Melodic Metal Gear: Pedals, Software & Guitars Used by Melodic Metal Artists
Drawn from the documented rigs of 361 melodic metal artists and the Equipboard community — ranked by real usage, not opinion.
The Gear That Shapes the Melodic Metal Sound
The essential categories, ranked by how much more melodic metal artists lean on them than the rest of Equipboard.
Most-Used Melodic Metal Gear
Counts are artists & fans on Equipboard who own or saved each item and are associated with melodic metal.
Melodic Metal Distortion Effects Pedals
2.1× site average
$54.99 - $73.00
in Distortion Effects Pedals Rank
#1 · Owned or saved by 45
$96.82 - $119.00
in Distortion Effects Pedals Rank
#2 · Owned or saved by 25
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$79.00 - $89.00
in Distortion Effects Pedals Rank
#3 · Owned or saved by 18
$77.00 - $109.99
in Distortion Effects Pedals Rank
#4 · Owned or saved by 11
$94.99 - $123.00
in Distortion Effects Pedals Rank
#5 · Owned or saved by 11
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$109.00
in Distortion Effects Pedals Rank
#6 · Owned or saved by 9
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Melodic Metal Overdrive Effects Pedals
1.7× site average-m.webp?v=1784619019)
$84.99 - $125.00
in Overdrive Effects Pedals Rank
#1 · Owned or saved by 47
$59.00 - $69.99
in Overdrive Effects Pedals Rank
#2 · Owned or saved by 33
$50.60 - $79.99
in Overdrive Effects Pedals Rank
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#3 · Owned or saved by 20
$89.00 - $109.99
in Overdrive Effects Pedals Rank
#4 · Owned or saved by 13
$159.99 - $179.00
in Overdrive Effects Pedals Rank
#5 · Owned or saved by 10
$102.50 - $185.00
in Overdrive Effects Pedals Rank
#6 · Owned or saved by 8
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Melodic Metal Amp Simulator Plugins
4.5× site average
in Amp Simulator Plugins Rank
#1 · Owned or saved by 21
$199.00 - $219.00
in Amp Simulator Plugins Rank
#2 · Owned or saved by 13
#3 · Owned or saved by 10
#4 · Owned or saved by 9
in Amp Simulator Plugins Rank
#5 · Owned or saved by 7
#6 · Owned or saved by 7
Melodic Metal DAW Software
#1 · Owned or saved by 23
#2 · Owned or saved by 19
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$99.99 - $344.00
in DAW Software Rank
#3 · Owned or saved by 17
$268.00 - $349.00
in DAW Software Rank
#4 · Owned or saved by 15
$179.00
in DAW Software Rank
#5 · Owned or saved by 13
$209.00 - $329.99
in DAW Software Rank
#6 · Owned or saved by 10
Melodic Metal Solid Body Electric Guitars
1.2× site average
$619.00 - $719.99
in Solid Body Electric Guitars Rank
#1 · Owned or saved by 20
$2,090.00 - $3,500.00
in Solid Body Electric Guitars Rank
#2 · Owned or saved by 12
$219.00
in Solid Body Electric Guitars Rank
#3 · Owned or saved by 12
$4,174.70 - $8,977.21
in Solid Body Electric Guitars Rank
#4 · Owned or saved by 10
$1,792.64 - $2,799.00
in Solid Body Electric Guitars Rank
#5 · Owned or saved by 10
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#6 · Owned or saved by 9
-m.webp?v=1784545461)
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Melodic Metal Guitar Amplifier Heads
2.5× site average
$149.00 - $309.00
in Guitar Amplifier Heads Rank
#1 · Owned or saved by 12
$599.00 - $899.99
in Guitar Amplifier Heads Rank
#2 · Owned or saved by 10
$567.43 - $3,421.95
in Guitar Amplifier Heads Rank
#3 · Owned or saved by 9
$1,399.99 - $1,519.99
in Guitar Amplifier Heads Rank
#4 · Owned or saved by 9
$323.24
in Guitar Amplifier Heads Rank
#5 · Owned or saved by 9
$403.27
#6 · Owned or saved by 7
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Melodic Metal Dynamic Microphones
$95.96 - $219.99
in Dynamic Microphones Rank
#1 · Owned or saved by 43
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$95.96 - $111.00
in Dynamic Microphones Rank
#2 · Owned or saved by 32
$335.00 - $439.00
in Dynamic Microphones Rank
#3 · Owned or saved by 10
Gear That Defines Melodic Metal
Not just popular — disproportionately melodic metal. Multipliers compare usage among melodic metal artists & fans to usage across all of Equipboard, so gear everyone owns doesn't crowd out the gear that makes this genre sound like itself.
Neural DSP Archetype: Gojira
Amp Simulator Plugins
3.7× vs site-wide
2
DigiTech Drop
Harmonizer & Octave Effects Pedals
3.2× vs site-wide
3
Jackson JS22-7 Dinky
Extended Range Guitars
3.1× vs site-wide
4
Fortin Nameless Suite by Neural DSP
Amp Simulator Plugins
2.6× vs site-wide
5
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Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor
Noise Gate Effects Pedals
2.6× vs site-wide
6
Ibanez Tube Screamer Mini
Overdrive Effects Pedals
2.6× vs site-wide
7
TC Electronic Eyemaster
Distortion Effects Pedals
2.6× vs site-wide
8
Peavey 6505 Mini Head
Guitar Amplifier Heads
2.6× vs site-wide
9
Boss ML-2 Metal Core
Distortion Effects Pedals
2.5× vs site-wide
10
Harley Benton G212 Vintage Guitar Cabinet
Guitar Amplifier Cabinets
2.4× vs site-wide
The Artists Behind the Data
This page is built from the documented rigs of melodic metal artists on Equipboard — a few of the 361:
Melodic Metal Rigs from the Community
Real, item-tagged setups from Equipboard members who make melodic metal.
How We Built This Guide
Documented artist rigs
Every count starts with the sourced, evidence-backed gear of 361 melodic metal artists on Equipboard — interviews, photos, and rig breakdowns, not guesswork.
Community signal
Saves and gear-photo tags from players who love this genre add weight, so the lists reflect who actually plays this stuff.
Distinctive, not just popular
We compare melodic metal usage to all of Equipboard — so a tuner everyone owns doesn't drown out the gear that makes this genre sound like itself.
Keep Exploring
Gear guides for genres in melodic metal's orbit.