Vocal and Guitar Units - Boss VE-8 vs TCH Play Acoustic

[lkingston]

Originally Posted by JakeStone

OK..... You know what? After watching the video (gear gossip). He actually "talked" me out of the Boss! Although, it has "knobs" which I thought was "better"... But it really seems complicated to do most anything. It would drive me nuts to press and memorize all the functions.

It's a mixed bag. Once you get to the EQ page for instance, you've got a nice set of EQ knobs in front of you which is preferable to moving around the display and incrementing/decrementing. It's just a matter of remembering how to get there, and which knob does what once your there!

To me, any box like this is a compromise. When I actually go out to gig, I tend to grab my all-analog Tech21 SansAmp ParaDI with no bells and whistles just because I like the sound it gives me so much. Since I'm playing so much acoustic rather than jazzbox these days, I just ordered the new Tech21 Q\Strip which is an all analog preamp that is designed be like an all analog 70s or 80s recording console channel. Feature-wise it is less rather than more, but from a sound quality standpoint, it is just a goosebumps machine. Plus, it will match the levels into my new Mackie Reach.

[JakeStone]

Originally Posted by MarkF_48

For those of you that do have or are thinking of getting a TCH unit, this forum is pretty helpful....
https://forum.music-group.com/forumd...136-TC-HELICON

Thanks Mark - There is some good info on the forum.

I also found TC's Youtube channel.. https://www.youtube.com/user/tchelic...=play+acoustic
Very helpful for anyone new to the products.

This short video delves into the BodyRez programming.

[JakeStone]

Originally Posted by lkingston

It's a mixed bag. Once you get to the EQ page for instance, you've got a nice set of EQ knobs in front of you which is preferable to moving around the display and incrementing/decrementing.

To me, any box like this is a compromise.

Thanks Kingston!

Yep... compromise is necessary in most everything we buy.... Manufacturers try to "guess" what the consumer want, while coming up with ways to differentiate. Ultimately we get to Choose!

In this case, the GearHead side of me took over and I decided get the Boss after all. Personally, I think I will like the Boss's user interface better.

But in the end, It certainly will come down to sound... Although, I had no real complaints with the TC's sound. I'm hoping the Boss will compare favorably.

We'll see.......Hope to have a review later on.

[JakeStone]

First Impression of the VE8 .. Spending time on guitar before moving on to the vocals side.

Guitar sounds amazing through my Maui 5 .. No compromise here!

[JakeStone]

Mini Review on Boss VE-8

OK! I have had good bit of time to compare both the TCH and Boss Acoustic Singer boxes and decided to return the Play Acoustic.

In the end, the TC PA is a stellar sounding unit. But for me, the Boss has better tone shaping ability (esp on guitars) and greater/easier functionality.

Once you start to use the VE-8 it becomes quite clear ... This is a VERY flexible piece of gear. The knobs just make a huge difference. Being able to make small adjustments 'on the fly' is important to me. No need for several button clicks (like on TCH) to change a simple parameter or volume output.





Also as simple as it sounds... I like having the dedicated volume knobs for Guitar and Vocal (which also serve as Guitar and vocal looper volumes). Plus it has an on/off switch .. Again, simple feature but I like being able to turn it off.. rather than unplug it all the time.

Another thing that pushed me over the edge in favor of the Boss unit .. Is the Multi outputs. It just opens it up for a variety of options ... As well as, for me, eliminates need for a mixer. The outputs (2 XLR and 2 Line outs) are programmable as well..

As for the deeper features on the VE8 .. After a few days (with manual in hand)... It is really a no brainer to control the device. There's a lot of flexibility and although it's not perfect. It does make sense to me now how to do things. On a side note.. It has a very small screen with a basic 2 character LCD readout .. LCD? Not exactly 2017 technology here. But there is only so much real estate on this thing .. Not much room for a larger screen.

Looper....well I will say it Is easy to engage. But there is no "un-do".......Argh. Second you need to double tap to stop (double Argh). I guess I;ll buy a Boss footswitch to remedy the single button stop. But I not happy having to have another cable and switch on floor.


