BOSS ES-8 Effects Switching System: A 101 demo/tour.

www.boss.info/products/es-8/
reverb.com/marketplace?query=...
Despite some seriously great effects switchers having been on the market for some years, there's no doubt in my mind that the release of the Boss ES-8 is a milestone of that technology group. Put simply, it outshines most or all of the competition with important features like the ability to route switch effects loops in any order you please and in series or parallel. Add to that full MIDI capability; stereo sends and returns; dedicated external control, volume and tuner interfaces; patch assignable input and output buffers and it's a tough proposition to pass up. I love it so much I had an entirely new board built around it (at my own cost, for those wondering). I'm glad I did because it's full of possibility and discovery, the two greatest inspirations I look for when creating.
For your reference, these are the pedals on my board and their corresponding effects loop numbers.
Loop 1: Origin Cali76 Compressor
Loop 2: Bondi Effects Sick As OD
Loop 3: Wampler Plexi Drive Deluxe
Loop 4: Tech 21 OMG OD/Distortion
Loop 5: Strymon Mobius - 8th position
Loop 6: GFI System Clockwork Delay
Loop 7: Eventide H9 Max (stereo)
Loop 8: GFI System Specular Reverb (stereo)
Volume pedal: Mission VM-PRO
Tuner: HardWire Polyphonic Tuner
The Gentleman pedalboard was built by Chris Hine at Caseman (also C&C Cases). See: www.pedalboardsbycaseman.com.au and my video showing it off at • Gentleman Pedalboards:...
The pedals were chosen by me and incredibly well installed and wired by Jack Hudson using only Free The Tone solderless cable, jacks and DC jacks See: www.freethetone.com/en/product.... The entire board is powered by a single T-Rex Goliath. Visit Jack Hudson at jack.hudson.... and www.jackhudsonproductions.com/
Further videos featuring this board and the ES-8 are forthcoming.
Today's tools:
Guitar: Palir Guitars "White Knight" T-Style with Porter Pickups (See: www.palirguitars.com and www.porterpickups.com)
Amps: Marshall Bluesbreaker combo RI (left); ROLA JTM-45 and Palmer 1x12 cabinet (right). The amp and cab both run Greenbacks.
Extra effects: See above.
Cables: Providence
Mic: Shure SM57 (ROLA); Violet Design The Amethyst (Marshall); Samson Airline77 (me)
Camera : Canon 60D (me) and Sony HDR CX150 (pedal)
Soundcard: AVID Mbox Pro 3
Computer: Apple iMac 27" i7 3.4 GHz 16 GB RAM
Software: Pro Tools 11, Waves L3-16 Limiter (to keep levels in check at output), Apple Final Cut Pro X (video editing and KZbin compression).

[@brianjenkins5973]

Dude that's like the mintest sound iv heard in a long time, sounds absolutely gorgeous my friend.

[@avbsvideo]

Brett, this is simply a fantastic sounding board! Love your reviews!

[@CharlesKlutts]

Great video as always. Pretty much made up my mind on getting an ES8. Thanks for posting. Can't wait for the midi demo of the ES8.

[@ElTone43]

Amazing! and completely beyond my playing ability. Great demo Brett as per usual.

[@superbeast3000]

Wow that board sounds great. Great job, and cool vid.

[@irvingperes]

Amazing video! Thanks for showing exactly what I needed to know. Great production quality BTW

[@bubba2026]

I just bought one of these after watching your thorough video (and a few others). Thanks for the demo. Love that Plexi pedal also.

[@pranavphx]

Ridiculously easy to use once the ground work is done and so so flexible. It really is the best time to be a guitarist these days. Thank you so much for the demo. Also loved to hear some of the pedals i hadn't heard before

[@exterC0ffx]

Thanks Brett you crammed some sound into this session. You gave me some great ideas as to how I run my signal chain. Some things are just common sense but I followed every little bit logged into the ES-8 mate you nailed it, what an awesome piece of kit. You introduced me to liquid ambience......same thing gotta have the detail. Great work mate you make every word just like everyday sense and no dry as a bone lifeless words. Between yourself and Pete Thorn I'm where I want to be within the sound.

