Boss GT-1000 (and possibly other things Boss...)

Sascha Franck said:
Might be easy, but it's horribly slow regarding each and every aspect.



You couldn't be further away from the truth. It's my 3rd GT unit.



No. Compared to the competition it's awkwardly slow. Proveably so.

And I have no idea why you would compare things to older Eventide or Lexicon units. Where's their amp modelers?
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Ok I stand corrected, you are used to Boss units and editing might not be the fastest although it could be discussed. But I find it easy and logical. Learning curve is not totally awkward, I got the hang of it in a few days. I just compared to other notoriously hard-to-edit machines, not particularly modelers.

I don't care about the competition because it doesn't do what I want and doesn't sound as good as the GT1000 IMHO (using a GT1000Core personally). I agree, other modelers have bigger, touch-enabled screen etc. I love the Boss/Roland sound and ergonomy.
 
Jack Luminous said:
But I find it easy and logical. Learning curve is not totally awkward,
Click to expand...

It really depends on what you're trying to do. Try to assign multiple functions to one switch on the unit. It's downright awkward in the editor already (especially given it's clunkyness due to things being connected via MIDI - in 20-fucking-25...), and just super horrible on the unit.
Things were sort of manageable on, say, the GT-10 because the overall amount of parameters has been vastly less - but with all the possible parameters available these days, it's an endless scrollfest.
Then compare it to, say, a Helix. It's a difference like night on Neptune and day on Mercury.

Really, Boss could do *so* much better in terms of public reception if they adressed the several UI issues.
 
Sascha Franck said:
It really depends on what you're trying to do. Try to assign multiple functions to one switch on the unit. It's downright awkward in the editor already (especially given it's clunkyness due to things being connected via MIDI - in 20-fucking-25...), and just super horrible on the unit.
Things were sort of manageable on, say, the GT-10 because the overall amount of parameters has been vastly less - but with all the possible parameters available these days, it's an endless scrollfest.
Then compare it to, say, a Helix. It's a difference like night on Neptune and day on Mercury.

Really, Boss could do *so* much better in terms of public reception if they adressed the several UI issues.
Click to expand...
The menu scrolling is kind of a PITA for assigns on the unit, much easier on the editor. Once I figured out the (really stupid) way to assign stuff to the number switches in preset mode it became much more functional.
 
Sascha Franck said:
I'm a little bit perplexed right now.

Originally wanted to post this in the Tonex thread, but the information is possibly as relevant here.
According to Leo Gibson, the device latency of the GT-1000 would be 0.7ms. But it's actually less, it's not even 0.6ms (0.58 to be exact).
Then, and this is where things really start to get crazy: With one (serial, obviously) loop engaged, the latency only goes up to 0.75ms.
With both loops running serially (so loop 1 returns and then instantly goes into loop 2), that value is established as latency is now at 0.97ms.

Note: There might be very slight inaccuracies due to the transients possibly be a little smeared by the triple ADDA conversion and whatever op amps in the GT, but these inaccuracies are within the 0.0x ms realm.

So, apart from the overall latency with no loops engaged being extremely low already, a little bit contrary to what often is the case, the loops add *less* than full device latency to the overall picture (very often it'd just double because there's the double amount of converters and signal processing).

And btw, as I couldn't actually believe these numbers myself, I crosschecked everything multiple times. Tried my Zoom G3 that I used as a splitting device on its own, as I was suspecting there might be some sort of offset between the left and right outs, but there's none. I even flipped the input channels on my Motu M2 to see whether something would be happening there (which was very unlikely to start with), but nada.
So the latencies are in fact *that* low. I have absolutely no idea how Boss manages to pull that off, but it's just incredible.

Anyhow, for a final test (because that might become my future setup), I inserted a Tonex One into one loop, running a clean capture, and the overall latency was 2.8ms. Without the capture loaded, it's just 2.1ms, so at least some captures add some latency (I observed that before already).

Whatever, around 3ms for a whooping 4 serial ADDA cycles is just stunning. Also, while you find people complaining about whatever hiss or other sound integrity issues when it comes to the GT loops - fuck that, sound quality is actually excellent once you use decent power supplies and check the various ground lift settings.

In the end, I guess it really shows that Roland/Boss has an enormous experience when doing digital pedals. I mean, people are chaining their pedals since decades already, and if latency was a real issue, I'm sure it would be discussed about anywhere. But looking at the GT's figures, you just know why it isn't.
Click to expand...
They built the unit basically like this (I saw a video from someone from boss explaining): in the modeler, every effect in basically on (off is bypass?), by doing this they can make every thing feel and be more instant and fast in the boss gt-1000.
Too bad i had to bad an ir loader pedal, because the ir loading in the gt1000 is shit, ah ah ah. Now the sound its decent.
 
Does anyone know where the original documentation from whatever earlier version might thoroughly explain how the parameters for Input, Internal, and Wave pedal work? The GT-1K/GX-100 manuals just give very broad descriptions and I’m kinda just monkeying with it until it does what I want.
 
ian_dissonance said:
Does anyone know where the original documentation from whatever earlier version might thoroughly explain how the parameters for Input, Internal, and Wave pedal work? The GT-1K/GX-100 manuals just give very broad descriptions and I’m kinda just monkeying with it until it does what I want.
Click to expand...