SOUND
Guitar - The sound is awesome! I can easily use this as my only add-on effects system. I am using a small Line Array PA (Maui 5) and the sound is pristine. As for tone shaping .. Boss has the bases covered Delay, Reverb, Phase, Tremelo, Chorus and Acoustic resonance. I find as with all these boxes.. a little bit of "juice" goes a long way.

Vocals - In all honesty, Right out of the box, I'd choose the TCH if I was buying strictly for vocal enhancement. I just think the TCH is smoother and slightly warmer (less processed) sounding. I also liked many of the presets on the TCH for quick and easy sounds.

However, I was easily able to get the Boss very close.. Especially when NOT using the Auto Vocals for Harmonies. So when switching to manual vocal mode and choosing Key. The Boss then produced a much smoother (blend) of the sound and harmonies. In addition, the Boss has a Vocal Enhancement Knob.. using this alone adds a hint of "juice" to spice up the vocs. That and reverb knob will get me a long way.

SO..... In the end. The Boss is just more "flexible" and I believe will be better for me long term. Tonally, I think the guitar sounds slightly better than the TC.... But really they both sound great. Vocally, I do give the edge to TCH as I explained above. But again we are spitting hairs. It all comes down to User Interface and what the exact interface needs are. For me the Boss VE-8 is what I wanted.

[Pecx]

Quite interesting your review. I agree with most of what you say.
I think the TCH vocals sound best. And the TCH looper is better in functionality. Those two facts were decisive to choose the TCH.
Anyway, both units are great!

[GibbyPrague]

Your assessment is almost same as mine. TCH has great custom options, and i would also argue their harmonies are better and richer than the Boss unit. But overall the plug n' play characteristic of the Boss unit, together with the much stronger guitar and looping options made it a clear winner.

Im looking forward to using it again at tonites gig.

Actually here is a video of mine of how I use the unit, shows well the looping options, guitar effects like chorus, vocal enhancement and a slight use of octave up harmony. (clearest through headphones)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0v2u1cB2GY

Gibson Dove into the VE-8 into the AER compact 60. Matrix Infinity pup, SM-58 mike.



QUOTE=JakeStone;5411898]Mini Review on Boss VE-8

OK! I have had good bit of time to compare both the TCH and Boss Acoustic Singer boxes and decided to return the Play Acoustic.

In the end, the TC PA is a stellar sounding unit. But for me, the Boss has better tone shaping ability (esp on guitars) and greater/easier functionality.

Once you start to use the VE-8 it becomes quite clear ... This is a VERY flexible piece of gear. The knobs just make a huge difference. Being able to make small adjustments 'on the fly' is important to me. No need for several button clicks (like on TCH) to change a simple parameter or volume output.





Also as simple as it sounds... I like having the dedicated volume knobs for Guitar and Vocal (which also serve as Guitar and vocal looper volumes). Plus it has an on/off switch .. Again, simple feature but I like being able to turn it off.. rather than unplug it all the time.

Another thing that pushed me over the edge in favor of the Boss unit .. Is the Multi outputs. It just opens it up for a variety of options ... As well as, for me, eliminates need for a mixer. The outputs (2 XLR and 2 Line outs) are programmable as well..

As for the deeper features on the VE8 .. After a few days (with manual in hand)... It is really a no brainer to control the device. There's a lot of flexibility and although it's not perfect. It does make sense to me now how to do things. On a side note.. It has a very small screen with a basic 2 character LCD readout .. LCD? Not exactly 2017 technology here. But there is only so much real estate on this thing .. Not much room for a larger screen.

Looper....well I will say it Is easy to engage. But there is no "un-do".......Argh. Second you need to double tap to stop (double Argh). I guess I;ll buy a Boss footswitch to remedy the single button stop. But I not happy having to have another cable and switch on floor.


SOUND
Guitar - The sound is awesome! I can easily use this as my only add-on effects system. I am using a small Line Array PA (Maui 5) and the sound is pristine. As for tone shaping .. Boss has the bases covered Delay, Reverb, Phase, Tremelo, Chorus and Acoustic resonance. I find as with all these boxes.. a little bit of "juice" goes a long way.

Vocals - In all honesty, Right out of the box, I'd choose the TCH if I was buying strictly for vocal enhancement. I just think the TCH is smoother and slightly warmer (less processed) sounding. I also liked many of the presets on the TCH for quick and easy sounds.

