BOSS METALZONE - WORST DISTORTION PEDAL EVER?
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- Опубликовано: 4 ноя 2024
- Trying out the Metalzone for the first time since I tried one back in the 90s. See the reaction!
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@rolandglobal @solar-guitars
Trying out the Metalzone Boss pedal today... pedals are fun, soooo SUBSCRIBE!
Ola Englund
Burpla Englund. \m/
Anyways, how you doing, Ola? I'm hoping this will make it to one of your Q&A videos whenever you can, dude. Name a list of all your favourite guitar tunings!! :D
Pedals can be habit forming...
@Kamiya Tetsuya That pedal has the exact same problem!
You restored this pedal's reputation. You monster!
Now you need to make a song with this!
3:02 The first person to drop his pick and find it
Lol
I FINALLY FOUND MY PICK AFTER 7 YEARS AND 2 HOUSE MOVES!
@@danhinchliffe7622 haha me too
yea... I call BS.... totally CGI...
Searched for this comment :D
I think when "Satan" is written on the amp you don't need a distortion pedal
of course you dont, but most of us dont have satan written on our amps so hello boss metal zone, or in my case, hello ehx metal muff.
underrated
Even Satan's amp has a "clean boost" in front though.
Realms Of Darkness yeah but this on is a Randall amp
Hahahha
Worst pedal ever: Less than 2 minutes in and I want one.
That depends a lot of the amp.
@@homeboy9002 yup. I remember it sounded pretty good in my AC30, although the global tone was a bit messy and mellow, because AC30 has a very mellow tone, that's quite useful for something, but if you want to have a nice metal tone it isn't probably your best choice. However I played lots of concerts using an AC30 with an Iron Maiden Trubute band. And no one noticed the difference, and fellow guitarists always asked me "how can you get this amazing tone with a brit pop amplifier?" :D
My answer was making them listen Brian May's Resurrection and some Rory Gallagher stuff LOL
had this pedal way back in the day, sold it, aaaand now i want it back!!! 🤘🏻😂
Nah go with mxr fullbore it’s better then this
Same bro
This was the sound of late 90s metalcore and grindcore. Pairs well with Ibanez guitars and piccolo snares cranked up as tightly as possible.
yesss, he plugged in the front and started playing and I instantly thought of early metalcore / deathcore / grindcore, that really raw and sharp sound
It's like the trademark sound of Infectious Grooves on Groove Family Cyco.
acid bath too
Add a tube screamer in front and crank the bass, level it out and you have Messhugah level of gain
@@kacper531 And Crowbar. The Metal Zone is a sludge metal beast as well!
And this children is what happens when you use pedals CORRECTLY!
this!! Couldn't agree more! Seasoned player have the skills and know how to make good tones (EQ ing, signal chain and stuff).
If you are a kid in the 90s you use the metal zone *because* you can't afford a valve amplifier with effects loop.
Can you really blame people for doing it that way though?
@@ChristianIce And that is why this pedal has the reputation it does and it gets parroted through the internet. People do not bother to figure if they did something wrong after moving on to better gear. Unless you use it as a boost DO NOT connect it into the front of the amplifier, that makes it sound like a can of bees and that is the sound people hate. Into a power amp through FX Return this pedal is really good for the money.
+MaaZeus
Into a power amp through FX Return of the Satan... I would use the Satan alone and that's that :)
Could be a nice toy for some industrial tone, though, but if we are here pretending that box competes with today's options, well... :D
I'm impressed how you found the pick after it fell. I dont know how to do it.
Hahah
xD xD
true story
That's how I knew this video is fake. The pic would never have been found in real life
there has to be a BLACKHOLE some where that is stuffed full of guitar picks and 10mm wrenches and sockets. lol
I imagine, some dude sitting at his desk, checking through things on his computer. He goes to take a sip of coffee, that he then drops to the ground in confusion. "My god." He says. "It can't be..." He gets up and runs to his boss's office. His boss then looks at him concerned. "What is it?" The dude catching his breath finally speaks out. "Sir... We just got 1,000 orders for Metalzone pedals.." And with a tear in his the boss stands up and says, "I knew it would one day rise to its true glory."
😄👍
LMFAO!!!!
The Boss boss' office?
Perfect comment.
Multiple imaginations
I loved this pedal back when I started playing in 99 all they way through college into ‘08. Idk why people hate it. It was affordable and sounded good. You can’t plug it into a shitty 20 watt solid state beginner’s amp and expect to sound like Dave Mustaine.
It definitely sounds better for high gain Pantera style metal vs the very popular mxr distortion. God why do people like that shitty pedal
@@godzillasimpson8357 - I had a GF who was actually a shredder, she loved the MXR Metal Muff! It was not for me though, it’s not great for old school thrash metal, it’s more of a modern day death metal, downtuned, chug-a-lug sounding pedal, that or for people who like to play like Zakk Wylde and are constantly using pinch harmonics, bending, and whammy bar stuff. It seems to really sustain the pinch harmonics, but people over use them nowadays.
@@godzillasimpson8357 - You know I don’t think I’ve ever actually played the regular MXR Distortion, just the MXR Metal Muff, which wasn’t bad just not for me.
I think it sounds pretty good on my practice amp tbh.
@@ghost_type_gaming670 - sounded good on mine also. It was a good pedal for a younger player who didn’t have tons of gear like half-stacks and nice tube amps/heads.
I just watched a Viking shred for 11 minutes. It’s 3 am.
Nice pic dude
same same
Julian Urtz when will you learn... when will you learn... that your actions have consequences
I watched the same viking and it's 2:12 AM. Cheers.
I watched ԅ(≖‿≖ԅ) other kinds of things for 11 minutes and it's 3am
I bet a lot of of the hype about this pedal sucking is rooted in kids buying this pedal and plugging it into a $30 First Act amp and then declaring it sucks.
That or a fender practice amp but you're not wrong
Back when the line 6 spider had the ideal metal tone
Forums are full of ‘those’ people.
