Better Guitar

player opinions

Boss MT-2 Metal Zone

Name: Langi
Price Paid: $100 (Austria)
Performance
Man, this pedal is absolutely awesome! The range of sounds it can create is really overwhelming. From a very nice punk rock sound to a really fat heavy metal sound, everything is possible!
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
This pedal creates very much gain with very low noise. The overdrive and distortion it creates, really ROCK!
Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
This thing is build of very solid metal. I think a 300lbs. man can’t destroy it by jumping on it!
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Patrick S.
Price Paid: $50
Performance
This pedal is WICKED AWESOME! I can get an amazing amount of gain without losing any tone quality. My chords cut through the distortion with ease, yet I still get that heavy sound I love. Our Canadian friend is insane to hate this pedal. (I agree with Jeff. Too many knobs!)
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
So much gain, so little noise! I play with the gain up all the way for my own riffs and I get really heavy power chords and screaming leads without switching my settings.
Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
Solid metal. A .44 Magnum couldn’t kill this thing.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Jeff Ruopp
Model Year: 1998
Price Paid: $89
Performance
TOP Boss pedal. To my Canadian friend that rated this pedal low, maybe you are just not cut out for this pedal. Maybe there are too many knobs?
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
Fits every styles of music.
Sound Quality Rating: 9
Construction
All Metal.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Maxime Alary
Price Paid: $140 CAN
Performance
Even if this pedal is the best selling pedal by Boss, I think it sucks. You have two choices, a clear, crappy distortion with HEAVY feedback or a fat contour sound that makes every note the same. Don’t be fooled by others that say it’s great, it really doesn’t deliver a nice sound. And it was quite complicated to understand the meaning of 5000k and 10000k on the pots, maybe they wrote that because they didn’t want to write “crappy” or “huge feedback” on it.
Performance Rating: 3
Sound Quality
Like I said, its crappy tone makes you feel like your amp is in a hermetic sound isolating box. It’s extremely unclear and has a crappy distortion sound and who knows how much time I spent trying and trying with many types of guitars and amps. If you want a real in-your-face heavy and clear distortion sound that will bring your metal sound to the extreme, buy a mega distortion pedal, now that’s serious stuff.
Sound Quality Rating: 2
Construction
Even if I really think it sucks, it’s still a Boss, so it’s almost indestructible and the pots feels smooth and reliable. And for newbies who don’t understand why they can’t keep the same battery more than a day, just UNPLUG THE INPUT JACK WHEN NOT IT USE as written on the back of the pedal for longer lifetime of the battery, this way you can keep it like a month or more depending of how much time you use it.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Harrison Pretat
Band: Radioactive Chinchillas
Price Paid: $46
Performance
Stunning. I got this expecting just a whole bunch of distortion (god knows my 20 watt amp needed it) but when I slapped a 9-volt in it and slammed my foot down and began to play, a clearness of tone began flowing out of my amp that I never expected. Finally I can make my guitar sound like Metallica, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden and just about any other metal band you can think of, just with the turn of a few knobs. Absolutely no background noise, just distortion. If you are thinking about getting a new guitar cause you just can’t sound like the pros, try this little powerhouse out.
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
You can make this Rectangle of Joy produce almost any tone, although it takes a little bit to find the perfect sound. I recommend writing down the settings when you find them. Almost any tone you find can be used for something cool so experiment with the knobs.
Sound Quality Rating: 9
Construction
My doofus friend “accidentally” kicked it into the wall and made a dent in the wall (jerk). The pedal was fine. No scratches, no difference in sound, no warped pieces, nothing. I’m pretty sure the only 3 things that can survive a nuclear blast are cockroaches, twinkies, and Boss pedals. Metal casing as always and a rubber grippy thing for your foot. Oh one last note, buy the psa Boss adaptor because this thing eats up 9-volts like the Dickens (I always wanted to say that.)
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Mike Pitts
Price Paid: $130
Performance
Takes time? Well that’s not the right word. But it will take time to find whatever sound your looking for. But while your doing it, I’m sure you’ll find some tones you may want to remember. It’s too versatile to say it sounds like this or that. But it’s solid. And pretty self explanatory in ease of use. It does what it promises to and way more.
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
I played what seems like a zillion pedals claiming to be Grunge this, Metal that, Super Overdive, super distortion. You get the idea. Once I looked at this, I figured it was just a basic 80’s type distortion pedal like the rest. Man I hit this thing and was like woooooo! It hits in just about every fashion you want it to. You like that tight raw but pounding sound of the old Master of Puppets Metallica days. Some twisting hear and there and its so tight and raw it feels like it’s going to blow you ear drums. If you want the distortion to fly out and crunch, like a local Grunge band. A few more adjustments. And it’s grunge city. Most distortion pedals can flow an out-pore of gain. And so can this one. But there are not many that can also hit that tight palm muted thrust of power as if its going through 4 Mesa Boogie Amps and, like Five 24 band EQ’s. I’ve played through big rigs like that. And this thing just has that sound like your playing through some amazing rig. I don’t even use my EQ anymore with it, because it gives me about any tone I want. And I just go through a old Yamaha effects unit to grab some reverb or chorus or just a tad whatever else I need and that’s it.