[@albertramies]

Best video i've seen on this product. SOLD. Thank you, Brett!

[@ralphyulo3175]

Brilliant sounds and awesome demo . Keep on rocking that rad Tele !

[@BobSince1981]

Very flexible and powerful. Also killer sounds!

[@tommc49]

That is a very impressive piece of hardware. Also a very impressive job of cabling it all together.

[@bassplayinggoalie]

An unusual but very musical & playable setup. Thanks Brett!

[@westleywest7259]

Not only a good switcher demo, but also helpful to hear various pedals.

[@jtm45stratman69]

omg makes my moen gc9 look archaic. This thing is sooo flexible!!! keep up the good work!

[@chadelliot2021]

Great tone brother. Thanks for sharing 🤘😫

[@gunnargeir79]

Best video ever on that es-8! been waiting for this. Cant´t wait for the next video. Please show us how to program the midi stuff. Cheers :)

[@cadriver2570]

Great tones! Really nice on the ears.

[@nicelliott209]

Great demo and awesome tone!

[@satch4u3]

Picked up a Cali76 CD because of this video. Great unit for not only compressing but for sweetening your sound. And very transparent. Oh and due to this video the Boss Es-8 as well. lol

[@PedalsStuff]

Good informative video. Seems like it's one of the best programmable switchers around.

[@KeannuReevezzz03]

and people keep complaining about its price,which actually is a steal for a unit like this

[@luisgoregonzalez7394]

Tech21 OMG Sound amazing! killer tone!

[@n_phaneuf]

The routing makes this a dream come true. I just went for the Fractal FX8 for the sake of routing options. This is making me have second thoughts.

[@DavidStockden]

Thanks for this. its super useful as i've been looking in to getting one of these and i await your MIDI video as i'm really interested in the MIDI capability of this.

[@jtm45stratman69]

omg makes my moen gc9 look archaic. This thing is sooo flexible!!! keep up the good work!!@@!!

[@allfortonechannel8979]

I want one!!! Man, this is a great value. Absolutely amazing features. The way I play though, I probably don't need it since I feel like I leave everything on, stack, and tweak knobs with my foot depending on the moment. Oh well, I'll buy one anyway.

[@joerectifier]

Well done….some of those ambient sounds were quite nice!

[@littletardis]

Great Video Brett !

[@AlexGeorgakoulis]

Although it's a bit pricey, that Boss ES-8 is exactly what I need! I'm sold!

[@jjmora05]

Great sound!! excellent programing!!!

[@hoestemorelandes5075]

Obrigado, esclarecedor o review !!!!!

[@robertnewton3392]

I really wanna see a midi set up and demo of this pedal! Love your stuff man!

[@robertj1303]

Excellent video, best I have seen on ES8 with concise descriptions. I downloaded the manual and in usual fashion Boss are not great on giving examples as I found with the RC300. I think you may have just switched me to getting one.

[@salkdjfasldkfjsdlk]

Great demo. Thanks.

[@frozencons]

Great demo!!

[@nendokan]

Great video Brett. Greetings from Tasmania. I am a regular viewer of your videos. I was thinking of getting a Carl Martin Octa-switch. But, I think I'll invest in this one instead the Boss ES-8. Good work.

[@karymwillemsen5564]

Really nice sounds great job

[@BrettKingman]

@ Tony W I can't reply to you (or anyone else) if your 'reply' option is grayed out. All credits for the gear are below the video. Free The Tone supplied all of the solderless jacks and cable. It's the best around.

[@soundknight]

yeah that's weird I can't reply to Toni or the guy after him either but I can reply to you and some others. weird KZbin. nice router pedal Burgs - very useful.

[@yayo2211]

Man I love your playing...

