One-stop pedal for "metal" tones

[PelliX]

As the name of the thread suggests, I'm looking for a sort of 'one stop' pedal to get more 'metal' sounds. Of course I understand that a Mesa or SLO amp with a [insert pointy guitar of choice] is more the real deal. For the odd casual cover where I need these tones, a simple pedal should suffice. So far I'm thinking:

* BOSS Metal Zone MT-2
* BOSS Metal Core

Open for suggestions. Ideally, as this is a very small part of the repertoire, I'm not looking to break the bank. I can get hold of the pedals above for a few tenners.

 

[FleshOnGear]

If I were in the market for such a pedal, and wanted a Boss, I’d get an old HM-3 Hyper Metal. They don’t have the crazy midrange control of the Metal Zone, so I think the EQ sounds more natural. They’re also less sought after (for now) than the HM-2, so they’re fairly affordable. AFAIK, the Metal Core is a modeling circuit - don’t quite me on that, just be aware that it might not be analog.

 

[PelliX]

If I were in the market for such a pedal, and wanted a Boss, I’d get an old HM-3 Hyper Metal.

Thanks for the tip! It doesn't *have* to be a BOSS, though I tend to like them and they prove reliable.

They don’t have the crazy midrange control of the Metal Zone, so I think the EQ sounds more natural.

This may not be such an issue - I'm looking for a slightly scooped tone - but I can do that with EQ's of course. Or am I missing the point of what you're saying?

 

[Deftone]

Define "Metal Tones" I've gotten a few suggestions over the years, but nothing has really worked for me. I just got the new Metal Muff and I am loving it. I like the old ones too, and the RAT of course.

FWIW: an MXR 10 band EQ in the loop adds a more "processed" metal tone (Dimebag) to a distortion pedal in front of the amp. Lots of metal guitarists are known to use an MXR10.

 

[PelliX]

Define "Metal Tones" I've gotten a few suggestions over the years, but nothing has really worked for me.

Metallica's Load album would do as a reference, I think - that ballpark. I'm not trying to get an exact carbon copy of the tone, but a general gist.

I just got the new Metal Muff and I am loving it. I like the old ones too, and the RAT of course.

Metal Muff.... hmmm, I've tried a few things with the Big Muff, but I wasn't having much luck. The RAT became part of my 'quick solution', indeed. I was having some issues with noise floors when pushing it extremely hard, though.

FWIW: an MXR 10 band EQ in the loop adds a more "processed" metal tone (Dimebag) to a distortion pedal in front of the amp. Lots of metal guitarists are known to use an MXR10.

Yup, I've got a couple of configurable EQ's that I can place anywhere in the chain. Sounds like maybe I just unplug everything and start fresh trying to get the tones I'm thinking of. Still, if there's a pedal that does that 'in one go, no questions asked' I'm open for that.

 

[Kutt]

Is this for home/practice/recording purposes? Or will you be playing loudly with it? I ask because I have piles of pedals and after years and years I have come to the conclusion that distortion pedals, not matter how good, just cannot keep up with real tube amps.

At any rate... I'll assume it's not for loud / live purposes. There are hundreds and hundreds of choices and no one has tried them all. That said I do like the BOSS MT-2W Waza Metal Zone. The Custom mode on it sounds much better than the original. I also like the Ibanez SD9M with the higher gain switch engaged. Gotta keep the tone control very low but it's a good pedal. Also dig the BOSS Angry Driver a lot, super versatile.

 

[FleshOnGear]

I will also say that the Ibanez SM-7 Smashbox is probably my favorite sleeper metal pedal. This one has started to catch on, so I don’t know if they’re as cheap as they used to be.

As far as the issue with the mid control on the MT-2, I always felt like it sounded too processed, no matter what you did with it other than setting it flat. It just always sounded wrong to me, but I could just be weird. Of course you can always set the mids flat and not worry about it.

The other issue I have with the MT-2 is that it has a pretty extreme pre-distortion equalization that I find objectionable. It cuts a ton of bass and treble before clipping, almost giving your guitar a cocked wah kind of tone. Again, I think I'm the weird one when it comes to this, because nobody else seems to mind.

 

[Deftone]

Metal Muff.... hmmm, I've tried a few things with the Big Muff, but I wasn't having much luck. The RAT became part of my 'quick solution', indeed. I was having some issues with noise floors when pushing it extremely hard, though.

Never tried a Big Muff...but I think that's more of a 70's style fuzz pedal. The Metal Muff 'aint that at all. Closer to a RAT. Plus the new one has a built in noise gate. I love it...brutal distortion but still organic, IMHO. YMMV

FWIW I have also tried the Boss DS1 (more like an OD) TS Mini (meh) MXR Full Bore Metal (didn't like it) and a couple of pre amp pedals (Legend Amps R1 & REVV G3) Still have them both but haven't found a use for them.

 

[PelliX]

Is this for home/practice/recording purposes? Or will you be playing loudly with it? I ask because I have piles of pedals and after years and years I have come to the conclusion that distortion pedals, not matter how good, just cannot keep up with real tube amps.

Both, but predominantly this is intended for studio purposes. For the record, I'm using real valve amps. While my DSL would seem the most obvious target, I had more luck with my JCM800. I tried some stuff in the front-end of my Fender, and it certainly had potential, but I couldn't get it quite working as desired.

At any rate... I'll assume it's not for loud / live purposes. There are hundreds and hundreds of choices and no one has tried them all. That said I do like the BOSS MT-2W Waza Metal Zone. The Custom mode on it sounds much better than the original.