At one time I had 4 different overdive and distortion pedals going at once. Now I just have one. And this is it. Its only down fall, is smooth bluesy lo gain sound. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get it. Its just so powerful, I just have to set it up a tad fat, and just turn my volume on my guitar down to about 70% and I still get that pretty well. Believe me I’m picky. And if your a lead guy looking for the hook, or just some kid wanting to really get that sound you keep hearing on the radio and asking yourself why can’t my amp sound like that. Just hook this thing up to it. I got Roland Synths, Drum machines, Several guitars, effects, track machines. This is probably the happiest I have ever been with a product, for what I paid period. And it’s in constant use. I even took it on vacation with me, and had it hooked up to a one of those little tiny egg amps! So I could play while me and my friends were in Orlando for New Years. And they were like that tiny little amp sounds awesome. I said it’s not the amp look “shut it off than back on”, it’s the Metal Zone.
Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
No problems at all, But buy an adapter. Batteries run low fast.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Kooky Guitarist
Band: Slinkey
Price Paid: €125
Performance
The sounds on this pedal are amazing; name it, you got it is the right description for the distortion effects on this one. Getting just the right preset is some work, and turning the knobs can become tedious, but it’s all worth the trouble. Good value for money.
Performance Rating: 9
Sound Quality
Stomach-churning is the best description. Feels like a rollercoaster ride when you’re playing it. Nice thing is you can get “clean” metal distortion; no annoying background sounds.
Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
Compact, sturdy, with one but; one of my knobs is already bent, and I dare not bend it back. Still works like a charm though.
Construction Rating: 7

