https://guitarnoise.forum/live-sound/boss-me-30-review/ Guitar Noise Discussion Board en-US Thu, 04 Jun 2026 11:31:15 +0000 wpForo 60 https://guitarnoise.forum/live-sound/boss-me-30-review/#post-99 Sun, 02 Nov 2003 04:34:42 +0000

Name: Boss ME-30
Price Paid: 80,- EUro


First of all, I received no manual nor any assistence with this unit. To add to it, this is also my very first multi-effect unit, so I had no experience with such objects whatsoever. But, much to my surprise, it is actually quite easy to use. Should take about an hour to get the hang of it all.

However, getting a *good* sound out of it is something a bit more complicated. To give an example, you can play around with the Distortion settings for hours, but it will sound very thin until you activate the EQ, which is in another menu. As easy as it is to change the sound, as hard can it be to get the sound you are looking for.


I play this through an 'el-cheapo' setup: Dean Avalanche Zone H->Boss ME30->Behringer Firebird gx108. To start with, in my opinion, one of the most important effects, the distortions are quite hard to rate. If you just use them through a clean channel they will sound thin, and somewhat lifeless. However, with just a bit of distortion from your amp, it will suddenly sound quite good, with a lot more depth to it.

The expression pedal is ok. The wahwah is somewhat usefull, although you should not expect the quality of a Vox pedal. The ring modulator seems near useless to me, and the 'tremolo arm' effects seem a bit plastic. Nice gimmicks, but not really good enough. It is possible to place the expression pedal before or after the distortion, which has a great effect on the sound. Nice.

On the other hand, the reverb, chorus, flanger and delay are really good. Much to my surprise could this unit deliver no less then a 2sec delay, which is a lot longer then most other multi-effects. The reverb sounds just like it should, and the chorus is even better. As you can see, I only paid 80Euro for this unit, so these effects alone are quite worth the money, in my humble opinion.

The EQ is somewhat noisy, and cannot be used when the phaser is activated. A bit annoying, considering that it is almost always required to use the EQ. The compressor is nice, definitely good enough for unit like this. It can be noisy though, espescially when you set the gain of the distortion high. The noisegate is quite pathetic, doesn't seem to do much, if it actually does anything.

So what rating should it receive? The distortions are poor on themselves, and great after some tweaking. The expression is mediocre at best, but the reverb, chorus, delay and flanger are excellent. The noisegate is crap, but the compressor is quite usefull. The EQ is quite good, but blocks the phaser. I think it's best not to rate it at all, it just depends on what effects you are after.


Even though it is plastic, it looks sturdy enough. I am not going to throw it around, and it looks quite capable of taking a few stomps. I'll assume it is strong enough, considering Boss' reputation.


Well, what is my final conclusion? Before I answer that question, it might be usefull to know I have been playing for less then a year, on not-so-expensive equipment. So I bought this unit expecting to get a nice unit, able of giving me multiple effects usefull at home. And I got that.

If you are a professional player, I am sure you will find this unit to be lacking. But then again, why would you expect professional quality from an 80E unit? I payed the price of one pedal, and found it well worth the money. I did not try to imitate famous artist, but I doubt I can sound like any through a 70E amp, no matter what unit I use.

The ME30 has added variety to my sound, and I found it to be a valuable addition to my equipment chain. Things like the wahwah are less then good, but a Vox or Dunlop wah will cost more then this entire unit, so that didn't come as a surprise.

If you are looking for a cheap unit to add variety to your sound, check this out. If you need professional quality, take a look at more expensive units. For the price I paid I give it a 9/10.]]> Live Sound Ignar Hillström https://guitarnoise.forum/live-sound/boss-me-30-review/#post-99