BOSS CS-3 Compression Sustainer Pedal Review by Sweetwater

Get the BOSS CS-3 here: www.sweetwater.com/store/detai...
This video is all about the BOSS CS-3 compressor/sustainer pedal. This classic compressor has the versatility to go all the way from subtle to super-squash and has all the rock-solid features you'd expect from BOSS. Thanks for watching!
0:00 - Intro
0:42 - BOSS CS-3 Specs
1:33 - BOSS CS-3 Demo
4:50 - Thanks For Watching!
-- Don Carr

[@magneto7930]

Tone is tone, attack is attack, level is level. Ok, I wrote it all down.

[@TGM_-zh4tg]

Hahahahahaha man you nailed it. Epic 👍🏻👍🏻

[@ezztop]

Pretty obvious, right?

[@erichollowaymusic-original180]

This video is not that great lol

[@peterfalahee]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@DeliMore]

Email me those notes.

[@MetalMan73100]

I like watching the Sweetwater videos mainly because they are quick and to the point. There are too many long and overdrawn videos out there, that can really test one´s patience.

[@sweetwater]

We appreciate the great feedback, MetalMan73100! Thanks for checking our videos out!

[@mrbsred1]

MetalMan73100 But what if one wanted to know the in-depth details? Then one would be greatly appreciative? If one is unhappy then one can skip to the end. Demonstrating the nuances can cover a magnitude of wondrous delights. Patience is a virtue.

[@gonzalocarro4139]

Personally I think the guy has no idea what the usual compressor controls mean... which is not ok if youre demoing a product... But still the sound quality is really good and you can listen to the pedal, thats more important than knowledge I guess...

[@Roger-il8iw]

If you crank everything up you can actually use this like an overdrive. Works great for big loud amps, to get that high volume distortion without actually turning the volume up. That’s always the main use I’ve found for compression pedals.

[@nicholassakamoto2455]

I have one just like that, and I’ve been using it for majority of my rhythm guitar playing. I usually turn the sustain up to the max, only when I’m playing the lead guitar parts and solo to The Beatles’s “Nowhere Man”. Other than that, I usually keep it like this: Level - 5, Tone between 6 and 7, Attack between 2 and 5, and Sustain between 3 and 4.

[@ricmel8008]

Tone speaks for itself, Wow!! I need to buy this pedal, never knew it could talk.

[@andresgagge6977]

LMAO 😂😂🤣

[@Gravy_Master]

@@andresgagge6977HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA LAUGHING FACE EMOJIS 🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂 VERY MUCH FUNNY MAKE BIG LAUGH JUICY CHUCKLE CHUCKLE

[@Simmsie]

One of the better CS-3 demos explaining the control's cause and effect. I've been using a CS-3 for 18 years. It sure helps with the playing a Stratocaster more so than other guitars IMHO.

[@beefheart1410]

Err, is it just me or is this guy a little confused as to how a compressor works? Just to clarify folks: the "attack" function of a compressor is the parameter that controls how quickly the compression kicks in and the "sustain" is the parameter controlling how long the compression lasts once it has kicked in. "Level" controls how much compression you want in ratio to the pure Input signal and "tone" is the compression effect tone control not (as he seems to imply here) the tone of the pure instrument being input. All quite simple really. I'm not sure this chap made it that clear however.

[@markrennie86]

to be fair.....look how he's dressed.

[@franCBrd]

Your definition of attack is correct, however, in the case of this pedal it is used differently and quite strangely to be honest. I've owned a cs3 for years now and still cant fully figure out what it means. The owner's manual says the knob affects how much "punch" you feel (as if getting your tone "attackier"), but as far as i know it does not affect the time it takes for the compression to kick in. Its rather a macro of some sort that compresses more as you go clockwise rather than affect the attack time (at least thats my perception). Also you define the sustain knob as if it had a release function in proper compression but it does not. It literally sustains notes for a long long time (i dont know how that works either). I am a bass player and have found this pedal to be quite great for clean, fingerstyle guitar but quite disappointing for bass. Maybe the problem's my rig but it feels like it eats up tone, low freqs get muffled

[@RaptorV1USA]

Thanks lol I've owned one of these for 30+ yrs ,..never really used it ...just pulled it out and decided to figure out wtf it does ha... your post was more Info than the vid.

