The Boss ME-70 Multi-Effects Pedalboard: A Review
For the last few years I have relied upon a Boss ME-50 Boss multi-effects system to supplement my main gig pedalboard. The reason is simple. My main board is absolutely huge, with almost 12 dedicated effects pedals. It’s great, but it’s also a back-breaker and sometimes causes more hassle than it’s worth. I’ve learned the hard way that carrying around a gigantic pedalboard isn’t always the best solution, especially for short gigs or practices. As a result, the ME-50 has proven worth its weight in gold on more than one occasion. I never thought I would want to replace my Boss ME-50…then Boss introduced the ME-70.
To start, I think the new ME-70 looks a lot cooler than the ME-50. While you shouldn’t judge a pedalboard by its color, it’s hard not to notice that the all-black ME-70 looks a lot sharper than the all-blue ME-50. It just plain looks bad-ass, but there’s more to this pedalboard than its new color.
Though looks are cool, it’s the sounds that really matter. Fortunately, the ME-70 is pretty hip in that department as well. What you get with the new ME-70 are the sounds from over 40 different Boss effects pedals. These are the identical sounds that you’ve heard and loved for years. The best modulation, delay, distortion, and overdrive sounds from Boss are under the hood, and they sound great!
But the ME-70 isn’t just a collection of Boss pedals in a box. It’s got a few new tricks up its sleeve. I’ve never been crazy about multi-effects boards because they also seemed to include a preamp section that I never used since I like the sound of my own amp. Well, at a gig one night my amp crapped out on me, and I had to plug my pedalboard directly into the P.A. system. What a nightmare! It sounded terrible. If only I had a ME-70 at the time! The ME-70 has a built in COSM preamp that you can use if you don’t have or can’t use your own amplifier. Plus it’s easily bypassed if you don’t need it. But if you’re ever in the same kind of situation I was in, you would really be thankful for a pedalboard like the ME-70. Depending on the gig, it might be the only thing you take besides your guitar.
Boss also saw fit to include an onboard looper with the ME-70, a welcome addition to be sure. Boss makes some killer looping pedals, and the same great quality that you find in the Boss Loop Station is present here as well. The ME-70 looper offers 38 seconds of loop time, which will likely be all you’ll ever need.
In addition to the looper, the designers at Boss saw fit to included a dedicated compressor section, a noticeable omission in the ME-50. While the ME-5o did have a compressor, it had limited controls. Since a compressor is a necessity in any professional quality effects system, it’s a welcome addition to the ME-70
Fortunately, all the wonderful features of the ME-50 are still present in the ME-70. You still have the noise suppression and adjustable reverb in addition to the rocker pedal that controls volume, wah, and pitch-shifting effects.
If you’re looking for a professional quality effects pedal system that offers dozens of effects at a price that won’t break your wallet, you should consider the Boss ME-70, worthy of the Boss name.
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