Boss ME-50B

I have had this for about half a year now and i am still getting to grips with it. If you know what your doing it will be easy to get a great sounding tone. I can get sounds to mimic my favourite artist eg muse and im a complete noob when it comes to effects.

I havent ever tryed to edit patches so i can't tell you much about it, but when flicking through the manual it looks a piece of ****.

The manual is really great and not hard to read as some manuals can be. It gives clear instructions for everything, having said that i need to find mine again!

I play with a yamaha RBX170 which is not the best bass but too poor too upgrade. My amp is a homemade amp with a celestion speeker built in. I play with the effects pedal infront of the amp.

It is very quiet on all settings due to the noice reduction knob on the back panel of the unit.

Most of the effects are as good as you can expect of ??180 but the synths are absolute ****, you can turn them down to the lowest level and you will stilll not be able to make out any pitch change.

as i said before i love muse and the muff fuzz is great for mimicing songs like hysteria but for artists that have a fairly generic sound its hard to get.

built like a tank like all boss pedals.

i would take sparew batteries just incase but even with ****** ones it would still last a 3hour gig

never needed to speek to them

i play stuff from the fray to as heavy as metallica and its fine

Ive been playing 4years and ive already said what other gear i use

if stolen i probably wouldnt replace and juss put it towards a new amp/cab

before buying i spent 6hours in the music shop trying out the pedals. The zoom b2.1u if just imposible to use and the manual is **** and written by japenese people that can't speek propper english. the line 6 floor pod just didn't have the flexibility and didnt have many options to tweak the effects.

my favourite aspect of the pedal is deffinately the noise reduction knob that is a real life savour

i wish its compresors/limiters actually did something other than just reduce the volume.

i deffinately helps me make music and the number of riffs i just would have got is remarkable

The good: compared to other multi-FX like the Line 6 and other amp-modelers, this gives you much more tactile control, with all the knobs you could possibly want to play with.

The bad: you have to be willing to work with this pedal to get good tone. It will sound crappy if you don't.

I play an Egmund and an American Jazz V into either a Markbass combo tiltback or an Ampeg B100r.

The quality of the different effects varies tremendously. After playing with them for several months now, my verdicts:

- Compressors/noise suppressors: Comp has several presets that you can alter the level and sustain of. The D-Comp sounds excellent, though it can be a little noisy. The rest are passable. The noise suppressor is useful. 8/10

- Distortion/synth: One time, the guitarist in my band managed to make the driver sound pretty good, so it is technically possible. I've not been able to do it since, though. You have to fight with it to make it even sound passable. And the synths are completely impossible to control. If you buy this pedal, be prepared to get a driver to go along with it, because as far as I'm concerned this one is unusable. 3/10

- Modulation/delay: Surprisingly good delay, reverb, and mods. If you play around with the flange, chorus, and phaser, you can get some great effects. The phase, for example, while not as crisp as the MXR EVH Phase 90 I've got, does a pretty fair approximation of what a good bass phase should be. Quite impressive. 9/10.

- Filter/Tone: Very mixed bag. The bass and mid scoop functions sound dreadful. The octave down is actually pretty good, though I've also played the EBS OctaBass and it's clearly superior. (On the other hand, the OctaBass costs more than I paid for this whole pedal.) The octave up is quite serviceable and you can get a nice organ-y tone, but for held notes on open strings the tracking will cut out and sound glitchy. The defretter is cool but gets old quick. The swell is a neat function once you learn how to play with it. I've used this effect very successfully on slower songs. 6/10.

- Wah pedal. Haven't owned an independent wah so I can't compare. It sounds decent. 7/10.

Note: I originally had all of these ranked higher until I went out and got some solo pedals (EBS multicomp and octaver, SansAmp Bass Driver), was awed by what good bass tone can sound like, and docked the ME-50B accordingly. Let's face it, the ME-50B is good for a creative, experimenting bassist on a budget but high-end individual pedals will always be better if you have the money for them.

One good thing I forgot to mention: when you turn all the effects off, there's no noticeable change in your bass tone... don't know if the bypass is true but it sure sounds like it. Having a built-in volume pedal is highly useful also. Another reason why, value-wise, this baby is a steal.

Built solidly. Bought it used, shipped across the country, works like a charm. Boss. You know the drill.

I've played pods and other bass multi-FX and they don't hold a candle to this thing, it's the best multi-FX pedal I've seen, extremely easy and intuitive to use, gives you total tone control. But the effects themselves could have been of higher quality (especially in the drive/synth category), and ultimately those who have the money to do will eventually find themselves increasingly going the way of individual pedals, I think. I like to have this around for specialty effects (think delay-wah-reverb ambient space jam), but for most of my playing I want fewer effects that work better and maximize tone quality. Hence, individual pedals, and a smaller bank account.

Still, when I was just getting started I used this for the first couple years of bass-playing, got it for a song on ebay, and I'm very glad I did. Again, if you're just starting or you're on a budget, I think this is your best option.

Really easy maaan!

the first use is like 3 single pedals, all analogic, all trims and buttons, I love that. Out of the box and you use it NOW no manual no bul*****.

in the next usage you can record complex effects sequence and store in memory by a digital menu, then you can select by pedal wich one you want. Not difficult!

I play mainly a fender jazz bass + old ampeg 15" 300W combo = sweet butter sugar honey :-)
for jazz music and 70's rock

in 15 years I never have used big/many effects,
but now for a particular situation I needed:
- a volume pedal
- a chorus
and a noise suppressor (the earth on the stages...)

so i see some prices and I decided to buy that BOss multi 'cose the price was the same or more of that tree...
in addiction I sold my limiter/compression and my pedal tuner...

now the quality:
-true bypass OK (if you turn all effects off you have exactly your signal in the amp!)
-noise suppressor is very goood, cuts only bzzz shhhh hummmm, not your tone
- compressors are first choise (i sold mine fo this reason), 160 soft for me is perfect! and the natural too
- the tuner is very good too, you can decide the volume you tune the instrument with volume/expression pedal, so very nice
- the volume pedal is really nice too

the strictly effects part, after 3 months of stage use:
I have found one effect for every of the 3 pedal that is nice and work for me:
the chorus (the most I use)
the bass booster (only sometimes)
and natural distortion (I use rarelly)
IN THAT FIELD FOR ME IS A big 9

others IMHO are not sooo good (rating 6 or 7),
- Drive/synt
if you are a metal children of bodom is not the product for you (even if you can do a really powerfull noise with it), distorsion section is just sufficinet in quality
- the filter/tone section not good, ok if is the first time you use them very usefull to understand different tipe of effects, but onstage...
- Delay modulation
chorus not bad at all, is stereo and nice (best single pedal are a little ritcher in tones), also delay and others are not bad.

volume pedal (nice) become also expression/other effects pedal, but I don't like (only hold the note on stage)

now i'm experimenting with 2 seconds loops, a little too short, but funny!

an iron tank, very hevy
but buttons are plastic...