@@brandonkeller478 LINE 6 is shit haaha wtf , it doesnt event support pedals because its sucks
Brandon Keller i actually have one of those. Its a fun amp. Good for at home. Not performances.
Lol when I used Metalzone I had absolutely no idea what an effects loop was... Keep in mind we had dial-up Internet back then :D
Real simple. Most of ur effects shld be in the fx loop so the preamp or anyth else of the amp doesnt colour the tone of the effects.
You only use effects infront of the amp if you want the effects tone to be altered OR if you want to colour the distortion of the amp eg. Tubescreamers
@@Melkor0410 Tell that to 14y/o myself :D
Ahahah me too! And I did not even have internet yet when I owned one...I guess that's why it has such a bad reputation, cause nobody knew how to use the fucking thing back in the days :D
Truth ! Effects loop ? Back in the day I was happy with the DS-1 added to the combo and I called it a day
ah dial-up how i dont miss you but i miss those times. your comment made me laugh btw lol
Ahh..the Metalzone a classic. Every guitar player must have one. Usually several..and eq sweep and controls are amazing. Boss gave us exactly what we wanted.
Have but dont use xD
Metalzone and metalcore my two fav ones
Still have my OG MT-2 from around '98 that I purchased through a Musician's Friend magazine....that's right people, MAGAZINE. Lol.
I simply do not understand why so many higher-end high-gain pedals do not have a mid sweep. It just adds so much tonal flexibility at the cost of ONE POT.
I’m looking at you, REVV. But, so many others are guilty of this, too.
Roland stock goes up 40%
Jake D that is if
You have an effects loop
@@BigBrandoGAMESwhat piece of shit amp do you have that doesn't have an effects loop ?
Theres several older amps that dont have effects loops
I dont remember which ones, as I sold them immediately
jeremy h practice amps like a Marshall dfx dumb dumb
I wish my amp had "death and depression" knobs. :(
Create one!
You seem like you already have depression
Little pepper ikr same
he said presence
The Hound I do so I don’t need the knobs
Boss Metal Zone was my main drive many years. When i jammed with other metal players they always got impressed with how great it sounded. Honestly i've never met any guitar players around me that hated that pedal or never heard anyone call it "the worst" then i start watching guitar players on youtube and everyone calls it "the worst shit" i think most people do it just to get views
its a charvel on ur pick?
Same. I always got compliments on my sound from guys in other bands we played with. Must have had it all dialed in just right lol. I didn't even buy the pedal. Some old cat gave it to me.
True
I remember wanting to get one in a Guitar Center in 2005, and the staff saying it was horrible and that I should get the orange one instead. So I think it might predate RUclips.
@@DaleKamp it does. I remember getting it in like 1998 ish
I’m convinced that Boss doesn’t make bad pedals. They make pedals that a lot of us don’t understand how to use them. The MZ sounds really good as a pre-amp for sure!! I used it in the 90’s and remembered liking it. Tried again a few years back. Different story. I’ll try it in the effects loop now. \m/
The hubris of some people to think that a Japanese guitar brand would make a sub-par product rather than admit to themselves it's their own fault.
My theory is that a lot of young 'uns buy 'em, crank every knob to the right - because METAL - and it sounds like arse, so that how they got the rep.
@hoilst265 that's literally why 😭 the eq spans hella frequencies and cranking it does that cuz it's meant to be dialed in
A lot of the misuse can be blamed on false advertising.
HM2 "Buzzsaw" made the fucking awesome tone of Left hand path.
The real problem is that there’s too many haters in the rock community,... they hate , hate, hate on everything from, bands, equipment, and clothing etc.
Well that’s the metal scene for you.
The wrong t shirt can get you booted from a band.
That’s everywhere in every thing humans do! It’s actually a mental disorder!
Because that's what most people do.
Holy shit yes. Made me step away from guitars all together for years. I have just recently started finding my love for it again. I'm glad the community, or at least some people in it are seeing this, and actively trying to not be that way.
Facts. I went to a metal show with my little cousin and he caught was wearing a five finger death punch shirt and we had a closed casket funeral for him the next week
To those saying that the Metalzone sucks, it's not the pedal, it's you :)
skill is more than gear
Uffff press f
Exactly
@@aroundth3fur literally everyone says that
Unless you don't have an effects loop, then it will suck no matter how good you are lol
Can I be your neighbor?
Lol, anytime Ola has a neighbor move, he should let his subscribers know so one of them can move in. Then again, nothing will change as far as people knocking on the door every time he starts playing. Only instead it'll be a sub asking to come in and watch.
Dude. I’ve spent so much time on your channel
metfan41 metfan41 I used to have one in my college days and having breakfast everyday while him playing random riffs is the best thing to fuel my day.
I seen this comment, when there was 666 likes.
Please won’t you be..my neighbor.
I used to Metal Zone for over 20 years. And no, it wasn't the crap pedal everyone always gave it grief over. It was and still is a beast of a pedal.
How do you run it? In the loop or in front? I just don't get why he only put it in the return. Where would reverb plug in to?
In late 90's i was like 14 and have a nirvana cover band. I played a $50 fake strat, transistor amp and metal zone. Man that sounded like shit.
A 14 year old nirvana cover band in late 90's
That already sounds like a disaster lol
I too was in a NIRVANA tribute band in late 90s called marrow gold
Cool! Our band was "ain't over". Was bad.
Fabio Grimaldi actually, very spot on to the live Nirvana guitar tone
Kurt use boss overdrive/distortion at the time
You need to run it through a 90's Peavey or Crate amp in a garage or bedroom to hear it's full potential.
@@drscruffy6471 Same TD-70 It had one pre-amp tube lol
I had a Peavey Rage and Bandit. 😅
Stop calling me out like this lol
That was me in 1990. Epiphone Flying V-->Metalzone-->Crate solid state 50w 1x12 blasting the neighbors from my bedroom. Good times...lol
@KahvinSuodatin i always like those as a practice amp back in the 90's.
