Boss CE-1 vs. Boss VB-2 (Vibrato Battle!)

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This is something I've read about on forums for years - so I thought I'd finally put the two side by side for a comparison. This is the vibrato side of the Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble (1981) and the Boss VB-2 Vibrato (1982). Both are said to originate from the Roland JC120 Jazz Chorus amplifier - so let's see how they compare!

Both pedals are isolated within a true bypass looper, so they're kept completely separate from each other to avoid any unwanted interaction or signal colouring. I also added a buffer before the pedals to stop the CE-1's 50k input pot removing all the high end. I left the buffer in line for the VB-2 to give the fairest test possible.

Which do you prefer? How do they compare? Which you you have on your board? Comment below!

Guitar is a Fender Strat through a Cornell Romany Plus (recorded with a 57) and a Hughes & Kettner Puretone (recorded with an sE Electronics RNR1 Ribbon)


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