Boss DB-30 Reviews

Tried metronome apps, but bought this in the end... again.

I bought the same tuner about 15 years ago when I started to play the guitar the first time and then life circumstances changed and i stopped. I recently picked up the guitar again, became hooked and started to practice it heavily. Playing in time is a crucial skill to master and metronome is a necessary tool for that. I tried apps on my phone and free tools on the internet that do the trick, but in the end, I always found Boss DB-30 much more conventient to use.

It has great build quality, easy layout and you can adjust all parameters you need. You can adjust tempo from 30 to 250 bpm and even tap the tempo if you wish, you can adjust the beat count and rythm (from quarter notes to sixteenths, triplets and various other rythms inbetween with some additional rythms built in). Volume can be adjusted to be loud enough to hear it over the amplifer and it has visual cues together with flashing leds to indicate tempo. Can be used with headphones if needed.

Moreover, it plays pitches as well, if needed.

Since i have rigs in two different cities, i bought another one and couldn't be happier. Highly recommended!

Very good metronome.

Highly recommend it.

Only one moment to mention: sound is not super loud in headphones.

Not loud enough

Well, it's not very loud actually. If you play a louder acoustic instrument, you might be in trouble if you're not using headphones. Good feature is that you can use some odd-time division, but in just 2 groups. For example, if you want 3+2+2, that's not possible. But you can do a 3+4 I guess...

great compact metronome

I have a Korg Beatlab Mini as a metronome and I wanted to try something different. what I like about this tiny buddy:

1. LEDs for beats. left for accent, right for others

2. complex rhythms. in Korg you cannot split a 9 in 4+5, here you can have them all: 9, 4+5, 5+4

3. I actually find controls more easy to use than on Korg

4. seems loud enough

5. no tone generator/timer/other useless functions, it's just a metronome

what I don't really like:

1. no desktop stand, it's intended to be on belt or lay on the table

2. no display backlight possible. mostly it's not needed because of LEDs, but when setting it up in the dark environments this might be handy. on the other hand, this would require a bigger battery

overall I'm very satisfied with the purchase and would highly recommend this metronome.

Warning, this metronome is not able to tune the standard 415 Hz.

The blinking light is a neat feature , but as expected, this metronome is much too quiet. The search for louder one continues....

Very easy and intuitive to operate

the menu is very uncomplicated and personally, i did not need the manual to figure out its functions.

gives you a beep through a small internal speaker (volume adjustable) or via headphones. you can also have it play a note to use as tuning aid.

Had it for over ten years

The one and only metronome I've kept from my full time teaching job. Pretty much does everything I want. But you cant set every full bar rhythm you can think up. Just visit the Boss website to read off all the presets. But hey - you want to do that - buy a drum machine ( my rec. Alesis SR16 - oldie but goodie.)

Perfect app alternative

Excellent standalone metronome, considering the price. Does what it is supposed to do very easily, with no weird button combinations. It's compact and lightweight so you can keep it in a stickbag or a guitar case at all times.

For drummers, the headphone output is loud enough for playing along and the tone generator is actually pretty useful if you 're tuning your drums to a specific pitch. When muted, 2 red LEDs on top keep counting the meters which is handy in certain situations. For some players, the 250 bpm ceiling might be annoying if you 're trying to practice certain patterns but the beat variations and note values are really enough for most people, clave patterns are a nice addition too.

My only gripe is that the metronome has to stop in order to use the tap tempo function but it's really not a deal breaker.

Useful & practical

Boss is always excites me with their products.This is veru useful tool for guitarists,drummers,etc.

Great pocket metronome

Very easy to use, has a lots of options, loud enough to hear it when you play with an amp (on home practive volume level). I recommend.

Good and practical metronome

I use this metronome daily, so it is definitely practical and easy to change beats and rhythm patterns. The sound volume is limited and the quality of the sound is simple but quite efficient. This is a good everyday product.

Easy to use

Great metronome, easy to use and travel with.

does what it says on the tin

If your looking for a device to help you develop your sense of timing while you practice but don't want to have to spend forever reading a manual before you can use it then this is for you. Small unit with large easy to use controls , dead easy to change settings and get what you want as soon as you want it. Basically a no brainer for muso's who want to spend more time practicing and less time with their head in a manual.

Très bon métronome

Bonjour

Le DB-30 est très complet et compact.

Très facilement transportable dans votre poche.

Semble assez solide, bonne fabrication.

Il possède une attache pour ceinture mais malheureusement pas de pied, il vous faudra placer un médiator dans l'encoche prévue pour qu'il puisse tenir debout.

Il a toutes les fonctionnalités d'un bon métronome :

- un volume sonore acceptable

- Plusieurs Rythmes / Battements possible.

- bouton Tap/Mute pour tapper le tempo

- Note / Pitch

- Tempo Value + et -

- Sortie Casque / Out

Et ce qui m'intéressait énormément c'est qu'il possède le battement Swing Feel

Merci

The upper bound on tempo is 250 bpm, so e.g. there is no straightforward way to program a click with odd meters like 7/8 or 9/8 and higher tempos. Other than this, the tool is great.

Simple to use

Very effective metronome and great value for money.

Simple to use and the headphone jack makes it easy to use with in ear monitors as a click.

The pitch function is a handy added bonus for tuning.

I'd highly recommend this product.

Good metronome, also for drummers

I wanted a metronome that was precise, had a sound that would not annoy me, had some settings for its volume and a headphone output.

Differently from the Korg metronome I had before, when you press up or down on the tempo, this starts to quickly change immediately, and not in increments of 20 but increments of one. Very quick to set the tempo. Even better, there is a very responsive tap tempo function.

Also has lots of other features that you would not expect seeing how little buttons it has, it is actually quick to set up and good for practice on any instrument.

Too fiddley and Graphics too Small!

This metronome was found outdated in display by the colourful Snark turner, the graphics and text are too small to see with any clarity due to dark blue on dark green background and any reflections that are caught on the glass panel.

We also found the settings confusing despite reading the instructions and time is wasted getting the metronome to work as wanted. It would have been useful to have a back light or at least something for clarity.

There is a headphone socket so that the beat can be heard along with an indication light if needed but overall we gave up and deemed there must be a better product on the market. Useful size that can be clipped to a belt but concluded it's return.

Feels plasticky not quality, the sort of product that could possibly be found as a generic product with several different brand names stuck on it. We will look for something more substantial.

It sounds like the late 70's ping pong game!

Boss DB 39

It is a very good metronome and has lots of different beat patterns. I think it could benefit from being a wee bit louder, apart from that it is probably one of the best as it is pretty sturdy also.

Boss DB-30

Well, it's a metronome! Nothing more, nothing less. The click is a little bit too quiet for my taste, so sometimes it gets quite difficult to hear it properly while you are playing. Anyway it does what it's supposed to do: it gives you a solid and more or less annoying click to stay in time. It's not that i expected something special, but somehow I think that it's way to expensive concerning the overall quality and the amount of features of the Boss DB-30. Pretty handy though!