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Boss ME 50B Multi Effects Pedal
- Thread starter Hi-End Basses
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- bass pedal boss effects
I started out with the ME-50B when I switched to bass about 8 years ago. I came from guitar and had that processor mentality and thought it would carry over to bass. It kinda did, but not like you'd want. I liked the idea of having everything in one place, but I had a lot of issues with this processor. First off, the levels on some of the effects were way off when I jammed with a band for the first time. Even though there's a level knob for each one, they don't all act like a proper level. I had volume spikes going between some selections that I couldn't overcome. And balancing it out with the volume pedal wasn't really viable due to the sweep on it not being fluid.
I also HATED all of the overdrives. I tried them all, and a lot sucked the bass out of my eq on top of sounding like trash. The chain wasn't the greatest either being that you had 3 effects pedals and had to choose one effect for each setting and didn't have a lot of flexibility with it.
Over all, if you're looking for something for practice at home, or just for small jam sessions with friends, I'd give the ME-50B a thumbs up. But if you're recording, or using effects in a serious way, I wouldn't recommend. When I say "serious", what I mean is if you've got a small part of a song with like, 10 seconds of chorus or something... This works fine to get you SOMETHING. But if you find that your playing demands a lot more control over that effect, or a proper dedicated effect, I'd switch the analog.
For the record, I started with the ME-50B and then went all analog. Darkglass B7K, B3K, Duality Fuzz, tuner, chorus, reverb, phaser are all on my pedalboard now.
I also HATED all of the overdrives. I tried them all, and a lot sucked the bass out of my eq on top of sounding like trash. The chain wasn't the greatest either being that you had 3 effects pedals and had to choose one effect for each setting and didn't have a lot of flexibility with it.
Over all, if you're looking for something for practice at home, or just for small jam sessions with friends, I'd give the ME-50B a thumbs up. But if you're recording, or using effects in a serious way, I wouldn't recommend. When I say "serious", what I mean is if you've got a small part of a song with like, 10 seconds of chorus or something... This works fine to get you SOMETHING. But if you find that your playing demands a lot more control over that effect, or a proper dedicated effect, I'd switch the analog.
For the record, I started with the ME-50B and then went all analog. Darkglass B7K, B3K, Duality Fuzz, tuner, chorus, reverb, phaser are all on my pedalboard now.
I used an ME-50B live for a handful of years before switching to a pedal board. It's a great, easy solution if you don't rely too heavily on effects, and I personally much prefer its knob-heavy design as compared to most multi-effects units. The "metal" distortion is great if you like to pretend that your bass is a guitar and write riffs, but otherwise the drive effects are a bit weak. Everything else (compression, reverb, delay, chorus, etc.) is solid. I also dug having the master volume and EQ right there on the face, as well as a volume pedal, giving you an easy option for quick tweaks on stage.
My ME-50B is retired from live use now, but it's still my main effects unit for practicing at home since it has all of the basics readily accessible.
My ME-50B is retired from live use now, but it's still my main effects unit for practicing at home since it has all of the basics readily accessible.
If you just HAD to do a multi-FX unit, I'd look at the new Zoom stuff, which outdoes the Boss multis IMO.
I used to own a GT-6B which was the flagship of their bass multi-effects, I wrote a review on it but I'll summarize the points below...
- Assigned pedal spots, finite number of effects you can assign
- Disgustingly clunky UI. You will be sifting through menus constantly
- "Unity Gain" is a pipe dream
- Many effects are useless or sound terrible, even compared to the Boss singles
- Wasted space on board (often unusable knobs)
- Display still too small considering board size
- Freakin expensive
On the upside, it's built like a tank, the tuner is fantastic, and the sweep range/smoothness of the pedal was definitely nice. Still, nowhere near their asking price. I'd pay $149 for it at most.
I used to own a GT-6B which was the flagship of their bass multi-effects, I wrote a review on it but I'll summarize the points below...
- Assigned pedal spots, finite number of effects you can assign
- Disgustingly clunky UI. You will be sifting through menus constantly
- "Unity Gain" is a pipe dream
- Many effects are useless or sound terrible, even compared to the Boss singles
- Wasted space on board (often unusable knobs)
- Display still too small considering board size
- Freakin expensive
On the upside, it's built like a tank, the tuner is fantastic, and the sweep range/smoothness of the pedal was definitely nice. Still, nowhere near their asking price. I'd pay $149 for it at most.
I had one for a week and sold it. I found it to be noisy, lacked flexibility to combine distinct effects that are in the same section of the pedal, and really just didn't dig the sounds all that much... there are some bassists whose tone I like that use this. Just didn't work for me... I'm using MXR compressor, octave, and envelope filter. Just got a snark clip on tuner. May add a solid gold fx beta...
I had an ME50-B for a couple of years and really liked it. Added an FS6-U dual footswitch, and it was great. I have a GT10-B now and enjoy it; I may buy another ME50-B to use with my bass pedals.
Good stuff.
