# Boss HM-2 Heavy Metal



## The Echthros (Aug 8, 2008)

In past research I've noted that quite a few Death metal bands have utilized the Boss MT-2 Metal Zone to achieve their tones. Not always stock as some have been modified, but still the basic platform.

Now as I was doing some research on some Melodic Death/Gothemberg bands the pedal of choice switches from the MT-2 to the HM-2 Heavy Metal (one such noteable user is Anders of ATG/The Haunted).

So whats up with this pedal? I know i utterly dispise the Metal Zone for much the same reason many people due: its thin, lifeless, and sounds like swarm of bees. Is the HM-2 any different? Does anybody know why the two subgenres would differ on which pedal was the pedal of choice?

Thanks in advance!


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## Imperium (Aug 8, 2008)

From what i know, most of the time either pedal is used as a boost with an amps dirty channel.

E.g
At the Gates - MT-2 and HM-2 with some solid state Peavey.

Entombed - HM-2 and a Marshall of some sort.

Cannibal Corpse - MT-2 and Mesa Triple(?) Rectifier

The only advantage of the MT-2 over the HM-2 pedal would be the parametric EQ.
Stock I wouldnt use it as my main tone. Boosting an amp on the other hand, i've heard awsome results.


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## InTheRavensName (Aug 8, 2008)

I think the MT-2 tends to be used as more of a clean boost, whereas the HM-2 is more popular as a standalone distortion unit


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## Ruan7321 (Aug 14, 2008)

I currently have one of these that I use for some recording / messing around.

I find it to be very buzzy and not very tight, but I do however like it for that reason. There is a reason Entrombed called it the Buzzsaw. 

Its really excellent for doom metal as it gets jou the most sludgyest sounds ever. 

Listen to Bloodbath. It sounds exactly like that (when used as a boost


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## Josh Lawson (Aug 14, 2008)

Ruan7321 said:


> I currently have one of these that I use for some recording / messing around.
> 
> I find it to be very buzzy and not very tight, but I do however like it for that reason. There is a reason Entrombed called it the Buzzsaw.
> 
> ...


For a stand alone, main dist. unit, the HM-2 is one of the WORST sounding pedals EVER made. I never used it as a boost though.


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## neoclassical (Aug 14, 2008)

I had an HM-2 for years with different amps etc... it was a POS. We called it the beehive. It put me off Boss pedals for years. I couldn't even get a decent tone out of it as a boost. My uncle who was starting to teach at Berklee said it was a popular pedal at the time with the students, but I'm not sure why. It was free so I traded it in a couple of years ago. Nobody wanted it on ebay lol.

Adam


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## stuh84 (Aug 15, 2008)

That there is why I want one, it is something I could just bring out on random occassions during recording sessions, my kind of pedal that.


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## Ruan7321 (Aug 16, 2008)

Josh Lawson said:


> For a stand alone, main dist. unit, the HM-2 is one of the WORST sounding pedals EVER made. I never used it as a boost though.



I agree, it is probably the worst distortion ever, but thats why its really good at Sludge and Doom.


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## Ishan (Aug 16, 2008)

Reading about this over the net, it seems most swedish death bands were using the HM-2 with everything maxed out besides the gain which was left on 0 then plugged into a distorted amp. One recent occurrence of this would be Bloodbath


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## Josh Lawson (Aug 16, 2008)

Ruan7321 said:


> I agree, it is probably the worst distortion ever, but thats why its really good at Sludge and Doom.


Nope........the HM-2 still fails.


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## sepherus (Aug 16, 2008)

Isn't this the pedal that Katatonia used for ages to get their sound? Forest Stream does too i'm fairly certain, and i LOVE their neck pickup tone.


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## The Atomic Ass (Aug 17, 2008)

stuh84 said:


> That there is why I want one, it is something I could just bring out on random occassions during recording sessions, my kind of pedal that.




HAHAHAHA I didn't know Skwisgar Skigelf dyed his hair.


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## LordOVchaoS (Aug 17, 2008)

IIRC In Flames - The Jester Race was HM-2 pedals through the effects return of some kind of Marshall. The distortion was 100% HM-2.


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## Ishan (Aug 18, 2008)

Early In Flames sound was very reminiscent of the old swedes death metal scene so that doesn't surprise me much. Chaos moded HM-2 anyone?


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## DSilence (Aug 18, 2008)

They look pretty rare, but better than a MT-2?


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## Josh Lawson (Aug 18, 2008)

DSilence said:


> They look pretty rare, but better than a MT-2?


