Behringer HM300 Heavy Metal Distortion

This is basically a really good clone of the Boss HM-2 "Heavy Metal" pedal from the 80s which made a sound popularized by bands like Dismember and Entombed - what became known as "the Swedish sound" in death metal circles.

It's pretty much the same as that pedal, even the "distortion" knob behaves in the same way (pretty much no change from 9 o'clock to 4 o'clock then all of a sudden BANG !

Don't be fooled into thinking this is just for "heavy metal" as in all honesty it's not really that useful for getting that sound, there are better pedals, but if you're looking for really meaty distortion for the more extreme end of the metal spectrum then this is a great pedal. It's not as distorted as the MT-2 (Boss "Metal Zone") pedal but that pedal is, imo, REALLY overrated and very hard to get a good tone out of, far too much high end and in a live situation it really doesn't cut through the mix.

If you're looking for serious, "buzzsaw" style distortion then this pedal will definitely hit the mark and the difference in sound (very little) doesn't justify the inflated ebay prices that the HM-2 is fetching these days, especially the Japanese version (which is the most sought after due to apparently having the most 'Swedish' sound). The knobs on this pedal truly do replicate almost exactly the sound/useability of the pedal it's setting out to copy. I've not taken it apart so I can't say if they've copied the circuitry exactly but, knowing Behringer, I'd imagine it's as close as they can get it with modern parts.

The build is, as usual for the Behringer pedal range, good quality BUT the pedal itself IS hard impact plastic (Just letting you all know incase you're expecting a metal chassis). This isn't a problem and unless you're jumping up and down on it very hard you will get a long life out of it and it's more than useable in a gig situation, contrary to what some purists (idiots?) might say about the range. For this price you can't really go wrong.

Coincidentally, I have both the Taiwanese and Japanese versions of the HM-2 and I really would say there's very little difference between those and this pedal. I bought this as it was only £15 just to see how it sounded, I was curious as much as anything else, and will now probably gift it to someone who is looking for an HM-2.

Anyone who likes the thick chainsaw guitar sound that a lot of Swedish Death Metal bands used in the early 90's won't be disappointed by this pedal. For a pedal that's so affordable, it's quite impressive that it comes so close to reproducing one of the heaviest guitar sounds of all time.

The Behringer HM300 may be used as a regular distortion pedal, but it really starts to shine when you turn all knobs to 10 and let the madness (and riffing) begin. Although the casing is made from plastic, it withstands rough handling but obviously you should not stomp too hard on it. The pink color is not that pretty, but it makes it distinguishable from other heavy distortion pedals. Don't judge the book by it's cover - the HM300 have nothing to be ashamed of when it comes to how it sounds.

If you're looking for a heavy, distorted and thick guitar sound for a low price, you should definitely take a look at this one.

I bought this one for nostalgic reasons more than anything. I owned the Boss HM one in the nineties and sold it at some point (I think). It became an iconic sound for that particular time, and I still enjoy the records with the chainsaw-sounding guitars. Having said that, the sound wasn't actually all that good. I mean, it was ok and certainly scared the neighbours, but hearing yourself or be heard during band practice or gigs, not so much.
I like to plug it in from time to time and play some nasty sounding death metal. It's a fun little pedal and a fraction of the price of the Boss HM-2.