(A little long of a post but please read through- thank you for reading and replying!!!!!!)

I am having trouble with a Metal Zone and maybe someone has some experience with this pain in the ass pedal. I have been talking with Knives about it and I think we are both stumped so here goes.

Fixing a Metal Zone that fell off a shelf.
In bypass mode it sounds okay no problems.
When you engage it ... it sounds like crap. It has a hum like a ground issue and there is a faint oscillation or buzzsaw sound. The buzzsaw sounds like when I run both my Heavy Metal pedals together or with another distortion pedal. I have checked every ground I can think of ... I resolder the input and out jacks. I checked all the solder on the back as well. The noise it makes even when you are not strumming gets worse when you do two things ... the first is when you move the mid/mid freq knobs ... no change for the others. The second thing that makes it worse is when you unplug your guitar and leave the cable plugged into the pedal is starts to almost sound like it is trying to feedback on itself. I am stumped and I hope someone may have dealt with something like this before. My first thought was a ground was knocked loose but I cannot for the life of me find it. Any input is greatly accepted.

Thanks again Knives for all your help! You are a lifesaver bro!

-Josh
AFF

No problem, Josh! I really do hope someone here can find what we're missing... I still feel like it's something obvious that I'm just forgetting at the moment. Maybe you can go buy a new metal zone and try to do a switcheroo and get your money back that you paid for the new one?

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I <3 Michel!

Yup, sounds like a Metal-Zone.

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i LOL'ed.

if you bought it new then it should have a 5 year warranty, if its terminal it may be worth checking out if its still in date.

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That didn't take long.

Don't you have to have it registered for the warranty to be effective?

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It's not his. It was a friend's that just dropped of a shelf. I asked him about the warranty, but can't remember what he said.

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I <3 Michel!

[mechanic voice] welp, dat's your probbem, right 'dere. [/mechanic voice]

I wonder if a tank fell off of a shelf, would it sound like crap.

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Well... Boss's are "made like tanks", so I guess you could say that.

Until you modify them. Thats where you gas them up and put in nitrous and shizzle. Then that little tank that fell got back up and kicked the floor's ASS!

[insert any Rip Glitter quote here]

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I <3 Michel!

That's why I keep my pedals on the floor.

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No warranty info. Actually judging by the color of orange/red paint they used on the lettering it is a mid date version. Older and I am pretty sure it out of warranty date. LOL I know Metal Zone's sound like crap to begin with but this really sounds horrible. If you had to choose between the sound this thing is making and a brand new MT-2's sound you would actually think the new one sounded amazing. It is the worst distortion both intentional and unintentional sound I have ever heard. It is bad! Any ideas on where else I should look? Anybody every heard of a IC sounding like crap when it is going bad or caps that would cause that or a half blown resistor??? Anything is a huge help. Thanks again for looking this post over!

Thanks
AFF

This may sound weird, but I actually thought mine sounded amazing when I first got it. In 2001.

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I'm suspecting that one of the pots has taken a knock and needs replacing, and/or the contacts on the pots are now touching, earth desoldered etc.

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I had wondered if a fall would harm the pots. I have seen pots take one hell of a beating and still work fine. I actually agree with you though ... I think I will go ahead and tear it completely apart tonight and see just what the pots look like. The solder on the backs of pots are usually harder to heat than the good solder most everybody uses so when you completely remove it you'll nearly destroy the pot trying to get it to stick real well. So I bet the pedal took a nose dive the solder broke loose from the pot OR the different type of pot they use could be not as sturdy. Anyways I will be double checking the pots tonight. Thanks for pointing me in that direction.

*Can I replace the pots with the standard round back or should I use the Boss replacement pots (the ones in this pedal are square and blue plastic)
*Slightly off topic but I can not remember the answer to this question ... can I add a resisitor to a Pot and increase the pots resistance for example adding a 500K Ohm resistor to a 500K ohm pot ... can you make it a 1M ohm this way or any other way?

I absolutely love this place! It's better than wikipedia ... you ask questions and get good answers!!!! and opinions!!!!!!!! Thanks again everybody.

The pots may not be the problem so please keep posting if you have any ideas or if you remember a problem like this on any effect pedal!

Thanks
AFF

Nah, Josh. For the metal zone you'll need the 9mm sized pots. They work well in most boss pedals. 16 mm fit nicely in things like the SD-1. The only thing is that they'll require their own small perfboard to solder the contacts to and be able to run wires from it.

http://www.smallbearelec.com/Detail.bok?no=693

As far as more range from a pot, it wouldn't really work the way you're wanting it too. Easiest thing to do is get a new pot. But if you want the pot to be of a lower value, there's some kind of resistor wiring you can do with it that I haven't tried yet, but have seen.

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Okay ... I tore it apart last night. The pots function fine. The battery leads are a little funny ... they have a short somewhere but that was not the culprit either. I check everything I could think of. I double checked the input/output jacks also ... no go. I am still wondering about one of the transistors ... if it was failing would it cause that noise?

I noticed something new last night ... when I would play the volume is amplified even when the pedal is barely turned up and it does the same in bypass... so I am now wondering if the buffer is causing the noise. I got another idea of what I think the sound reminds me of ... a scratchy record playing on your phonograph/turntable. It is harsh and raspy ... so when I strum it comes through for about 2 seconds then the sound seems to drop out but the raspy hum is still them. It is very bassy sounding as well. Not to mention you take the cable of of the guitar in bypass or effect on mode and it starts this oscilllation sound like my amp has the chorus engaged ... but the chorus is not engaged. I think that is why the sound makes me think of my HM-2 pedals ... it's such a good awful sound now!

Seriously ... this pedal will make anybody think their Metal Zone sound like the best one ever made. I am completely stumped.

Can anybody instruct me the best way to test the transistors in the board? Last thing while I am thinking about it ... had a morley "just distortion" pedal that was cutting in and out ... then the sound would come through faint ... I found for a cold solder joint on a cap ... resoldered it and now it works perfect. Sh*t this pedal is going to be the death of me.

Thanks
AFF

If you have something off the wall you think I should try (but you think might work) just tell me ... and I will try it.