[@truthfactreality6814]

Great video. I have the gigrig g2 at the moment and love it. I like this but as always I still see the downside. They need to put a small screen above each foot switch so everything is named and when you bank up or down it switches so you know what everything is. Also I think it needs more than 8 inputs really. Other than that it's excellent. Let's hope they release an updated version or an even more pro version. At least they have released a small version of the Cali 76 finally !!! Woooo

[@hkeith133]

Awesome review as always Burgs!! That Cali76 though, tasty

[@markkeneson6806]

hkeith133 and expensive

[@securitasreceptionenbonnie4149]

Brett Kingman - The King of style, sound and taste in my opinion!!!!!

[@vinetar9837]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and knowledge. Excellent stuff. I wish I knew what you know. Lol.

[@RachEspinosa]

very nice demo Brett

[@jonwebb5241]

Got one! Big bucks on patch cables, but that’s okay. Now trying to explore this great thing!

[@thikoseeri9165]

nice pedals and perfect boss es 8

[@dennyaudio]

Excellent!! Great use of your awesome sounding pedals too. After all, we know that 'life is too short for bad tone." ;)

[@bubba2026]

Thanks for the info Brett. I've been looking for a pedal switcher for a little while now, and your video really helps me decide on spending a bit more for this model. I'm looking forward to your "102" video for midi control. I'm wondering if Boss or Eventide have better info on how to get the Eventide under control for creating presets. I've been using my iPad to control my Eventide H9 for about a year, but I like the idea of controlling it via the Boss es. Thanks again. Happy new year.

[@georgei.giannopoulos6294]

I like the OCDish pedal and cable mounting! :-)

[@pjsalty]

I like that "The Smiths" get a n almost lawsuitable look in. Great review.

[@NoyzyBoyZ3]

This is very cool,and affordable too!

[@MrJp5150]

Very Cool T style guitar !!

[@SamAlexander14786]

Hi Brett, just wondered with the ES8 do you have to use a ground loop such as a the Lehle P-Split to make sure your amps don't suffer ground hum? Or is the ES8 internally equipped?

[@javiceres]

Great, great demo Mr. Kingman B)

[@BrettKingman]

+Javi G Thanks, Javi!

[@phawinp]

OMG sounds pretty good...

[@Worshipcaster]

That Wampler PlexiDrive...Good Lord! NEED that pedal in my life!

[@enricodedios2561]

dammit I want that boss es8 so bad thanks for the demo great sounding pedals too

[@user-oq3ry1hg6w]

Super sound! 5+

[@shellsjoint]

Awesome!!

[@kovamusic4327]

I just watched this and it's very educational. Have you had the chance to do another video explaining MIDI capabilities?

[@yairi]

Great demo and totally amazing sounds! Can you please tell what algorithm did you use for the drop D sound on the H9?

[@MEGAL0DONG]

Need an Amazon link to those cables.

[@jedsterock]

We need the next instalment!

[@fabricemorelle8964]

Thanks for this video! It's not too long and gives a good idea about the possibilities of the system. One question: Are the changes of preset immediate? I just tried the tc electronic g-system for a few days and decided to send it back because it actually takes some time for the effects to kick in when you change preset, which I cannot afford in the band I'm playing. I'm considering buying this, but I'd like to know if I won't have the same problem.

[@Vaistarr]

Hi Brett, Just got an ES-8 myself. I’m just wondering how your are running your rig ? Is it some kind of a wet / dry rig running in front input of the amps or are you using the effect loops of the amps ? Also, are you using one preamp send going back to return on each amp or are you using the two preamps which means Left : send amp 1 / return amp 1 + send amp 2 / return amp 2 ? I am wondering where to plug my mobius since I would like to go stereo for chorus, vibe, Trem... but my problem is that I like vibe before overdrive. And of course it is not possible to move a stereo loop in front of a mono one. It seems you are running your mobius in mono on your board ?