People saying that pedal is shit are the people playing it through a peavey bandit 1×10 with a Squire strat.
112
1 2 .. Nothing wrong with Bandits or Squiers. If you can't get a good sound out of those, you need to rethink your playing.😋
Exactly.
Fucking metal heads were playing out of this 15 plus years ago. This pedal is legend
this.
I picked up a used Metal Zone pedal years ago and only found out recently that there's a ton of people who don't like this thing and have never understood why. I've always used a very clean sound from the amp (like in the video) and the pedal produces a great sound!
Sounds pretty good to me too!
//Andy
Probably got a bad rep because some don't know what they're doing and Ola does.
Agreed
Yeah I've got one I use on my 700watt guitar rig when I crank that shit up and jam it sounds like a fucking PANTERA concert in my house! That and I use a JOYO JF-17 also both really good pedals the reason people don't like them is cause most people are used to shitty blues and low distortion pedals!
It's a boss pedal. Every boss pedal is awesome. They've never made a bad pedal and will never do so. I dunno what all the hate is about.
Should be labeled advertisement...
Maybe you guys won't believe this, but I use this pedal as distortion for my BASS. Never liked bass distortions on market, so when I tested a MZ... Instant crush.
Makes sense, it's a very tight distortion. I'm gonna try it on bass now. Tnx.
i'll try it too
Same
I've also used it with my bass back in the day. 😃
it sounds cool but it being a guitar pedal it takes away the bass frequencies. I do not recommend it.
2:55 I thought I was about to hear Mario die. Actually wtf
wahhhhh
Lol im glad im not the only one to notice
Me too. And I also thought "wtf?"
Same here!
I thought the same
As a kid I always needed more gain that what amps or pedals were giving me, the MetalZone was such a BIG deal to me because I was finally able to explore the ridiculous end of distorted tone, and contour it quite a bit. I loved it so much. Fuck the haters!!
I just watched a viking shred on an axe for 11 minutes. I don't know how I got here but I like it.
shred? no. Shredding is soloing lmfao, this was riffing.
ROTFL!!!!!
skol!!!!!
@@sloanguitar4862 Non-guitarists obviously wouldn't commonly know this. Don't be a dick.
With Satan, no less
@PsycheGaming Yep and I know he was being a douche about it, just like you. Whatever makes you feel good about yourself I suppose.
All I had for the first 12 years of playing guitar was a MetalZone and keyboard amp my friend stole from a church because I was too poor for anything else. If you spend enough time with that pedal, you figure out how to make it sound good. It gets way too much undeserved hate, probably from people who have never really used it. Its a meme pedal, but I have a spot in my heart for it.
Post a video. I'll send you my metalzone if you need it lol
You know he's a good friend if he steals from a church
Church theft? Praise Satan!
yeah, I gigged for several years with this pedal into a Fender twin. srv, to metallica, one box. I will say though, I would chop hands if anyone even approached my pedal board because the knobs are hyper sensitive.
yeah the knobs on metal zone is not just a eq knobs on the pedal, those are likely to be blending in with the amp. I left marks where the knobs should be pointing, but still I need tiny adjustments. When you try to use different guitars with metal zone then good luck. haha
Boss pedals have three great qualities . They are affordable , road worthy and they actually sound bad ass if you know what you are doing with them .
Pff... road worthy. They're INDESTRUCTIBLE. Probably made of depleted plutonium.
@@pearljaime2 Yes I agree , they are indestructible . There are certain pieces of musical equipment that could probably be thrown from a moving van and survive and these pedals are among those .
Most gear is solid. It really comes down to the musicians and how creative they are in getting those sounds.
Ursamynor Carol Lyon krause i’ve been a professional player for 45 years now I have never ever seen a broken Boss pedal!
@@atlharp1 I agree 110% ❤️
I've had on for years, a little tricky to get used to all the things you can control but once you figure it out you can create absolutely soaking wet distorted sounds. I've tried plenty of others and never felt compelled to buy another distortion, this one has such range.
All three things? 😊
Well done, Ola. You just single handedly doubled the suggested second hand market price of this pedal...
Haha
Considering its $100 new (though you can find it as low as $85 around Christmas), and the second hand price (in my area, craig's list) is around about $30... even doubled the second hand price is still a bargain.
bought it for 50 euro's which is like 60 $, now thanks to Ola, they are finally worth at least double ! YEAHHHHHHHHHH
P.s.: it's a reply to an Ola video. So don't forget to read the sarcasm and dry humour between the lines 😇
i paid 25 for mine off ebay
and here i go digging through my closet for my metal zone i bought when i was 15
I was around 15 when I bought my MZ, and didn't understand why everyone laughed at them, now almost 20 years has passed, I still have mine, and still don't understand what's the big fuss :)
Aaron Acosta it Chugs! I’m a buy one next time.
I never tried it through the FX loop.
Godamn that’s so true. 😂
@@dantrag2890 Nobody did. And those who did, kept it secret through centuries.
dudes plugging this into their squire practice amp and wondering why it sounds bad
Honestly, its what you would expect people would do though. I didn't know the FX loop was a thing when I started either
With their Argos bought Encore strat😂
@@adjo82 I feel attacked by this comment... 😅
Idk m8, kinda poor
I plug mi squier into v3 carvin acoustic cabinet and mt2 on the effects loops not poor man tone to me
Is it just me or does this dude look exactly like a Russian Orthodox depiction of Jesus.
Lmfaooo
Iconic! Yeah
I was thinking this exact same thing... glad I'm not alone on that haha
oh my
and hes turning knobs of a S___
Ola: *turns on metal zone*
Mids: aight imma head out
Good, mid range makes it sound like it's coming out of a tin can.
Too much mids makes it sound tinny
Mids help you stand out in a mix
@@leumasperron yes but too much makes you sound like shit....fine line I usually keep mine somewhere between 3 and 6
Imma head out 🤣🤣🤣
This was my ONLY pedal back in '94, and my band was straight dropped-D CHUNK!! It has a semi-parametric EQ for the mid, which means you can eliminate those horrendous hi-mids out completely, and turn up the bass and treble for a devastatingly severe metal sound!