[@chippymc12]

Appreciate the info!

[@kensmechanicalaffair]

Thanks.

[@AnAmericanGuitarist]

Good review. Few ever demonstrate Compression with distorted sounds. They all seem to just go with some countrified riffs. Sweetwater and Boss. You can't go wrong with either.

[@daniloboricic]

yeah, can anyone post video with "sustainer" part tested, how does it sound when you bend strings, for how long does it hold up there, clean/distorted tone

[@neilslade]

LOVE this pedal- it delivers. I modded it to make it quieter and to improve tone a bit. Wonderful.

[@notacommie5415]

What type of mod

[@James57AOL]

This seems to make organ type rhythms very well....one of the back and forth opportunities that keyboard players used to emulate guitar riffs. Now guitarists are able to emulate keyboard swells.

[@Alanoffer]

This is my third video the other two I didn't even hear the pedal people just talk ,this is good

[@valentinolupi243]

Nice video! Clear, useful and pretty short

[@MauroPavanelli]

great demo!

[@KevinGreen-vx4ok]

Excellent demo vid great sound😊

[@haloford]

does the level knob decrease the overall volume or just the compression volume (if that make sense, like a mix knob perhaps)?

[@butterflyqueen752]

can you use this to do the sustained pinch harmonic instead of getting a Sustainiac pickup ?

[@joshelias8472]

Hahahahah "the tone speaks for itself, the attack is the sound of the attack, the level is of course the level" damn dude its not obvious for many people that are newly learning about pedals.

[@speedspeed121]

Oh wow! The level is "the level" and the attack is "the attack". Thank you so much for explaining it to me.

[@rupertphillynott3074]

"Hahahahah "the tone speaks for itself, the attack is the sound of the attack, the level is of course the level" I literally fell out of my chair laughing after watching this demo. The dude should be presented with an award...any suggestions for the title of the award?

[@RileyCol]

don't need one, it speaks for itself

[@Daniel-xh9ot]

Captain obvious award

[@isaiahpearson4722]

The" it is what it is award".

[@Do_Worrk]

The typical lazy college professor award

[@curtismills1612]

Captain obvious award

[@whendovescrytheprincetribute]

why would you use other effects on a tutorial for a specific pedal? ugh.

[@lucky924130]

Man that’s a GREAT shirt! Like I came to review the pedal, but think I keep coming back for that shirt?

[@mikkywhalan]

If I knock down the tone about halfway can it sound like the cs2 because I hear a comparison between the CS2 and cs3 and the CS3 sounds more transparent

[@madmac66]

Oh good I was wondering where the led was

[@Dr_JK]

Honestly I've owned this stompbox for 12 years - I never gigged with it, recorded it a couple times but in the end I stopped using it. I recently got the Me-80 and I genuinely believe the compressor on that is quite good.

[@davidvargas7081]

Hi guys, I have many questions about this pedal, when I use a strat or a telecaster, I put the attack in 3 and the sustainer in 5, and when I use an archtop guitar I put the attack in 5 and the sustainer in 3, is correct this setting, or how you recomend me setting this pedal?

[@TheDunateen77]

I notice that you have added an lsr roller nut to your strat,does it make much difference?

[@Ewela2]

I have electric guitar, and regular speaker, where there isn’t coming out the electric guitar sound. Will this compressor sustainer make a difference ? (Thank you).

[@tomdavis6225]

I've had one for years. It's O.K. but I'm about to try the Pigtronix gold.

[@deancramer]

I've got one and I dig it...

[@kevinperry3639]

That's a lot of really great info! And a really great video too, thanks for sharing 🤘

[@elchinmammadov3539]

I wanna to ask to everyone if I buy this compressor ,can I use it for live song ?or it is working only during the vocal record??thank you

[@pierrelaliberte3964]

I'm trying to find a pedal that comes super close to a Burny sustainer guitar; any suggestions?