OK if you are an effects addict is not for you,

but if you use a little effects, like me , it is very usefull one pice of gear and you have everything! (fkc it dosn't have the XLR out DI, in boss are crazy!) on stage now i'm more relaxed (I haven't no more 15 things to bring and to forget)and no backup

If they steal it I'll buy it again, shure.

I have tried logitech evil menu hell, and NO comparison in tone quality and in easy of use. I have also tried zoom B2 and again no comparison that is a toy and this is a professional gear.

also for first time serius effects incomeing is perfect

This 'bass punk kid' sounds good right out the box, especially when compared to its bigger brothers from Roland/Boss. The manual is fairly miniscule, but editting patches turn out to be acceptable. I am not sure if there is going to be any 'upgrade' to this unit (ME-20B-ll or 20C) possibly.

My favourite bassists/musicians are all over the map, from Jaco thro' Stanley C to Eberhard Webber, John Entwhistle, the old jazz dudes and beyond. I didn't score this unit to emulate them, but to carve my own sonic niche. The distortions and overdrives sounds very 'Bossy', (meaning usable), the chorus is good, (but not as good as the Boss CE-20 or the older DC-2). Flanger is okay. The wah is awesome.The de-fretter won't make you sound like Mark Egan, Octaver sounds cool, and the two 'synth' settings does the job. The other effects are 'chips' off the Boss block (meaning good).
I own THE BASS, ( a hot-rodded Leo Fender Music-Man Sting-Ray from the 70s), but 'modded' as a stereo-bass with Bartolini (replacement) pick-ups, running at 18 volts DC.
The ME-20B is fairly quiet, both live and studio

Haven't owned it long enough, but from the looks of it, I'll use it at a gig without a back-up

Not from Roland/Boss Canada.

My style range from Jazz/fusion thro' Blues/R'n'B/Funk/Reggae/Ska to Rock/Hard-Rock/Metal/Extreme/Industrial. The ME-20B won't cover all the basses, but hey, what do you expect from a 'punk bass kid pedal'?
Been playing for a few years (meaning many years). I own and run a recording facilty (Trident Desk with all the usual gear suspects). If it was stolen, I would get angry momentarily, then put its bigger brothers back to work.
I love the compact size, easy edit features, good mix of effects and very usable sounds. I am also happy that that ther is no 'AMP/CABINET'
MODELS. I can plug it into my own set-up and have fun.
I chose this unit after I saw the Phil Gates demo (NAMM). He seems to be having tons of fun. He was right.
This little puppy made me 'smile' and that's a good thing. The other Boss pedal that made me smile recently, was the Boss ML-2 (Metal Core).
Now for the wish-list. The wah/volume pedal is a bit on the 'small' side; it should come with a wall-wart, in addtion to the baterries, and may-be have more memory locations.
Over-all, Roland/Boss got this one right, price and feature-wise.
By the way the unit also wreaked havoc on electric guitars, keyboards, drum machines and bass synths. Some-one, should give this young punk mohawk.

It's very easy to use. The idea is great: all the nobs are in front of you and the stomp boxes allow you to quickly turn on/off effects. Haven't experimented with the presets yet. Haven't needed to. Takes me only a few seconds to switch from one sound to another.

Up and down. Some things it is great at. Other things it is very poor at. Let me run down the different sections and give my two cents:

Compressor/Limiter: It's compression. What do you expect? The D-Comp is my favorite of the settings, it adds a nice crunch.

Master: I never touch the master fader. It's in the middle and I keep it that way. As for EQ, if your bass amp doesn't at least have 3-4 band EQ you need a new bass amp but having it at your feet as well is convenient.

Expression/volume pedal: Excellent for volume. Press really hard on it and it switches over to expression. The wah is sweet, the best of the expression options. The octave pitchshifters are cute but do bassists actually use them? I thought that was more of a guitar thing. If the Sound Hold and Kick Drum functions actually do anything, I haven't figured out what it is yet.

Filter/Tone: Pretty doggone good. First, there's this thing's secret weapon, in my opinion: the defretter. It gives a gorgeous, wah-ish squash sound to the attack on your bass and it cannot be had on any other pedal, at least as far as I can tell. I've searched all over for it. The octavers and shaping are good, but you do have to mess with the depth and resonance knobs to get the tone you want from them. If you stand in front of your amp while messing with these settings you could seriously hurt yourself.

Distortion/synth: I do not really use these effects much on bass but I would use them more if the ones on this box didn't suck. This is the real weak point of the whole box, I think. It's very difficult to get good tone with them, or to have any control whatsoever. I'm very unimpressed. Maybe they will sound like cool, raw analog effects if I run some weird keyboards through them to get twisted, distorted ambient noise. But a bass? Forget it.

Delay/Modulation. Solid. The bass chorus is excellent. Ditto the delay option, and the delay/chorus option. The reverb is pretty good too. Phaser and flanger are about what you'd expect.

And think about that for a moment. A good delay pedal from Boss is at least $130ish. Chorus? Another $70. That there is 2 effects out of about 10 on just this one stomp, out of three, plus an expression pedal, compression and EQ, that alone would be 2/3 the cost of this box. The value is undeniable.

Oh yeah...

Tuner: does its job.

It's a boss pedal. They are invincible.

No need to date.

It's a little bit of excess. I mean, how many effects can you drop on a bass, anyway? But it's an excellent way to play with your tone without resorting to fake-sounding amp-modeling pedals. It's extremely easy and fun to manipulate the effects and experiment. And if you're like me, you'll find your favorite half dozen effects and just stick with those.

But I'm still very disappointed about the drive/synth options. So disappointed, I nearly sent the whole thing back, despite everything. The defretter won me over and convinced me to keep it. I can never give that up.

Same as Boss Me-50 (a similar guitar multi-effect).

Familiarise yourself with the process of recording your own settings in case you really want to use different effects and don't want to bend and turn all those knobs while playing.
Otherwise, you can use it as a big stomp-box.

Yes, a load of different effects - but will you ever use most of them? Out of 50-something half sounds just awful, and the rest are as bad as good the original boss pedals making that specific effect.

Synth is awful, distortions... well, forget them. Compression? don't even ask.

