes/chords are noticeable even when playing through a compressor. This can getting kind of tricky as I don't believe all of the patterns are in 4/4 timing and there can be several (or many) "slices" per beat.
I think that the patterns sort of lend themselves to techno style rhythms, but certainly open the doors for creative expression as long as you have an open mind. I tend to play pretty heavily distorted tones which really lend themselves to this effect. I don't think it works nearly as well with clean tones. Though I am sure with enough experimentation, you could get some pretty cool sounds out of it even with a clean tone.
The coolest thing about this effect is that it will get you jamming. Between all the variables, you could spend hundreds of hours experimenting with riffs.
It is not the type of effect that you will have on in every song, but there are definitely sounds to be discovered that would be impossible without this effect.
As far as I am concerned it is a keeper.
Aaron
I almost forgot to mention. There is a sound on sound feature that allows you to record a short phrase and then play over the top of it. I rarely use this feature because I have a dedicated looping pedal but it is definitely cool bonus.

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Inject a shot of high-octane fuel into your music with the Boss SL-20 Slicer Guitar Pedal. Instantly transform a guitar, bass, keyboard, or vocal into a pulsating groove instrument. Choose from 50 onboard Slice patterns or experiment with the SL-20s innovative Harmonic Slicer feature, which generates percussive melodies, Loop Record, and unique 3D Panning.Groove and Melody MakerThe SL-20 effect pedal transforms your music into percussive "chopped" grooves. Fifty rhythmic patterns are onboard, with adjustable note attack and duration, plus amazing Harmonic Slice effects. Create high-energy patterns onstage in real-time, or use the SL-20 as a songwriting and recording tool. Play the sliced sounds in realtime while capturing them with Loop Record.Flexible ControlAn internal tap-tempo feature is included, as well as the ability to sync to external MIDI clock. Sound characteristics of the SL-20 such as attack, duration, effect level, and direct level can be controlled by the onboard knobs or from an external Expression pedal.Universal FXThe SL-20 is an addictive effect that inspires creativity. Its great for guitarists, but its equally useful for other instrumentalists as well. Plug in a bass, keyboard, iPod, or any other instrument or music-playback device. DJs and dance-music artists will also love the SL-20 as a rhythmic-performance tool.

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