[@kevinmathiasen7334]

Aww that guitar reminds me of my first electric I got from my dad. I can almost smell it😜

[@kevinwright1198]

my cs-3 has problems turning on and off and when guitar is plugged in and the pedal is plugged to the amp it won't work it sounds loud feedback. I don't know what to do. any suggestions?

[@sweetwater]

Hey Kevin Wright! Give us a call at [phone] or email us at [e-mail]. One of our sales engineers will gladly look into this for you!

[@yungreezy911]

I own a CS-3. Great overview, however the sustain knob does not set the compression ratio on this particular pedal (which you said in the video above). The sustain knob actually acts like a 'threshold', it is not the ratio. The compression ratio on the CS-3 is fixed, you cannot change it. Fixed and hard. Like a heavy compression ratio. You can lower the sustain/threshold which will make the effect not trigger, but you can't change the ratio.

[@charlesgallant]

This is helpful -- do you have any reference or source on this? Anywhere to read/learn more? I'm finding some pretty huge debates online about how this thing actually works, and I find the official manual to be a little ambiguous. ty

[@yungreezy911]

@@charlesgallant I don’t remember how I figured this out, but I had the pedal for a few years and (like you) I was trying to research it online. However, some compressors have a ‘blend knob’ which makes a world of difference. This one does not and I would not recommend it. I may have reached my conclusion after watching some videos about compression on the JHS channel. If you haven’t seen those I highly recommend them.

[@wejamm]

why other pedals might have a sensitivity knob and boss's doesn't have !? is sensitivity knob is for how much compression is applied !? does attack knob is for that !? Thanks you !

[@Aaron-zh4kj]

sensitivity means attack

[@lucasargandona4658]

Is this one and the T-rex neo comp the same?

[@TheseusTitan]

When the string is first struck it makes an annoying “ping” or popping sound. Is that because of the stratocaster or the compressor?

[@christophergregory1205]

TheseusTitan Stratocaster. No doubt. Only good bridge single coil is a P90.

[@pacostrato]

I've had this pedal for some time now and still don't know what it does

[@aitken1965]

So, the attack knob turns both clockwise and counterclockwise!

[@Caleta280]

How come when i turn my compressor the volume goes way down....

[@PCMESS]

how would you set this to get snappy kind of single coil sound? sort of a "cant stop" sound by rhcp. people say a compressor is key to getting frusciantes tone but idk how to implement it. thanks in advance!

[@sweetwater]

PCMESS, for the "Can't Stop" sound, the compressor is keeping the volume of the note's initial attack in-check without altering the tone much otherwise. Sounds like Frusciante's attack is pretty hard but all of the notes, even the sustained ones, stay level in volume. Put the comp early in the signal chain, preferably right out of the guitar, and get your sound with the comp bypassed. When you engage it, start with the Sustain control about as low as you can get it and use the Volume to bring it up to unity gain. Keep turning up the Sustain and bringing down the Volume little-by-little until you find the sweet spot. This will be different depending on the player, guitar, pickups, etc. The Attack will probably be most-of-the-way up and the Tone somewhere in the middle. Experiment with different comps, they all sound and react uniquely. If you want to get really tweaky, here's a link to Part 1 of a 4-part series I wrote about how to get the most from your compressor. www.sweetwater.com/insync/how-to-get-the-most-from-your-compressor-pedal-part-1/ Hope this helps, have fun! Cheers, Don Carr

[@moeszyslak9805]

I'm after lots of attack but less sustainy for that really effecty tone.

[@djmartinez5054]

For my money, I need any effect pedal to have a more obvious effect, which of course can be dialed down to zero. But it really needs to jump out.

