I had a boss ve-2 for a whyle and was always happy with the performance.
We ran the keyboards through it and it detects the chords so can generate accurate 3 part harmonies.
Pretty cheap too
I can almost guarantee the noise was caused by high output bass. I had the same glitchy noises when I first got it. Did you try a lower signal going in?
I find the BM sounds better in all cases with the output of my bass down considerably! And entirely eliminates the glitchy noises I was experiencing.