T
here is perhaps no one pedal in
history more maligned than the
Boss MT-2 Metal Zone. The
Metal Zone was released in 1991,
as a successor to the HM-3 Hyper Metal.
No matter where one might visit on the
Internet, the MT-2 is the subject of much
ridicule. It’s not uncommon to find
Internet denizens comparing the Metal
Zone to a “can of bees” with some users
going so far as to post memes of Nicolas
Cage’s The Wicker Man to satirize the
sound. It seems like many people have
owned and used the MT-2 at one time or
another, and after 24 years, its reputation
certainly precedes it. Despite this, the
MT-2 remains one of Boss’s biggestselling pedals.
Cognitive dissonance abounds: Despite
the throngs of forum users complaining
about the Metal Zone’s futility, clearly there
is some practical utility. I am here to say
that I am in the utilitarian camp, but not for
the reasons one might think. I present to
you, ladies and gentlemen, Exhibits A to E,
in my defense of the Metal Zone. The
defense calls: You, the reader.
BUFFER
A buffer is a utility box that you may have
heard of. Perhaps, in terms of pedals,
you’ve heard of its converse, “true
bypass.” Now that we’re on the same
page, buffers act as a high-inputimpedance, low-output-impedance unity
gain current amplifier. What this means in
plain English is that buffers block AC from
entering a circuit and allow voltage to
flow freely. Simpler, it means a stronger
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