Boss OD-20 Drive Zone

This effect pedal is pretty easy to use straight up, but the manual is a must for getting the most out of it. If a beginner is to pick this thing up, just a note: tweak, tweak, tweak. You've got to work with this thing is you want whatever it is you're looking for. Another thing, make sure you know WHY you want this thing.

I am very reserved and always have a wait and see attitude when it comes to pedals, especially distortion/overdrive pedals. This actually sounded pretty good. I had no intention of buying but I remembered somebody mentioned this to me and I saw it in the store and took it for a spin. It sounded pretty good at the store. However, was running this through 60+ watt amps of all kinds, and I liked how it sounded on a Randall 100SC (which I have) at the store. Hey, but I did sit there for an hour testing it (I don't mess around and just chuck money in for any old box). It sounded okay at first, but got better and better. I also note: YOU NEED TO BREAK THIS PEDAL IN, before it starts to perform. That said, I didn't bother playing this thing through 15 or 30 watt amps, so don't take my word for it.
My experience with pedals are, they are always fussy about particular rigs. Sometimes good, most times bad. Pedals will work good on some rigs, and bad on others. This is why I always like to test before I buy. I really wouldn't expect this thing to sound any good on a 15 to 30 watt practice amp; it just makes sense boys and girls. Everything is relative. If you play like crap or are a beginner, this isn't gonna sound so good, you have to get better at playing before this baby sings to you.
This is a solid pedal. It sounds great for a pedal. Why not give it a 10? Simple. It's not a tube amp. This pedal will scream with the right rig (and I mean power). Randall RH100s' and Warlocks will call out to Satan and make him proud. It's get's some pretty good metal and hard rock sounds (and I don't mean Korn or Slipknot=not metal). Kids if you want to play so called "nu-metal" or Korn, any distortion pedal will do it for you, 'cause all you'll be doing is hitting power cords (which any old lady can do).
Funny thing. This OD-20 is supposed to model the MT-2 metal zone. On my rig, it actually sounds very good. I've played with an MT-2 pedal and it was always too harsh and bright, with brittle palm mutes. This modeled MT-2 does sound a whole lot better than the box itself. I have spent hours tweaking this thing. You need to sit down with thing and know how to work it's dials, and then work your amp settings (but that's a given). I have learned that everything needs to be broken in first.
Now, some settings sound hollow and distant. This is a problem on some amps...you'll have to be the judge. Many power amps have additional slots in the back for various connections, so I took the OD-20's manual recomendation to connect the pedal into amp switch channel and it sounded better here and there.
Overall, I'm pleased with this pedal. I don't play in a band or do serious recording, but I needed something that would work on my Randall in my garage at night, and work different styles. But it's just too much fun the crank the Warlock and cabinet afternoons when the neighbors are working on their house. I figure it's only fair that if they make noise, so can I. We have a truce when it comes to night. Basically, the OD-20 is pretty good.

Hmmm...don't know. Made of something hard. Looks solid enough, but wouldn't toss it around (but that applies to most things). All nobs work fine and are not slippery.

Haven't delt with them yet...and from what I've heard, I hope I never have to. They have some really confusing contact info, that's for sure.

I'm into old school metal and hard rock (Def Leppard, Grim Reaper, Iron Maiden, Steel Prophet), so that's my style of playing. This pedal comes pretty close to achieving some good distortion and overdrive varieties, but I am my own man and make my own sound, so it works for that really well, period. I always use noise gates with any amp or pedal distortion. This thing can be a little noisy, so get a gate. Lining up two NS-2s' after the OD-20 (or better, a single Dunlop noisgate) does a pretty good job of cutting that hiss down.

This pedal is easy to use,though you do need to read the manual to store/change the settings in memory.It has several outputs(the caninet simulater out is ok,at best)...really a lot of features for a stomp box.

I need to tell you where I'm coming from here.I'm kind of picky about my tone,and I HATE most stomp box distortion sounds(been playing 16 years,haven't found one that I like yet)....That was until my wife bought me a Zoom GFX8,as a Christmas gift.It has an ext. distortion input---and you can use the amp simulater,eq,and effects with preamps,distortion boxes,etc.

My old distortion pedals sounded pretty good with the Zoom---so I bought the OD20 because of it's versatility.The OD20 sounds incredible through the Zoom's preamp/cabinet simulator.The Zoom takes away the "chainsaw fuzzines" that plagues every stomp box that I've ever tried! The clarity and harmonic overtones are truly amazing---hard to believe there isn't tubes in there somewhere.In particular the OD20's "od2,stack,and lead" models sound very good.