[@12monkeys95]

Despite all these comments it was actually a helpful review

[@larrypata]

Me convenció de ir por el dyna comp 😊

[@meesgitaar4543]

Hey! I am trying to get a Gary Moore like sound, can I use this pedal for that? Or do you have other suggestions to create the gary moore sound? I don't have a really big budget :P

[@notacommie5415]

Neck pickup Overdrive stacked on less distortion Reverb Dial everything to 7 on amp

[@scootergreen3]

Can you use this for vocals too. Will a Mic work through it?

[@sweetwater]

MICHAEL DAVIS- yes, technically the Boss CS-3 will work with a high-impedance microphone. However, since it's voiced and designed for guitar, it wouldn't be my first choice...from a sonic perspective. Just sayin'! :-) Thanks, Don Carr

[@aceguitar911]

Great Pedal

[@phlopalopagus]

The attack is the sound of the attack WTF are you talking about? Do you people really not know how compression works. Sustain is not an effect it is the release for the compression only renamed to sustain. Attack is how fast the compressor acts after a note has been struck. Level is the amount of compression. Tone is tone. For god sakes if your going to help at least know what your talking about. The attack is the sound of the attack lol come on man.

[@tgbitw17]

+Phlop Alopagus And to simplify that even more, attack alludes to how quickly compression engages (kicks in.) A quick attack time will "limit" as it were the initial transient level of what ever instrument is going through the compressor. A slower attack allows more initial transients to go through.

[@phlopalopagus]

The Hater Slayer Are you sure cause I thought attack gave you that (to catch a predator) tone. Who knew :)

[@martinwrang]

Well this is misleading too. The level control is the output level. Sustain controls the amount of compression, probably through raising the level before the compression happens in the circuit.

[@brotendo]

"Level is obviously level" LOL

[@knutnskar6796]

Phlop Alopagus Agree. «Attack is the sound of the attack.»That was epic 😂😂😂😂

[@Betelguese13]

Will this pedal lower the feedback sound? That kinda annoying sounds when you’re not touching the guitar?

[@samwestonpotter]

Maybe you’re looking for a noise suppressor?

[@glm88]

Elite soul patch vibes from this man, if only we had his wisdom

[@guitarjams1008]

What does this pedal do ?

[@James57AOL]

Do these type pedals give a fullness to the tone as well as keep the sustain above the amps normal ability. I really like to hear about the difference this type pedal gives to both tube and solid state amps. Being that I have at the present time both, It would be a great value not to get the wrong kind of pedal. By thinking the wrong information would be sufficient to make a acquisition and end up junking it.

[@maxonmendel5757]

Get a compressor. They help make biiiig dirty pedals more moderate, and the boost the sound of clean effects like delays and choruses. They help cap everything off, and mold the shape of your sound better. They give it definition and make your sound seem professional

[@James57AOL]

Thanks

[@JesusChrist-ss4pz]

I am wondering why most guitar pedal review or lesson is done on a fender ??

[@smitty31560]

Hey Sweetwater, what would this sound like with a big muff?

[@sweetwater]

Hi, Smitty. It would work great. A Big Muff has a lot of sustain to it already, but the compressor would increase that even more. Thanks for your interest! Charlie Davis, Sweetwater Sales Engineer, [phone] ext. 1320

[@Rusli1659LPSoldier]

I want this guitar pedal sustainer so bad if it attached with Over drive and distortion together and see what happens if it has Power chord extended Longest sustain that I need this for concerts.

[@watchmaster968]

I’ve got this pedal, but still have no idea what it does.

[@mhabemoodyuo8750]

Can I chain this pedal with my multieffect Zoom GX5?

[@sweetwater]

Hi, Mhabs! Appreciate you getting in contact. Yes, you can run the CS-3 compressor in front of or in the loop of the GX5. Same with any other pedal in your collection. That’s a very common option for guitarists. Please contact us direct with other questions as you have them! Robert Williams, Senior Sweetwater Sales Engineer, [phone] ext. 2371, [e-mail]

[@whitepunksvevo1343]

The reason my first pedal was a compressor after a fuzz box.

[@raytheshredgod6987]

Where should this go with a wah and a DigiTech drop?

