Boss ’65 Fender Deluxe Reverb (FDR-1)  - Review

Having recently purchased a Blues Junior Valve amplifier, I’ve had an itch to build a pedal board to go with it. My usual gigging rig for my cover band simply consists of a Line 6 Flextone III Plus and a FBV Shortboard, so this new setup is quite a departure for me.

The FDR-1 seemed like at interesting unit and one of the to Fender/Boss pedals now available from the new Legend series the other being the ’59 Bassman Pedal. The hype since before launch has been pretty high and a lot of customers where eagerly awaiting these units to ship.

The pedal emulates a Fender Deluxe Reverb amplifier as it would have sounded in 1965, a well known and cherish tube amplifier with a great overdriven tone.

The controls on the unit mirror those on the original amplifier which are: Level, Gain, Treble, Bass, Vibrato and Reverb.

The idea is to use this pedal in front of your usual amplifier (if already overdriven so much the better) to add the flavour of the Deluxe Reverb to your amp.

Construction and quality is up to the usual Boss tank like standards. The unit is finish in textured black which presumably emulates the usual Fender amp cover.

Sound wise the pedal lives up to its namesake with a responsive gritty overdrive available as can be heard in the samples below.

MP3 Demo

The only gripe I would have with this pedal is the lack of an external footswitch connection to turn the vibrato on and off.

Otherwise an excellent purchase.

By Ernest H Slade