No other pedal glorified that beautiful palm-muting groove than this one! Why would anyone hate on it???!?!?
It's because people only hear this pedal through a 13 year olds walmart practice amp trying to play metallica.
Hahaha! Thats me, 18 years ago 😂
that was me a few years ago
Absolutely correct I was that kid ! Teamed a lot of years later with some good gear. Plus an ear and some experience under the belt . I would not be without it
Preach
If I'm correct though Metallica doesn't use that much distortion in their music. Specialty not that much crunch to it.
Back: death metal, heavy metal, thrash metal
Front: black metal
What back and front is there on the pedal im curious?
@@chiefmangas2367 hes talking about the pedal being plugged in to the front (clean input) and back (effects input) of the amp
Black metal is the dupstep of rock genres
@Odell Mateo No, it is eternally the worst subgenre of guitar based music regardless of sexual preference.
@@kenny6920 It's just meant to be more atmospheric than riff based. Black metal is definitely mixed like shit though, but that is a part of the sound for whatever reason.
As always and as with all the gear it's all about how you set it. The more "skill" you have and experiance and knowledge of the tone you want to set, it doesn't really matter what gear you use.
Ola presents it perfectly in all his videos/reviews.
Still matter but less and less.
Bullshit. The only reason people say effects sound bad is because most metalheads are utterly retarded and don't know that the effects are meant to be plugged into the FX loop. When I was a kid and was learning how to play this little pedal was sounding just badass and it still sounds like that because back then I bothered to fucking read the instruction to my amp.
@@SkinnyBlackout Ok
_cyanogen_ _synthesis_ not every effect needs to go through the FX loop, although I will admit most guitarists are really stupid and don’t research shit and have no idea how to set a good tone that works in a mix
@@beardeddragon7973 I don't think most people who play/played guitar can play well.
I've been using this pedal for over 20 years and it's the only pedal I use.
The Black Album sound was what I was going for back then and this replicated it.
The correct way to use a metal zone is using two of them combined, with all the knobs all the way up
What??
José Islanio I like where your head is at.
The world ceases to be in that event
Shmicah I really must get a second one, and a 500w transistor amplifier
no mids
BOSS right now: oh yeah, I can smell the money
Lol it sucks. I remember when they used to be like 24 dollars and now they're like 140
@@pepsizilla1734
A hard true
they don’t make them anymore lmao
They have brought out a Waza version of the Metalzone. It's really good.
@@greyape3905 Well I’ve found 7 different places you can buy them so they’re not gone.
"Let's try it in front of the amp..."
*Invasion of bees commences*
A 14 year old kid calls from the basement, *mom, can my friends come over?*
I like to use it in front of my laney gh100L. And recently use it in front of jcm900. Never had that bees sound, but maybe cause i'm down tuning to drop B which may lays on different freq. But i like it to return, the distortion just very well saturated, fits my need.
@@yohanesdevin3618 dude, it is world around payed defamation of this pedal, like many other devices and themes, that make some fat rich idiots to loose their excess profits. Understand? Yes, it is world wide conspiracy. But this thing is not so complex, if you are just few guys with big bank accounts. Not really too hard to make hidden financial cartel (collusion) to make real conspiratorial organization around all the world. It is easy and it is used all the time by humanity. Build secret hidden organisation to get dirty profits. Simple like egg.
@@ВячеславДадада Whatever you're smoking man, take half of it.
@@ironlemon666 In Russia drugs take you
Very nice! The Electro Harmonix Metal Muff really surprises a lot too.
Once at a band practice I plugged one (Metal Muff) into the Effect Loop (too) of a Fender Head, and it really sounded very powerful.
In the room there was another very purist musician and before playing, he only saw the Metal Muff with disagreement, I told him that I was going to use only the Fender, but really all the distortion I got with the Metal Muff. At the end of the practice I asked him: how is the sound today? and he told me: "oh yes! so brutal bro! very nice!" and that's when I told him what signal chain I had used that day. He was very surprised and said nothing more about it!
I agree bro, the Metal Muff is such an underrated distortion pedal. I have the mini one myself and it will always be my go-to when I need my metal tone. Absolutely rips faces off in my opinion
5:55 he was gonna play aerials but didn’t want to get striked
Amon amarth?
@@carlosvonbismarck1217 I feel like I'm biting into a bait, but you do realise that the amon amarth aerials is a cover of system of a down, right?
Noticed that one too!!! Lol
Haha thought the same thing 😂
@@creeper25gaming didn't know that. im not a big fan of soad. haven't heard much of their music
For a fair review it should probably be played on a squire with a crate.
And if you knew what you were doing, it would still sound awesome.
Pretty sure squires don’t have an FX Loop and crates that do would sound just fine
Lmao. That was my exact setup for my first guitar!
Yep. That's why I'm getting rid of my squire. Squires are not made for Metal. Get rid!
I actually do that when im too lazy to to hook up..grab the squire off the stand and it makes it sound like humbuckers .Not too bad actually
Boss after this video: S T O N K S
Rofl
BOSS after seeing this video.. "now that's how we intended it to sound. We should've informed purchasers and on our video's put the MT-2 through your effects loop stage of the amp for best results".
@@LFC-Star Like if there were hundreds of ways to use a distortion pedal on an amp.
They’re laughing all the way to the bank with this one.
Ive had 3 of these since 1993 , i used to love playing it through a Keyboard Amp at School when i bought my first one because when muting the whole world felt like it was folding in on itself. It was clearly ahead of its time and most people had no idea how to use the semi-parametric mids to dial up a good tone.
YES!! For me, the semi-parametric mid was all about cutting out those horrendous high-mid tones completely. I had the inside knob all the way down, the outside knob all the way up! Perfect for dropped-D, palm-muting chunk!!
