Boss TW-1

Easy. Two knobs, one switch. Duh.

Horrible. People try to say this is a close version of the Mutron III. No friggin' way, pal. This thing sounds like a wah pedal rocked halfway open and then wiggled back and forth about an inch. Not a lot of diversity. Doesn't offer anywhere *near* the depth and vowel like pronunciation as a Mutron III. People have said this pedal has been used on the solo to the New Bohemhians tune "What I Am". Nope. Not this one. No can do. Tone is mucho sucky sucky.

If it sounds like shit, it'll last a million years. If it sounds great, it'll break.

This will most certainly last a million years.

Don't know. Don't care.

Blech. This will be going on Ebay soon. It sucks much ass.

Not that hard to use, though sometimes it can be hard to match it to the instrument. I play bass, and sometimes find the unit frustrating, but usually once I get the sensitivity about right, then it just takes a little tweaking.

OK, this is the section that made me want to write this review: my TW-1 is microphonic!!! It's hilarious, with distortion and stage volume, if you tap the pedal while you aren't playing, you can hear it through the amp! Why is this?!! Fortunately, you can't hear it when you turn the pedal on and off. I'm not complaining, I'm more from the Can/Sonic Youth/Grateful Dead school of noise, so I find it charming.

With distortion, this thing sounds incredible. Almost like a synthesizer. I thought it sounded cheesy by itself, but in listening to a tape of my band, it actually sounds cool without any other effects.

Oh yeah, one other thing, and this one's really important. As a bassist, I must point out that when you kick it on, the bottom end drops out noticably, especially when playing with drums and band. So what I do is put my Boss bass parametric eq with the volume and bass boosted next to it, and kick them both on with one foot whenever I use it. Sneaky huh?

Oh yeah, how could I forget: you know how if your pickups are microphonic and your gain is really high they emit a horrible high-pitched squeal? Well, with the TW-1 on, that squeal becomes a usable tone - just stick your bass up near the speakers and move it around and instant Jimi Hendrix!!! Just get your soundman to add some delay and it sounds great.

I've been using it at gigs and it hasn't given me any trouble.

Although I've owned Boss effects for almost 20 years, I've never dealt with the company.

I bought this thing almost 20 years ago when I was in high school in Japan. I actually never used it live (due to the low end dropoff described above) until this year. But with an eq pedal to boost the lows it's great. I might not pay full price for one now, but if you can find one used go for it!

Just turn it on and tweak those knobs! Get it?

Ahh,yes.As far as auto-filters go the TW-1 is pretty good.When you tweak the knobs,it can make very dramatic changes in it's response. From pick-wah to ultra compressed,slow attack.BUT THIS IS GOOD!Both up and down modes are very sensitive and useful.Tone is also very deep,not nearly as much as the Mutron III,but kind of juicey.I've played almost all of the auto-filters,the TW-1 is in the middle of the pack.Pretty standard,but very funky! Oh what the hell,I'll give it a 9!

These things are built very well! It stands in for my AF-9,which can be a little frail at times.

Forget it!

I play a lot of R&B these days and Wedding Music,but Rock and Funk are my first loves!
I grew up with these auto-filters(Mutron3,AF-201,AF-9,TW-1,Zipper, Dr.Q and others)so I'm very critical of them.Uhh,the T-Wah is very good,but it's NO MATCH for the AF-9.It's just not as flexible...not as much "SPANK" to it!!However,I love it just the same.You'll get rich,soupy auto-wah sounds(no sweep)that'll you smile.And $75.00 is a very fair price for this FUNKY,brown nugget!Since I'm from that era,I can confidently say,the TW-1 is worth checking out.

Two knobs and a switch; definitely not brain surgery. As far as getting it to react the way you want, that tends to be a combination of how the TW-1 is set, and the setting of whatever signal drives it. So, sometimes, the best setting will come by leaving the TW-1 alone and altering the volume, tone, and overdrive (or attack, etc., if it's a synth) of the guitar, bass or keyboard or any other audio signal that manages to get something workable from it. Truthfully, the TW-1 doesn't have the most tweakable filter by a long shot, but it is bot really designed to function as a straight filter, but as an envelope follower. For guitar, bass or CLAVINET (!!)... *or* Rhodes or Wurlitzer, too... it's a no-brainer. By the way, I once had a client who wanted to put a seventies "string ensemble" keyboard through the TW-1, and I started to try to tell him why that wasn't a good idea. Glad I didn't, because I turned out to be totally wrong. By some careful setting of volumes, the string ensemble's ultra slow attack (which I thought would be of no use combined with the TW-1) yielded some very cool polyphonic synth sounds at a time when I could never afford one. So, while it seems "made" for guitar, bass, and percussive keys, you might find some cool snare drum snap and 100 other uses if you experiment.