I was reading that it was the same circuit, just higher quality components?

I also like the Ibanez SD9M with the higher gain switch engaged. Gotta keep the tone control very low but it's a good pedal. Also dig the BOSS Angry Driver a lot, super versatile.


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I have a TS, but the Angry Driver sounds promising. Maybe I should go get a hold of a MT-2 and give it some hell for an afternoon.

 

[Filipe Soares]

Mooer 005. it is a 5150 pre amp, you can´t go wrong here, one of the best metal tones in a box ever.

 

[JSutter]

Biyang Metal End is an MT2 but better with more controls. I removed a couple caps, a common mod done to the boss to get rid of the "cocked wah" mids and adjust the high frequencies. I also added a high pass filter to tighten up the lows.

I have a clip on yt, comparing it to a Rectifier and mt15.

 

[PelliX]

BOSS MT-2 (non-Waza): 65
BOSS ML-2 (Metal Core): 69
Mooer 005 (new): 90
Micro Metal Muff (with Top Boost): 50
Metal Muff (regular): 70
BOSS HM-2 (Waza): 100
BOSS Angry Driver: 195 (!)

Can't find an HM-3 currently, @FleshOnGear .

I'm kind of leaning towards the BOSS pedals, as I have a slight bias in their favor after having used BOSS/Roland kit since I started making music as a teenager. I think I'll approach this economically and start cheap. If I don't like the pedal I can sell it on with not much more than a tenner loss or so - which I'm fine with. Learning by doing costs money. Going by FleshOngear's description of the pre-dist EQ on the MT-2, that's not quite the ticket. My TS can do a decent-ish drive sound but the low end vanishes when cranked like that. I use it more to compliment an existing tone than really transform it if that makes sense. Also works nicely as a semi-clean boost.

I guess the ML-2 is cheap and cheerful. At 200 the Angry Driver is just too expensive for something I'll use a few times a year.

@Deftone any idea of the Micro Metal Muff vs the 'regular' one?

 

[Deftone]

@Deftone any idea of the Micro Metal Muff vs the 'regular' one?

Absolutely. I have all three.

I started with the full size version, loved it but the top boost button is way over the top. I got the Nano version for my smaller board and realized I liked it better. It's just simpler and sounds the same but maybe more clarity. IMHO you can basically do the the same thing as the full size version or better with an eq in front of the nano version. I like the new version the best though.

As with everything....YMMV.

 

[GibsonMarshallGuy47]

Amptweaker Fat Metal Pro... believe me when I say - you can't get any better than this for mega-high gain metal distortion. it sounds incredible, and is the most tweakable pedal in this category you will ever find.

Fat Metal Pro II | amptweaker

amptweaker.com

 

[FleshOnGear]

@PelliX i know I’m coming out of left field with this, but I think it would be worthwhile to look into the Ibanez SM7 Smashbox. IIRC, you’re in the Netherlands? On Reverb right now there are a couple of SM7s in France and one in Italy. Check out some YouTube videos of them.

 

[Gutch220]

This video may help, I'd include an EQ with everything though.

of these Boss "metal" pedals, I've always been partial to the ML-2 here

 

[PelliX]

Amptweaker Fat Metal Pro... believe me when I say - you can't get any better than this for mega-high gain metal distortion. it sounds incredible, and is the most tweakable pedal in this category you will ever find.

Fat Metal Pro II | amptweaker

amptweaker.com

Looks cool, but a $300 pricetag is just too far north for me. If I were into metal or regularly playing using such FX, maybe. Appreciate the suggestion, but it's not quite what I'm looking for.

@PelliX i know I’m coming out of left field with this, but I think it would be worthwhile to look into the Ibanez SM7 Smashbox. IIRC, you’re in the Netherlands? On Reverb right now there are a couple of SM7s in France and one in Italy. Check out some YouTube videos of them.

Yup, I am. "We" have this over here instead of Reverb, eBay and co: https://www.marktplaats.nl/ (it's actually owned by eBay, but the Dutch are steadfast and 'ebay.nl' never caught on). None on there, but I can ask a bloke who specializes in 2nd hand pedals. I do agree that they sound nice, though, yup! I'm not opposed to ordering from abroad, but I'd avoid it if possible (just ask @Marcomel79 about his shipping woes... )...

This video may help, I'd include an EQ with everything though.

of these Boss "metal" pedals, I've always been partial to the ML-2 here

I think I like the HM-2 best of them there, the ML-2 seems a bit too scooped though it has the most articulate tone and he has the bass up a far bit. Certainly keeps the bottom end tight which I like. My guess would be the ML is the most fun 'in the room, noodling' but might get lost in a mix easily, whereas the HM-2 appears more 'balanced' in that sense.

 

[FleshOnGear]

Yup, I am. "We" have this over here instead of Reverb, eBay and co: https://www.marktplaats.nl/ (it's actually owned by eBay, but the Dutch are steadfast and 'ebay.nl' never caught on).

Gee, I wonder why eBay.nl never got any traction?

 

[PelliX]

Gee, I wonder why eBay.nl never got any traction?

Well, eBay noticed that the Dutch didn't take to their platform after "opening" in NL. They promptly bought marktplaats.nl. If you can't beat 'em, buy 'em.

 

[Calebz]

Both, but predominantly this is intended for studio purposes. For the record, I'm using real valve amps. While my DSL would seem the most obvious target, I had more luck with my JCM800. I tried some stuff in the front-end of my Fender, and it certainly had potential, but I couldn't get it quite working as desired.

Sounds like a good opportunity to get a hotmod and a tube screamer