Is a Boss GT-8 junk now?

darthed1981

Hi All,

Got one in the loft - bought it, well, years and years ago and never used it to a tiny bit of it's potential.  These days you can even plug it into a PC with a Midi-to-USB cable and I used it for a couple of "lockdown jams" - but it's been in the loft ever since.

One for the bin or is there any use still left to it?  Anybody still using one?

maltingsaudio

Million dollar question on old technology, it’s never going to willingly stop working and producing nice and nasty noises. On the flip side , unless some big name star starts using one to get his sound it’s going to languish in the “oh I remember them they were quite cool, but what I bought today for a lot less is better “ pile .

Sporky

Surely it still sounds as good now as it ever did?

darthed1981

Sporky said:

Surely it still sounds as good now as it ever did?

Oh yeah - it still works - and for someone who isn't really a tone snob like me, it still sounds just fine.

I just don't use it and it's getting a kicking in the loft - maybe a music charity is the solution.

stratman3142

I've still got my old GT6 which, until very recently, I was using using with external drive pedals as a back up to my Helix LT for gigs. I'd occasionally run through the set with it just to be sure of a smooth transition if my Helix LT ever went down (which it never did). Apart from the drives and ampsims the GT6 effects are great, so I expect the GT-8 would be at least as good or better.

I've now got another Helix LT as back up. But I'll always keep my GT6 because I chose it for my company 25 year award when they first came out (which shows how old I am).

Rocker

I have and use an ancient Line6 POD 2.  It is ‘good enough’ for home use IMHO and I will keep on using it for as long as it works.  

rossyamaha

maltingsaudio said:

On the flip side , unless some big name star starts using one to get his sound it’s going to languish in the “oh I remember them they were quite cool, but what I bought today for a lot less is better “ pile .

Nuno still uses one now. Every time I see it I kinda want one just because of that. 

darthed1981

rossyamaha said:

maltingsaudio said:

On the flip side , unless some big name star starts using one to get his sound it’s going to languish in the “oh I remember them they were quite cool, but what I bought today for a lot less is better “ pile .

Nuno still uses one now. Every time I see it I kinda want one just because of that. 

 Nuno still uses a GT8?!!!

maltingsaudio

darthed1981 said:f

rossyamaha said:

maltingsaudio said:

On the flip side , unless some big name star starts using one to get his sound it’s going to languish in the “oh I remember them they were quite cool, but what I bought today for a lot less is better “ pile .

Nuno still uses one now. Every time I see it I kinda want one just because of that. 

 Nuno still uses a GT8?!!!

Stand by my comment until this news gets out there!

merlin

darthed1981 said:

 Nuno still uses a GT8?!!!

So does Tony the Tiger because they're GRT8!

hollywoodrox

I was going to mention Nuno & I’m sure someone else used a 10 too 

Kebabkid

Kris at Thomann broke his one out after many years in a draw

LionAquaLooper

darthed1981 said:

rossyamaha said:

maltingsaudio said:

On the flip side , unless some big name star starts using one to get his sound it’s going to languish in the “oh I remember them they were quite cool, but what I bought today for a lot less is better “ pile .

Nuno still uses one now. Every time I see it I kinda want one just because of that. 

 Nuno still uses a GT8?!!!

Yes he does, albeit sparingly. I remember an interview where he said he uses it just for the odd modulation or something. 

ICBM

If I remember rightly it's got the great advantage that most of the controls you may need on the fly are knobs rather than push-buttons. And also the 'Natural Overdrive' model from the ME-50, which is possibly my favourite pedal-based overdrive sound ever.

I can't see it being worth a lot now - there's a GT-10 in the shop I used to work for at only £149, I imagine the 8 may be worth even less - but if it sounds good then there's no real reason to sell it anyway.

If you are definitely going to sell it, I may be interested...

Keefy

If a piece of kit works for you then it’s not junk.

monquixote

It's a nice solid unit for gigging and it will still sound great for delays etc.

Voxman

Newer doesn't necessarily mean better.  All gear has pros and cons.  As a gigging player there are certain essentials that I need:

1. Rugged construction that's reliable and won't let me down
2. A robust long heavy duty power supply with a standard 3 pin plug and no wall wart. 
3. Real knobs and dials for instant tweaking on stage
4. Instant no lag patch changing
5. Patch naming with a clear lit screen I can easily see on a darkened stage
6. Built in expression pedal for volume/gain and at least one control switch to kick in a boost. 
7. Accurate fast access tuner in any mode
8. Good tones with a valve feel and dynamics that respond well to volume and tone roll off
9. Simple, fast access to amp, cab and fx models without complex menus and no DSP grey outs
10. Edit program to create, change order, and import gig sets

Modern units are great for home and studio playing and you can have a lot of fun and hear all different nuances of amp, cab and fx models. But here's the thing; at gigging volumes in a band mix, all those detailed nuances largely go out the window. 

Which is why I'm still gigging with really old tech, my Vox Tonelab SE and LE.  Ahead of their time in 2004 and 2007 respectively, by today's standards these are from the ark.  They have no fx loop, no moveable fx chain to speak of, no built in usb audio interface, no upgradeabilty, limited amp, cab and fx models and options, and no IR capability. 

But they tick all my must haves, the valvereactor design still sounds great, and to date I've not found anything that does better the job I need an MFX to do on stage.  The SE even has 2 expression pedals and A/B switching in each patch, that let's you have different cab and amp. Models in A and B.

So just because something is old tech and not 'in' or 'fashionable' doesn't mean it's automatically junk. If it suits your needs and sounds good, then it's not junk. 

Also, old gear can be picked up cheap. I wanted a TLLE as a backup and these can easily be had for under £100. In fact, I found one on Ebay that I won for £55 inc postage last week. The seller confirmed that it all worked perfectly and has the original Vox PSU too. Should get it tomorrow. 

Some years back I heard a fabulous one man show at my cousins anniversary party. His guitar, a stock Les Paul Standard ( not Custom Shop or anything) was going through an ancient Zoom mfx that you probably couldn't give away and made my Tonelabs look state of the art, that just went through the PA.  He sounded incredible!  And it really was a wake up call that all the latest most expensive gear in the world is no substitute for sheer talent. 

Roland

GT-8 is a nice piece of kit. Ideal gigging floor pedal. Solid metal frame, with reliable foot switches. Weakest point is the membrane push buttons. 

The FX are Boss copies of their own pedals. I’m not enamoured by the COSM amp modelling, but you can run it in 4CM with your favourite amplifier.

fretmeister

If it sounds good then it is still good.

I really don't get the "oh no! the new thing is out, my thing is crap now" approach. My Helix will still sound as good as it does now on the day Helix 2 comes out.

maltingsaudio

fretmeister said:

If it sounds good then it is still good.

I really don't get the "oh no! the new thing is out, my thing is crap now" approach. My Helix will still sound as good as it does now on the day Helix 2 comes out.

I think if you change crap to boring or bored with your somewhere near the truth

darthed1981

Roland said:

GT-8 is a nice piece of kit. Ideal gigging floor pedal. Solid metal frame, with reliable foot switches. Weakest point is the membrane push buttons. 

The FX are Boss copies of their own pedals. I’m not enamoured by the COSM amp modelling, but you can run it in 4CM with your favourite amplifier.

IIRC - you can also just turn the amp models off - in which case it just becomes a multi-fx pedal.