@@jayburton6553 I subsequently went on to become an Audio Engineer so have managed to get it so work on just about any genre since my days of just having the high n low at 1oclock and the middle and mid frequency at 11oclock .. or as a young idiot thinking it sounded cool for the "..an justice for all" palm muted scooped thump sound, the low wound up to 3 or 4oclock ! I really do now think looking back think it truly was ahead of its time when you consider modern high gain metal tones of today. Maybe some 30yrs too early!
Metal Zone prices on Reverb just went through the roof.
This
I bought one for 35 dollars
My dad gave me his for free cause he knows that I wouldn't get one cheap
00’s Metal Heads: “metal zone sucks”
Classic 90’s Death Metal: ......😢..
i literally get all of my Metallica Tones on that plus an Equalizer
Cannibal Corpse blasted the MZ through Crate Amps and had a destructive tone.
90's death metal that was good used a Boss HM-2 Heavy Metal pedal from the 80's. You actually expected death metal bands to afford anything new? Yeah right!
@@Metal-Possum I played in death metal bands and had new equipment. Also, cannibal corpse and other bands used the metalzone. Black Metal and Melodeath bands overseas used the HM2.
@@7James77 Swedish death metal in general used the HM-2, the melodeath bands were a little bit later than the original Stockholm scene. Not sure about black metal bands, I've heard of all kinds of equipment being used in those early years, but maybe the Finnish death metal scene used the HM-2 too.
Any guitarist who thinks the Metal Zone sucks obviously just doesn't know how to set the EQ and other controls on their distortion pedals correctly. I've used it since 1994 to approximate that Metallica/Pantera-type clean crunch (which is heavy distortion that still has clarity and note definition as opposed to fuzzy muddy distortion), and it does a great job of that, especially for such an affordable pedal. Hey, the company isn't called "Boss" for no reason ;)
Where do you have the knobs?
@@alexandershaer1079 I usually set the bass between 6 and 8, the mids around 3 or 4, the treble at 4 or 5 (I don't like too much treble or mids, but I also don't like the totally scooped sound), the gain at 4 or 5 (for a clean crunch) and the level at 10.
Remembering buying this pedal back in the early 90's and like you said probably didn't know how to use it lol. Realized I was a better Bass player anyways not long after and traded it in with my guitar towards my bass which is still hanging on my wall for easy access.
I’m just learning to play. Bought it from a second hand store cheap and I like it so far. Thanks for the control setting you use 🤙🏼.
@@patrickdavis6954
No problem, brotha. Play around with the EQ and gain until you get the tone you like - it's a pretty versatile pedal.
I have this pedal, and have hated using it in front of every amp I've played it through... years later, I learn it's me and not the pedal. Thanks for the help here, sounds badass!
Lamb chopper I think said manufacture don’t recommend using in the effect loop cause it could ruin the amp? I’m not sure
I don't think it's you, I think it's the fact that it's such a counter intuitive way to use a distortion pedal
Use the metal zone with the boss equalizer. Prepare to have your mind blown!!
jethrojohansen1 or mxr eq
With the Kerry King signature 10 band EQ it's sick asf!!!!! 🤘😈
Been doing that for 15 years lol
Before or after?
Boss equalizer very underrated!!
That sounds pretty good actually
8:18 FINALLY someone who actually knows how to correctly utilize a Metal Zone. Nice one Ola.
I have my Boss Mt-2 modded into a Bogner mod. You can check it out guys into my channel... In Bogner mod, the nasal frequencies were removed (buzz-like sound).. It sounds like and feels like an amp now.. :-) Thank you..
"Why does it have such a bad rep?" Because people who cannot dial in a pedal complain the most.
Exactly, take some time and you can find exactly what your looking for. I'm on my second one currently because of a BIG mistake I made a while back! (Sold-it).
Let’s also not forget that they most likely run it through the clean channel of line 6 spider amp 😂.
@@nellawell4976 that's definitely my story bro 🤘❤️
@@OLDGUYSK8R well there's an expression from where I come from, we say "szarból nem lehet várat építeni" - loosely translated as "can't build a castle out of shit" ;-)
If line6 is anyone's thing, the let it be, but some knowledge doesn't do harm.
Nofarewell I have an expression too! Line 6 sucks balls. 🇺🇸
Jesus playng an Randall Satan ? WTF
Satan is the head of Entertainment
@@Antonjlavey yer no kiddin 😉
Jesus told us to love our enemies.
Don't forget to tell your mom SATAN
@@getulioprates yeah i got that right now
Had a couple of those back in the day, as did most of my friends. And there was all sorts of things that caused shitty sound, and in hindsight it wasnt the pedal.
1. we were broke teens with shitty instruments, mostly half wacked in setup, intonation and that sort of thing.
2. We did not have the faintest clue as to how to set the pedal for a reasonable sound, so we tended to just set most of the settings high.
3. They was used for bloody everything. Metal, industrial music, garage rock, punk, anything that needed fuzz got that damn pedal. And in hindsight, it should have been used for what it's good for.
4. We didnt know how to set amps either. We mostly tried to gradually set everything higher and higher to be heard thru the sound of friend a:s sound of Squire thru metalzone into peavey set to elevenmillion.
5. We didnt use hearing protection and rehearsed like mad. I played in three bands at the same time, had constant tinnitus and muffled sound.
In short, we were idiots in the 90s. I even ran vocals thru one of those at one point.
I got sick of and hated this pedal solely because of #3 above. Everyone and their grandmother was using this pedal. Now combine that with multiple guitarists on the same bill using similar guitar/amp setups and you can see why people came to despise the thing.
I have this pedal and thought it was crap and then realized it was my technique and sloppy playing that was crap....I thought like many people that distortion and heavy gain would hide my shitty technique when it actually highlighted it.
But, it's made me a much better player.
I played this thing through a Korean made Fender Squier and to this day it is one of the best sounds I've ever had. I had no idea people hated this pedal. I had a Boss Ds-1 too and just never used it again once I got this pedal.
