Boss ME-80 Guitar Multi-Effects Processor, Gator GK-2110 Bag Bundle

With the ME-80’s wide range of built-in effects, you can create a personal sound to fit your style of play. A library of BOSS tones is at your command, from multiple overdrives and distortions to wahs, modulation effects, pitch shifters, delays, and more. BOSS’s Multi Dimensional Processing (MDP) technology is represented with the spacious ambience of the Tera Echo effect and the distinctive tone-shaping possibilities of the Overtone effect. COSM preamps include new additions such as Crunch and Metal, plus an AC preamp designed for acoustic/electric guitar. The onboard expression pedal can be used for foot volume and pedal effects like wah, octave shift, and Freeze, and it’s also possible to control effects parameters such as mod rate, delay oscillation, and more for expressive real-time sound shaping.

Menu-driven multi-effects processors can be complicated and unintuitive, but using the ME-80’s practical knob driven interface is similar to using a stompbox. Effects are organized into eight logical categories that can all be active at the same time. Seven categories contain multiple effects types to choose from, plus dedicated knobs for selecting a type and adjusting it with a set of parameters you’d find in the pedal version of the effect. The Pedal FX category has its own knob for quickly assigning a particular effects type or function to be controlled by foot with the expression pedal. With this familiar interface, you can dial up and play great tones instantly, just like using a large pedalboard filled with your favorite stomps. But a major advantage over that pedalboard is the ability to save all the current knob settings to one of the ME-80’s 36 user patch locations, allowing you to recall custom effects configurations at the touch of a pedal.

The hands-on experience that stompbox-style control provides is perfect for tweaking tones as you go. However, there are times when switching among an entire group of preset effects is more efficient, such as when you’ve set up complex tones for different songs. The ME-80 supports either approach. In Manual mode, the categories function like individual stomp effects, with instant adjustment via the panel knobs and on/off control with dedicated footswitches. By entering Memory mode, seven footswitches are automatically reconfigured to select user or preset patches and patch banks, letting you recall complete multi-effects setups directly. One footswitch on the ME-80 is dedicated just for mode switching, so you can toggle between Manual and Memory modes any time you want, even in the middle of a song.

The ME-80 offers easy usability while performing, with eight multi-function footswitches for direct control of effects on/off, bank/patch selection, and mode switching, plus convenient access to alternate functions such as tap tempo, tuner, looper control, and more. A special control (CTL) function is also assignable in each patch, letting you toggle grouped effects on/off or adjust a specified parameter in real time. The layered footswitch design provides two switches in the space occupied by one in previous layouts, allowing BOSS to equip the ME-80 with a generous array of foot-operated controls while keeping the unit extremely compact and mobile. In addition to the eight main footswitches, the expression pedal is equipped with an integrated toe switch that toggles between volume control and the current Pedal FX setting.

Over USB, you can connect to your computer and capture the output of the ME-80 directly into your favorite DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) to record using the built-in COSM preamps and effects. It’s also possible to monitor the ME-80’s effects sound while recording an unprocessed signal into a DAW track for re-amping later. MIDI transfer over USB is also supported, allowing you to select ME-80 patches from your computer, send expression and control pedal data into your software, and swap patches via BOSS Tone Studio.

Available as a free download, the BOSS Tone Studio application provides an inviting graphical interface for tweaking the ME-80’s effects from your Mac or Windows computer through USB. The software makes it easy to save, edit, and organize your patches, and to load them into the ME-80 as needed for different gigs and other applications. If your computer has Internet access, BOSS Tone Studio also provides an integrated connection to the BOSS Tone Central website, allowing you to preview and download gig-ready patches created by guitar pros directly into your ME-80. In addition to expanding your palette of tones, these free patches provide solid foundations for creating your own patches with the ME-80’s array of effects.