Name: Tommy Payralbe
Band: Guilt Trip
Price Paid: $130
Performance
It an amazing equalizer setup it can get really high distorted sound to dirty crunch in the turn of one knob. And there are 5 knobs to mess with. It will take ages to get the desired crunch but it is well worth it in the end. It does all is expected of it and more the sky is the limit with this pedal.
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
You really need good pickups and an average amp to get the most of this pedal. Plug a cheap Squier in with the gain up high and it will cry like a baby. Not cool at all. But get a decent set of pickups and you’re sorted. I recently changed my amp from a Marshall 8080 Valvestate to an Hughes and Ketner Tour reverb 100w and the MT-2 has never sounded better. It would take too long to tell you how many different tones you can get so I’ll just tell you to try it out I think you’ll be pleased.
Sound Quality Rating: 9
Construction
The construction is solid steel with rubber grips. Boss pedal are known for solid construction and with this pedal you can see why. I have my MT-2 about 2 years and it never lets me down. Although I would recommend an AC adapter as the battery died pretty quick.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Jon
Band: Fazer
Model Year: 2002
Price Paid: $80
Performance
This thing RAWKS. I’ve used Mesa Boogie, Hughes & Kettner, Rivera, Bogner, and (duh) Marshall & Vox etc. I’m not saying it’ll beat ‘em but if you you want bang for buck this is it. It’ll take some time to adapt to your stage rig, but if you wanna write at home you can get what you need out of the box in a few hours, Stat.
Performance Rating: 7
Sound Quality
I used to use Fender mediums but the plectrum sound was too much, so I switched to Dunlop orange and all is well. This box makes you change your style, is it wrong?
Sound Quality Rating: 8
Construction
I have Boss pedals with the same body (my NS2, CH1, BF2, DD5, TU2 were all submerged in a flood) and no probs since, so I trust my new box to last.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Grittypunk
Band: Vitamin-F
Price Paid: $90
Performance
This pedal works amazingly well. It can be hard to find just the right sound, but with a little work, the sky’s the limit!
Performance Rating: 9
Sound Quality
Sound quality is excellent. The effect transfers easily from off (clean) to on (distortion) very smoothly. The power is awesome!
Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
With a metal case and solid design, it would take a real dumbo to ruin this pedal.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: headbanger
Band: Nazgul
Price Paid: $115
Performance
Two words — it rocks. I wanted to buy a DOD-death metal pedal, but they didn’t have it at the time. But the guy who works there told me that this pedal is something worth checking out. We went to the basement where the amps are kept, he plugged it into a huge marshall, plugged a cheap Fender in it and booooom man, it blew me away. After a little tweaking we found seriously heavy sound, man.
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
Excellent. Don’t go too far with the “level” though. Keep it around middle, 3/4 max. Sound is good if your amp is. Perhaps, it won’t sound as good on a smaller practice amp (15-30W), but plug it into a 50-100+W, and then you’re ready to kill. Try cranking up your amp and adding some extra bass, turn down the mids, and turn up a bit the highs. You can also use this pedal to move the walls around in your house. If you’re looking for a metal pedal — you’ve found it. I’m not kidding you, this is the pedal!
Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
Good. Had no problems with that. I especially liked it for not-clicking. Some Marshall pedals click when you turn them on and off, but this one doesn’t. Name sez it all — metal.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Creeping Death
Model Year: 2002
Price Paid: $90
Performance
Easy to use. Nothing really fancy about it.
Performance Rating: 9
Sound Quality
Sounds great. Definitely needs an EQ with it. Once it has one... awesome sound.
Sound Quality Rating: 9
Construction
You could drop this thing out of an airplane and it would still work. Very well built.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Ryan Kothlow
Band: Pathos
Price Paid: $160 Can
Performance
The pedal is quite easy with the on board EQ, just open the book that came with it and there are plenty of good settings right there in front of you.
Performance Rating: 8
Sound Quality
The sound is not too great. It sounds like amp distortion too overdriven with too much gain. It has a tin sound distortion, and when you palm mute it sounds horrible. But I have heard this can be fixed with a boss eq pedal.
Sound Quality Rating: 4
Construction
One thing is, its built like a rock.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Jayess
Price Paid: $150 CAN
Performance
Really easy to use. Like it said in the previous reviews, you can find a “getting started” section in the manual. But if you are looking for a particular sound (match your favorite band) good luck! Hope you like tweaking!
Performance Rating: 8
Sound Quality
The pedal itself? Like you we’re playing with a crowbar across your strings with your guitar in front of your monitor. No kidding, the distortion is good, but if you are looking for a sepultura/metallica/slayer/wathever sound, with a lot of palm muting, go get a EQ pedal. I bought few years ago a BASS pedal to hook up with my MT-2. Surprise! With that kind of pedal, you can go low as 50hz. Now it kicks butt!
Sound Quality Rating: 8