Next to the Turbo Overdrive, the worst sounding boss gain pedal EVER.


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## Ishan (Aug 18, 2008)

They basically got one usable sound, all to 11 and play some entombed


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## Josh Lawson (Aug 18, 2008)

Ishan said:


> They basically got one usable sound, all to 11 and play some entombed


Entombed is one of my top 10 favorite bands of all time, even if their guitar tone was terrible.


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## stuh84 (Aug 18, 2008)

DSilence said:


> They look pretty rare, but better than a MT-2?



Being kicked in the face is better than an MT-2


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## dumbarse (Aug 18, 2008)

Josh Lawson said:


> Entombed is one of my top 10 favorite bands of all time, even if their guitar tone was terrible.



Their tone was terrible but it worked very well for those first 3 albums, I wouldn't want to hear any of those songs re-recorded using different gear. 

It seems like a lot of the melodic death metal bands that were using the HM-2 and Valvestates later switched to 5150s, so I would say get a 5150 for the Swede tone.


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## The Rhone (Aug 18, 2008)

Here's i trick I use, 5150, HM2 into the front end everything on 11 apart from the Distortion (w/noise gate), then use the gain on amp - It Rocks..


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## playstopause (Aug 18, 2008)




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## Cancer (Aug 18, 2008)

playstopause said:


>




^=win lol.


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## 777N (Jun 13, 2011)

Hi,

I'm using a HM-2 (everything on 11) plus a NS-2 (Noise Suppressor) and it's unmanageable. 

I've tried to cut totally off the Distortion and use my amp's gain as The Rhone said and it works better. 

I want to understand if the Distortion has some problems.

Thank you!


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## sell2792 (Jun 13, 2011)

I can hardly stand my MT-2, but the HM-2 took it to a whole different level of shit tone that I never thought before was imaginable.


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## cyril v (Jun 13, 2011)

send 'em to me if you don't want them, I'll give them a loving home.


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## MrMcSick (Jun 13, 2011)

I could never get a good sound out of mine when running it into an already dirty channel. Crank it up and thrash away with it on the clean channel.


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## widdlywhaa (Jun 14, 2011)

HM2 as a boost.

enjoy biiiirtches 

HM2 demo by ThatGuyRyan on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free


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## warlock7strEMG (Jun 14, 2011)

widdlywhaa said:


> HM2 as a boost.
> 
> enjoy biiiirtches
> 
> HM2 demo by ThatGuyRyan on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free



That sounded excellent!!! Was that the HM-2 with the gain low or all all the way down boosting ur Ampeg's distortion?


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## widdlywhaa (Jun 14, 2011)

pedal settings were

level: 6
low:6
High:8
dist:0


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## Tomo009 (Jun 14, 2011)

Hmm pretty epic necrobump here, but it at least looks like the thread is moving in a good direction.

OK there is a LOT of misinformation in this thread, I've answered questions on the HM-2 a few times before and it looks like I'm doing it again haha.

Obviously there are 2 very different versions, the Japanese and Taiwanese pedals.

The trademark "chainsaw" of Swedish death comes from the JAPANESE pedal, the beehive sound comes from the TAIWANESE pedal.

I have both and the things that are consistent between them I can answer.
- They are EXTREMELY amp sensitive, if someone gives you very specific settings, ignore them because you will change amps, sometimes even the same model and it will sound terrible.

- They are overpowering, if you don't love the "chainsaw" sound, you will not love the pedal, that is what it does, you can change the colour somewhat, but the core sound will not change.

- They do not sound like a Bloodbath album, that is what multi-tracked, HM-2 as well as other distorted guitars sound like when produced well. Resurrection Through Carnage is done without amplifiers, which is how it gets the overly digital sound.

- The dials have VERY strange properties, not going to go into specifics but fiddle with them and you'll notice strange tone shifts.

If you have any more questions on the pedals I can answer them, I have them both here, personally I use them with the EQ maxed, sounds gutted to me otherwise, then I fiddle with the Level and Distortion per amp to find a sound I like.


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## Wookieslayer (Jun 14, 2011)

^ Quote for truth!

I think the Digitech Death Metal pedal would fall in the beehive sound. Nice explanation Tomo! Appreciate it! Gotta get me a Japanese HM-2!


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## 777N (Jun 16, 2011)

Nice, Tomo009! 
I have a taiwanese pedal, now I'll try to get a japanese one.