In combination with the Zoom GFX8,I give the OD20 a 9. By itself,though a 7,because of the variety of tones and features(other stomp boxes are lucky if they get a 5).

It's a Boss...they don't make gear any more reliable than that!

Never needed them/don't know.

If you like stomp box distortion,this is the pedal for you.I used to own some of the models that the OD20 emulates,and it's pretty close.
It sounds great through my Zoom GFX8 and Marshall MG50 half stack.
Of course even my setup isn't compareable to a high-end tube amp.But tube amps are loud,expensive and high maintenance.And if you own a good tube amp,chances are you aren't looking for a stomp box anyway.

Easy to edit....distortion models are adequate.

I use several guitars - Yamaha Pacifica, Neal Moser Custom or
a Godin ST Signature. I'll run them Fender tube amps.

I wanted something with a little edge, not to the extent of metal.
This product has a lot of variety....but its noisy as hell.


Boss needs to add something like a master to control the pedal during
live play, and control the distortion to taste.

Tried it at a gig (wedding)...too noisy....went back to digital processor.

N/A

Very easy to use. If you have ever used a pedal in your life then you can use it, if you haven't, the ease of use is still very very easy. Manual was fine, but a unit like this doesn't really need a manual, unless you can't figure out how to store the 4 settings it allows. All buttons are self explanaitory.

The sound quality of this unit is amazing. The knobs actually change the sound, unlike alot of pedal's I've used. I've used it through a Marshall jcm 800 2203 half stack, and a fender hotrod deluxe. The sounds you can get with it are limitless in terms of distortion. But like all distortions, the unit itself will not suffice for a professional sound. The stand alone unit sound excellent, but every distortion needs tweaking with eq's and other enhancements to get the quality sound you desire. Although this unit will give you any sound you want. From nice velvety overdrive, to high gainy metal, to low crunching bottomed out fuzz. The od 20 will do it all. If you plan on using a strat invest in a noise gate, or a processor with a noise gate. Strat pickups are noisy. I've read where some have said this unit itself is noisy, but what isn't noisy with a strat? I own a fender usa standard strat, and have never used any distortion that wasn't noisy with those pickups. I also have a PRS standard 24 and have experimented with different sounds, with both guitars and this unit for abour 2 months now. The smooth-edge dial on the unit gives that PRS even more sustain than it has originally. For those of you who have a solid one-piece mahagony bodied guitar, will know what I mean. It has an ass-load of different distortion types on it, plus the gain has a "turbo" section, which increases the distortion past the original pedal its simulating. In my personal opinion this unit sounds much better than the pedals its simulating. I've played or owned most of the pedals it referes too, and some just don't add up to the sounds the OD 20 have. I sat down for hours with this unit and a Boss GT-3 comparing distortion sounds. The GT-3 was more nasal and copped out when the settings were around the same on both, but using the OD 20 in place of the GT-3's distortions were just amazing.

It's metal. It's a boss. What more? I'm sure the footswitches will wear out or stop working eventually, but that's to be expected when any unit is used and abused consistantly.

Never dealed with them. Baught it from an authorized dealer. 5 year warranty. If it breaks, I'll take it to them.

I play mainly rock, but like to dabble in almost everything. With this pedal, I can get any sound for any type of distorted/overdriven music I desire. From the softest overdriven bluesy velvet tone, to the most harsh high-end gainy 80's sound you can imagine. The Boss OD 20 will acheive. Don't rely on or buy one of those processor's that spend more time on stupid effects like mic placement and speaker cab emulators, buy an OD 20 for your distortion needs. Let those other processors enhance it, not replace it.

this is a pretty straight-forward pedal: it has a selector knob for selecting the pedal you want to emulate, a gain knob,a bottom knob, a tone knob, a level knob, an "attack shape" knob which is similar to the tone knob, but it is a little more subtle i personally think its pretty cool, and a heavy octave knob which really only works on the d string and higher. the manual is pretty easy to understand (assuming you know how to read).

i play a piece of shit squier through a fender bullet reverb amp (i wouldn't reccomend either). its fairly easy to get some decent tones out of this pedal even with my shitty setup, although it is pretty noisy if you have the gain anywhere past about 12 o' clock on some settings. you can get some great blues/ classic rock tones from the tubescreamer setting, the boss overdrive settings, and the blues driver setting. you can also get great modern tones with all of the other settings.

this seems to be a pretty stable pedal, it has metal casing and it would be pretty difficult to stomp one of the knobs off. i do gig without a backup, as long as you have an ac adapter(which adds a little feedback) or an extra sett of batteries you wont have any trouble.

i play anything form chuck berry to cream to the eagle to zeppelin to blink/boxcar racer to creed and it works excellent for all of them. i would definately buy it again.

