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Boss Metal Zone pedal??

MLC2006MLC2006 Posts: 861
edited July 2007 in Musicians and Gearheads
I'm looking for something that has a nasty, but crisp biting distortion rather than muddy distortion. maybe something that can do 80s Metallica and earlier AIC. I have read enough to assume that the Boss Metal Zone is the preferred metal pedal, but is it what I"m after? I've got a tubescreamer and a Boss OS2. the OS2 does a 'decent' job of disortion, but if you try to get it to go too metally, it gets muddied up. is the metal zone a good pedal for what I'm looking for?
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • armanHammerarmanHammer Posts: 471
    Metal Zone is ok, but not good. If you want something really nice, check out the Tube Zone at http://miaudio.com or the Crunch Box (I own a crunch box, and it's great for that Van Halen 80's sound. I've heard great things about the Tube Zone)
    Riverside.. LA.. California. EV?
  • xtremehardy388xtremehardy388 Posts: 2,759
    The Metal Zone is a good metal pedal but that's about it. The BD-2 can dial in some REAL crisp distortion...so can the DS-1. I assume the you want that high/treble stuff. Have the tone cranked. The Metal Zone MIGHT be okay but I'd keep lookin at the BD-2 and the DS-1. The OS2 is a nice overdrive but it's not too good with crisp distortion. The Turbo Distortion is also pretty good and is the BOSS ML-2. The MD-2 is all right but I don't know if it's what you want. The BD-2 is a good price and has a LOT of versatility.

    If you want something other than an BOSS, look at the Danelectro Black Coffee distortion...it's not road worthy but it gets the job done. The distortion factory, the Zakk Wylde signature, Digitech X-Series Metal Master, Danelectro Fab Metal, and the Danelectro Black Liccorice Metal pedal are all right. The Digitech Death Metal is a good pedal for metallica but not AIC.

    Hope those are somewhat of a help, haha sorry for all the options, haha
    Grand Rapids '04, Detroit '06
    JEFF HARDY AND JEFF AMENT USED TO LOOK THE SAME
    "Pearl Jam always eases my mind and fires me up at the same time.”-Jeff Hardy
  • MLC2006MLC2006 Posts: 861
    xtremehardy388 wrote:
    The Metal Zone is a good metal pedal but that's about it. The BD-2 can dial in some REAL crisp distortion...so can the DS-1. I assume the you want that high/treble stuff. Have the tone cranked. The Metal Zone MIGHT be okay but I'd keep lookin at the BD-2 and the DS-1. The OS2 is a nice overdrive but it's not too good with crisp distortion. The Turbo Distortion is also pretty good and is the BOSS ML-2. The MD-2 is all right but I don't know if it's what you want. The BD-2 is a good price and has a LOT of versatility.

    If you want something other than an BOSS, look at the Danelectro Black Coffee distortion...it's not road worthy but it gets the job done. The distortion factory, the Zakk Wylde signature, Digitech X-Series Metal Master, Danelectro Fab Metal, and the Danelectro Black Liccorice Metal pedal are all right. The Digitech Death Metal is a good pedal for metallica but not AIC.

    Hope those are somewhat of a help, haha sorry for all the options, haha

    I used to have a BD2 that I didn't like much at all. maybe I didn't give it enough of a chance, but I don't think it can do the sound I'm after. I also another Boss pedal, either a SD1 or a DS1 (I sold it to somebody on this same board, but I can't remember which one it was), I actually liked it better than the BD, but I still don't know if it would get the sound I'm after (though it's pretty cheap at $39).

    of all the ones you mentioned, which do you think has the crispest least muddy "metal" sound. yeah, the sound I'm after is kind of that high gain sound but where the individual notes don't really blur into each other. like Master of Puppets and Enter Sandman. the OS2 and Tubescreamer really gets AIC pretty good.

