The following is a guest post review of the BOSS MD-2 Mega Distortion Pedal by George DesRoches. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!
The BOSS MD-2 Mega Distortion really lives up to its name. This metal foot pedal, once activated, unleashes one of the fattest distortions you can get in a stompbox, which is perfect for anything from grunge to numetal to hair metal to shred. This pedal is extremely versatile, being able to encompass uncountable levels of distortion due to it’s dual distortion circuit, from a medium overdrive to an in-your-face hellstorm of punchy power.
The MD-2 has 3 knobs (from left to right: level, distortion, and gain boost) and one concentric knob for EQ; a basic tone knob in the center, which controls the overall tone of the distortion, and on the bottom a “bottom” knob that controls bass frequencies, which make it extremely useful for really low tunings, 7 string guitars, and basses. It also has an input and output jack to hook up to your guitar, amp, or other pedals, and can be powered by either a 9 volt battery or an AC adapter (if you have many pedals, I recommend a daisy chain, like the 1 Spot one I use).
As I said before, this distortion can range from a medium overdrive to an extremely fat, extremely powerful distortion, making any amp sound like a beefy tube amp. With the concentric knob and the gain boost, you have complete control over exactly how you want to sound. Personally, I like a punchy EVH-style distortion: I keep the level and bass knobs at about 12 o’clock, and the Tone, Distortion, and Gain Boost knobs at around 1-2 o’clock. This gets me a punchy sound almost identical to that of Eddie Van Halen, which is PERFECT for my band’s style. Me and my band T.R.B. are an alternative metal band from Rhode Island, and the Mega Distortion, as well as several other BOSS pedals, have become key to our sound.
The one real issue is that, with lots of distortion comes lots of noise, sometimes unwanted. I dont really have that much of an issue, but for people who want more distortion, I’d recommend getting a noise suppressor (NS-2 works perfectly) to rid of that low-lying white noise that can appear. That only really shows up if you’re using crappy cables or your pickups aren’t good, so if you’ve got a good setup you should be all set.
Really, if you want a powerful distortion, this is the pedal for you. It’s a raw, punchy, and fat distortion perfect for nearly any genre, and with it’s versatility it makes it a perfect choice for any metal, hard rock, or grunge guitarist. I must admit, it’s one of the greatest mid-priced pedals I’ve tried, and it might very well be the best $89 dollars I’ve ever spent on anything in my rig.
My Rig (so you know how I get my sound): Fender HSS strat with stock pickups, Dunlop Cry Baby From Hell (Dimebag Darrel model), MD-2 Mega Distortion, DS-1 Distortion, TR-2 Tremelo, CH-1 Super Chorus, DD-20 Giga Delay, all into a Raven RG200 200 watt amp.
About the author:
George DesRochesMy gear: Fender HSS Stratocaster, Dunlop Dimebag Darrel Cry Baby From Hell, BOSS MD-2 MegaDistortion, DS-1 Distortion, TR-2 Tremelo, CH-1 SUPERChorus, and DD-20 Giga Delay, with a Raven RG200 amp and a Line 6 Spider III 15 watt when needed.
Check out my band, T.R.B., at http://www.myspace.com/teearebee
You can follow George on Twitter (@TeeAreBee)
The BOSS MD-2 Mega Distortion Pedal can be purchased for $79.00 at Musician’s Friend or look up eBay deals at Pedal Nerd.
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