However, I was easily able to get the Boss very close.. Especially when NOT using the Auto Vocals for Harmonies. So when switching to manual vocal mode and choosing Key. The Boss then produced a much smoother (blend) of the sound and harmonies. In addition, the Boss has a Vocal Enhancement Knob.. using this alone adds a hint of "juice" to spice up the vocs. That and reverb knob will get me a long way.

SO..... In the end. The Boss is just more "flexible" and I believe will be better for me long term. Tonally, I think the guitar sounds slightly better than the TC.... But really they both sound great. Vocally, I do give the edge to TCH as I explained above. But again we are spitting hairs. It all comes down to User Interface and what the exact interface needs are. For me the Boss VE-8 is what I wanted.[/QUOTE]

[fotofantom]

Nice performance Gary, and the guitar tone is very nice. That's a sweet looking Dove too.

[JakeStone]

Originally Posted by Pecx

Quite interesting your review. I agree with most of what you say.
I think the TCH vocals sound best. And the TCH looper is better in functionality. Those two facts were decisive to choose the TCH.
Anyway, both units are great!

I think the Boss Looper works OK.. The only thing it doesn't have is Undo. Which I admit is a bummer.

The TCH does requires pushing 2 buttons simultaneously to activate? Which seems cumbersome to me.

Now to stop the loop Boss requires 2 taps. Simple fix, I ordered the Boss FS6u Foot Switch ($25).

Also the Boss can loop both Guitar and Vocal separately .. with separate volume control for each.

[JakeStone]

Sounds Great !!
Thanks for sharing

Originally Posted by GibbyPrague

But overall the plug n' play characteristic of the Boss unit, together with the much stronger guitar and looping options made it a clear winner.

Actually here is a video of mine of how I use the unit, shows well the looping options, guitar effects like chorus, vocal enhancement and a slight use of octave up harmony. (clearest through headphones)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0v2u1cB2GY

Gibson Dove into the VE-8 into the AER compact 60. Matrix Infinity pup, SM-58 mike.

[MarkF_48]

Any users of the VE-8 finding the simple display of the VE-8 a 'con' for knowing where you have presets versus a text display? Probably don't/wouldn't use more than maybe two or three at a gig, so keep those stored at the beginning of the presets(?)

[Pecx]

Originally Posted by JakeStone

I think the Boss Looper works OK.. The only thing it doesn't have is Undo. Which I admit is a bummer.

The TCH does requires pushing 2 buttons simultaneously to activate? Which seems cumbersome to me.

Now to stop the loop Boss requires 2 taps. Simple fix, I ordered the Boss FS6u Foot Switch ($25).

Also the Boss can loop both Guitar and Vocal separately .. with separate volume control for each.

Indeed, JakeStone.
For me, the loop starting is irrelevant. The Boss' 2 taps to stop and the lack of Undo are really a bummer.
Though, the fact that you can use the loop separately could be interesting.

[JakeStone]

Originally Posted by Pecx

Indeed, JakeStone.
For me, the loop starting is irrelevant.

Personally, I wasn't keen on tapping 2 separate foot switches simultaneously. To engage the looper on the TC Play Acoustic.

Originally Posted by Pecx

The Boss' 2 taps to stop and the lack of Undo are really a bummer.

The Boss FSU5 remedied the 2 Tap stop to 1 tap stop (and hold to clear). But the no undo does suck.....

[Nama Ensou]

Originally Posted by JakeStone

Just curious what you think of the looper... Some have complained that you have to tap the switch 2x to stop?

Yeah, I'm one of them. I'd like to start using the looper but have to get an external switch when what I wish they'd done was allow me to configure the looper to meet my simpler needs.
They allowed us the power to customize the unit a good deal and I wish I could just choose to have single click for off.
So I guess I'm off to buy a footswitch this week so I can start using the looper.

[patrick2099]

I was wondering how the people discussing the Play Acoustic and VE-8 feel about those units, after some time has passed. I've been trying to decide between these two, and this thread and a video linked in this thread are about the only useful comparison I've been able to find between these products. I'm really not that interested in the harmonies or any crazy effects, but rather some basic vocal/guitar processing. Thanks for the help.