    edit: was that you that bought that BD2 and the other pedal from me? I think I remember him living in kalamazzoo, that was you right? which other pedal was that a SD or DS?
  • MLC2006MLC2006 Posts: 861
    armanHammer wrote:
    Metal Zone is ok, but not good. If you want something really nice, check out the Tube Zone at http://miaudio.com or the Crunch Box (I own a crunch box, and it's great for that Van Halen 80's sound. I've heard great things about the Tube Zone)

    I'll have to check that out and see how much they would cost to get one in the US. thanks for the link.
  • xtremehardy388xtremehardy388 Posts: 2,759
    MLC2006 wrote:
    I used to have a BD2 that I didn't like much at all. maybe I didn't give it enough of a chance, but I don't think it can do the sound I'm after. I also another Boss pedal, either a SD1 or a DS1 (I sold it to somebody on this same board, but I can't remember which one it was), I actually liked it better than the BD, but I still don't know if it would get the sound I'm after (though it's pretty cheap at $39).

    of all the ones you mentioned, which do you think has the crispest least muddy "metal" sound. yeah, the sound I'm after is kind of that high gain sound but where the individual notes don't really blur into each other. like Master of Puppets and Enter Sandman. the OS2 and Tubescreamer really gets AIC pretty good.

    edit: was that you that bought that BD2 and the other pedal from me? I think I remember him living in kalamazzoo, that was you right? which other pedal was that a SD or DS?

    YES!!! IT was me!!! haha, it was the SD-1 which I hace since modded. Of the ones I mentioned...let's see here(I'm tryig to remember them...I haven't used them in a LONG time...) Both the Digitech ones are good. The X-Series one is the most versatile because you have a LOT more options with it. For the BOSS was, the ML-2 is your best bet. I'd personally go for either the ML-2 or the Digitech X-series one. I love my BOSS pedals and I have two X-Series pedals in my current chain. Try them before you get them if you can.
    Grand Rapids '04, Detroit '06
    JEFF HARDY AND JEFF AMENT USED TO LOOK THE SAME
    "Pearl Jam always eases my mind and fires me up at the same time.”-Jeff Hardy
  • MLC2006MLC2006 Posts: 861
    xtremehardy388 wrote:
    YES!!! IT was me!!! haha, it was the SD-1 which I hace since modded. Of the ones I mentioned...let's see here(I'm tryig to remember them...I haven't used them in a LONG time...) Both the Digitech ones are good. The X-Series one is the most versatile because you have a LOT more options with it. For the BOSS was, the ML-2 is your best bet. I'd personally go for either the ML-2 or the Digitech X-series one. I love my BOSS pedals and I have two X-Series pedals in my current chain. Try them before you get them if you can.

    well, I get a lot of my stuff like that off musicians friend but it's alright because they has a 45 day return for any reason. I might try out that ML-2. the more I was reading on that Metal Zone, it looks like it's more geared toward death metal and Slayer type sound...heavier than the sound I'm after.
  • NovawindNovawind Posts: 836
    Do yourself a favor and check out the EHX Metal Muff series. The only difference between the nano, micro, and regular ones is the smaller you get, the less tone shaping you get. The big one has bass/mid/treb so you can really scoop your tone. The micro one is also pretty good, has a general tone knob and then a finger switch for top boost on/off. My friend has the regular metal muff with top boost and it pretty much covers any kind of distortion you could want, unless it's like absolute-fucking-death-metal-thrash. It might not go that far. But give it a shot. The top boost is also really nice for solos, it's just that little bit of treble push you need to stand out over a rhythm.
    If idle hands are the devil's workshop, he must not be very productive.

