BOSS SPACE ECHO RE-202

101
JULY 2022 GUITARIST
BOSS SPACE ECHO RE-202
This new version differs from the original,
however, by having four virtual heads,
rather than three. Where the modes on the
RE-201 offered four different head options
without reverb, seven with reverb and one
reverb-only mode, this one provides seven
modes offering all the various options
for the first three heads singly and in
combination, plus a further five modes that
incorporate the fourth head. Reverb can
be independently added to all 12 simply by
turning up the Reverb Volume knob.
BOSS SPACE ECHO RE-202 £339
CONTACT Roland UK Ltd PHONE [phone] WEB www.boss.info
T
he RE-201 Space Echo has become
the stuff of legend – as our recent
retrospective in issue 483’s Classic
Gear column on Roland’s multi-head tape
echo explored. The company knew that
such an important machine deserved to be
celebrated in a pedal and came up with the
Boss RE-20 around 15 years ago. However,
technology moves on and the time was
ripe to revisit the Space Echo, with new
advancements allowing a deeper delve into
its complex non-linear behaviour.
Boss says that everything that influences
the sound was carefully examined and
recreated with new algorithms, the result
being not one but two new pedals: the
triple-footswitch RE-202 we have on
test here, and the RE-2, which comes in
standard Boss compact pedal form – still
sonically potent but missing some of its
sibling’s features.
The RE-202 is about the size of two and
a half Boss compact pedals set side by side
and features a curvy chassis shape that gives
a nod to the earliest Boss pedals, such as
the CE-1, DM-1 and DB-5. Offering stereo
as well as mono connection, the right side
of the RE-202’s control surface mirrors
the exact knob layout of an RE-201 with a
12-position rotary mode selector to choose
the head combinations.
What You Need To Know
Space Echo? Now, that
sounds familiar…
Yes, Roland had a family of tape echo
units, the most iconic of which was
the RE-201 Space Echo. Boss revived
the name with its RE-20 digital pedal
and now that is superseded by two
pedals that are said to be truer to
the original, the RE-202 here and the
RE-2 compact pedal.
Why would I want one of these
rather than an original?
Convenience and practicality
are big factors. Vintage units are
rather expensive, require regular
maintenance and won’t fit on your
pedalboard (although a remote
footswitch will).
Okay, fair point, but isn’t it all
about the sound?
Yes, but if a digital recreation can
closely match the rich character of
the real thing, then we’ll take it!
1
2
3
The Mode Selector lets you
choose from the various head
combinations, which are clearly
indicated by the red LEDs above it,
each representing a different head
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