Apart from that, it will kill your individuality - no matter what bass and amps you play, everything will sound similar. Fender Jazzbass, Warwick rockbass, Custom fretless or russian kill-em-all bass Ural (best choice in a street fight) - will sound equal.

it is metal.
a friend of mine own one of these, for two years it works as during its first day

If you just started playing a bass guitar - go to a local shop, and test all the sounds this thing has. Find out which you like most, and then look for the usual stomp-boxes (boss or others) - they will sound way better.
I don't see any other use for this.

Bass guitar doesn't need as much effects as guitar - most of the time, it is okay as it is. Me-50B won't somehow dramatically improve the clear sound of your bass - it will just add some digital deathness to it.

I personally have a chorus (by EBS), an autowah (nano Bass Balls by electro harmonix), and compressor+leveler by Ehx again (lpb 2ube & Black Finger). Yes, it all costed me about almost twice as much as one Boss Me-50B.
However, I like my sound ten times more than the one the Me-50B could give me, and I can produce any sound I want to.

Nevertheless, the final choice is yours.

Considering the amount of stuff on this thing it is really easy to use, I havent had a problem operating it so far. Very easy to use

No background noise at all on my setup which is an Epiphone Special II plugged into a Fender FM65R. All the effects sounds great too, The can go anywhere from completely F*cked to very nice sounding traditional effects.

This thing is built like a tank, I would gig without a backup without a second thought. Very dependable

Havent had to deal with them

This thing can match any style of music, If it were stolen I would replace it (funds permitting).

Overall a great unit

Not too shabby at all. The manual gives an excellent description of the knobs and their functions for each effect, and a few of the presets were spot-on with cleaner tones. The EQ is simple but definitely functional, and the 3 front buttons work without hassle.

The first complaint I have is that the bank buttons are so small. Sure, I could go spend a lot more money than I need to on the splitter and two FS-5U switches...but that is so lame. The second complaint is that the tuner is a little twitchy, but not bad enough. The third and final complaint is that I wish boss made their LEDs a tad brighter...when I play bright, outdoor gigs, I literally cannot distinguish anything, even when I put shadows on it.

Okay, a lot of the sounds are great. Some, not so great. It's extremely quiet, and I really love that.

My rig-(other FX excluded:
Lilah (Godin Freeway-4)-> ME50B -> SWR LA15 combo amp

-Compressors: I love em all. I can never tweak the limiter quite right, but the 160Ds are pretty good and the Dynacomp is nice to have. Compressors are a big part of my sound.

-Octave Down:I don't enjoy this one. I've used my friend's amp's octave down, and this one doesn't even come close (my friend has a crate, I forget what model...). This one seems almost monotonous, as in less tone, more 'single sine wave'. It is nicely variable though, it's not a steep volume.

-Octave up: BLEH. sounds like a cheap keyboard, although I haven't experimented with it very much.

-T-Wahs: I'm not sure if this is for the wah-retarded or what, but they're a nice novelty. I haven't screwed with them much, and don't use em...but from my ear, they're not bad.

-Slow Gear: Definitely something I use. If you set the lows high, you get an amazing, creamy sound that creeps in, like you were using a volume swell pedal. If you set the tone with a little more mid-high, you get a very cello-like noise (add a little 'verb). With chorus and verb, this is one of my favorite settings. It's especially fun with delay.

-Defretter-well, I haven't played with this one much either. Don't mind it, don't use it. I used it once, but I've never liked the sound of fretless basses too much...so if fretless is for you, have fun.

-Enhancer: I've played with it and can honestly find no notable sound difference.

-Bottom boost: handy package. If you've got a setting that you feel needs more kick under it, the octave down probably won't work. Go with this instead.

-Mid shape: same here...I find it usefull if I need some extra distortion shaping.

-Hollow: it creates a unique sound with Lilah that I've never found anywhere else. That said, it's not my favorite sound, but it fits in some places. Whether or not it makes it sound hollow, I couldn't tell yah.

-All distortions: Once you get past about 9 oclock with the level, you start to lose most of the lows, making your bass distortion sound like a bad guitar distortion. Natural tone is nice, the overdrive isn't too bad if you keep it low...I personally use one overdrive setting to add a smidgeon of grit.

-Synth: These are once again a handy thing to sample. Like I said, this was like an appetizer of effects for me, and it starts a beginner off into the realm. Both of em aren't top-quality, but you can get some interesting sounds. Nothing amazing like Muse, but certainly unique.

-Filters: I've never had a use, and they're much to strong for my liking.

-Tap Delay: Extremely useful, definitely functional.

-Hold Delay: Too short of a loop to ever be truly useful, and it almost seems like it sucks the tone away over time.

-Analog Delay: Not as analog-y as I want.

-Other Delays: Blah, blah, blah. They're DELAY.

-Phaser/Flanger: I put these in the same category because they really ARE the same thing. There are very subtle difference in the two settings, but they don't stand apart like real phasers and flangers. i like the flanger cuz it's a little more metallic, and goes really well with a bottom boost and a hint of distortion. However, these two don't represent their effect well at all.

-Chorus: It certainly has a huge rate, the sweep is decent, but it's not as spacious as I'd like. I've got a CE-20, and this is NO comparison. Of course, CE-20 is amazing, but this thing isn't great. Not a lot of variants.

-Chorus + Delay: A useful setting for me. I'm a unique bassist in that I fingerpick chords near the 12th fret quite a bit, since I need to maintain a lot of the rhythm section. This works like a charm for me.

-Chorus + Reverb: See above. Quiet delays count as heavy reverb for me, so this is a lighter setting.

-Reverb: is by far my all-time favorite effect, and this one isn't too shabby. Boss reverbs are lackluster, and this is no exception, but once again, APPETIZER.

-Wah: ARGH. I use resonance instead, and the worst part is, when you push the heel all the way down (lowest freq), the volume gets WAY boosted, and I haven't yet found a way to compensate for it.

-Resonance: See above, and definitely a handy addition for those synths and filters.

-+1 Octave: I cannot STAND this sound. Cheap keyboard, and two notes together modulate the sound and creat some odd techno-type noises.

--1 Octave: Fun for experimentalists.

-Sound hold: I experiment, never use it live. It's touchy and obvious.

-Kick Drum: Good for practicing tempo keeping. leaning the pedal back turns it down further.

Most definitely. I played for a year a weekly gig on a dusty field, and the dust got everywhere. I cleaned it a lot cuz I'm obsessive, but pots did not get noisy or ANYTHING. It fell offstage once too and works perfectly still.

Never had to do it.

