The Roland ST-2 Power Stack is a Roland distortion pedal. Close alternatives include the Mooer Ultra Drive MK II and the NuX Fireman. It pairs well with the Marshall JCM800 2203 and the Fuchs FBT 300.
Roland ST-2 Power Stack
Roland · pedal
The Roland ST-2 Power Stack is a high-gain distortion pedal from Roland Corporation delivering stacked, powerful distortion with Roland's quality circuit engineering. The Power Stack provides thick, saturated distortion for rock and metal in Roland's compact pedal format.
What stands out
“The Roland ST-2 Power Stack is a from Roland Corporation delivering stacked, powerful distortion with Roland's quality circuit engineering”
— from the listing
“The Power Stack provides thick, saturated distortion for rock and metal in Roland's compact pedal format”
— from the listing
“hard rock and metal players who want roland-quality distortion in a pedal find the st-2 a reliable option”
— from the community notes
“Build quality is excellent”
— from the community notes
“High-gain saturation suits hard rock and metal applications”
— from the reviews
- distortion
- thick
- hard rock
- rock
- metal
- high gain
- power stack
Genres the Roland ST-2 Power Stack is commonly used in
- Rock
- Metal
- Hard Rock
- Christian Rock
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag. - Heavy Metal
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag. - Punk
cited
Inferred from shared tonal signals, not a stated genre tag.
Amps that pair well with the Roland ST-2 Power Stack
Marshall JCM800 2203
Marshall
19% matchpushes an already-dirty tonePushes an already-dirty tone harder and tightens it up. (high gain → mid-forward)
Marshall JCM800 2203 pushes a high gain tone toward mid-forward
Comes later in the signal chain
Fuchs FBT 300
Fuchs
19% matchpushes an already-dirty tonePushes an already-dirty tone harder and tightens it up. (high gain → tight)
Feed a high gain signal into Fuchs FBT 300 and it comes out closer to tight
Comes later in the signal chain
Aguilar SL110 Fawn Limited
Aguilar
tonal matchComes later in the signal chain
Stack Aguilar SL110 Fawn Limited on top and a high gain tone tightens toward tight
EBS Magni 502 2x10 bass combo
Ebs
tonal matchComes later in the signal chain
Feed a high gain signal into EBS Magni 502 2x10 bass combo and it comes out closer to tight
Gallien-Krueger Legacy 410
Gallien Krueger
tonal matchComes later in the signal chain
Feed a high gain signal into Gallien-Krueger Legacy 410 and it comes out closer to tight
Gallien-Krueger Legacy 210 Bass Combo
Gallien Krueger
tonal matchComes later in the signal chain
Stack Gallien-Krueger Legacy 210 Bass Combo on top and a high gain tone tightens toward tight
Gallien-Krueger Fusion 210
Gallien Krueger
tonal matchComes later in the signal chain
Gallien-Krueger Fusion 210 takes that high gain character and pushes it toward mid-forward
Phil Jones BG-400 Suitcase Compact Bass Combo
Phil Jones
tonal matchComes later in the signal chain
Phil Jones BG-400 Suitcase Compact Bass Combo pushes a high gain tone toward mid-forward
Pedals that stack with the Roland ST-2 Power Stack
Suhr Shiba Drive
Suhr
16% matchpushes an already-dirty tonePushes an already-dirty tone harder and tightens it up. (high gain → mid-forward)
Stack Suhr Shiba Drive on top and a high gain tone tightens toward mid-forward
T-Rex Sweeper 2
T Rex
16% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor. (high gain → lush)
Keep T-Rex Sweeper 2 after Roland ST-2 Power Stack in the signal chain, clear of Roland ST-2 Power Stack's own gain stage
Comes later in the signal chain
Soldano SLO
Soldano
15% matchpushes an already-dirty tonePushes an already-dirty tone harder and tightens it up. (high gain → tight)
Stack Soldano SLO on top and a high gain tone tightens toward tight
Comes later in the signal chain
Meris Mercury7 Reverb
Meris
13% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor. (high gain → lush)
Keep Meris Mercury7 Reverb after Roland ST-2 Power Stack in the signal chain, clear of Roland ST-2 Power Stack's own gain stage — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)
Comes later in the signal chain
Free the Tone Future Factory FY-1
Free The Tone
13% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor. (high gain → lush)
Keep Free the Tone Future Factory FY-1 after Roland ST-2 Power Stack in the signal chain, clear of Roland ST-2 Power Stack's own gain stage — goes in the amp's FX loop (or last, into a clean amp)
Comes later in the signal chain
Electro-Harmonix Pico Deep Freeze
Electro-Harmonix
10% matchsits in the right chain slotPlaced for where it does its job cleanly in the chain, not for a tonal interaction with the anchor. (high gain → ambient)
Electro-Harmonix Pico Deep Freeze leans toward ambient, and that's a real, usable character to pair with
Comes earlier in the signal chain
MXR CAE Wah
MXR
tonal matchComes earlier in the signal chain
Put MXR CAE Wah in front of Roland ST-2 Power Stack: a wah tracks picking dynamics best on the raw signal
JAM Pedals RetroVibe Mk.4
Jam Pedals
tonal matchComes later in the signal chain
Feed a high gain signal into JAM Pedals RetroVibe Mk.4 and it comes out closer to mid-forward
Alternativessee all similar tone character →
Mooer Ultra Drive MK II
Mooer
72% similarityShared character: hard rock, thickness, distortion
NuX Fireman
Nux
69% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, thickness
Mooer Rage Machine
Mooer
67% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, thickness
Wampler Mofetta
Wampler
65% similarityShared character: hard rock, thickness, distortion
NuX Metal Core
Nux
65% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, thickness
NUX Recto Distortion
Nux
65% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, thickness
SONICAKE Black Hammer
Sonicake
64% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, distortion
Maxon Sm-9 Pro+
Maxon
64% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, distortion
Donner Extreme Driver
Donner
61% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, distortion
Carl Martin Crush Zone
Carl Martin
61% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, thickness
ENO EX-Inferno
Eno
59% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, distortion
Mooer Blade
Mooer
59% similarityShared character: metal, hard rock, distortion
See all alternatives to the Roland ST-2 Power Stack (cheaper + boutique) →
Questions people ask
What are good alternatives to the Roland ST-2 Power Stack?+
The closest matches in character are the Mooer Ultra Drive MK II, the NuX Fireman, the Mooer Rage Machine.
What pairs well with the Roland ST-2 Power Stack?+
Strong matches from rig and tone-complementarity evidence: Marshall JCM800 2203, Fuchs FBT 300, Aguilar SL110 Fawn Limited — Marshall JCM800 2203 pushes a high gain tone toward mid-forward.