This guy is Viking Jerry Cantrell
Couldn't agree more! Well Jerry's grandfather was from Norway, so yeah.
Jerry Cantrell looks like the dude that got blood eagled in Vikings
ruclips.net/video/JvJbJgwnNcg/видео.html
No, Jerry Cantrell is Viking Jerry Cantrell.
@@hinjurock70 Wow Jerry Cantrell is a recursive function too !
Haha, I recorded three albums with it plugged into the front. 😂 Ah well, live and learn twenty years later.
it sounds fine. He sabotaged this "experiment" by turning the volume down before he started testing it. 6:00
I just found this out as well. It doesn't sound bad in the front, but it does have more of that shattered glass sound. Plugged in the back it sounds a bit more classic with my guitar.
The problem is that you didn’t use a butterscotch tele
And he didn't use a fender practice amp either
Toan
Butterscotch tele actually sounds good with the metal zone
boss katana ok
B P. boss kaTOANa
I rediscovered this pedal recently. I use it for singing leads in edgy blues with attitude style (Gary Moore, Walter Trout styles) & rock/hard rock. And yes, some screaming heavy metal rock lead tones for hard rock tunes of mine. I am using it in front of the amp with the help of a TC Electronics Spark and Boss EQ and it sounds awesome. I am going to give this a try thru the effects loop as you have done. Sounded killer.
For me, Metal Zone is the best pedal ever!
It is pure Thrash Metal!
Cheers from Portugal 🍺🤘
Portugal Caralho!
@@Se1LaEu
🍺🇵🇹🍺
I had a similar one called distortion (been years) but yeah those were good times.
I'm convinced at least half the people who shit on the Metal Zone have either never owned one or have never tried one; they're just on the train cuz it's the cool thing to do.
Have the haters tried it with a different amp or a different guitar/pickups? Have they even tried rolling the volume knob on their guitar down a bit (ever?) Urgh... Like any piece of gear, it depends who plays it, what it's paired to, what it's miked with, etc. Sure, it's not the best pedal out there and the EQ is a bit too extreme, but it can sound really good! Long live the black sheep of pedals!
Pat Flanigan Everything boss makes is awesome. I dunno what all the hate is about.
I still have mine to this day. I got it 18 years ago. It sounds great with an overdrive and EQ pedal through a really nice clean channel amp.
i do know what the hate is about, Success , its a successful company, and gear snobs don't like the affordability of good quality stuff
I think you’re pretty spot on I have several pedals I despise with my emgs (most fuzz sounds flat to me threw it) but my brothers single coils make it sound amazing and the opposite is true with some of my high gain distortions it sounds like shit threw his single coils but screams (in a good way) with my emgs I’m fortunate enough to have multiple guitar setups and a basic understanding of eq and signal but the average person probably has neither of those or the patience to tinker with it
Or maybe because its a meme
When you put it in the effects loop it sounds badass. I hear elements of late '90s Corrosion of Conformity, Pantera, Rammstein in that tone. Awesome.
Amt used to make a pedal named Du Hast which has even more compression than this. Instant Rammstein tone though.
The "You Have" Pedal
Mechanic Holy shit I forgot all about Corrosion of Conformity! I haven't listened to them in at least 15 years! Think I know what I'm listening to today, thanks,
@@interstellartravel I see the world through blood shot eyes........
got some kyuss vibes too
Boss Metalzone was my first pedal, went well with my first guitar and first amp. I remember when the local guitar store let me take home a Hugh's and Kettner tube amp for the weekend... what a difference!
I am a beginner and love this pedal. I started out trying the various recommended settings and use it like a preamp with a shitty practice amp. This pedal has a lot more range than metal if you actually read the manual. Once you get a hang of how to shape the tone ALONG WITH the distortion and level, you can get any kind of rock or metal sound out of it, esp if you combine it with a compressor to boost sustain and attack.
Metal zone is a great pedal, if you approach wisely you can make a very great sound. I love this pedal for its aggressive, tenacious sound! Thanks for the review!
Who else heard "Aerials" at 5:53?
joey kimble That exact same thought went through my head as I watched lol
It's also a bit reminds a beginning of Sounds of A Playground Fading by In Flames
Definitely! That song is awesome to play. I can’t help but play it every time I pick up a guitar lol
Steinn Bjorn I love that song
I did @1:10
After listening to this video I had to go out and get this pedal..I've always plugged in in the front of my amp,and I've only just started using the effects loop..I scratched my head thinking why the hell haven't I been using this all along..Ola I watch your stuff daily and I have to say I've learned so much as a struggling guitarist learning to play..You have helped so many guitar players out here and really dont even know it..This pedal with my katana mk2 100 with the peavey 5150 cab sounds like a different world plugged in . Keep up the lessons for us losers out here brother 😂
The Metal Zone pedal is great. Been out of the music scene for 10 years now, but my last guitarist absolutely swore by it. And it sounded great then, like it does now.
same boat, i used to use this pedal before youtube even existed and so i’m surprised to see people don’t like it. maybe i just sounded terrible back then and just never knew 😂
I don't know where or when the "Metal Zone sucks" trend got started, but as both a studio and live sound engineer who's worked countless shows and studio gigs, I've recorded and have done live gigs for many metal bands who used the Metal Zone and to me it always sounded great for metal once you dialed in the right tone and if you used the right kind of amp. If the rhythm guitarist had his pedal too scooped I just told him to crank his mids as much as he could tolerate and then I just adjusted it from there at the board. When recording I'd always tell a guitarist that its easier to cut frequencies that are there during mixdown rather than try to boost what is NOT there (due to the guitarist cutting too much mids on his pedal or his amp's eq). But I always was happy to see a guitarist using the metal zone. In my opinion it always made my life easier when recording metal. More annoying is when a guitarist would bring some stupid boutique distortion pedal that sounded like mush for metal but then demanded that I make him a tone like Metallica. Hence why I also own several Metal Zone pedals and would usually end up swapping out their boutique pedals for either a Metal Zone or my excellent old Zoom 5000 Driver pedal (super amazing for metal but super rare these days). At any rate...if you can't get a good metal sound out of a metal zone, you either suck as a player, your amp sucks, or you're doing something very wrong in your gain staging or eq'ing. Also when recording or live, go easy on the bass freq eq on the pedal that way the band's bass guitar won't get lost in the mix or turn the mix into a rumbling mess.