Basically, it's an excellent sampler for any bassist who wants to break into effects. It's also a fun toy, and the compressors are nice, even though I like a lot more tweakability. It brings out your style if you adjust it right and works wonders for clean-sounding tones (once again, tweak it right...EQ, the bottom boost, mid shape, hollow, the natural drive, the natural comp...). If you're already in the effects scene, don't buy it. If you want to dabble in almost every effect there is and see which ones you really like and want to go further with, take this.

This unit is so easy to use, you'd have to be an idiot not to get it!

I have two axes - a musicman 5string fretless, and a fender p-bass body with a jazz bass neck I modified myself. My main gigging rig is a GK 700RB head with an ampeg 410 cab, nothing special but pretty bass-ic sounding.

The me50b is noiseless, as everyone else has mentioned. Obviously, higher compression and distortion will bring out any noise that there is, but the unit doesn't create it.

For my style, I don't use a lot of the effects, but I think *most* of the effects are pretty usable. The low-distortion distortions are my choice (I like a little bit of dirt), but I find they eat up the low end pretty fast (not my preference). The tone/filter section is one I don't use at all, though the 'ghost' effect is cool on guitar - having a fretless kind of eliminates the need for most of the effects on that module. The delay/mod is my favorite section, and I would love if I could split these effects up. I like a very short single slap-back delay, and the lightest hint of chorus, which I can get together but without as much individual control. If I could move effects into different modules, this would give it a 10 in this category.

Not many people have mentioned the wah settings, but it's great! The ring-modulator tone is, for me, the best. I have an old 'mr. multi' wah-pedal which has three settings, including phaser, wah, and super-wah. This thing sounds the closest to it of anything I've tried.

The compressor section is great, but I use it very sparingly

It's very dependable. Never had a problem with any of the sounds, or with losing my settings.

The one issue I've had with it is when I run it on AC and there are a lot of power sources on the same circuit, it starts flashing and seems to slightly lose volume. I don't know if anyone else has ever run across this problem.

I would definitely use it without a backup, in two ways. I have a sansamp bass driver, which does NOT sound like the bass driver setting on the me50b (it's not bad, just different). I will use that any day as my only input for a gig, or my amp all by itself too. The me50b into the sansamp would be a good option too, but I haven't actually used it like that in practice.

The tuner, by the way, is great. It's fast and accurate.

Never used customer support

I play 'rock', blues, country and rootsy stuff mostly, maybe a bit of jazz. It works great, but I can see it really shining with someone who really likes effects. I bought it basically for the compressor, tuner, volume/wah and 'master' sections, and the rest was just a bonus.

I've been playing bass for about 20 years, professionally for at least 16 of those. I own various other cabinets, I have owned many many bass heads, numerous fender basses, as well as assorted crap.

I would probably buy this unit again if it were stolen. Either that, or just a tuner. I tend to like to be minimal, which also appealed to me in this, as it is 'one pedal'. I hate pedal boards with tons of cables and things all over the place. Too much maintenance and noise.

My favorite feature is the chorus! I use it on almost off, it just thickens the tone slightly. I also like the volume pedal a lot (big range, durable, comfortable). I don't much like the tone/filter settings, and wish I could 'move' the effects around. Oh well

I preferred it immensely to all products that use menu interfaces. This does too, but you can avoid it entirely if you wish.

I wish it had a built-in clock for on stage use!!!

It helps me make music. It did take me several weeks on the road, tweaking, to find the right sound settings. But I have them now, and it doesn't get in the way.

How easy is it to get a good sound out of it? VERY
How about Editing patches? SIMPLE
How is the manual for it (if there is one)? DECENT

What setup (i.e. what guitars and amps) are you using this with? MUSICMAN S.U.B. 5-STRING THRU HARTKE 4X10 CAB & 350W HEAD (TUBE)
Is it noisy? On what settings? D-COMP AND DISTORTIONS ARE SLIGHTLY NOISY. OTHERWISE, THE UNIT IS TOTALLY QUIET.
Are the effects weak or do they always sound great? GREAT
Can you get the sound of your favorite artists? Who are they? YES
Are certain effects (distortion, chorus, ...) very good? Very bad? WEAK EFFECTS ARE OCTAVER (SORT OF). THAT'S IT.

Can you depend on it? YES
Would you use it on a gig without a backup? YES

What style of music do you play? Is this a good match? COUNTRY, HEAVY-HARD-CLASSIC ROCK, FUNK-FUSION, JAZZ
How long have you been playing? What other gear do you own? 10 YEARS
If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again or get something else? BUY IT AGAIN
Did you compare it to other products? Which ones? Why did you choose this one? ZOOM PEDALS & DIGITECH. OWNED THEM BOTH, AND NEITHER COMPARES
Anything you wish it had? NOPE
Does it help you make music, or does it get in the way? DEFINETLY HELPS ME MAKE MUSIC (GREAT FOR GUITARS, TOO)

OK, this unit is very easy to use, you just have to turn the knobs and that's it. Now to get a good sound with this pedal is pretty easy to, except with the Synth, it get's kinda confusing.

My equipment right now is an Ampeg BXT410-HL4 hooked up to a Peavey 115 Combo, and in the end there is an Ibanez SR400. It's not noisy, only the "Overdrive" efect.
At first I loved to experiment with al the efects, but eventually i got kinda tired of the efects.
All the efects are great, specially all de Modulation and Drive efects. The Synth sounds aren't as good as i excpected. The Filter/Tone section is good like the T-Wah and Octave efects are great, but i don't really care for the Tone modification efects, they dont modify at all.

You can depend on this pedal for the rest of your life.

Haven't dealt with Boss yet.

Good pedal, but if your extremly picky with your sound, your gonna have a hard time; well i belive if you're very picky, you're gonna always have a hard time with your sound.

This effects unit is amazing. It has so many different sounds to it, from very harsh distortion tones, to funky touch wah's. The dedicated knobs are really nice when working with more than one effect. Writing patches and editing is a breeze.
Even though you cannot switch between banks with your feet, i dont know if you would ever be using 4 different combonations of effects in a single song. The change bank buttons are not difficult to find.

I am using this with a Trace Elliot Commando 15 amp and a Ibanez SRX300. I play all types of rock, funk, and industrial. This amp can get those very heavy industrial lines really easy. Plus if you play funk/rock its got some good t-wahs that are fun to play around with. The synths are ok. I found they work better with some of the Mod effects in place. The compressor could be better, but it works just fine.

It is a boss... that seems to be enough said. The buttons and knobs are solid. The expression pedal is very tough. I would definatly gig without a back up.

Never dealt with them.

This is a perfect pedal for any bassist wanting to have some crazy tones and some more usable ones at their feet. I absoloutly love this pedal, and I think I would buy another one if it were ever stolen.
I love it ... buy one.