Very easy to use. Access to various sounds is pretty simple. Good control over dynamic range of each effect. One beef: it's difficult to modify existing presets unless you have them written down on paper. If the OD-20 had buttons and a more "digital" feel, Boss could have had the unit reset itself to the setting of the preset, which would make small edits easier. Otherwise, this thing is very simple to use.

The sounds are awesome! I mean really awesome! The models are very close, and the 6 new sounds are great. I was very impressed with the range of sounds for the price. Again, one beef: some of the models (e.g., Metal) get rather noisy when you crank the gain into the TURBO range. I haven't experimented with noise filtering yet. So, we'll see. Otherwise, the sounds are killer!

Only had it 1 week. Haven't giged with it. To be honest, it's a Boss. Some of my Boss equipment is 15+ years old and still works like a charm. I'm sure the OD-20 will outlive my use of it!

I play a lot of different stuff (80s pop/metal,some Satch/Vai, some modern rock like Creed, contemporary Christian, and a little blues/jazz). I don't think I will ever want for another drive/distortion sound. If you're in a cover band and you know the rigs of your fav stars, you can totally recreate them with this thing. I've tried it with my Morley Bad Horsie wah, and the wah sounds very cool with it. I am super pleased. It's the last overdrive/distortion effect you'll ever need.

Its pretty simple to use, just pick which model you want to use, then adjust the settings (gain, low, high, etc). The attack shape and tone knobs are useful also, but if you leave the attack shape right in the middle, you won't be any worse or better off. The only thing that might cause confusion to some is the programming of the memories, however I was able to figure it out without the manual. Not quite brain surgery.

My setup consists of a Crate GX15 practice amp, a Crate GFX 212 120w combo, and a Peavey 40w combo, and the guitars are a Jackson Rhoads model w/ Seymour Duncans, a Dean Baby Z w/ DiMarzios, and a BC Rich Warlock with stock pickups. The OD-20 is perfect with all of these guitars, as far is it doesn't muddy up or sound thin on any of the settings I use. I use the METAL setting, the OD-1 setting, the TSCREAM setting, and the DST+ setting mostly, and depending on the setup of the amp and where the settings on the OD-20 are, you can get ANY tone. Of course, it would be impossible to get the exact tone of a recording, or a specific amp, but you can sure as hell come close. I can get a good SRV sound out of the TSCREAM model with the BC Rich (it has a single coil in the neck). With the MT-2 model, you can get the exact model of Boss' Metal Zone. With some equalization, you can get a decent Randy Rhoads/Iron Maiden sound out of the Dist+ setting (its an MXR Distortion + model). I play metal ala Maiden, Priest, classic Rush, Purple, Ozzy, Meagdeth, Anthrax, and Sabbath, and you can get close to some of these tones from this unit. The only problem you would have is excessive feedback if the gain's too high...I get this with the Dean because the pups are so hot...and not the cool type of feedback either, the disgusting high pitched squeal type, so watch the gain and you'll be okay. As far as effects go, I have the usual suspects (phase, flange, chorus, delay), and this pedal works great with all of them, as long as you put them in the right place in the chain.

Looks solid, but the plastic knobs on the top look like they could be broken/popped off if you abuse the thing. Its definitely solid enough and reliable enough to gig with, but always bring a backup of some sort and plenty of batteries unless you use a power supply, which would be best.

Never had to deal with them, probably never will...

This is perfect for the type of music I play, but with a little ingenuity, you can do so much more than what appears. Instead of just using the "METAL" setting for metal, I use the OD-1 setting with the gain up and a lot of bottom and a touch of "Heavy Octave", and you can get great tone...this thing has a ton of versatility. However...the "Heavy Octave" thing can be really deceiving...it doesn't emulate a 7 string guitar, so don't even think that. It gives you an octave "ghost" one octave down, and if you overuse the effect, you will NEVER get a good sound out of this thing. If you turn the Heavy Octave knob past 12 o clock or so, your tone will turn into a giant runanway herd of shit. Just a touch adds depth, and its quite good...too much of it will just turn the sound into mud. Otherwise..this pedal is great. The memories are a good touch, even if you don't use them, its nice to know you can switch between 5 different tones at the click of a switch, and this is good if you need to go from extreme death metal to Al DiMeola in the same song, which could definitely happen. Its really accurate as far as emulating the pedals..does a great Tubescreamer and Metal Zone and MXR and Fuzzface and Guv'nor impression...however, I've never played with a Rat...is it supposed to sound that shitty? If it is, then its a perfect reproduction

No problem, other than it sucked if you wound up the gain.