Judging sound quality is tricky ? you have to combine that assessment with what it is. In other words, it isn't the quietest of such effects, but the classic envelope follower funk sound is nasty by nature. Bite is good. When I use extreme settings that raise the noise floor, I sometimes use a noise gate. For choppy rhythm sounds, a noise gate is perfect; it opens up to let the nasty bite come through and instantly shuts down for silence between. This noise was never an issue with live use. I only gated it for recordings. And although I did find it necessary to gate, noise is more or less inherent in this type of device. Some newer "salon" devices will be cleaner for the silent passages, but if you take them one on one doing the same thing, the TW-1 will fly. It won't be as flexible, but for the basic funk thing, it is there full blown.

Mine is approximately twenty-five years old, and it looks and works like new. When you hold it, you feel like it should have a pin... like a hand grenade! As long as you know your battery or power supply are ready for the gig, I'd trust this as much as ANY piece of audio musical equipment on earth. It literally feels like it must be military spec.

I've never had a reason to contact Roland/Boss about this device, but my dealings with them in general have been fine when you consider the sheer glut of products they have now and have had over the years. The real key to Roland/Boss Customer Support in general has been to make products that are ultra solid. There have been some exceptions, but for the most part, very solid. They are friendly, but they are also a large corporation, so you have to be ready to press 1 if you are having a bad day. :o) Personally, I can't see needing a manual with a device this simple, and I don't even recall the manual. Roland/Boss is not generally real consistant with manuals, though. If I was them, I would consider updating that department, because having excellent products and so-so manuals can be frustrating for the user. Their Turbo Guides and Video Manuals help, although I think they should take the Video Manual thing further on their more complex devices. Having said this, I should also say that Roland/Boss compares very favorably with other large music/tech products manufacturers' Customer Support.

I got the TW-1 mainly for a studio environment initially, but I was playing keys in a funk band at the time, so it wasn't uncommon for the Clavinet to pass through it on gigs or sometimes an electric piano (Rhodes sometimes, Wurlitzer sometimes). For funk and dance type stuff the TW-1 is a natural, but having witnessed its use in unexpected places, I try to remember to count it amongst the usual possibilities. It's a good idea. Filters, in general, can be used a lot if subtlety is applied. Depending on the price for used, I think these are still a great value. However, if you want to take the whole filter/envelope follower/wah thing further and into the realm of better quality and expanded features, there's the new BOSS AW-3 (digital, very cool sounding, though), or the Big Briar Moogerfooger MF-101 Lowpass Filter ("the classic Moog filter", along with follower for funk, pedal for wah, LFO for swirls) and the Lovetone Meatball (can't go wrong with a name like that) for vintage/state-of-the-art analog higher price spread. It's all good.

Two knobs - One for Level one for sensitivity. There is also a groovy little toggle switch to select the direction of the envelope drive. in the Up position you get a standard wah sound. The Down offers up Mutron sounds and is much more interesting for me. i leave this thing set with the knobs maxed and with the drive Down. I use a DOD fx25 for Up drive tones as they sound better than the TW1's.
The manual is pretty good - Mines really old (1979) and (curiously) stinks of fish! Infact the carton AND the pedal both stink of raw fish....its annoying really but doesn't affect the sound.
My pedal is the Touch Wah with metakl thumb screw and inked on serial number. These were the second run of TW1. First came the T Wah but no-one knew what T meant so they printed Touch wah. This changed back again later though. Later Boss models had plastic thumbscres too - All this is meaningless when you talk about the sound of the thing but if you like your vintage and collectables then keep a look out for the metal screw.

Very nice sounding. As I said earlier I prefer the down drive but the up is cool too. Nice wah sounds clean and distorted. I use my TW1 with a Digitech Whammy/wah,a BigMuff,a DOD BuzzBox and loads more - check out http://nadzb.tripod.com/thepedallair/ for some nice pics and info. The sounds produced are nice and strong and the TW1 has a tendency to boost the signal alot too - sometimes too much but its easily sorted. I like to use this pedal to play Radiohead,Sonic Youth and loads of other stuff too - It does inspire you to play new stuff and this can only be a good thing -even if it does have you learning (shock horror) Funk and Disco licks!!!

OCH! Its a Boss - It is invincible! Mine's older than I am and in better shape than me too!

The TW1 is a permenant fixture on my pedalboard. I like to use my Envelope filters after distortion pedals but this one will perfrom well where efer it is in your signal path. I've been collecting pedals for a couple of years and so far this is the best envelope pedal (to my ears) I have found. Ok so its old and stinks of fish.....but so does your Grandad but you love him don't you? Think of it as the Grandaddy of Boss Auto wahs and you won't be far off - This is one of Boss' coolest offerings if you ask me and I intend to use it for along time yet. Now where's the odour eaters.........