It is like having a tuner, one volyume/wah pedal + 5 effects pedals in the same time with one of

- Pdeal: Volume, Wah, Octave+, Octave-, Sound hold of kick.
- Bass EQ
- Compressor: choice of 5
- Filter/Tone: 8 Filters/3 Tones (nice) with Low and tone knobs
- Distortion/Synth: 7 Distortions (very nice)/4 Synth with Drive and tone knobs

- Delay Modulation: 4 Delays/1 phaser/1 Flanger/ 3 Chorus / 1 Reverb

Absolutely intuitive. It is the easiest of all multi-effect to use. I was looking at the GT-6B but I much prefer manipulating individual pedals and never have to touch any menus. Even if the GT-6B offers much more possibilities, I prefer the simplicity of the ME-50B.

I love the fact that I can use the pedals manually and I don't have to use a patch all of the time.

The tuner works fine.
It's easy to set, recall or modify a patch.
24 Presets were fun to try but not really usable for me.

WARNING, when trying presets for the first time, make sure to set the input gain set very low. If you leave it at the same level as you do when your bass is connected straight into your amp, you may damage your amp or your cab, because the presets are WAY TOO LOUD. I had to modify them all I case I use one of them by accident. It'a that bad.


The manual is very minimalist. It shows it all, but it doesn't tell what frequency is is affected by all tone knobs.

I use it with an Americal Jazz Bass 2004, an Americal P-Bass 1970, an SVT-IV Pro, a Peavey Max 700 and an SVT-810.

Let me say this. I'm an old school high end fan. I listen my music on very sophisticate gear, and I took me a long time to give any credits to digitals processors what so ever. I have been disapointed by CD players until very recently. Since now most of cheap CD/DVD players finnaly sounds decent, and digital sound precessing had made some huge steps in the last 10 years, I thought I could buy this utin blindly and send it back to the store within 45 days if I was not happy about it. Well it took me more than 3 weeks to appreciate this unit. Considering I did not use much of effects before.

The first test I did was to compare the clean sound with the sound of the bass connected directely in the amp. I really coudn't see a difference. Considering my cab is an SVT-810 which is not high end and has rolled off lows and highs... but sounds so sweet...

Some effects are as noisy as the real pedals they simulate, byt the noise suppressor does a good job if wanted.

Comnpressor:
I like all the compressor options, but I would have prefer a dual band compressor. Still I use the 1600 Soft the most.

Filter/Tone:
Most of the tone effects are working better with the Peavey than the SVT. The SVT sounds best by itself in general.

The T.WAH are funny, but I don't see any use for them.
Octavers are pretty dry. I've never tried an interesting octaver, so I don't know what to expect. Octave+ combined with Hi-Band distortion offers some interesting possibilities.
The slow gear gives a nice ghost effect. I use it once in a while combined with a distortion and some phaser. It sets a hell of a spooky mood.
Defretter works, but it's not like a real fretless bass. Still it's customizable enough to be usable live.
Enhancer is a very gentle enhancement. Work best with a clean amp and cab.
Bottom Boost and Mid shape: I use them very often. It's nice to switch to a darker sound in the midle of a tune. Adds full tone control to any amp.
Hollow: Simulate a hollow body sound by adding feedback or harmonics in the low-mid. Not very good with a P-bass but usable with a J-Bass. When the tone is set to clear, it provides a cheap but somehow usable hollow sound.

Distortion: The good part. They all sound very different. Always keep the low end and I can dose Clearn and Dirty sound. I usually use Dirty sound only. They are all nasty. I don't believe they sound exactely the same as what the simulate. At low gain, lt's easy to notice the edge when the distortion kicks and it's digital and very edgy. Not as flexible as the real thing. But at very high volume, who can notice the difference. It's still fun to use and so much cheaper.
Natural: Simulate a dirty tube preamp. Sounds like my Genz-Benz Blue Tube pedal but with full low end.
Bass Driver: Simulate the Tech211 Sansamp Bass Driver DI. I don't know how the original sounds like, but I love this option. At low gain, it sounds awesome. BIG OLD SCHOOL TUBE SOUND. I USE IT A LOT.
Over Drive: Boss ODB-3
Distortion: I don't know what to compare this with. Anyway, it sounds very edgy and very different from the Over Drive.
MUFF FUZZ: Simulate the Electro-Harmonix Big Miff Pi. I love it. It's perfoct for some tunes like "Smoke on the water". May requires to be mix wit a bit of clean sound.
Metal: Very rich and edgy. Not very warm, but I still like it.
Hi-Band Drive. Distorts the hi band only, and keeps the the low end intact. It's fun to use.
I hate bass synth in general and these ones in particular. I don't know what to do with those.

Delay/Modulation: I'm 50/50 about these.

Delays: Tap delay and Hold are very hard to use correctely, so Y used manual delay. I think the delay sounds a bit lean and edty. Let's see it this way, a good delay cust as much as this unit so...Anyway, when I use it, my friends think its cool. I play Pink Floyd "One of these days" with it and it's fine.
Phaser and Flanger are edgy as well. I'm trying to get Michael Antony fluid flanger without success. Anyway, when I use it, my friends think its cool too.
I don't use the chorus. I think chorus is cheese with a bass.
The reverb is very good for my own taste.

We play some southern rock, funck, reggea and classic rock. Like Cream, Hendrix, Black Keys, Van Halen, SVR and so on...We also have our own compositions which are kind of Greatful Dead/Phish/Moe...
I've been playing to almost 3 years and the only effect I ised before are a Genz-Benz Blue tube pedal and Cry Baby bass.
I would surely replace it if lost.
I love the fact that I can use the pedals manually and I don't have to use a patch all of the time.

Some sound are really great for a relatively low price digital unit. I've tried a Beringer before and it was awefull, really. The ME-50B is excellent for the price.

I which it had an analog bypass.
You have to spend an extra $60 to get two other foot switch's in order to switch memory banks up/down or turn the compressor on/off with the foot. It's hard to leave without them. That bosts the price tag.

How easy is it to get a good sound out of it? Real easy, no menus just twist knobs and stomp pedals.

How about Editing patches? Get the sound you want, press write, then select bank and patch location and press write again. No problem.

How is the manual for it (if there is one)? Manual is a litte vague on a few things, but if you've used effects and/or stomp boxes before, you'll have no problem figuring out this unit without the manual.

Do you know the firmware revision number? Has your unit been upgraded? No idea.

Bottom line: This is about the simplest multi effects processor you'll ever use.