Sorry, no idea. Last time I fooled around with things was when the GT-10 was almost new. I might have a look into them one day, though...
 
Sascha Franck said:
Sorry, no idea. Last time I fooled around with things was when the GT-10 was almost new. I might have a look into them one day, though...
Click to expand...
There’s got to be some obscure guitar synth manual from 20 years ago that goes more in depth. The V Guitar forums are a graveyard for non-VG stuff, apparently.
 
1761158540978.png

This is the GT100 manual. Boss' explanation skills on a lot of things leave a ton to be desired. Ugh.
 
Ok, here's Chat GPT (and this is also how I, if kinda vaguely, remember things):

Hey there! 🎸
The “Wave Pedal” on the Boss GT-1000 is a modulation source — basically, it’s a virtual, continuously moving control signal that can automatically modulate parameters (like a virtual LFO).
Here’s how it works and what it can do:

🎚️ What the Wave Pedal Is​

  • Think of it as a built-in automatic expression pedal that moves on its own in a wave shape.
  • It can control any assignable parameter (e.g. delay time, filter cutoff, reverb depth, amp gain, etc.), just like the physical expression pedal.
  • The motion is generated internally, following a waveform such as sine, triangle, saw, square, or other shapes.

⚙️ Main Controls / Settings​

When you open the Wave Pedal parameters, you can typically set:
ParameterDescription
WaveformShape of the modulation (sine, triangle, saw up/down, square, random, etc.)
RateHow fast the wave cycles (similar to LFO speed)
DepthHow much it affects the assigned target parameter
PhaseStarting position in the wave cycle
Tempo SyncOption to sync to tap tempo / BPM
Polarity / OffsetAdjusts how the modulation interacts with the controlled parameter (centered, unipolar, etc.)
 

🎵 Practical Uses​


  • Auto-wah: Assign Wave Pedal to filter frequency for rhythmic sweeps.
  • Tremolo / Pan: Assign to amp volume or pan control.
  • Slow modulation of delay feedback or time: Creates evolving ambient textures.
  • Dynamic amp gain shifts: Subtle cyclical movement of gain or EQ.
  • Combining with Assigns: You can route multiple assigns to respond to a single Wave Pedal for complex evolving tones.
 

Pro Tip​


You can have multiple Wave Pedals running at once (Wave Pedal 1–4), each with its own rate, waveform, and depth — and assign them to different parameters for layered, evolving modulation effects.

Me: Thanks, that's what I seemed to remember. So, now that that's covered, what does the "internal" parameter do?

The “INTERNAL” Parameter — What It Is​


In the GT-1000’s ASSIGN system, “Source” determines what controls a given parameter (expression pedal, LFO, MIDI CC, etc.).
One of the options for Source is INTERNAL — this refers to the unit’s built-in control generators, which include the Wave Pedal and a few other internal modulation sources.


So, “INTERNAL” = a virtual controller generated inside the GT-1000, not coming from a pedal, MIDI, or external input.
 

How It Works​


When you select INTERNAL as an Assign Source, a new field appears called “INTERNAL” (with a number, like INTERNAL 1, 2, 3, or 4).


Each of these corresponds to an Internal Controller slot that you can program under:


MENU → CONTROL/ASSIGN → INTERNAL
Click to expand...

Inside each INTERNAL controller, you can specify how it behaves — and that’s where the “Internal” parameter settings live.

The “Internal” Parameter Menu Contains:​

SettingMeaning
ModeDefines what kind of source it acts like — for example:
• Static (fixed value)
• Wave Pedal (LFO motion)
• Envelope Follower (responds to your input level)
• Tempo Sync’d motion (moves according to tempo)
Waveform / Rate / Depth / OffsetWhen set to “Wave Pedal,” these define the shape and speed of the modulation (just like the dedicated Wave Pedal block).
Min / MaxThe output range of the internal controller.
Tempo SyncWhether the rate follows the master tempo.

Example Use Case​


Let’s say you want the amp’s gain to rise and fall automatically:


  1. Go to MENU → CONTROL/ASSIGN → INTERNAL 1
    • Set Mode = Wave Pedal
    • Waveform = Triangle
    • Rate = 1/4 note, Depth = 100
  2. Create an Assign:
    • Source = INTERNAL 1
    • Target = AMP → Gain
    • Min = 30, Max = 80

✅ Now the amp gain will automatically sweep up and down following that triangle wave — without any external control.
 

Summary​


  • Wave Pedal = a specific LFO-type motion source.
  • INTERNAL = the broader “virtual controller” system that can use Wave Pedal behavior (among others) as its motion type.
  • “Internal” parameter in an Assign = chooses which internal controller (and its configuration) will drive the modulation.

Would you like me to diagram how Wave Pedal, Internal, and Assign connect inside the GT-1000’s modulation routing? It makes it very clear once you see the signal flow.

Me: Oh yes, a diagram would be great!

(This is pretty lame, but still):

GT_Diagram.jpg
 
But then, on another note: The way Boss handles this is beyond convoluted. They should have a look at how any modern synths (possibly minus their own ones...) do modulations.
 
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