Cult of the Undying Damned Metal Zone!

[Baloney Balderdash]

This is the thread where the controversial, but undeniably equally popular, hated and loved, and perhaps most misunderstood distortion pedal ever, the Boss MT-2 Metal Zone, gets the love it deserves.

 

 

So my history with the Boss MT-2 Metal Zone starts back when I just started to play guitar, and actually in fact even before I knew how to play guitar properly.

 

Yes, I started off on guitar, until I a couple of years later discovered the blessing of the low end and bass became my main instrument of choice, though continuing to this day with playing guitar on the side line, my very first pedal ever.

 

And the Metal Zone followed me on bass where it was go to bass distortion pedal for many years.

 

I since have sold, only to later buy again, this pedal numerous times, and admittedly there was a time where I, misguided and wayward from the rightful path, didn't have very high thoughts about its capabilities, but I have since opened my eyes to the one foreordained and infallible truth and repented for this former diluted misconception, and this time my current Boss MT-2 Metal Zone is staying for sure, as I have found an application where it absolutely shines.

 

 

This is how I use it currently, for an absolute monstrous ballsy and massively heavy high gain distortion tone, with a very raunchy fuzz like quality to it, but still actually impressively well articulated and defined:

 

6 string 30" scale Harley Benton GuitarBass (Bass VI type instrument, strung with Newtone custom nickle plated roundwound hex steel core guitar strings, gauge .080 - .060 - .045 - .034 - .027 - .020, tuned in F#1 standard tuning, as in 10 half steps bellow regular guitar E2 standard tuning, or 2 half steps above regular bass E1 standard tuning) ->>

 

->> Boss LS-2 [A+B Mix <-> Bypass] (always on parallel effect loops mixer/switch) ={ [Loop A Send] ->> Mosky Black Rat (RAT clone, in Turbo RAT, LED diode clipping, mode, quite raunchy, fuzz-esque, high gain distortion, always used mixed with the Metal Zone distortion in parallel effects [Loop B]) ->> Behringer SF300 Super Fuzz (Boss FZ-2/Univox Superfuzz clone, octave fuzz, always mixed with either clean {bass+octave up} signal or Metal Zone distortion from parallel effects [Loop B]) ->> [Loop A Return] ->|+|<- [Loop B Send] ->> Joyo Orange Juice (always on upper low/lower medium gain overdrive, [Tone] set at about 11 o'clock, [Voice] set to boost a wide curve around a 800Hz center frequency about +2dB pre gain stage, always mixed with either clean {bass+octave up} or Black Rat from parallel effects [Loop A]) ->> Boss MT-2 Metal Zone (distortion, dialed in at a rather moderate gain setting, always used with the Orange Juice behind it stacked into it, and always used either mixed with the Rat distortion, or sometimes the Behringer Super Fuzz, in parallel effects [Loop A]) ->> [Loop B Return] ([Loop A] + [Loop B] mixed at an about 50/50 ratio) }=>> 

 

 

Though actually the Metal Zone does hold it's own all by it self, or blended with clean signal from that other effects loop.

 

And while it is still a good pedal for guitar I think it is a genuinely amazing for bass.

 

Unfortunately I haven't got any audio clips where I demonstrate this setup, but here are the settings I use for the Metal Zone:

 

High = 10 o'clock ; Low = 1 o'clock ; Mid Freq = 9 o'clock ; Middle = 1 o'clock ; Dist = 10 o'clock

 

 

And here are a couple of YouTube videos that I think do the pedal justice demonstrated on bass (I know these videos features other stuff than strictly the Metal Zone used on bass, but non the less I feel like these are the videos, out of the ones I could find, that represents it best) :

 

 

Also personally, while not owning or even actually having played the MT-2w Waza Craft version, judging from the YouTube videos where it is demonstrated alone, I prefer the distortion tone of the original Metal Zone for bass.

 

 

Edited October 27 by Baloney Balderdash

[Supernaut]

The Metal Zone sounds awful in front of an amp. In the effects loop, you can get some decent sounds. 

[Baloney Balderdash]

Rise, rise to glory!

 

I am necromancing this thread, partially because my beloved Boss MT-2 has changed position and function on my setup, partially to see if anyone else in the meantime has discovered the glory of the worlds most (un)popular metal pedal.

 

 

So as for the change my Metal Zone is now placed after my always on subtle reverb, to give me a huge thick wall of sound tone, especially monstrous  for chords, with a Joyo Orange Juice after it, dialed in to a medium gain type of overdrive, and when stacked into that the distortion of the metal zone changes character into something more grindy and grunty.

 

Pretty much same settings on the Metal Zone though as descriped in the OP:  

 

High = 11 o'clock ; Low = 1 o'clock ; Mid Freq = 9 o'clock ; Middle = 1 o'clock ; Dist = 10 o'clock

 

 

My regular high gain distortion tone is now provided by the Mosky Black Rat alone, still on the Turbo RAT setting, mixed in parallel via a Boss LS-2 with a medium gain overdrive from a Joyo Orange Juice, at an about high gain Turbo RAT distortion 60/40 medium gain overdrive ratio.

 

 

Edited July 22 by Baloney Balderdash

[BEADist]

 

With the 'boost' expression pedal I can gradually add the MT-2 or HM-2 on a parallel signal path (with a HPF at 250 Hz pre distortion) to my main bass sound.

 

I have always liked these filthy Boss distortions. It seems I like 'harsh' : )