It was cool for Blues but if you wanted to wind up the gain, it really sucked very badly as the increase in noise floor made you want to barf. I got a Behringer denoier (an additional $100 or so) and that solved the problem however I would expect the product to stand alone. Line 6 have a built in noise gate in there POD pro and it works like a dream. If you want to thrash this beast be careful, don?t even consider using the Boss GE7 in front of it as the increase in noise makes the whole thing unusable.

I have never had a Boss product fail, though I?m not convinced this is a good thing.

No clue

Good as long as you keep the gain down, though some would say this defeats the object of the exercise !

Very easy to use, I bought it in Japan and the manual was in japanese but actually I don't need it, you can figure it out without it

I am using with my japanese fender strat with seymour duncan hot rails pickup on the bridge, vox cambridge 30, alexis quadraverb and a zoom, and this pedal can get any kind of distortion and with many different choices, personally I love the stack type of distortion, never have any type of hum, sounds clear to me, and the effect shape and octaver is a plus

I think it's very reliable, but you have to get a DC converter.

boss is always good

as this effect can cover any type of music, i strongly recommend it.

The od-20 is very easy to use. The manual does an adequate job of explaining what you are doing. It may take some time to get a real good sound out of this because I spent awhile tweaking tone knobs on the unit, amp and eq pedal that I have.Finally I was able to get a great sound from many of the distortion sounds.

I use a Fender American double fat strat through a Fender all tube "red knob" twin(shitty distortion) to a Madison 412 celestion loaded cabinet. I am able to get quite an array of sounds from the pedal. Everything from super-bassy nu-metal, 90's metal and hard rock down to sixties fuzz and blues. There are many incredibly useful distortion models to choose from. Though there are a few worthless ones as well, but not many. I think any style you want is in here. I am not a big fan of the heavy octave feature though. It is supposed to model the sound of a 7-string guitar, but It sounds too fake to me and will never, ever use it. The sound isn't overly noisy, except on some distortion modes when the gain is maxed out, not bad though overall. the tone contols work well, as does the attack shape knob, which seems to add a bit of brightness and tightness as you turn it clockwise.

Of course it's a Boss!!right???? I would definately use this on a gig. But I would never use this without an ac adapter.

never used them.

I play all types of music from nu metal and alternative, to grunge, punk and blues, as well as some GNR and a few other eighties bands. I have been playing for 12 years and have used a bunch of pedals, this is the most versatile and higher quality sounding by far. The 4 memory feature is cool as hell as are all 22 of the distortion modeling sounds. If this were stolen from me I would rip the bastards' legs and arms off and use his head as a golf T. Cannot give it a ten due to it being a pedal, but I think it deserves a 9.

Pretty esay to use it's half analogue half digital since it lets you save 4 settings this can be a little confuseing if you aren't use to digital .The manual is pretty good also

I use an 80s les paul usualy into either a Peavey Bandit(practice amp) or an helpner and kock clean tubeamp 250W. I love the sounds I get from this. For those who don't know the od-20 emulates the sounds of 16 overdrive and distortion pedals as well as six new sounds.They emulate some great pedals like the boss ds-1,hm(heavy metal) ,od-2,metal zone,bd-2 as well as non boss pedals like big muff,rat,fuzz face,tube screamer and more.I really like some of there new sounds on it especially the stack setting.I can great sound out of this for any type of music that calls for distortion from BB king to Pantera.It also has an a down octave if you want to use it nice touch but not my sort of thing.Another great feature is being able to use it with headphones thanks to the an inbuilt amp simulater that makes it sound just perfect also it can be used for direct recording to a 4 track or digital recorder .I tried it and it workd superbly for this. AS far as gigging with this goes its like any boss pedal only bigger

Never let me down yet.But use a power supply for it.

Boss are good to there customers and so was the place I bought this from> Goodwins in Dublin they even let me have a mail order once.Even do they aren't a mail order store at all.

I play stuff from blues to Metal ( not nu metal no thanks)I mainly play hard rock but this baby is great for anything Lke I said.I've played for 8 years now.I compared this to a line6 dm4 which basically does the same thing the only difference was the boss has 22 distortion models where as the line6 had 16.Plus you could record direct with the boss od-20 and it was half the price .Over here in Ireland the dm4 is 400 euro new.As for sound the od-20 nails all the sounds of these modeled effects really well.There is also an other boss twin pedal called the amp factery which I tested out .Its cool too and I am seriously thinking of putting it on my next shopping list.