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## Inazone (Jun 16, 2011)

Tomo009 said:


> If you have any more questions on the pedals I can answer them, I have them both here, personally I use them with the EQ maxed, sounds gutted to me otherwise, then I fiddle with the Level and Distortion per amp to find a sound I like.



What is your preference/experience using them into a clean amp vs. boosting a distorted amp vs. running through an effects loop? How about in front of a tube power amp?

I have a few different amps at my disposal - Peavey XXL solid state head, Carvin V3M tube head and Peavey Classic 50/50 tube power amp - and I've had the best luck (with distortion pedals) running straight into the tube power amp. In fact, that was my live rig for years, using an ART Xtreme distortion pedal and EHX Tube EQ along with various effects for my tones. However, now I generally use just the XXL or V3M with amp distortion, and a multi-effects unit for noise gate and delay.

Anyway, I'm thinking that an HM-2 will give me a different "flavor" for recording, and might even be cool for live use in the right context. Thoughts?


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## Tomo009 (Jun 16, 2011)

Inazone said:


> What is your preference/experience using them into a clean amp vs. boosting a distorted amp vs. running through an effects loop? How about in front of a tube power amp?
> 
> I have a few different amps at my disposal - Peavey XXL solid state head, Carvin V3M tube head and Peavey Classic 50/50 tube power amp - and I've had the best luck (with distortion pedals) running straight into the tube power amp. In fact, that was my live rig for years, using an ART Xtreme distortion pedal and EHX Tube EQ along with various effects for my tones. However, now I generally use just the XXL or V3M with amp distortion, and a multi-effects unit for noise gate and delay.
> 
> Anyway, I'm thinking that an HM-2 will give me a different "flavor" for recording, and might even be cool for live use in the right context. Thoughts?



I've heard heaps of people say they prefer to run it through a clean solid state.

Myself I run it through a fully distorted tube amp haha. I still think it is mostly up to just experimenting, not sure what is in the pedal, but the response from different amps is pretty crazy. I have a sound VERY much like Dismember's Like An Everflowing Stream, because it's my favorite guitar sound. Apparently they used Marshall solid states with the pedal set to 11 all around. Myself I have distortion around 11 o'clock, level around 9 o'clock. But that doesn't really mean much as I'm sure anyone who has the pedal knows, the knobs respond REALLY strangely and some areas are extremely sensitive while others show no change.

And yeah I run it through my Orange Thunderverb 50 at my normal distorted tone, so I can basically throw it in as an effect whenever I want and I intend to use it that way. Not in a band (though I wish I was), but I can't know whether they would want that sound in the mix at all haha. It's a pretty niche thing I guess.


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## Inazone (Jun 16, 2011)

Tomo009 said:


> It's a pretty niche thing I guess.



Oh, it definitely is. I remember seeing HM-2s in stores in the `90s, and they couldn't even give the things away, but most people here weren't aware that Sweden had a metal scene, so there was no point of reference. 

I was able to find an HM-2 locally but haven't had time to do anything more than plug it in for a couple of minutes yet. It's a Taiwanese version unfortunately, but it's a start. My plan is to use it when doubling rhythm guitar parts in the studio, especially single-note riffs along the lines of At the Gates. I'll use something much tighter for my main tone, and the HM-2 (not sure which amp) with some high-output pickup like a Duncan Invader or Kent Armstrong Super Distortion for the doubled part. 

Now I'm getting excited to try this. Too bad I won't be doing any serious recording for at least a few months. Until then, I guess that gives me time to figure out which pickups and amps will get me the best tone out of this.


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## Fisch MIOLI (Jun 16, 2011)

Bought a Japanese HM-2 from a friend the other day, I solely use it for one band but I think it sounds sweet! Gotta love the Stockholm Sound!


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## seth-ep (Jun 17, 2011)

i think its a good alternative sound for metal, specially if you wanna go nostalgic with old school death metal, does very different stuff than my 5150


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## epsylon (Jun 17, 2011)

Tomo009 said:


> - They do not sound like a Bloodbath album, that is what multi-tracked, HM-2 as well as other distorted guitars sound like when produced well. Resurrection Through Carnage is done without amplifiers, which is how it gets the overly digital sound.



How about live Bloodbath sound ? They don't multitrack do they  ? Does it sound the same ? I f*ckn love their live sound. (I'm thinking about the Wacken vid)


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## Tomo009 (Jun 17, 2011)

epsylon said:


> How about live Bloodbath sound ? They don't multitrack do they  ? Does it sound the same ? I f*ckn love their live sound. (I'm thinking about the Wacken vid)



I'm wondering if they blend live, it doesn't sound like JUST HM-2 anyway. There is a noticeably meaty sounding part that the HM-2 just isn't. They have an awesome live sound though, even if not quite as clear as the album tone.


