Boss RV-6 Reverb review

A feature-rammed compact 'verb with six appeal

  • £119
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MusicRadar Verdict

Boss needed to step up its reverb game - it's done that and then some.

Pros

  • +

    Superb sound and build quality.

Cons

  • -

    Spring setting is a little splashy.

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In the 13 years since the RV-5 was launched, the compact reverb market has become a crowded arena, but the RV-6 reverb pedal hopes to entice guitar players back to Boss, updating it with all-new algorithms and overhauled DSP.

For starters, there are some new types alongside the usual suspects: shimmer and dynamic expand the feature set, while a reverb/delay returns from the RV-3. The RV-6 can also control the effect level via an expression pedal - handy for altering ambience on the fly.

Each of the eight modes delivers pristine, artefact-free reverbs, with a huge amount of flexibility. So while using the plate or hall, the tone knob totally reshapes the sound, adjusting 10 different parameters every time you move the knob, going from menacing undertones to abrasive, metallic resonance. The new reverb types are effective, too - shimmer delivers one of the best pad-like octave-up reverbs around, while dynamic ebbs and flows with your playing without overwhelming it.

Okay, so the spring setting is a little splashy and we'd like more control over the pedal's pre-delay, but we'd argue that the regular settings are sideshows to the main event here, which is cavernous atmosphere - switch over to the modulated setting, and you'll have a hard time shutting it off.

Michael Brown
Michael Brown

Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism, and has spent the past decade writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as a decade-and-a-half performing in bands of variable genre (and quality). In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.