"Good Expression / Volume Pedal"

Overall:
I bought the Boss FV-500L as an expression pedal to work with my Boss PS-5 Super Shifter, as the aluminum casing appeared to be much more durable than the Roland EV-5. The addition of the volume control feature, which can be used either in mono or stereo, also prompted me to choose this product. The stereo volume control allows the user to place it after a stereo effects pedal with no loss of the stereo effect, which is very nice! On the negative side, this pedal is quite large and bulky (11" x 4"), making it unwelcome in certain pedal boards. Additionally, the moving parts of this unit are largely constructed of plastic, making it more prone to damage than its appearance would suggest. Having a cast-aluminum housing means nothing if the most important parts of the unit are plastic! I did have to return the first FV-500L that I purchased, as jolts during shipment were enough to render the unit inoperable. The replacement seems to function quite well, though; and I'm fairly happy with it. If I were to redo my order, I would choose the Alesis F2 volume / expression pedal over this Boss product, however.