What setup (i.e. what guitars and amps) are you using this with? My two main basses are a Fender P-bass and an OLP MM3 five string. I run Bass => ME-50B => MXR M-80 => Direct to board. I have a combo amp for stage volume if needed.

Is it noisy? On what settings? Some effects produce some very mild noise, especially the extreme distortion/overdrives, but this is expected. The noise supressor does a very good job of reducing and eliminating the noise.

Are the effects weak or do they always sound great? IMHO, all the effects are useful and sound very good. None of the effects could be considered the best out there, you can always find a dedicated pedal or two that will arguably sound better, but by the time you buy enough dedicated pedals to cover all the stuff this one unit does, you could spend three times the cost!

What amp are you using it with? Peavey TNT 115S

Can you get the sound of your favorite artists? Who are they? I do not try to emulate any artist sound.

Are certain effects (distortion, chorus, ...) very good? Very bad? They all work and sound decent. Octaver and synths track very well, though not absolutely perfect. Fretless simulator is not convincing, but sounds much closer than most I've heard in the past. Touch wahs are okay but probably the weakest of all the effects. All the overdrives/distortions can be blended with the dry signal so you don't loose any bottom end. Modulation effects sound great but are a bit on the mild side. Delays - it has all you'll ever need as a bass player but I wish the phrase looper had more than just 2.8 seconds of sampling time. All the expression pedal effects work and sound good, nothing super special but definately not bad. I would have rather seen Boss include a metronome than that kick drum feature. Compressors are really good, way better than on any other multi effect I've ever used. The EQ is voiced well and the semi-parametric mid control is very handy. Tuner works well and seems to be fairly accurate.

Bottom Line: Great sounding effects good for studio but better for live work. Yes you can find better effects but not all packaged together at this price.

Can you depend on it? It's made by Boss, need I say more? Solid construction and made out of metal. Don't see any reason why it wouldn't be dependable short of major abuse. Although I can't honestly rate it until I've owned it for a few years.

Would you use it on a gig without a backup? Yes, but mainly because I don't use effects all that often and could get through easily with out it.

If you've dealt with the company, how helpful/friendly were they? Never dealt directly with Boss. I wish they posted more detailed product information on their website and made the manuals a little more accessable.

Ever get an upgrade, or try and get it repaired? No Boss product that I have ever owned has ever let me down and I have never received an upgrade.

What style of music do you play? Is this a good match? I play mostly at a large church playing many different styles of praise and worship. I also play with various local artist and worship leaders here in the area both live and studio. The ME-50B fits all my current effect needs and then some.

How long have you been playing? What other gear do you own? I've been playing bass for over 11 years. I own 4 basses and many other instruments, effects and stuff. My main bass gear is already listed.

If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again or get something else? If finances allow I would buy it again, unless something that better suited my needs came out.

What do you love about it? What do you hate? What is your favorite feature? I love the real time tweakable knobs everywhere interface and decent sounding effects. I hate the fact that I'm not a trained Jedi who could use the force to turn the knobs with out bending over. Can't say that I have one overwhelmingly favorite feature, other than the fact that it has no menus and no hidden features that you can only access by connecting it to a computer. Everything is 100% tweakable on the fly.

Did you compare it to other products? Which ones? Why did you choose this one? Yes I compared it to many other processors and single effects units. I chose this because 1)I didn't want to do the digital amp modeling thing any more 2)No menus and hidden computer only accessable tweaks 3)Much cheaper than individual effects 4)Sounded just as good as most dedicated effect pedals on the market.

Anything you wish it had? Does it help you make music, or does it get in the way? I guess a true mechanical bypass would be good. This unit helps me get the sounds sound that I want. It can go from very subtle to very extreme settings. In the hands of a padawan leaner, or someone with bad taste, this thing could definately be a major distraction, but then again that is true for all effects.

Anything else you'd like to share? No.

hmmm OK - it's easy to get started with (set the settings on each effect press the foot switch and you're off and running) however the advanced stuff like setting up new presets is a little harder (though not rocket science hard) My manual is in Japanese (having bought it there) so I can get the gist of it but still have to experiment abit to see if I'm barking up the right tree. People who buy these second hand might find the cost for a manual money well spent.

I nocked up a 2 button switch box out of a small aluminum electronics project box and 2 momentary contact foot switches for under a quarter the price of the optional extra Boss foot switches and that certainly makes using the presets live a lot easier and also lets you turn the compresser on/off with out twiddling the dial.

Rig is various mid and high end basses (Fender, Musicman, Ibanez, Rickenbacker etc), Ampeg 4x10 and 1x15 cabs Gallien Kruger and Trace Elliot heads.


The presets show off the amasing degree of tonality and effects you can achive... though often trying to replicate similar but more subtle sound (ie usable) can take a bit of time and head scratching.

the compresser is good - but be aware that if the units that it models are noisy then the effect produced by the modeler is noisy.

the wa effects are definatly usable to give auto t-wa and Bass-Balls like effects (good for slap and funk and perfect for Flea's early Chilli Peppers sound (Higher ground etc.) The octive up and down I wasn't too impressed with being a little too synthetic and sterile for me. The other tonal efects except for slow gear (like a reverse attack envelope) are a little to fake and/or subtle to be all that much use on their own.


The range of distortions availible are good and sound quality is very good - distortion is very personal thing and will depend on your tastes plus pickup/string/amp/speaker setup so for you the usability for these may vary.
I only use the low pass and occasionally the fuzz which give me a nice retro 60's rock sound. Personally I think tracked synths (rather than MIDI pickup units) on the whole suck and nothing here goes far in convincing me otherwise - but YMMV.

The modulation reverb/delay/flange/phaser/chorus is all good but not outstanding - sertainly doesn't beat my MXR phase 90 and old Boss Bass Chorus pedals but definatly good enough for live work.

the foot controller give voume control and a usable wa effect though a little over the top for more subtle work and the resonance setting is good for effecting auto-wa and modulation sound.

the eq bank is usable though not sufficently versitile to cause me to bypass my preamp (no parametric/Q type control)

this is not my main giging effect unit as I have a Boss Compressor/Enhancer, Bass Chorus a Line 6 Distortion modeler and a EH Bass Balls on my primary effects loop. The ME50 is used for tonal variaty outside of my standard sound set.

I would say that it is plenty tough enough to gig with out a backup though the plastic expression pedal is worrisome - though I guess if it breaks first then it saves expensive repairs of the internal mechanism

I own heaps of Boss units and a fair few Roland Synths and have never had a problem dealing with them

Given that I payed such a pittance for it new at a stocktake sale (YES that IS equal to about $90 US - Back here in Australia they are around $700 or about $550 USD) I would say I got the bargin of a life time - I don't think I would have payed full price for it though - OK so that's only becasue I already owned sufficent individual units to cover all the work the ME50 does BUT otherwise if I was starting from scratch I'd put it on my must have list.
It is nice to be able to take a single unit giging that covers the dozen or so units I don't want to lug to each gig and as crowds get more fussy about covered songs sounding as close as posible I would say that these days a multi effects unit like this is essential gear for a cover band musican.