[@forrallofusplenty4342]

pedally sounding gain stages... in m using amp preamps in my true bypass switcher for gain (orange,Marshall,boogie,van weelden) i use a germanium treble booster + muffroom fuzz to push the amps

[@wildernessbound8877]

always wanted to leard to play guitar since I was a young boy - now I'm an old man and the last thing I want to do is learn to play guitar. I invested in a good guitar and amp, got a pedalboard some effects similar to what you have, with the last 3 being strymon (timeline) (Mobius) (Big sky) have it all set up with a Boss ES-8, I'm learning but I would love to see you do the MIDI episode you talked about. Sounds Great

[@ElliotStent]

Interested in getting one of these, but I'm curious about how you are able to run certain pedals through the ES8 and the amp's effects loop at the same time? So basically, I understand that you can just put pedals like an overdrive, distortion, compressor or wah into the ES8 like demonstrated in the video, as they are pedals that you'd typically run through the front of the amp, but how would you put modulation and delay/reverb type pedals through an amp's effects loop whilst making sure that they go through the ES8 so that you can switch them in and out like the others? I'm sure it's an easy solution that i've totally missed, but I really have no clue how I'd wire this thing up that way. Great video btw Brett, you definitely know your stuff! :)

[@Bahlof]

great video! I was curious cause I'm considering getting one of these. My amp has 5 external channel switching jacks. I noticed this unit has 3 external control jacks but for each jack it says it controls 2. Would something like a single to dual trs cable to be used to control 2 channels from 1 jack? Hope that makes sense..

[@GuitarPlanetVideos]

Hi Brett love your videos. is there an option to route pedals to an fx loop in an amp?

[@johannesegger3552]

***** Great Demo Man! I am thinking of getting me one of these as well, but there are some things i was not able to figure out yet... Maybe you could take a short look at the MIDI controlling of the es8? Especially in consideration of the MIDI-routing and how to wire that whole thing up and which possibilities you have via MIDI??? And is it possible to extend the es8 via midi (e.g. with the midi4x from GLab)? and how could that all possibly work out? Thanks for your help! kind regards, joe

[@roccstar973]

@brent kingman What kind of plugs & patch cables are you running out of the back of the ES-8? I'm instant on soldering my cables but the trade off is it seems that only the solder-less cables have small plugs. I don't need Lava Cable small but your plugs look considerably smaller than my GLS 1/4"s. I have pancake plugs for my pedals but obviously the ES-8 requires straight plugs for the loops section.

[@Michael-hh7nl]

Great demo! Can this device send midi cc to a infinity looper or other midi devices?

[@uktmaxx]

Hey Brett... great to see es-8 in action ☺ What are those patch cables/plugs please?

[@TremorBear]

Sweet! Thanks....

[@brianpatrick6102]

Brett, Ive a question. The tap function you assigned to switch 8, are you sending MIDI clock data or did you assign it via MIDI CC#'s? Thanks.

[@gavinj918]

Thanks for doing this Brett. Really looking forward to giving one of these a try. Does this allow for the Wampler Plexi Deluxe to have the boost switch? Or is that just a separate hit the button yourself?

[@ljwoollett]

great video great bit of kit and half the price of a g2....

Killer!

[@Solution.Cat01]

You can save presets as on This guitar, but with an analog synth like korg volca and save the knob parametters?

[@JimijaymesProductions]

Is the tap tempo function using MIDI or using Expression Control?

[@odmsteel]

Brett I also have the ES-8 and am currently building my pedalboard. Would you happen to know if the George L angled cable kits will work? I'm worried since the jacks are close together on the ES-8 that the angled plugs would not give clean room to the next set of jacks. Thanks!

[@JoeGtars13]

Great intro video. This thing is really impressive. Can you comment on how the Boss compares with MusicomLab MK IV? Thanks Brett!

[@brianpatrick6102]

Brett, thanks so much for the ES8 group link, its been a big help. Ive a question, what jacks and cable are you using on that board? Are the straight and 90' jacks from the same brand? Thanks again!

[@johanrautenbach]

Thanks for a great demo.. Love your tone and playing.. I just got my ES 8 and I am excited to hook everything up.. Towards the end you explain that switch no 8 is setup for tap tempo.. Is the delay we hear still the Clockwork delay and how is it being controlled to change tempo via the tap. I don't see any midi or tap cable going into the Clockwork? I am planning my setup and this will help me immensely..