    7/9/06 LA 1
    7/10/06 LA 2
    10/21/06 Bridge 1
  • xtremehardy388xtremehardy388 Posts: 2,759
    For "You Are" Stone uses a Sans-Amp classic Distortion. This pedal is GREAT for any kind of distortion. I don't know if you'll get the metal sound though and I think it might be discontinued however, if ou find one on ebay for cheap, I'd take a look at it. If you don't like it, I'll probably buy it off you ;)
    Grand Rapids '04, Detroit '06
    JEFF HARDY AND JEFF AMENT USED TO LOOK THE SAME
    "Pearl Jam always eases my mind and fires me up at the same time.”-Jeff Hardy
  • Pacomc79Pacomc79 Posts: 9,404
    http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ElectroHarmonix-Metal-Muff-with-Top-Boost?sku=153339

    http://www.miaudio.com/TZ1.htm - ridiculously flexible.


    one of the comments about the metal muff states that it sounds good through his deluxe 90. That's a strong statement considering that's one of the worst solid state amps ever constructed... for what that's worth.

    I think the metal zone can do what you want, it's definately built for a scooped tone with a lot of high end. Mods would help bass response and clarity but ultimately a 4x12 cabinet would do much more for bass response anyway.... what is your rig like?


    If you can't spend over 100 bucks....I'd get the metal muff.

    regardless the clips of the above two should help.
    My Girlfriend said to me..."How many guitars do you need?" and I replied...."How many pairs of shoes do you need?" She got really quiet.
  • Mike_Muse_RageMike_Muse_Rage Posts: 677
    The Marshall Jackhammer will do all of that and more.
  • seanw1010seanw1010 Posts: 1,205
    the BD2 is awesome. i would really suggest that
    they call them fingers, but i never see them fing. oh, there they go
  • xtremehardy388xtremehardy388 Posts: 2,759
    Mike_Muse_Rage wrote:
    The Marshall Jackhammer will do all of that and more.
    Yeah, I totally forgot about that Jackhammer, it's a good one.
    Grand Rapids '04, Detroit '06
    JEFF HARDY AND JEFF AMENT USED TO LOOK THE SAME
    "Pearl Jam always eases my mind and fires me up at the same time.”-Jeff Hardy
  • xtremehardy388xtremehardy388 Posts: 2,759
    seanw1010 wrote:
    the BD2 is awesome. i would really suggest that
    hah, we went over that one earlier...I have his former BD2, hahaha
    Grand Rapids '04, Detroit '06
    JEFF HARDY AND JEFF AMENT USED TO LOOK THE SAME
    "Pearl Jam always eases my mind and fires me up at the same time.”-Jeff Hardy
  • MLC2006MLC2006 Posts: 861
    yeah, I'm not saying the BD2 is awful, it's just not what I was looking for and I'm pretty sure it won't do what I'm talking about here. the OS2 and TS9 are good for the grunge type stuff.

    my amp is a Fender BLues Deluxe, which I know is definitely not geared towards metal, but I know I can get closer to what I'm after than with the pedals I have. I'm looking for a sound like on "Master of Puppets" and "Battery" and maybe "Enter Sandman". I was reading a lot of the reviews on the Metal Zone and even on the ML, and a lot of them are saying they can get kind of muddy and it looks like a lot of those people are playing death metal, which isn't what I"m after. the Boss Mega Distortion looked closer to what I was looking for. and I'm going to look at that metal muff pedal too.

    I looked at that Marshall Jackhammer pedal too, but a few of those reviews were saying the same thing. it seems like no matter which pedal, there are a lot of people's reviews that make it sound exactly like what I'm looking for, and then others that make it sound like the exact opposite.

    thanks for the recommendations. before anyone recommends it, no, I'm not going to run out and buy a new amp (though I may look into Mesa in a few years) as I mainly play stuff like PJ, AIC, Skynyrd, and ACDC, stuff that my current amp is perfectly suited for. I am just looking for something to play Metallica like stuff now and then.
  • Pacomc79Pacomc79 Posts: 9,404
    ah, ok. so you've got a blues deluxe. great amp. You'll definately get there, it just will take some experimentation. The clean is solid, you've just got to find the right gain stage(s) for the front end.