I own 2 of these 'cos they are badass and nothing else in the price range can touch it. I was running one thru a old Peavey "The Classic" from the 70's and it had a Mosfett preamp in it and 2 6L6's in the power amp side. So, solid state preamp, no effects loop that I saw and both of them sounded great! I liked it so much I picked up another one on ebay at some point. P.S. I'm 62 YRS OLD and still rockin'!
Love this comment, especially for the part about laying off the dialing in bass in guitar eq. I really don't get the whole thing with guitarists getting such a stiffy for excessive low end. That's the job of the bass. Go listen to RATM and you'll see what I mean. It sounds nasty, meaty and ballsy, but look at what Tom morello plays, not a super punchy or heavy setup. So where does all the bottom end come from? Tim Cummerford. The bassist. I took note of this early on. Other heavy af bass sounds: deep purple, motorhead, old cliff burton era metallica, dio either solo, with sabbath or rainbow, korn... the list goes on. More and more I'm falling in love with the bass guitar in hard rock and metal. As a guitarist, I rarely ever turn my bass knob beyond like, 6. Let the mids and high end through! Let that thing scream and sing!
Thanks. I guess it's because in the bedroom, an amp/cabinet with good bass response, sounds really awesome and thundering when the bass is cranked to around 8 or so. I know my Crate Stealth halfstack really thunders. However, I learned the hard way years ago not to do this playing live in a band after years of wondering why our live recordings always sounded like a mushy boomy mess.. It wasn't until I started getting into live sound engineering and studio engineering that figured out what was going on. Likewise I was dragged kicking and screaming into the realization that too much scooped mids made the rhythm guitar disappear in a live or recorded mix. Again, great sounding in the bedroom but terrible sounding live or recorded with a band.
As you said, indeed the bass guitarist and his bass are a rhythm guitarist's best friend. When they provide all of the low end, everything sounds so much tighter and heavier sounding.
A more modern example that I like to use is Cradle of Filth's "Cruelty and the Beast" album which has to me an absolutely perfect mix between the monstrous rhythm guitars and an equally monstrous growling bass guitar. Together they just sound amazing.
ruclips.net/video/_0P5_ZcYGOM/видео.html
@@Breaker197 I've heard this phenomenon explained a few times. Guitarists like to crank up the bass when playing by themselves (jamming to a click or stripped down backing track) because it "fills out the sound." However, with a bassist in the mix it's not necessary, and guitarists tend to do it out of habit at that point. I've been playing guitar a little over 20 years and I'm an audio engineer, and I think this explanation is spot on.
I do totally agree, though,more mids and less bass sounds great, generally speaking. I think I usually have my bass knob at 12 o' clock or less.
30 years later and a random Swede discovers what we’ve been doing wrong the whole time.
random BURPING Swede! In crazy world we live :D
I like this comment :/
He didn't discover it lol it's been a long kept secret that has recently made it to RUclips this year.
"That's the wrong hole, baby".
Jake Swider not just a Swede, the chosen one...
..... the chosen Swede.
5:53 Who else thought he was about to play Aerials By: System of a Down?
Jeremy Cox meee
Yuuup
was waiting for the rest :)
Meee xdxx
What’s up boys. What genre would you classify SOAD? They’re my all time favorite band.
I bought a used, barely used one at GC a few weeks ago for $50. I have been loving it! My set up is just an Orange Crush 35rt, but thru the clean channel I can't leave it alone. The mid adjustment inside dial was a critical setting for me. It sounds great with standard tuned 6 string, and 7s in A and G# standard tuning. I didn't know these were supposed to be bad 😂
I loved my metal zone. Anyone who thinks they suck simply don't know how to use them.
It's all about dialing it in, just like he said in the video, right? Like he touched on, the treble knob is pretty touchy and can change the sound a lot, making it too harsh and abrasive, or boxy sounding. I freakin' love my metal zone pedal, and I've had it for forever, maybe about 20 years.
Metalzone was my first distortion pedal. It sounds like 100 angry killer bees if you cant dial it in. I swapped a few opamps in a mod kit and it really opened up. Vastly underrated pedal.
Mike G The Metal Zone sounds awesome when you’re playing alone in your bedroom. It can also be recorded and sound great when mixed properly. However if you try to run it through an amp at live volumes and play along with a bass and drums, the MZ’s limitations quickly reveal themselves. Thin and tinny.
@@ultrahighgain412 not in the effects loop. I would use it live back in the day as a cheap backup plan. I had a nice loud cab.
People that call it shit don't understand how a parametric eq works.
Usually noobs.
That "broken" sound in the latter half of the video is basically THE sound I associate with the MT-2 from back in the day.
And it's a available version of the BOSS HM-2.
AGREED!!!!
Frank ILYY every bad high school metal/hardcore band
Frank ILYY I associate it with Death \m/
It greatly depends on the album, I'd say. The albums sound all quite different to me, in regards to the guitar tone.
Back in the day, well like 15 years ago, it sounded better than the normal small practice amp distortion. And people just scoop the mids and dont set it up properly.
I used one of these to record an entire hard rock album in 2011 through a Banditt 112. I had no idea what I was doing then, but listening back over 10 years later, it's like REALLY great.
I actually just mastered all the tracks to be released on all streaming sh!t on April 28th
I actually just remembered it somehow caught fire on stage and that's how it died.
I wanna hear
From what I recall that’s pretty much what Entombed used to record Clandestine, Metalzone’s and mic'd up Bandits.
WHERE IS THE ALBUM, WHAT ARE YOU HIDING!?