[@paulhawkeye]

+Johan Rautenbach He is on patch 1 when explaining the tap tempo. The delay is coming from the Eventide H9, via midi.

[@johanrautenbach]

Thanks Paul

[@boabglen]

Wow! Some tone man. Just wondering what patch cables you're using?

[@koenroels4549]

Question about the ES - 5. I am planning on getting a switcher. My chain is the following: Tuner - TC spark mini booster (loop 1) - Drive pedal (loop 2) - Delay pedal (loop 3) - Tremolo pedal (loop 4) - Reverb pedal (loop 5) I have a dual drive pedal that I like to mod with a TRS connection so I can control my 2 pedals independed. Can I use the ext ctl to connect this via the TRS connection so i can control the 2 sides of the pedal via this way?

[@Kenman540]

Burg, Does it support Midi Mapping for the devices. ie...Patch one can call up say 21 on the mobius, and say 90 on the eventide? Or is it like all the others 1=1, 2=2 etc.... I'm used to old school good midi stuff, and having issues with pedal controllers that cant do the in depth stuff. Cheers!

[@davewalls2160]

Awesome Demo!!! If your able to answer me; I have a couple of question regarding the effect loop of the amp and noise suppression. Does the ES-8 have the ability to route pedals thru the efx loop?If you use a nose gate, noise suppressor, or any other kind noise reduction pedal; how are you using the with the ES-8 and if not, how would you recommend using such pedals with the ES-8? Again, Awesome Demo.Thanks David

[@upelevator2007]

great board i have done similar ...need some help though what was your midi settings to change the strymon patches as i can't get them to work ? ...hope you can help cheers Tony

[@brandonclark7867]

@BrettKingman , can you please tell us what type of patch cables you use to go from your pedals to the es8?? They look like they do the job perfectly and it's kind of hard to find the right kind. Thank you! Amazing guitar!

[@brandonclark7867]

Okay I'm sorry. I just realized that you put that you use Providence cables in the description. Sorry for the mess up. Thanks!

[@dcldcl8054]

Brett, in the setup of your two amps, are you just running the outputs, Out1/L and Out2/R, from the ES8 into the front of your amps, or is it more complicated than that? And for each amp, can you have a different signal chain going to each amp? For instance, only boost on one amp and reverb on the other amp? Thanks so much.

[@lanceraustin]

The lad gave no indication how his amp's fx loop is connected to the ES8 : (

[@nbickler]

Brett Kingman! Thanks for the video. I own the ES-8. I've got it pretty squared away, but I have one question. How do you assign button 8 to send tap tempo to the H9. Was this done via midi? Thanks again

[@brianpatrick6102]

Im pretty sure its the MIDI internal clock. Category > MIDI setting > Sync and/or Clock out. Im still trying to figure out the MIDI stuff too. The manual is pretty vague.

[@gregs6424]

Mate, where could we purchase those thin, right angle patch cables you have there? :)

[@SjaakShirly6559]

Thanks for sharing. I understand the ES8 has no “sounds” on board? Maybe MS3 is a good alternative? Although just 3 external pedals possible.

[@gregs6424]

Sjaak Strik I purchased an MS3. It went right back once I found out it cuts the sound when switching patches. No delay or reverb trails. Decided to go with the ES-8 instead. Hope this helps when researching your options.

[@chumingo78]

Hi Brett, one question...What pedal do you prefer, the Tech 21 OMG Richie Kotzen distortion or the Mi Audio Super Crunch Box V2 Distortion pedal. Please let me know for buy one of this two pedals, on youre own experience with this two. Thanks for youre prompt response.

[@plummetplum]

I was thinking all the way through, does it do tap tempo, I'm weighing up whether to buy G2 and this one and yes it does. Question is, presumably tap tempo works via MIDI or is it for pedals that have compatible tap tempo external pedal?

[@slickcross]

My God! What a beautiful setup! I just ordered the H9 max today. I had no idea it had a drop tuning in it

[@craigcampbell6690]

Dig the Video 😎