Chris Rea effects pedal board (Chris Rea-ish)
Posted on 05/07/2014 by ozzy in Chris Rea-ish
Based on the article in Guitar Buyer (April 2008), and on this Sound-on-sound article about recording Esperesso Logic album, and also on a video footage of Chris Rea live performances, it's clear that his pedal board consists mainly of the effects by Boss. Let’s see what they are:
Boss CS-2 Compressor Sustainer
The Boss CS-2 is an earlier version of the current Boss CS-3 compressor. The main difference between those two pedals is the VCA chip (Voltage Controled Amplifier), which in case of the CS-2 is manufactured by Roland. The CS-3 has the VCA chip made by THAT or DBX. Another difference is the Tone knob that the CS-2 doesn't have. Otherwise, they are very similar. However, their predecessor, the CS-1, had a completely different circuit.
Ibanez TS-808 Tube Screamer
This is the legendary guitar overdrive pedal, which gives a characteristic mid-boosted tone. Tube Screamer was produced with many variants, and probably everybody had played this pedal at least once. If you don't want to spend your money on the real thing, there is so many budget copies on the market, such as Joyo Vintage Overdrive, etc.
Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble
The first Boss foot pedal effect the CE-1 was released in June 1976. It was a standalone unit of the stereo chorus/vibrato circuit found in the Roland JC-120 guitar amplifier. The current version of the CE-1 is the CE-5 Chorus Ensemble.
Boss DM-3 analogue delay
The DM-3 was the last analogue delay pedal produced by Boss. It provides delay times ranging from 20 to 300 ms. It has three control knobs for Repeat rate, Intensity, and Echo, and it also can be used to create a stereo effect. This pedal is no longer in production, but you can buy the Mooer Ana Echo, which is a copy of the Boss DM-2.
T-Rex Replica digital delay
Except his usual rig of a Boss vintage pedals, Chris Rea employed two T-Rex Replica delays during his live performances in 2012. The Replica provides up to 2000 ms of digital delay at a 200 kHz sampling rate. It also has a tap-tempo feature, a subdivision switch, and it can be made to emulate the sound of analogue delay by engaging a high-cut filter.
David Gilmour used the Replica on his 2006 tour for Echoes.
Boss Digital Dimension DC-3 chorus
I am not sure if Chris Rea ever used this pedal live or only in studio, but he certainly endorsed it on this very 80s full page advert on the picture below.
The DC-3 is a completely digital pedal, and the chorus it produces is a bit different from other chorus units. Chorus pedals in general add vibrato to the tone when you turn them up, but this one doesn't do that as much. It creates the kind of "dimension" effect. The DC-3 pedal is no longer in production.
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