    Tweeds are historically a bit flabby in the low end, one "fix" is to get a slightly higher wattage speaker to tighten it up a bit but this is not necessary.

    I think you are on the right track. If I were you, I'd try a variety of them if possible in a local shop first.


    MF has the return policy but it gets frustrating. Reviews are mainly a reliability tool. There is always one guy who has a negative opinion, and 15 who are glowing or the wrong style what have you, and then they process the hell out of clips sometimes...it helps a lot if you can find a local shop that will let you spend 5 minutes with each and your amp.

    here is more on the EHX

    http://ehx.com/ehx2/Default.asp?q=f&f=%2FCatalog%2F01%5FNew%5FProducts%2F05%5FMetal%5FMuff

    It really reminds me of a rat pedal with a top boost and a more flexible EQ. The majority of the gain comes fromt the output then the gain adds hair, and the top boost gives you more prescense for solos.


    DO try a rat if you can find one. It's a good stacker, plays well with OD's and essentially provides that crunchy marshall tone. But I agree with the above, the Metal Muff should be just what you are asking for
    My Girlfriend said to me..."How many guitars do you need?" and I replied...."How many pairs of shoes do you need?" She got really quiet.
  • ianvomsaalianvomsaal Posts: 1,224
    I'd say to give the ToneBone Hot British (even Kirk Hammett uses one) or a Plexitube
    You can really scoop these if want, it's got an actual 12AX7 pre-amp tube in it (it's
    got: bright, flat, dark, fat, notch, and out switches for either singlecoils or humbuckers),
    and you can get almost every kind of Marshall(ish)type sound with that pedal.
    Cheers . . .

    - Ian C.T. vom Saal
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  • xtremehardy388xtremehardy388 Posts: 2,759
    I'd still keep looking into either the Digitech ones or the BOSS ones.
    Grand Rapids '04, Detroit '06
    JEFF HARDY AND JEFF AMENT USED TO LOOK THE SAME
    "Pearl Jam always eases my mind and fires me up at the same time.”-Jeff Hardy
  • samquigleysamquigley Posts: 220
    Ibanez SD-9s seem to be coming down in price on the second-hand market. I know, because I just sold mine for a third of what I paid for it. The MI Audio Tube Zone really is fantastic, too. Maybe more than what you're looking for, perhaps the Crunchbox would be more up your alley? Michael Ibrahim is the man. Oh, and as I tell everyone, keep your eyes peeled for a Greedtone. Best... pedal... ever.
  • xtremehardy388xtremehardy388 Posts: 2,759
    Hey, I just found this on ebay


    http://cgi.ebay.com/Boss-Heavy-Metal-HM-2-Made-in-Japan_W0QQitemZ300127521932QQihZ020QQcategoryZ64417QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


    http://cgi.ebay.com/2-Guitar-Distortion-Effects-Pedals-Boss-DigiTech_W0QQitemZ200127318192QQihZ010QQcategoryZ41416QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
    Grand Rapids '04, Detroit '06
    JEFF HARDY AND JEFF AMENT USED TO LOOK THE SAME
    "Pearl Jam always eases my mind and fires me up at the same time.”-Jeff Hardy
  • MLC2006MLC2006 Posts: 861
    xtremehardy388 wrote:
    Hey, I just found this on ebay


    http://cgi.ebay.com/Boss-Heavy-Metal-HM-2-Made-in-Japan_W0QQitemZ300127521932QQihZ020QQcategoryZ64417QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


    http://cgi.ebay.com/2-Guitar-Distortion-Effects-Pedals-Boss-DigiTech_W0QQitemZ200127318192QQihZ010QQcategoryZ41416QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

    cool, thanks. ima watch out on those. I've never even heard of the pedal in the first link, but if it's cheap enough, why not?

    I'm also going to look at some of those other pedals. what I've been reading though, the metal muff is looking good.
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