A no brains thing. One up or down frequency adjustment that most of the others pedals dont have.

Not really like a good wah unit like Dunlops, Voxes, RMCs (no Morleys please) but they do the job quite nicelly.
They give you a beef up on your tone.

I am lucky to have this thing for 18 years now. Never broke, never let me down. Its a Boss what more can you say about it.
In fact it was my very first pedal, bought brand new for U$80,00

Who cares, they will last forever.

One of my favorite pedals until I get a "real" wah.
Its funky, very funky. I give it a 9.

One sensitivity knob, one for the sweep, and an up/down switch. As soon as I can remember if turning the sensitivity control clockwise increases sensitivity to picking or if it actually raises the treshold (eg the higher the treshold the harder the strings must be hit to trigger the wah), I'm pretty sure I'll find the tones of yesteryear!

It's an envelope-followed wah-wah, and I find that I must bash the strings rather hard to get a full wah sweep. I use a Squire Standard Telecaster and a home made double cutaway Les Paul special, through a Fender Blues Jr amp, sometimes through a Zoom amp simulator ( the Fender amp sounds best IMOHO).

Either I've set the sensitivity control the wrong way, or the electrolytic caps need to be replaced ... for the price I paid for it, I wouldn't mind paying for a cap replacement. I used to own one of those back in '83, and I've kicked myself for selling it ... for a pedal of its type (envelope-followed filter) the sound is quite good (though I must bash the strings quite hard, for that funky, chunky rythm part.

It's a Boss! Caps may dry out and need replacement but Boss construction is legendary.

Bought it second hand!

For those times where a wah is required, and if one enjoys the intensity to match your playing dynamics, those babies do the trick quite well. Boss no longer makes them, which is why I jumped at the purchase when I saw it for that price!

I think DOD still makes their envelope filter (same effect, different make), and Guyatone makes a version of this too ... but having as many pedals working off the same AC adapter is a major bonus. I take a few points off due to wear and tear and the fact that new caps may be required, but make no mistake this one's a keeper!

The TW-1 is an auto wah. That means its not like a regular wah. It changes the wah sound for you, instead of you pushing the pedal up and down. Its very easy to get a good sound out of. It's also good for playing Kirk Hammet's solos with. I didn't get a manual (bought it used). The controls on it are Sensitivity and Peak. There is a switch to make the sound like it's below the water, or above the water. (Drive: Down, Up). I just crank the controls, and play with the drive (water) switch when I feel like it.

I'm using two guitars: Synsonics Pro Series Strat Copy and Alvarez Dana II. My amp is a Tubeworks RT-2100. The pedal sounds great. I can get Jimi Hendrix's tone, especially in Voodoo Chile, very easily. It's also good for playing Kirk Hammet's solos with. Its sounds great with or without distortion. If you use a distortion pedal, put the wah first in your pedal setup (going from guitar to amp)

Very sturdy, reliable, would gig without backup.

N/A

They dont make this pedal anymore. If you find one, buy it. It'll be worth money in a few years. Great pedal!

Pretty simple pedal.. sensitivity and peak knobs w/a switch between drive down/up (ie: underwater or not). you can flick it with yr toe so it's pretty decent. it's a little hard to find a 'perfect' setting but after a little fine tuning it's the bomb. we run impulse tracker through it (a tracking program on the computer) and it gives like a whiplash effect on the beats. it can get a little harsh when used with a distortion pedal, but it's fixable. i'm debating "upgrading" to the autowah, but i prefer a pedal that wah's with your picking rather than being a continual thing like a flanger.

Very easy to use. Just plug in, set how much you want it to wah for you, and you're off to funky weird twang out heaven.

It isn't very noisy. It has two knobs: Sensitivity and Peak, and a switch for up/down. In the up mode, it changes the EQ of the insrument by cutting out the bass, and in the down mode, it cuts highs. The purpose of the pedal is to wah for you, but it dosen't really sound like a wah. It sounds more like your guitar is "scatting", a very bubbly sound for lack of a better term. Only problem is it drops your volume a little bit.

Very reliable. Wouldn't need a backup

Don't know, I've got tons of Boss pedals and never had any need to speak to customer support.

Man, I love this thing! It makes you feel funky! This is one of the few "vintage" pedals that haven't gotten out of hand pricewise, so get one while they're still cheap! It does contribute greatly to making music in an weird way....you don't think the same way when you play through it. I love the twang it provides, the roundness it gives to notes, and just the overall sound. The only downside is that it doesn't do chords well, and sometimes it gives some weird overtones. I would buy it for 4 to 5 times what I paid.