Good stuff.
i think the Zoom might do more things if you spend the time to program it .. i had one for a while ... upgraded to a Line 6 HD ProX ... and i think they ALL need analog distortion/dirt pedals in front of them !!!
tried a few BOSS multi-fx units ... took them back ... used a Digitech rack unit for a while ...
they're fine for modulation type stuff ... reverb/delay/EQ are fine in the digital world ... the newer models help make them sound a bit less sterile ...
it really depends on what you want them to do ..!!?? and ya gotta try them out with your gear ..!!
tried a few BOSS multi-fx units ... took them back ... used a Digitech rack unit for a while ...
they're fine for modulation type stuff ... reverb/delay/EQ are fine in the digital world ... the newer models help make them sound a bit less sterile ...
it really depends on what you want them to do ..!!?? and ya gotta try them out with your gear ..!!
I had a Boss GT-10B and a Zoom B2 and I have a Zoom B3. I would say it depends on what you want... If you use effects like me.. a select few... and you don't need an expression pedal.. then the Zoom may work better for you. I think that bang for buck wise the B3 is hard to beat.. and I also liked most of the effects on it.. particularly the pre amps, amp models, compressors, flangers, delay, some of the synth sounds and some of the other patches.. I don't use distortion so I cannot comment on those. The B3 has a decent drum machimne.. (read glorified metronome/practice tool) , the tuner is good and the looper is decent. The DI is clean and the footprint is great. The display is good and programming it is not too difficult.. I can't speak on the ME-50 .. but I did have a Gt-10B which was the high end MEP at one time... That was too much for me.. so I sold it. From what I hear the Me-50B is decent .. but I like the Zoom better than the Boss MEPs that I have been exposed to.
I have owned both this and the lower version (ME 20B) and I have loved them both. If you're looking for a replacement for a full pedalboard, this is not it. However, if you want a travel rig for less effects-based gigs, this will deliver everything you need. I'm actually using the ME 20B right now because I like the sounds a little more and I got it for $90 from my local GC.
I was thinking of getting one myself. I am aware of the lush modulation sounds(which is what I like about the utopia series). but I am wondering about the distortion channel. from what I understand, the utopia b200 has a blend able distortion channel. I had a rocktron utopia b100 and even though it has 3 distortion channels, non of them has a blend control. but the utopia b200 has a distortion channel with a blend control. If I would of known about that, I would of saved a little more cash on the utopia b200. I was thinking about purchasing one sometime in the future.
I never really liked it mostly because of the weak distortion. But it was great for experimenting with effect ideas that I use in my chain today.
I've used the ME-20B for years. Rock solid dependable. I use chorus/delay and defretter patch on a few songs. What I like most is the four band EQ and the ability to assign EQ settings to patches. I use that a lot!
I've had two ME50Bs over the years, and now have a Zoom B3 and I'd say I prefer the Zoom. Like the ME, you can just use the Zoom as a set of 3 individual stompboxes - but with the following advantages and disadvantages as compared to the ME50B:
+ You have 100 3-pedal-setup patches available to put together and flip between
+ You can have more than one of the same "type" of effect across the 3 slots, even more than one of the same exact effect
+ Far more selection of effects
+ Amp and preamp models
+ Most effects sound better than the ME50B's versions of same. I even like many of them as much as regular pedals.
+ More functions like a drum machine
- No builtin expression pedal for volume, wah or pitch (but one can be attached)
- No global compressor or noisegate; you have to assign them as effects in each patch if you want them
And while the Zoom has a digital interface, it does a pretty good job of sticking to the 'just turn the knobs' type of editing, with less menu-driven stuff than a lot of digital processors have had over the years. Plus, mine was cheaper than the last ME50B I had!
+ You have 100 3-pedal-setup patches available to put together and flip between
+ You can have more than one of the same "type" of effect across the 3 slots, even more than one of the same exact effect
+ Far more selection of effects
+ Amp and preamp models
+ Most effects sound better than the ME50B's versions of same. I even like many of them as much as regular pedals.
+ More functions like a drum machine
- No builtin expression pedal for volume, wah or pitch (but one can be attached)
- No global compressor or noisegate; you have to assign them as effects in each patch if you want them
And while the Zoom has a digital interface, it does a pretty good job of sticking to the 'just turn the knobs' type of editing, with less menu-driven stuff than a lot of digital processors have had over the years. Plus, mine was cheaper than the last ME50B I had!
No the tuner does not mute the output, however the tuner still works if you turn the volume pedal down....... It's an extra step, but not one of consequence.
Crap! You are correct. It's been awhile since I've had the unit. Apologies.
I am totally with you on this. To my ears the Zoom effects are just plain better sounding than the Boss counterparts. I had the ME-20B and the only thing I can think of that it did better was the octaver but I'm still running a Line 6 M5 before the B3 for that. Everything else the Zoom does an amazing job of.
I just bought one of these and i think the effects are great and its a really compact unit for what it does. However, I have one big issue with it - the volume changes so drastically from effect to effect even when you try and set the volume on the patches. I don't like using the pedal for volume and even if you can change the volume quickly when it happens on stage, the spikes will be noticeable and sound shite. Is there any way to level the volume going out - like an auto volume leveller' you get on some TVs these days? Any other ideas how to set these volumes?
Thanks for your help and happy low frequencies!
Thanks for your help and happy low frequencies!
