Boss ME-30

This is a nifty little piece of gear that cost me RM1 250 back in 1999. Boss doesn not manufacture this anymore, so get your hands on one as soon as one is available. Of course, the built-in volume/wah/pitch bend pedal is not as responsive as those on dedicated units; but it gets the job done. The effects, such as chorus, delay, reverb, overdrive and distortion are definitely BOSS, and the sounds are comparable with that of dedicated BOSS stand-alone stomp boxes. There is a slight learning curve involved with this unit, but the presets suggested in the manual do offer a good starting point on which to build your basic sounds. Bank switching is done via footswitches, and is quite effortless once you get the hang of it. As there are only 3 presets for each bank, you might have to do a bit of 'dancing around' with the 'bank up' and 'bank down' footswitches if a particular song calls for more than 3 preset sounds. This unit is very versatile and worth every cent; all it needs is a little patience and the willingness to experiment; in order to discover its true capabilities. The pitch shifter is not intelligent; but does the job fairly well. All said and done, this offering from BOSS is a must-have for the guitar player on a budget.