Any bonehead could use this. If you have mucular control over your feet and legs you can stomp on the pedals, which is half the work. The knobs only turn clockwise or counterclockwise, so there's no surprises there... It might be a bit confusing however, because there is a knob for every function, so when I wanted to change compressors, the gain knob for the drive pedal didn't work to change compressors! I couldn't believe it! Jeez... Anyway like I said if you know how to plug stuff in and push buttons, turn knobs you're set. to turn the effects on and off, all you must do is pretend you're stepping on a cute little bug! I didn't give this section a ten because I'm an anal retentive homo. 'nuf said.

Well naturally, this wont distort your coffee or make your teeth whiter, so you must only use an electric instrument through this unit. Personally, I use a Steve Bailey Aria Pro II 6-String Fretless Avante Series Bass... (breath) through any amp I can find, Right now its an 80 watt Peavey TKO Combo with a 15" Speaker, shelving, 7 band eq (I think) but I just plug directly into the "power amp in" jack. ( my bass, not any body part... fool me once...)
This is the quietest preamp ever: better than the POD, better than the V-Amp (WAY better), frankly, its got less noise than a child, so trade the kiddies in for one of these if you have a headache...
I have no favorite artists, as I think everyone sucks compared to me, so I don't even try to get someone else's sound, besides, if you hear the artist, you're not just hearing their instument and effects, your hearing all kinds of compression, eq-ing, preamping, tone filters, and leveling, note correction, mastering, etc, so you can't get someone famous' sound anyway.
The unit sounds GREAT! I almost emptied my balls in my own mouth when i plugged this in to my rig the first time. The distortions are GRRRRRRREAT ( that's Tony the Tiger would say) And I must say, they are even more useful than the original stompboxes. Take the "overdrive" effect for example. I've owned several of the original unit ( I would buy it, then get rid of it cause it sucked, then buy it again cause I forgot that it sucked, then I'd sell it again cause it sucked, then I'd buy it again...) The OD's and Distortions are awesome, because you have complete control over everything: gain, tone, DRY LEVEL (very important) and EFFECT LEVEL (also very important). This unit is worth the cost for the "DRIVE/SYNTH" pedal alone. I'll talk about the synths later in the section called "this part sucks."
The "FILTER/TONE" pedal has some very useful funtions like the "mid shape," "bottom boost," "hollow,"(which can sound like an accoustic electric KINDA) I don't really notice any difference with the "enhance" effect, so maybe that one's broken already. ( is this possible?) Here once again, is my biggest pet peeve with these multi effects pedals. SO MUCH SHIT I'LL NEVER USE!!!!! I play fretless, so why the Fu#% do I need a "defretter?" (in other words I can't tell you if it's good or not. Some (3) nice and tweakable envelope filters though. Octave Up and Down track nice, even on the low "B" and High "C" (not soft drink you pig Fu**er!) The octave up has a very slight delay which I didn't appreciate, so I got angry and beat my wife. Really. She's my stress relief. Anyway...
I could not ask for more in the "MODULATION/DELAY" pedal. I take that back. (but I won't delete it) The most delay you can get, even with "hold delay" is like two seconds. Not even enuf for a short riff. That sucks ass. Anyway, many great delays, flanger, phaser, chorus, reverb. All delays and modulation's are tap-tempo-able (thats a BIG plus)
The Compressor section has 5 different compressors and one limiter, all very good and musical. They aren't extremely tweakable (but thats a good thing, as I never was even able to figure out my Alesis 3630 so I never used it) Just a "threshold" knob and a "level" knob. simple.
The Master section is awesome, because if you want, you can use this as just an eq or boost pedal. ( but don't, you rich fag, cause thats shameful) All master level and eq settings are stored for each patch. Low, mid, Mid freq, high, and Master Level knobs are all there.
The Expression Pedal. This is great as a volume pedal, but the effects that can be controlled with this are weak and unalterble. For instance, if you don't like the range of the wah, you cant set the low and high values, so you have to move your foot e

I would use it on a gig without a backup (with a backup, whatever, what does my regularity have to do with this pedal?). I eat lots of fiber to prevent that problem.
Solid metal construction, same knobs and pedals they use on all of their products... Good stuff, BOSS...
I Only give this category a nine because I'm not sure if my "enhancer" effect works... I'll find out tonight though...

Never had to deal with them, but they're probably cool, I mean they work for BOSS! Yay! BOSS! Yay!

Excellent unit. I reccomend it to all my friend. ( I only have one, she's five, doesn't play bass, and is an imaginary gnome from planet Nerpluu)

Battery opperated or AC powered- the standard power supply for all their units, nothing special or irreplacable. I might buy another one just to show haow rich I am to all the poor chumps I play with. They have been cursed by God, not me. God loves me...

EMAIL ME FOR FURTHER QUESTIONS: I REALIZE THERE ARE ONLY 3 REVIEWS AT THE TIME OF THIS POSTING< SO THERE"S NO A LOT TO GO BY. I HOPE THIS HAS BEEN HELPFUL AND ENTERTAINING, IF NOT SLIGHTLY OFFENSIVE!

I am agreeing with the previous post I just wanted to add a MAJOR thing everyone should know. There are only 3 pedals so if you use/have more than three tones you are looking for then it becomes a bit of a hassle because there is NO BANK UP or DOWN footswitch. You must buy two Boss FS-5U foot switches - one for up and one for down so count on an extra 50 bucks on top of what you just paid. However, I like this ubit so much that after taking it back to GC and buying a TC Electronic G-Major I have decided it really handles my needs and I am taking the TC back and getting the ME-50B again and buying the 2 FS-5U's.

As with any multi effects it nails many individual pedals but not everything. I still can't replace my 80's MXR Phase 90 sound so I will just set it next to the ME-50B. The expression pedal is great for both volume and wah, I will use the compressor to replace my DBX 160X. I will be using the tuner, reverb, auto wah, envelop filter, chorus (although I like my Digietech X-Series Bass Chorus better). I don't use the drive on it because I usually just crank up the drive knob on my Ampeg SVP= Pro preamp. My setup is: Ibanez BTB1005e (Customized) or ender Geddy Lee Jazz Bass>Sennheiser Digital 1000 wireless>AMpeg SVP-Pro preamp>BBE 362>Peavey DPC1400> (2) Ampeg SVT 410HLF cabs (Stage right and stage left) This rig ROCKS!