Construction
Boss. Do I need to say more?
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Jay
Price Paid: $80
Performance
Wow, this pedal is amazing. The variety of sounds you can get with this pedal is amazing. Many people are saying that the pedal’s distortion sounds too tinny and small, with low bass. BUT if you compensate that problem with your EQ on the amp, the problem is eliminated. It might take you a couple of hours to find a good setting with the distortion but that is a minor problem that can be overlooked. The manual even comes with settings like ROCK and FUZZ so you can start right out of the box.
Performance Rating: 9
Sound Quality
As above, the sound is tinny but can be fixed VERY easily with the amps EQ. The gain is MASSIVE and sounds great. Probably the best sounding distortion out there.
Sound Quality Rating: 9
Construction
THE THING IS MADE OUT OF METAL, except for the knobs. BUT WHO CARES! I’ve dropped this on the cement in my garage when playin on accident and it didn’t even dent or scratch. This thing is also designed to withstand a nuclear blast I think, he he. Buy this pedal and it you will use it for many, many years. It is expensive but the price is definitely worth it.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Greg
Band: BBBFB3
Price Paid: $150 CAN
Performance
I love my MT-2. The onboard EQ is self-explanatory and easy to use (even on a dark stage), and I’ve never had a problem with it. Battery use is moderate (I usually use an adapter anyways), and it lives up to its high price tag with ease of use and kickin’ sounds. I would, however, advise the player to explore the upper-end of the midrange frequency control. Past the sizzling hi-mids lays a (imho) nice, flat distortion.
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
This is definately a pedal that you have to invest some time in. You simply cannot just plug it in, dial up a sound quickly, and run with it. However, if you are willing to spend an hour or two sitting in front of your amp (at performance level), you can kick out a variety of useful and cool tones, from grumbling lows to sizzling highs and smooth mids. And best of all, the gain isn’t just an “on/off” type of deal (like so many other distortion pedals)! You can get just about every degree of distortion that you would want with it! This pedal just plain rocks.
Sound Quality Rating: 8
Construction
This is a SOLID pedal. True to BOSS’ name, it’s encased in a heavy-duty plastic. The knobs, pots, and inputs are solid, and the footswitch is just perfect in my opinion. You can always trust BOSS to make a kickin’ pedal.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Gary
Price Paid: $85 Aus used
Performance
This pedal is EXTREMELY easy to play. The settings are self explanatory and it is very ease to play with.
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
This is my only problem. The distortion can be quite messy. Especially if you are trying to get a heavy “death metal” sound. The only solution I found was to hook up a Boss EQ pedal. The two pedals together give you a lot more options and can be amazingly heavy if you tweak it right. I would give it a rating of 10 WITH the EQ pedal, but only a 6 by itself. Any one looking for a death metal sound should definitely buy both pedals. You will not be disappointed. It is still the heaviest stand-alone pedal out there though.
Sound Quality Rating: 6
Construction
Very reliable, never had a problem in the 3 years I have been using it (and I treat my pedals like crap!) It chews up batteries quicker than any other pedals though.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Anonymous
Price Paid: $150 CAN
Performance
This pedal works very well from its ease of use to its compact design. There are a lot of tone controls that can be adjusted to match your taste. I’m giving it a 10 for its ease of use and compact design.
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
Here is where everything goes down. The distortion is extremely fake sounding and flat. No matter what kind of combinations you come up with on the tone controls you still cannot get any good tones. However, there is a lot of distortion with this pedal which tops any other amount of distortion found on other amps I have tried, but this is just the amount of distortion I am talking about, not the tone. Muting with this thing sounds horrible, but you can pull off pitch harmonics easily due to its high gain capabilities. I may be a little harsh on comparing a pedal to amp distortion, so I’ll give it a 4.
Sound Quality Rating: 4
Construction
Despite the tone of this pedal, this thing is built solid and is very compact, as I already mentioned. I am guessing that the casing is metal due to the fact that it is cold to the touch. I am pretty sure it is made from metal also because of the weight. This pedal is built very well from a construction point of view.
Construction Rating: 10

Name: Michael Cross
Performance
The Metal Zone is a great pedal for those looking for a very distorted metal sound with long-lasting sustain and squealing harmonics but also like to ease back on the juice to find a nice, hard-rock distortion. Three-band equalizer, ease-of-use and sturdy construction makes for a versatile and value for the money distortion pedal.
Performance Rating: 10
Sound Quality
As much or little distortion as you want. Beautiful long-lasting sustain. Onboard EQ for tone tweaking.
Sound Quality Rating: 10
Construction
Extremely durable construction. Chews the batteries pretty fast, though.
Construction Rating: 8

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