[@sweetwater]

Thanks for your question, Ray. Hope you and yours are well and safe. I suggest experimenting with the pedal position to see what you prefer. Depending on how you set your compressor, you could limit the dynamic range or set the output for a boost. Either of those will affect the other effects. There is no right or wrong, only what sounds good to you. I'd go after the drop and before the wah, since that tames the output of the pitch change and allows the filter of the wah to run free. YMMV. Robert Williams, Senior Sweetwater Sales Engineer, [phone] ext. 2371, [e-mail]

[@andrewmuelleranantababaji8073]

Did Don Carr raised in Glenview IL?

[@kohZeei]

how much longer sustain do you get with this thing?

[@stricknine8623]

By now you likely know but to best summarize a compressor,...When you are using cleaner tones with less over-drive, distortion or gain or light distortion, light gain or light overdrive,..you will lose a lot of sustain. In order to keep this type of tone and increase sustain a compressor is used. Clean boosters also do this. Having said that, everything will color the tone to some degree, even if it is subtle. To answer you question, it is a significant amount.

[@johnmanion6463]

Don Carr reminds me of the keyboard player from the Cure.

[@lexo30]

Attack knob on this model also known as the 'does nothing' knob

[@chrisgilsonmusicchannel7144]

I bought one of these 20 years ago.... Wanted sustain like Brian may... It takes any guitar and makes playing it awful... Its that simple... All my other pedals are boss delay, chorus. Trem, od3 and tuner.. All great but this pedal I never understood, liked.

[@universalmanchild]

Does this sustainer work well with fuzz?

[@maxonmendel5757]

Yes. Put it before the fuzz to tighten up the effect, Make things less muddy. Put it after the fuzz to use it as a sort of volume control/sound check, to maintain the fuzz.

[@chrisdee5032]

Depends totally on the sound of the attack.

[@ampheat]

could you explain what exactly the attack does?

[@sweetwater]

Martin Ferreira-simply put, "Attack" controls how quickly the compression happens to the signal. A higher Attack setting compresses the input signal quicker. This is why it can sound snappier, especially at higher compression settings. I wrote a 2-part article on guitar compressors that may answer questions you have. I linked it to an earlier comment. At the risk of being redundant, here it is again: www.sweetwater.com/insync/how-to-get-the-most-from-your-compressor-pedal-part-1/

[@sweetwater]

Martin Ferreira-Thanks for your question, BTW! Hope this helps. Don Carr

[@ampheat]

great. thanks for the clarification. I have had this pedal for years without knowing exactly how to use it correctly.

[@melvinp2121]

My pedal don't work for some reason

[@pravinwaghmare7450]

mep kitana hye

[@chrisgrabowski2678]

Anyone use this lately? I get increased noise on the sustain from noon to six. The noise is loud

[@notacommie5415]

Yep noisy as hell..they should sell this paired with a noisegate

[@toroleightenen7461]

He strummed harder when using the CS3

[@jonmurfin6443]

Nice one , you sound like Dan Ackroyd

[@Martiizzer]

where shall i put this on my pedal board?

[@BrandonNevermind]

I would put this right at the start! Or in the off chance you have any overly sensitive fuzz or distortion pedals, right after them, but before everything else. It's kind of a sculpting tool in my opinion.

[@maxonmendel5757]

Yup. Before light drive pedals and clean effects, but I'm running mine after my DOD Grunge to help check the sound and maintain a good tone. The DOD Grunge can get wicked out of control real quick, and I'm stacking it with the Boss Blues Driver as well

[@guitarcleveland]

It's probably just me, but I think compressors make a guitar sound artificial, like a guitar recorded direct instead of mic'd

[@dirso8083]

Japan or Taiwan?

[@saeedmohammadi3880]

level is level tone is tone attack is attack LOL :)))))) 😂😂😂

[@Gravy_Master]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA LAUGHING FACE EMOJIS 🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂 VERY MUCH FUNNY MAKE BIG LAUGH JUICY CHUCKLE CHUCKLE

[@robotrobotmainmain1013]

The BEST!... BOSS

[@bram3205]

I hear absolutely no difference in the distorted sound in the end between the cs-3 off and on...

