Boss MT-2 Metal Zone Pedal

Boss MT-2 Metal Zone Pedal Overview

The Boss MT-2 Metal Zone is one of the most famous guitar pedals ever to be released. Since its original release in 1991, Boss has sold over a million units - and counting. For over 30 years, the MT-2 is the undisputed king of high gain distortion.

The Boss MT-2 is famously used by a wide array of artists, including Biffy Clyro, Korn, Prince, Dave Mustaine, Daft Punk, Tom DeLonge, Jared Dines and many more.

In a nutshell, the Metal Zone transforms your clean guitar amplifier into a fire-breathing demon (not literally). When plugged into the front end of an amp, the MT-2 unlocks levels of gain unattainable from an amplifier. Essentially, the MT-2 can make even the cleanest of amps achieve a high-gain screaming guitar tone, without having to invest in a new amp.

The Metal Zone may be designed for more aggressive and hard-hitting musical genres, though it has become a hidden gem among soloists. The Metal Zone is renowned for its almost insane level of distortion. The power of the MT-2 is phenomenal and is used to achieve some of the most extreme tones possible from a distortion pedal.

At the time of its release, it was the first pedal to feature dual-concentric pots. This means that one dial is split into two different parts, meaning you can adjust two different settings, without taking up too much space on the pedal. The MT-2 has two dual-concentric pots within its EQ section, with one control for High/Low gain and the other for Middle gain/Mid frequency.

One of the big secrets with using an MT-2 is using it as a booster pedal. If you plug the Metal Zone into the Effects Loop of your amplifier, lower the gain, increase the level and adjust the mids to taste, the MT-2 becomes one of the warmest boost pedals you’ll ever hear.

The Metal Zone utilises an innovative analogue circuit design with two gain stages, configured in a series. Gain stage one provides focus in the mids that then feeds the more aggressive voicing of stage two. This means the MT-2 is stacking two different gains to achieve its tone, which is now a sought after feature within most modern boutique pedals.

Boss hasn’t left the development of the MT-2’s tone there, as every section of the pedal has been meticulously tuned to provide its tight and well-defined signature sound.

The MT-2 isn’t just for guitarists, as there are many examples of bass players, producers or synth players using this revolutionary pedal. An example of this can be heard on Daft Punk’s track, “Rollin’ And Scratchin’”, where they run a Roland JUNO-106 Synthesizer through an MT-2.

The MT-2 is perfect for beginner guitarists looking for their first pedal, intermediate guitar players wanting to push their playing further and advanced players wanting a legendary guitar tone. We’d even say the MT-2 is for anyone wanting to push their sound to the dark side.

The MT-2 has been such an important pedal that Boss has released a few variations of this timeless classic.

The Boss MT-2 is the standard Metal Zone that’s been in production for over 30 years, seen on countless pedalboards across the globe. The MT-2-3A is a celebratory limited released to mark 30 years of this iconic pedal - it’s even more black and has a chrome battery dial! The MT-2W is a boutique version of the MT-2, rebuilt from the ground up by the same engineers. It has premium components, a selectable custom circuit with a more modern voicing and is made in Japan.

Whichever MT-2 variant you choose, the incredible guitar tone is guaranteed.