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## Pish (Jun 17, 2011)

HM-2 into Line6 Jazz Clean 2X12.


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## mot666 (Jun 17, 2011)

ive got a heavy metal pedal. i like it. im gonna buy a metal zone one day when i have the spare cash. but then again a lot of the tones i like are usually called shit by everyone else.


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## Tomo009 (Jun 18, 2011)

mot666 said:


> ive got a heavy metal pedal. i like it. im gonna buy a metal zone one day when i have the spare cash. but then again a lot of the tones i like are usually called shit by everyone else.



I don't really understand this haha. The HM-2 is entirely different to the metalzone. IMO the metalzone is pretty terrible, amp distortion is a lot better. The HM-2 is really an entire effect, not just a distortion pedal.


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## Wookieslayer (Jun 19, 2011)

Just saw a local band called Fatalist and they were running HM-2's all knobs at 11 into Peavey Valvekings... holy shit it sounds so awesome live. 


also they have a diff singer now, additional to the 2 guitarists


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## Tomo009 (Jun 19, 2011)

Wookieslayer said:


> Just saw a local band called Fatalist and they were running HM-2's all knobs at 11 into Peavey Valvekings... holy shit it sounds so awesome live.
> 
> 
> also they have a diff singer now, additional to the 2 guitarists




How do they get that chug out the HM-2? That's something I haven't figured out yet. Long palm muted sections always get lost for me, either pedal, any amp.


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## Fraz666 (Oct 22, 2015)

heavy bump!
today I woke up with the need of Entombed, then tomorrow I will buy a HM-2 (is 40&#8364; so I think is the taiwanese).
But I read somewere that Entombed used the DS-1 as a boost into the HM-2, some of you have tried it?


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## p4vl (Oct 24, 2015)

Fraz666 said:


> heavy bump!
> today I woke up with the need of Entombed, then tomorrow I will buy a HM-2 (is 40 so I think is the taiwanese).
> But I read somewere that Entombed used the DS-1 as a boost into the HM-2, some of you have tried it?



I'd like to know what Grave boosted their HM-2 with for that Into the Grave tone, holy christ. 

Boosting old ugly metal pedals is a lot of fun, whether it's with OD or other distortion pedals. I have the Arion Metal Master which, when boosted by my Joyo Ultimate Drive (the nastiest OD I own), yields Euronymous' De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas tone.


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## metaljohn (Oct 24, 2015)

p4vl said:


> I'd like to know what Grave boosted their HM-2 with for that Into the Grave tone, holy christ.
> 
> Boosting old ugly metal pedals is a lot of fun, whether it's with OD or other distortion pedals. I have the Arion Metal Master which, when boosted by my Joyo Ultimate Drive (the nastiest OD I own), yields Euronymous' De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas tone.



According to Grave, they have never actually used the HM-2. They made a Facebook post about it a few years ago.


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## p4vl (Oct 25, 2015)

metaljohn said:


> According to Grave, they have never actually used the HM-2. They made a Facebook post about it a few years ago.



Then what the bleeding christ did they use for that tone?


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## bnzboy (Oct 26, 2015)

HM-2 is pretty darn cool to own one but it can sound ....ty very very easily. I think it has more unusable tones than usable tones. I love mine for "that" tone though! Usually the pedal gets used once in a while.


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## Bloodshredder (Oct 26, 2015)

LordOVchaoS said:


> IIRC In Flames - The Jester Race was HM-2 pedals through the effects return of some kind of Marshall. The distortion was 100% HM-2.



That was a Marshall valvestate. They also played it live back then (around 1995-1997).

What makes that pedal so special, is its unique yet (to a lot of people, not me) .... sound.
Sounds dirty as hell. But brutal if done right.

Usually I love my sound clear and not muddy. But in the case of the HM-2, and all those classics from Entombed, Dismember,... it just fits the sound and the creepy, morbid aura, that this kind of music emits.


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## Monsteri (Oct 27, 2015)

Bloodshredder said:


> That was a Marshall valvestate. They also played it live back then (around 1995-1997).
> 
> What makes that pedal so special, is its unique yet (to a lot of people, not me) .... sound.
> Sounds dirty as hell. But brutal if done right.
> ...



