Product Review: Boss CE-2 vs. Arion SCH-1

Welcome to this 1980s Chorus Pedal Smack Down. In the red corner we have the undisputed king of chorus, the heavyweight champion, Boss CE-2. And in the blue corner we have the challenger, the plastic prince, the Arion SCH-1. Let the battle begin.

The Boss CE-2 needs no introduction. This little sky blue box quickly became the go to chorus in the ‘80s and was used by David Gilmour, Andy Summers and literally thousands of others. Dig out any ‘80s album and that heavily chorused guitar is most likely running through a CE-2. The Arion SCH-1 on the other hand was certainly not as popular when it was launched, but over the years it has built up a good reputation and devoted following, especially for its ability to fake a rotating Leslie speaker. This unit is used by some of today’s leading players like Michael Landau and Scott Henderson.

I was looking for a classic ‘80s chorus stompbox to add to my board and after a lot of research I narrowed it down to these two units. I couldn’t decide which one to buy so I picked up one of each on eBay: a 1980 CE-2 made in Japan, black label, silver screw version and a black made in Japan SCH-1 (not the later gray version or the newer SCH-Z). Here are my impressions:

• Boss CE-2 – It’s immediately obvious why this unit is so popular even today. It delivers a wonderfully rich and smooth sound – almost like there is a compressor buried in the circuit somewhere. It does give your tone a slight volume boost when engaged and is not completely transparent – it does affect your tone, but the result is still very impressive. It always sounds very lush, warm and full, never metallic, making it very easy to dial in usable tones. And with the Rate control cranked it can get into slow Leslie-land. As you would expect from Boss, it is housed in a virtually indestructible metal casing and even after 30 years the on/off control is a thing of beauty and still functions perfectly. It has Rate and Depth controls only. It would be nice if Boss had included a volume control and my only other gripe is I wish the Rate control had more range for faster speeds.

• Arion SCH-1 – Manufactured by Prince Tsushinkogyo Limited, this unit does not have the build quality of the Boss CE-2. It has a plastic case, fragile plastic knobs that are prone of falling off and a battery compartment cover that is also liable to go missing. Despite the construction issues, the actual chorus circuit is very nice indeed, which is why you sometimes see these units rehoused and upgraded with new pots and even a true bypass switch. In addition to Rate and Depth controls, the SCH-1 includes a Tone control which is useful. However, this chorus pedal sounds much colder and more sterile than the CE-2 and perhaps sounds “more ‘80s” than the Boss unit – you can get some very obvious ‘80s chorus tones (good if you are playing in a cover band) whereas the CE-2 is much more subtle. Where the SCH-1 really excels is the rotating Leslie simulation, in part because the Rate (speed) control can be set much faster than the CE-2.

To my ears, the Boss CE-2 is clearly the better unit and is more polished and professional. It just sounds much more natural and warm. It’s so good that you almost want to have it running all the time. The Arion is a decent unit, especially for Leslie simulation, but it just doesn’t sound as rich on the other settings and it is harder to dial in respectable tones as it can get metallic quite easily. If you can pick up a Japanese CE-2 for under $150 it is money well spent considering the tone quality per dollar.

Product Review - Boss CH-1 Super Chorus

Boss has a long history with chorus pedals starting with the CE-1 in the late 70s. This was was essentially the same circuit that first appeared on the famous Roland Jazz Chorus amplifier, but shoehorned into a separate floor-based unit. Then came the legendary sky blue CE-2 stomp box, which has become the industry standard chorus and is on the boards of many famous players to this day.


So on to the Boss CH-1 Super Chorus. With the Boss pedigree in chorus pedals you might think this particular model would be something special. Unfortunately, that is not the case.

The CH-1 is a fairly popular, widely available unit that is made in Taiwan. Based on my gear and my ears, here’s what I think about it:

The Good
· Does not affect your natural guitar tone
· No volume boost when engaged
· Does the classic clean and icy chorus sounds quite well
· You can run your signal into a second amp from the unit
· Boss “tank like” build quality
· Works well with single coils and humbuckers

The Bad
· Limited range of subtle sounds so not very versatile
· Cannot do a Leslie simulation at all
· EQ and E.Level controls do very little
· Cold and sterile sounding

My favorite setting is 12 o’clock on the E. Level and EQ, and about 2 o’clock on the Rate and Depth. The pedal can be used with acoustic and bass guitars and because of its subtle effect, it works quite well with these other instruments.

Overall I think this is a very average chorus pedal and there are many better options out there even though you can pick these up used on eBay for only $40-$50. For a little more money I would go with a used Arion Stereo Chorus SCH-1, a used Boss CE-2 or perhaps an Electro-Harmonix Small Clone. And if you are really serious about chorus, there are many boutique offerings from Analogman, Diamond and others.

Bargain Hunting for Chorus Pedals

This has been an interesting journey that is by no means over. Beyond thickening your guitar sound (making a 6-string sound like a 12-string) a chorus pedal can do so much more - spanning that super clean, 1980s icy shimmer favored by Andy Summers of The Police to swirling Leslie tones used by players like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Michael Landau and others.

After a lot of research and trials at local music and pawn shops, I narrowed my search down to two main price points. First, there's the $50 group where you will find the likes of a used DODFX65, a used Boss CH-1 Super Chorus and the brand new Danelectro Cool Cat CC-1.

Jump up to around the $100 mark and you could pick up two pedals that have become the industry standards for their respective sounds. There's perhaps the most famous chorus pedal ever made - the Made in Japan Boss CE-2 - which you can pick up for around $100-120 on eBay. For the swirling Leslie sound, the industry standard is the made in Japan Arion SCH-1 despite the plastic case and knobs that fall off. It is/was used by both Scott Henderson and Michael Landau so who am I to argue.

If your budget doesn't stretch to $100+ you could also consider the very popular Small Clone from Electro-Harmonx, which gets consistently good reviews and is priced around $80. The good news is that these are all decent units and all would work well.

So what's on my current board? While I seriously considered the Cool Cat CC-1, which I felt was decent on many chorus tones but never excelled at any of them, I picked the DODFX65 based on its great price and excellent performance.

I think the DODFX65 is a screaming (and somewhat unknown) bargain. I believe it has the same BBD chip/clock driver as the CE-2 and is almost $100 cheaper. I got mine used for $25 and it is an excellent unit overall and amazing value for money at this point in time. It has a heavy, metal casing and is built like a tank. In addition to the Rate & Depth controls like the CE-2, you also get a Delay Time control which gives you a bit more versatility. I am noticing a slight volume increase when engaged and the on/off switch is not as good as the Boss units, but overall I am very happy with its very warm and lush analog tones. With the speed set at 11 o'clock and the Delay Time and Depth both cranked it is super thick and rich. With the rate control set fairly high you can also achieve a decent Leslie sound. I am not noticing any additional noise when engaged or tone suck, which is very welcome.

I also purchased the Boss CH-1 for $40 and it is almost the polar opposite of the FX65. It sounds very cold, sterile and somewhat digital in comparison, but it does the 80s clean sound quite well. Besides the Rate and Depth control, you also get very useful Level and EQ controls which provide great insurance against tone sucking and volume drop/boost when engaged. With four controls you have a lot of control at your feet, but the overall tone is mediocre at best so this pedal is going back up on eBay.

I'm extremely happy at this point with the "tone per dollar" I am getting from the FX65. I can see myself using this chorus pedal for many years - assuming I don't get a killer deal on a Boss CE-2 or Arion SCH-1 in the meantime.