Either way, the grid on the top plate makes simple work of editing, with side buttons at each row selecting the effects to be edited, and knobs along the bottom columns tweaking parameters. It’s a cinch, but I can be dense: More than once I was knob-turning like a nut and waiting for something to happen, only to realize I had the wrong row selected and that my persistence was futile. Saving settings to a patch of your choice for memory mode use is easy enough, but if you don’t have the Boss FS5U or some other momentary footswitch, paging through banks requires a bent-over button press—not a big deal between songs or sets, but nothing you’d want to attempt before the big chorus outro. Even though editing is easy with the ME-20B, Boss included an ez edit mode, in which three of the four main knobs dial up quick settings for each of the three effect groups, and the fourth selects some quick and handy EQ curves.
From stereo choruses to gritty overdrives, glurpy filters and synths to slick compressors and octavers, most everything on the ME-20B sounds full and natural. Its effects are useful, practical, and sometimes appropriately strange, though the emphasis is mercifully not on made-you-look music-store weirdness. The expression pedal rocks as both a volume and a wah pedal, with a simple toe-toggle switching between functions. The master level knob is a nice touch, too. Though the expression pedal can handle most volume-related tasks, it’s nice to not have to spelunk into dark, cavernous settings in order to crank or drop the overall output.
Build-wise, the Boss seemed sound. Its metal chassis was not at all flimsy, but it wasn’t super-robust, either. The plastic knobs seemed precariously close to my foot’s travel, especially since they stand exposed, rather than recessed as on Boss’s ubiquitous compact stompboxes. But those knobs and how they work are what keeps the ME-20B reliably easy to use. They simply make things happen.
PROS
High-quality, real-world sounds; incredibly straightforward editing
CONS
AC adapter costs extra; plastic knobs seem unprotected
BOTTOM LINE
An easy-to-use setup that won’t get in the way of getting good sounds quickly.
SPECS
List
$299
Street
$220
Power
AC adapter (9.6-volt “wall-wart” style, $25 list) or six AA batteries
Inputs
1/4" input, 1/8" aux in
Outputs
1/4" L/mono and R outputs, 1/4" phones
Controls
Three footswitches, volume/wah expression pedal, four parameter editing knobs, master level knob
External footswitch
Boss FS-5U momentary ($39 list) or FS-6 dual footswitch ($69 list) for engaging bass enhance or bypass/tuner in manual mode, or changing banks in memory mode
Display
Two-digit red LED display
Dimensions
11 9/16" x 2" x 6 15/16"
Weight
3 lbs, 8 oz
Number of patches
30
Warranty
One year parts, 90 days labor
Made in
Taiwan
SECOND OPINIONS
Jonathan
“Very easy editing; it just makes sense. A good octave sound. The pedal sweep is uneven and rough, though.”
Greg
“You could actually use all the sounds it makes. It’s not trying to impress with novelty sounds.”