Boss RC-3 Review

The Boss RC-3 Loop Station Guitar Effects Pedal is a powerful, compact pedal that allows up to three hours of studio recording time. The Loop Station houses up to 99 loops, allows users to experiment with its real drums rhythm guide, and enables use of USB 2.0 features for easy import/export of prerecorded sounds.

Features of the Boss RC-3

• Compact design much smaller than traditional stompbox loopers
• Stores up to 99 loops on onboard memories
• Three hours of recording capacity for uninterrupted playing
• Import/Export WAV files to a computer or other device via a USB 2.0 port
• Rhythm guide made with real drums including 10 different rhythms
• Operates on a 9-volt battery or optional external power supply

Pros and Cons

of the Boss RC-3 Loop Station

Fans of the Boss RC-3 Loop Station love its compact design and high degree of integration with other technology for download, transfer, and playback. The massive storage capacity gets you up to three hours or recorded time and 99 loops for ease of playback straight from internal memory. The true stereo I/O makes it easy to incorporate external stereo effect devices into the system with the Loop Station. The Boss RC-3 is built to last with a heavy duty construction, and easy to operate with an Auto Recording feature that starts working when you begin playing the guitar/bass or connect with an audio device. Complaints about the device include the quality of the internal drum rhythms. When the Boss RC-3 is part of a bigger recording system, the pedal itself may create some unwanted external noise that needs to be filtered out.

Thoughts from Owners Boss RC-3

The reviews are really solid on this product – it does what it says and does it well. The ability to record a track and then improvise over that opens up a lot of creativity for musicians whether riffing with friends or practicing on their own. The sturdy construction ensures that the pedal will hold up over a long period of time. And the massive memory capacity allows you to work without interruption. Its strongest feature is the looping function. The import/export feature works seamlessly across a range of computer brands and sound programs, thanks to its generic .WAV export format.

Thoughts from Owners: What They Would Change

There are some downsides to the Boss RC-3 Loop Station including the quality and number (10) of the drum patterns. The pedal itself can add some noise when you’re recording tracks to ultimately add to a disk. Although you can pair the Boss RC-3 with a smart gate pedal to minimize this. A known bug called “the phrase lag” prevents users from recording identical phrases with the rhythm generator and playing them back to back. This bug causes playback to not be as seamless as it should be which causes problems at the pro level.

The Boss RC-3 Looping Station offers several features that are worth considering. Including the exceptional recording time and solid looping function. Potential issues with external noise and the range and quality of the internal drum rhythms make this a great choice for more casual players.