[@mikecantreed]

I think it's supposed to emulate the sustain pedals on a piano.

[@johnnyvlee]

A pretty weak explanation of the compressor settings, but I can understand how you wouldn't have time to explain how all compressors work in a short video. Might want to offer a separate video for that and suggest people watch it first.

[@OzzKrunch]

Wtf moment when he started taking !

[@reallygood7886]

Can anyone make review without putting effects on your base tone (no reverb, delay...)

[@JakelikejakefromSF4936]

"Sustain is sustain...Level is obviously..,level" . WTG genius

[@felixfranzen7578]

Sustain is bad m'kay!

[@harlanroberts6651]

Cool

[@paulmera7677]

this girl explains very well !

[@hurjaylppo4227]

Everyone here talking shit about this review. I felt like this was great review and now i know what kind of pedal this is and what it is used for. Thanks Don!

[@ralphmenezes4751]

can this be used for bass m confused

[@sweetwater]

Hi +Ralph Menezes. Absolutely, it's a very versatile pedal that could certainly work in a bass setup. Thanks for watching!

[@RolandDeschain1]

Could a pedal like this be used for bass, or do you really need a pedal dedicated to bass frequencies?

[@sweetwater]

You don't always necessarily need a bass specific compression pedal, but I don't mind recommending them. Check out some of these options that I've personally tried and really like on bass: www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/KCompPlusSW--keeley-compressor-plus-sweetwater-ltd-4-knob-compressor-pedal www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/BassComp--mxr-m87-bass-compressor-pedal www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Cali76CmpBass--origin-effects-cali76-compact-bass-compressor-pedal www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/HyperLuminal--darkglass-hyper-luminal-bass-compressor-pedal Thanks for the interest! Kevin Spunde, Sweetwater Sales Engineer, [phone] ext. 1732, [e-mail]

[@mouthbalz]

Attack is a response to compress and limit.

[@TheDunateen77]

I've never quite understood compressors when it comes to guitar playing

[@ME-ru4hv]

Essential for crystal clear hammer-ons and sergical math rock etc

[@bradenrocha9067]

@@ME-ru4hv only reason I got one lol

[@josephliptak]

I think I have an addiction to guitar pedals. I've been collecting them since 1975 and currently have 768 pedals from 1968 through 2015. I really love my old Maestro pedals the best.

[@bigfranchise]

You should donate the to my "l Like Free Stuff" foundation.

[@maxonmendel5757]

Welp. At least your kids are set for college.

[@GUITARTIME2024]

Joseph Liptak good lord

[@latouselatrec]

What do you mean you think you have an addiction. Da nile is not just a river in Egypt dude

[@nebblin]

Jesus

[@MrBudSSS]

Attack somehow is just a deco. I opened up the pedal and the potentiometer acts like an on and off switch, the 2 and 3 pins are soldered together. and the components are bent like they were made by a 9 year old.

[@fanfaresbluesman8076]

Le compresseur est aussi utilisé pour éliminer dessin pour reproduire un son enregistré 1950, Il reste pas de son .montrez nous cette astuce.

[@thekrevolution]

Level is level, attack is basically attack and the others do what they say on the label. What an informative review lol the presenter sort of looks like the guitarist who got kicked out of a dad-prog-rock band

[@danielfort4345]

And he winner of 2021 Self-explanatory award is:

[@salvadorapariciog.9234]

Hermosa camisa, tengo una igual. Saludos desde Monterrey, México.

[@alexjoseph644]

Tone speaks for itself, attack is actually the sound of the attack, level of course is the level, sustain is like the compression ratio the more you turn it down the less you hear the effect, the more you turn it up the more you hear the effect.... THIS IS EPIC lmao... Great JOKE

[@BlackMarketIII]

Why is this video even still on KZbin?

[@Matthew-ez4ze]

"And it's painted blue because that's the color Compressors are painted ." How about a TRUE OVERHEAD shot to see that knob settings?

[@almessinger1834]

Nice blouse