DigiTech Black 13 Scott Ian Artist Series

Very easy to use. There is a level knob, high and low eq knobs, and a knob to select which model you want.

I use Carvin guitars and a Carvin X100B 100w tube head w/ a Marshall 1960A cab. The rest of my pedal board consists of a Boss NS-2, Boss CH-1, Marshall Guv'nor 2, Snarling Dogs Blue Bawls wah.

The Black-13 has a great sound. As the manual suggests, leaving the two eq knobs in the 12 o'clock position recreates the tones Scott uses on the songs that the models are based on. There is no distortion adjustability, which may not be to the liking of some users, but I find it easy 'cuz I'm not always trying to tweak. I use the high/low cuts to compensate for my amp settings, and the knobs are very responsive.

This is definitely a 'metal' pedal. Not an overdrive. I attempted to use it to overdrive the dirty channel of my amp but the gain was just too much. The pedal itself sounds great if you want a heavy metal sound. It's not as extreme as some of the 'death metal' pedals around, but for a good thrash/metal/grunge sound it's perfect. I sold my MT-2 once I got this baby because it has all the sounds I need.

The booklet explains which models are from which songs. Here's what I found.

Model 1/2 - very good overall, mostly scooped, thrash/heavy sound. I use #2 with a little more lows for my own stuff.
Model 3 - think "Cowboys from Hell" era Pantera. Very scooped with a litte more highs.
Model 4 - think "Albatross" from Corrosion of Conformity.
Model 5 - a hot-rodded JCM 800 sound. Very good for 80's metal with excellent tone and distortion. Also good (with a little eq tweaking) for Alice in Chains/Soundgarden grunge-ier sounds.
Model 6 - More of a Mesa/Boogie type distortion. Somewhat like the "Black" album from Metallica. Good for newer metal and rock.
Model 7 - Kind of cool, as it has delay and a pitch shifter in it, but not really usable for me. In this model, the eq knobs serve to control the amount of delay and pitch shifting. The guy earlier who said he couldn't turn off the delay/pitch shifting needs to spend about 2 seconds to read the manual. It states it in there several times.

Haven't had any Digitech pedals before, so I can't really speak to this. For $149 I would hope it lasts. Also, it states very clearly NOT to use any power supply but the one included or it will damage the unit. Someone earlier said he burned his out.

PEOPLE!!! READ THE STUFF THAT COMES WITH YOUR EQUIPMENT!!

Don't know.

I play blues, rock, and heavy metal from the 80's and 90's. I've been playing about 15 years. This is an excellent all-around heavy metal pedal - much better than the Metal Masters pedal that Digitech makes. (At least that's my opinion from playing them both in the store.)Scott Ian's sound has changed and developed over the years and it is well reflected in this pedal. As I stated, I ditched my modified MT-2 when I got this pedal. Play them together and you'll see how 'depthless' the MT-2 distortion is compared to this.

This pedal is great at low volumes or stage volumes. Haven't tried the DI to the mixer yet, so I can't speak to that. If it were stolen, I'd definitely buy another one.

There are two drawbacks. One, you MUST use the power supply that comes with it. I have a daisy chain power supply on my pedal board and it's a little annoying that I can't use it. Don't even think about trying to use batteries in this unless you can get them free. I applaud Digitech for including the power supply, at least. The other drawback (for some, not for me) is that the gain is not adjustable.

Overall, this is a very good pedal if you play metal/hard rock/thrash/punk. Digitech did a good job capturing Scott Ian's tone(s) and has modeled them very well. I like the sounds for playing covers and it has really given me the tone I've been seeking for my original material.

It is extremely easy to get a good sound out of it. Plug in, select one of the seven different distortions and go.
No editing involved aside from level, high end, low end and on the last channel delay and delay speed

I use it with 2 different setups. First is using the mixer output on the pedal into a Vestax 4-track recorder with headphones. This is the first distortion pedal I have EVER played (over 20 years kids) that does not sound one single bit digital. It sounds like a mic'd cabinet, and it is just brutal. Second I go through the Black-13 into a Peavey XXL head into a 4X12 cabinet with Celestion Vintage 30's. And it is the heaviest thing I have ever heard. Just let me say that this is not a distortion pedal per se. It is a pedal that captures Scott Ian's guitar TONES from the songs selected. It is almost 100% accurate on all accounts. Each sounds drastically different than the others and allows for all kinds of metal styles. From Anthrax to Metallica (good Puppets sound on the SOD selection) Obituary to Lamb of God (with a little more gain). The sounds are thick and chunky and they are tight when you want them to be and loose when you want them to be. The pedal actually allows you to change the sound of it. The harder you pick, the more brutal it becomes. Dynamics folks, you gotta love it. The only thing that I don't like is on the #7 patch (if you want to call it that) from the "Finale" on State of Euphoria, it has a wicked pitch shift and delay, but am having trouble turning off the shift and delay. The instructions say it is possible, but haven't been able to yet. But that is a minor thing.