It sounds pretty good. It reminds me of Exodus” sound back in 80s
Kitty Hawk amplifiers were used for Impact is Imminent
yeah the last seconds
Well, i just bought another metal zone to try this with, probably the 3rd or 4th ive owned in my life, thanks alot.
did you smash the other 3 you had?
2 days later, how'd it go?
In on my 3rd but not cuz they broke. 1 got stolen and 1 pawned.
HoshiHearts RetroGaming I always end up selling them
Luke Rozenberg just doin my thang!
Had a Metal Zone back in the day, i didn't understand why anyone would ever make fun of it, it kicked ass
facts bro, I had mine for years and had to unfortunately sell it.
J. Hinson because people with not much experience probably bought it and had no idea about fx loops or it being a pre-amp pedal, and just plugged it up into the main input.
Same I loved that damn thing... noted whenever I used it in a stage setting I needed to pair it with a noise gate, but man, that thing really suited playing some Sepultura and Pantera type stuff.. loved it.. I left it in a practice room and it got stolen so it can't b that bad haha.. not the only one I bought either I think I owned 3 or 4 over the years.. was the only way back in the late 90s early 2000s to get that sound on the cheap, period..
purchased my first MT-2 back in 1992 for my grindcore band. At the time there was simply nothing like it for a young death metaller on a budget. I use to pair it up with a Boss EQ for a bit of shaping and run it all through the front end of an ALRON 100w with a single 15". Sounded great back in the day.
the metal zone makes a killer bass distortion too
unfortunately my bandmates don't believe that
at the same time it'd be cool for bass if there was a blend knob
DENTI I imagine someone has come up with a way to mod that into the pedal, you could probably find a schematic online for it
The pedal did find it's way into more bassists hands, after all the guitar players were over it.
Is this for real??? Never thought this would even slightly work. 🤔
It does work, but like you'd expect with a guitar distortion pedal, you lose all the low frequencies. But with a second effect loop with no disto on it, it sounds great !
Well, around the year 2000, this pedal had a very good reputation in the Czech Republic. Especially between black and death metal bands.
The very fact that he is actually taking the time and effort to make a video about this pedal is testimony to its success.
Another way to use it, is connect to reverb and chorus that will turns it as a DS-1, works great for base and solo.
I've been using with my G1Xon like: Metal Zone > Noise Supressor > G1Xon (reverb, chorus and amp simulator) > Audio Interface.
Work better than G1Xon distortion.
I'm really disappointed that the shirts are "Chug Is Life" rather than "CHUG LIFE".😩😭
What is Your Sound Setup on the MT2?
@@alexanderklein9433 metal knob going full and zone knob staying half way
Sure it sounds great when it goes thru a full tube power amp . In the 90's many people that bought this pedal used it with shitty amps because that was all they can afford .
I still have my MetalZone and I will never sell it.
Laurence TD YUP!
Laurence TD the first Metalzone you heard was mine, I salute you, my friend ! :)
Yeah, people think it sucks because they plugged it into their fucking plastic bodied battery amp that came in a catalog guitar kit. Lol
@@klauswhitedreamer I was lucky to have you as teacher so I didn't wasted money on bad gear.
Laurence TD be blessed, my friend 😘
The FX-return on the back of any guitaramp is actually a direct input on the poweramp. It bypasses the the whole preamp of the guitaramp, in most cases including EQ.
What Ola demonstrates here perfectly is the only proper way to test or hook up any external preamp to a guitaramp, in this case the Boss Metalzone. If you hookup an external preamp to the build-in preamp of the guitaramp it often results in a harsh and thin sound, especially distorted sounds.
This is also the way tocgo if you want to hook up two guitarheads in stereoo; don’t use a splitter or stereochorus with one input and two outputs running thru both of the guitar inputs. The result will be leaking signal from one to the other, noticable when both preamps set in drive mode.
Also, you’ll need to channelswitching units this way which is a drag to create anyway.
Just run the Fx-send from amp A to the FX-return of amp B instead.
To make it even bigger stereosounding connect a stereo Fx device (19” multifx or pedal) thru the Fx-loop of amp A, using send and return. To connect amp B simply connect the 2nd output from the stereo FX device to the return of amp B.
Yes but the MT2 is a DISTORTION PEDAL not a PREAMP
Forest I know but it def sounds ugly on a preamp.
I still get blown away when you turn the Distortion up at the start, buying one ASAP!
5:54 sounded like aerials by system of a down for a second
Dr PepperOverdose Yeah. I had to replay that part because I thought he was playing it for a second.
I came here to check if anybody else heard it as well....
Phillip McKnight & Ola made a video about the Metal Zone.
250% sales boost on the next day! :)
@@MK-oz2lf 😂😂😂
In Phillip's video, all of his pedal sound fizzy though...
Yeah, the parametric EQ destroyed them all! :)
@@Oilid I saw that. I always wondered about the Boss PQ-4. I love the Analogman modded Boss Eq-6 with my rig. Maybe with amp distortion or in a loop it be ok. But the Pq-4 is expensive nowadays since it is discontinued.
@@MK-oz2lf lmao
Best articulation and sustain of any pedal. The palm mutes stay crisp and clear and don't get buried in mud like most distortion pedals and many tube amps.
TBH I prefer a solid state tone for metal. This is nice, the tube power section rounds out the sound a bit, but the pedal as a preamp provides a good solid low end and crisp highs. I use a Digitech Hardwire TL2, and that thing has got a great tone. Kind of like this, only smoother, and works ok straight into the clean channel.
I was around 13 years old and was really into Metal .Thrash Metal like Metallica ,Pantera and Megadeth were at thier peak.A distortion pedal with eq,i found it super cool and pretty great sounding .I never understand why it has a bad rep
THANK YOU OLA. I thought I was losing my damn mind b/c that pedal can sound amazing. I do have to wonder if many forum "experts" out there have ever even played a live speed metal gig on stage, but insist that you can't use that pedal.... because they read it somewhere so it must be true.