I totally agree with you. The sound is unique and even though it's not the "purest" its has something to it that just unleashes a wave of sonic demons. I love my HM-2


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## Bloodshredder (Oct 27, 2015)

It also depends on how you use it. Then theHM-2 doesn't always sound the same. If you compare the sound from "Slaughter Of The Soul" to "Left Hand Path", they both make heavy use of that pedal and the sound is very different. ATG had it more chainsaw-like, while Entombed had there sound more raw and muddy.


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## Great Satan (Oct 30, 2015)

I'm also a big fan of early Swedish extreme metal bands like Nihilist and the aforementioned Dismember,
Marduk has always used the same thing, which is EMG's into a HM-2 into a Marshall (most likely Jcm800)

Here's a vid from their latest album for example:
http://youtu.be/0yPOqlrCl1I


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## sevenfoxes (Oct 30, 2015)

I remember when I first bought the MT-2 years ago. Thought it was the biggest pile of junk ever. I have no clue why any real band would rely on a distortion pedal when playing metal, unless it was for a boost.


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## KailM (Oct 30, 2015)

sevenfoxes said:


> I remember when I first bought the MT-2 years ago. Thought it was the biggest pile of junk ever. I have no clue why any real band would rely on a distortion pedal when playing metal, unless it was for a boost.



The MT-2 IS one of the biggest piles of junk ever. But this thread isn't about the MT-2, it's about the HM-2, which is light-years apart from it.

While I normally agree that for metal, most of the time natural tube overdrive sounds the best -- but the HM-2 carries a gnarly quality that I've never heard from an amp by itself. It's pretty much the most badass distortion pedal ever made.


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## sevenfoxes (Oct 30, 2015)

KailM said:


> The MT-2 IS one of the biggest piles of junk ever. But this thread isn't about the MT-2, it's about the HM-2, which is light-years apart from it.
> 
> While I normally agree that for metal, most of the time natural tube overdrive sounds the best -- but the HM-2 carries a gnarly quality that I've never heard from an amp by itself. It's pretty much the most badass distortion pedal ever made.



To each their own. I've never been impressed by it. Not by itself anyways.


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## Great Satan (Oct 31, 2015)

sevenfoxes said:


> To each their own. I've never been impressed by it. Not by itself anyways.



This has always been my criticism of pedals in general, they never sound that good on their own.
But, in conjunction with an already overdriving tube amp (powertubes if your noise restrictions can handle it) the sound can be transformed into something else entirely.

Treat every pedal like a tubescreamer i say; it may sound crap on its own but pushing the right amp can sound pretty amazing and unique.


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## KailM (Nov 1, 2015)

^^Agreed. Even tubescreamers, possibly the most popular pedals of all time, sound like utter crap compared to even an average tube amp's natural overdrive. It's what they do to help the tone that makes them special.


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## p4vl (Nov 1, 2015)

Great Satan said:


> But, in conjunction with an already overdriving tube amp (powertubes if your noise restrictions can handle it) the sound can be transformed into something else entirely.



Slaughter of the Soul was a metal zone into an HM-2 into a Peavey Bandit, and Left Hand Path was a DS-1 into the HM2 into the Bandit. No tubes at all on those records. 



Great Satan said:


> Marduk has always used the same thing, which is EMG's into a HM-2 into a Marshall (most likely Jcm800)



Anything they recorded in Abyss studios (starting in '95?) was a Mesa Recto. Their older stuff sounds more like the Arion Metal Master like Euronymous used than the HM-2 (it's a different kind of ugliness). Maybe I'm wrong.


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## Great Satan (Nov 1, 2015)

p4vl said:


> Slaughter of the Soul was a metal zone into an HM-2 into a Peavey Bandit, and Left Hand Path was a DS-1 into the HM2 into the Bandit. No tubes at all on those records.


I wasn't specifically referring to those bands, rather as a general recipe for success when using pedals that may underperform when used on their own.



p4vl said:


> Anything they recorded in Abyss studios (starting in '95?) was a Mesa Recto. Their older stuff sounds more like the Arion Metal Master like Euronymous used than the HM-2 (it's a different kind of ugliness). Maybe I'm wrong.



I'm basing that more on recent interviews with the guitarist Morgan, stating that in recent years (last 3-4 albums) he'd gone back to using a HM-2 into 'my old marshall' (which could be a plexi but most likely means a jcm800).

Live pics may confirm this, but he could just as conceivably be using a 5150 live (or recto).


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