A tank!!!!

I really dislike their website. You have to go to the Japan site for detailed info. I really wish they would post the manuals on line instead of making you pay for a replacement. I just like browsing them before I make a purchase to see what the unit is made of. For this reason I give them a 3.

I play in a 80's.90's,00's cover rock band in Atlanta. I have been playing for 30 years. Stloen? yes I would get another because I have tried EVERYTHING and this does it other than having two rack effets and tons of pedals on the floor and wires everywhere. Again I really wish it had the bank up and down pedals - this is a huge distraction.

I think the unit is fairly easy to get a good sound with. Everything is knob based so all you do is start tweaking knobs,...There are no menus at all. When you first power up the unit, it's in manual mode so what you see is what you get as far as knob/pedal positions go. This mode is easist for me to get a sound from instead of starting with a preset and tweaking from there. Once you get some patches saved, they are easy to edit. All you do is start tweaking the knobs. If you need to actually turn some effects on or off you will need to hit the "edit" button and then start making changes, which can either be saved or not. The manual was well written. The unit is easy to just start using but there are some specifics about some of the knobs and features that you should learn about by reading the manual so that their function is better used. For example, some of the knobs change function depending on what effect is selected. I give the the unit a 10 here because I don't think a multi-effects unit can be much easier. If this one gives you trouble, you better stick to just stand alone pedals or no pedals at all.

I am using a Fender MIA p-bass (w/Rotosound RS66LD strings) going into the ME-50b and then into an Ampeg V-4BH (all-tube head) which powers an Ampeg SVT-15e cabinet. I am going to have to warn you if you havn't already seen but I have to give the ME-50b a 10 here because of what it has done to my overall sound. What helps is that my Fender bass and Ampeg head already sounded fine before adding the ME-50b. This is good and bad in that I had to work a little harder to get the ME-50b to where it actually enhanced my tube amp but in the end, what I am getting out of the total combination of bass guitar, ME-50b, Ampeg head, and cabinet was worth it,.....AND admittedly it took a couple of weeks of fiddling with the unit to get to where it was enhancing what I already had with my setup. First off the unit is not noisy at all. In fact it made everything more quiet even without using the noise suppressor feature. I think this is due to the tube head getting a low impedance signal from the boss unit verses a high impedance signal from the bass when its plugged in direct. Not really sure about that but I get a tiny bit of 60 cycle hum/buzz when the bass is plugged directly into the amp,...its almost comletely quiet when I go through the boss unit and then to the amp,...If I turn up the noise supressor a bit, its like the amp is turned off (zero noise),.......All of the modulation/delay effects I would have to say lean more towards the mild side instead of wild. They, for the most part do what they are supposed to do but won't give you anything "signature" or out of the ordinary that you couldn't get with probably any other effects out there. The flanger though is particularly strong and I could see using that live for a little flair. The wah also is strong and has a lot of tonal range between fully up and fully down. The dedicated "drive" section really works for me also. I never thought I'd use anything in this section since I already got a great head for drive but I found the "Distortion" setting really focuses my Ampeg's tone or bass tone (however you want to look at it) and makes it cut right through the mix in a HUGE way! I set up the "distortion" more or less like a slightly dirty volume boost and it makes a night and day difference to my tone. For those who know about the Fulltone BassDrive pedal,....the ME-50b's "distortion" at a cleaner settings does what the Fulltone pedal does,...I once upon a time had the Fulltone Bass Drive pedal ;) The "distortion" setting (set as a fairly clean boost) is THAT good! What makes this unit great for me is the fact that I take it to church and plug it into their Fender BXR 100 solid state amp which can sound a little lame on its own especially if my strings are going dead,....Funny thing is, the "distortion" setting that is awesome for driving a tube amp sounds too overbearing on that amp. Instead the "natural" and "bass drive" settings are great with that amp,.....For variety I just can't say enough about this unit. And just like I am describing through my experience with it, your mileage may vary depending on your bass and amp combination,...In other words, while I think the unit is worth its price tag just for the compressor, EQ, wah/volume pedal, tuner, and "distortion" drive setting alone, you may find that all good with you setup except for the "distortion" setting and find it horrible sounding,.....just try out the "natural" and "bass drive" settings. Or you may try turning off the drive section alltogether and do the "bass boost" or "mid shape" thing in the filter section along with your amp providing all the drive or "dirt" (or clean). There is alot of different combinations of filters and drive settings when you get to messing with the unit. The compressor settings also really helps out your tone as well.

I use it without a backup,...I can't afford to buy two of them really and if something happened to it I would just plug in directly to the amp,...I would bet on my amp going before this effects unit does especially since my amp is all tube. The unit is made of metal and is very solid. The batteries don't last all that long,....Good alkalines last about like the manual says, approx 12 hours or so. The included batteries maybe half that long. One big thing for me is that this unit seems stable in the "microproccessor department",.....I am not even sure if there is a microproccessor in it but It hasn't locked up on me and I haven't heard of it doing that to anyone else yet,...Unlike some of the digitech units, which seems to freeze up sometimes. For me, playing live, this is a huge plus,....a bedroom rocker probably could care less if they get an occasional lockup.......

never delt with them

I play Christian rock/pop cover song material,...I have played bass and some guitar for about 10 years,..only have been playing live for about a year and a half. If something happened to it I would get another. I love the quality of its basic features,...compressor, EQ, wah/volume, tuner,...I didn't really buy it for the other effects like reverb, delay, phaser, etc,..although I will probably use some of them since I've got them,......I don't hate anything about the unit. I do wish it came with a power supply although I like not having to plug it into power on stage,..I may not even order the power supply. I did compare it to other products,..I mainly went with it becuase of the lack of menus and lots of knobs and also banked a little on Boss having at least some usable effects....I almost got the GT-6b but I really figured it would have tons of stuff that I would never use and there's those horrible menus on stage :( I am sorry I just can't think fast enough to manuever through menus if a change needs to be made especially under pressure,...there is far less on the ME-50b that I will probably never use as well and it just seemed a better value for me. You do have to purchase some additional momemtary switch type pedals if you want to be able to change patch banks with you feet verses bending over. This unit definately helps me make music. By the way, the unit does not have true bypass. I A-B'd it with it in bypass mode and just being plugged in direct,....there were some differences but not as much as I thought it would be. Each player may have different opinions here,....I would have been willing to trade off all the synth sounds for true bypass,....here you go BOSS, future improvements for the BOSS ME-50b2. Overall, a great unit as is,...