Announced only three weeks ago, the new RV-500 Reverb and MD-500 Modulation from boss are the latest additions to the company’s ‘500’ series of guitar effects pedals — not to be confused with API’s 500-Series ‘lunchbox’ modules. The new pedals flesh out a range that began with the DD-500 Digital Delay, which is already a best-seller.
The RV-500 Reverb and MD-500 Modulation both feature 32-bit/96 kHz AD/DA and deep programmability, powerful editing capabilities, an intuitive interface, and expressive real-time control.
The RV-500 ($350) features 12 modes and 21 reverb types, and all include sound-shaping parameters like modulation, ducking, and EQ. On tap is everything from standard reverbs to shimmer, non-linear, fast decay, SFX, and more, plus recreations of the classic Roland SRV-2000 and RE-201 Space Echo. Thanks to souped-up DSP, players can access a full-featured digital delay with modulation along with every reverb, and even use two patches at once with ‘Simul’ mode.
The MD-500 ($350) meanwhile, provides 12 modes and 28 different mod effects. Included are Boss’s famous chorus and Roland’s legendary Dimension D, plus flanger, tremolo, phaser, vibe, slicer, ring mod, and more. Many effect modes include advanced Prime variations newly developed for the MD-500. As with the RV-500, ‘Simul’ mode enables the use of two patches at once, while the Insert Loop function lets the user position mod effects around external pedals.
Free editor/librarian software is available for both the MD-500 and RV-500, allowing users to edit sounds and organize patches on a computer via USB.