I have never had a Digitech pedal crap out me and I have had literally dozens. Plus it comes with the power adapter which I think all pedals should. It is build extremely well, this is a quality piece. Kudos Digitech and Scott Ian.

Well since Digitech is here in Salt Lake City, UT I can just drive down to the factory with any problems I might have. Plus I have emailed with Dean in the tech department and they have alway had top-notch support for their customers.

I play mostly thrash metal (Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Lamb of God, Dimmu Borgir, Nevermore) and it is a perfect match for whatever mood I am in. You want thick =#1, you want punchy with mids =#2, you want scooped mids all out death metal =#3, you want gobs of gain with mids =4, a more creamy smooth distortion =#5, a lower gain slab of distortion with lots of a definition =#6, messing around with a thick gain with some delay and pitch shift =#7. I actually like the fact that I cannot change the amount of gain on each patch. Then I know what it will sound like each and every day and don't waste time tweaking.
I have been playing for over 20 years. I have a Custom Shop USA ESP V with an EMG-81, and Ibanez RG320DXFM, a Peavey XXL, a 4X12 Cabinet with Celestion Vintage 30's and this god-send, uh....Satan-send of a pedal. There is no digital here folks, sounds pure analog and I love it. If it were stolen, I would get it back no sweat and I wouldn't stop until I found it.
I love everything about it except turning the delay and pitch shift on #7.
I have had numerous gain pedals. American Metal, Metal Zone, Death Metal, Grunge, GNX-3, Line 6 POD, Line 6 POD XT-Live, Line 6 Uber Metal, MXR Dime Distortion, MXR Zakk Wylde Overdrive (with my old tube amp) and nothing even comes close to the sheer brutality with definition the Black-13 has. Listen to Scott Ian's playing. He has lots of gain and dynamics in his sound, but he plays totally clean and defined. This pedal allows that to shine through. If you suck as a player this pedal will point out your flaws not cover them up. But if you are an accomplished musician this will also point THAT out, and allow your skill to shine through.
Anything I wish it had? A way to turn off the stuff on #7 like I said earlier.
If you want the best pedal in the world get this one. If you can handle it. It has been blessed by Satan himself....

This thing is easy as poo to get a great tone. It has 7 presets that can easily be altered with two "controls." On most of the presets, control one is bass, and control 2 is treble. Preset 7 has a really freakin' weird delay/pitch shifter. On this setting, control 1 determines the amount of pitch shift and control 2 determines the length of delay. Only downsides are no mid control and no gain knob, but all these presets already sound awesome so I personally don't need one.

I'm using an Ibanez S470 through a B-52 AT-100. Don't make fun of me, this amp has balls and is extremely versitale(a trait I need since I play at church and in a metal band.) This pedal makes my amp sound baaad if you know what I mean. Ridiculous amounts of controlled gain and amazing tone. DO NOT USE THIS PEDAL WITH SINGLE COIL PICKUPS!!! It's got way too much gain for them to handle and from my experience I get A LOT of feedback.

I am very, very pleased with my tone now. Don't get me wrong, I don't just go for as much gain as possible. I go for clarity first, then tone, then gain. This pedal gives me all of them. Perfect distortion pedal for those of us who can't afford $3,000 amps.

I've only had this for a few hours so I don't know for sure but this thing looks like it's built to last. Only thing is the extremely metallic finish will probably get ruined quick, but the actual pedal should last awhile

Never dealt with 'em.

Perfect for metal. Not for the faint of heart. Very little noise too! I am very impressed overall with this pedal. If this thing was stolen, I'd look for a used one on ebay, then if they didn't have it get another new one, unless I found $3000. Then I'd get a Hughes and Kettner. But I really think this is the next best thing. I love this pedal.

easy to use, four knobs(level-low-high-presets) it has presets for seven anthrax songs, the manual is fine as there isn't a whole lot of tweaking with this baby.

i tested it through my line6 flextone 2hd, a marshall jcm 900, using a crate 4x12 loaded with celestions, and my computer as it has a direct out.
not really noisy it seems to have some kind of gate on it.
it sounds pretty much like scotts anthrax tones, especially the preset for the last anthrax album. nice thick sounding dist.
it sounded best through my computer, but i probably just need to tweak the amp a bit more.

it is a chrome plated tank, these new digitech pedals seem to be bulletproof.
eats batteries pretty fast about an hour on the one that came in it.but you get an adapter with it so use that.

never dealt with digitech.

i play mostly metal, and scott is one of my influences. if you like anthrax you'll like this pedal.
i would definitely buy it again.