Boss AC-3 Acoustic Simulator
Features
Have you ever wished you had brought an acoustic guitar to a performance or studio session with your electric guitar? Hauling an extra guitar to the gig isn’t always the most attractive option for musicians who travel light. Here comes the BOSS AC-3! COSM modeling technology is used to transform any electric guitar into a variety of beautiful acoustic guitars in this new-generation compact pedal.
The Boss AC3 Acoustic Simulator is a simple solution for producing acoustic tones without the hassles of bringing another guitar to the show, with precise COSM modulation and four acoustic modes. The AC-3 was created to conserve pedalboard space while saving money, based on the Boss AD-8 design.
The AC-3 features an internal digital reverb, which adds depth and sweetness to the sound. It’s like getting two pedals for the price of one!
Boss AC-3 Acoustic Simulator – Video
Boss AC-3 Acoustic Simulator – Review
Did a lot of research on this before using. Short version, if you just run it in front of an amp, it’ll sound like an electric trying to be an acoustic and you may be disappointed. What I found to work was to be sure and use the separate output directly into the PA. Also, be sure to use the neck pickup in a single-coil setting. Once you do those two things, the pedal will yield a very convincing acoustic tone.
I tried every setting with 3 guitars and could not for the life of me get this to sound anything like an acoustic guitar. It sounds different than an electric guitar, but the sound is not pleasant to my ears. It gets an extra star for the nice sounding reverb, but I would rather just have a reverb pedal.
The problem with the pedal is the hiss. I have a double coil hollow body and if the top is turned up at all I get a nasty hiss when I touch my strings. I have seen that this is a common problem. If there was no loud hiss it would be sufficient. The hiss is terrible. I have been able to adjust using EQ and it is manageable. Again I expected it to not be perfect and I do like the sound from it. To use the Ac-3, I’ll have to buy a noise suppressor pedal. That is disappointing.
Conclusion
This pedal doesn’t sound like an acoustic guitar at all. To me It doesn’t have any usable sounds. It doesn’t sound good plugged into a guitar amp and it doesn’t sound good through a P.A. system. It’s built like a tank and will probably last forever. I hope I can sell it and get most of my money back.
