Brand

Used Boss pedals

Boss started in 1973 as MEG Electronics, an effects division inside Roland, and took the Boss name the next year. Its first pedal was the CE-1 Chorus Ensemble in 1976, a big gray box that put the Jazz Chorus amp's chorus on the floor. In 1977 came the compact pedal, starting with the OD-1, PH-1 and SP-1, and that chassis has barely changed since. Boss has made more than 130 compact models and sold over 18 million of them, with the DS-1 its best seller and the MT-2 second. Compacts were built in Japan until the late 1980s, then in Taiwan, and production moved to Malaysia around 2019, with some models switching to tiny surface-mount boards from 2017. The Japan-made Waza Craft line revisits the classics. In a listing, read the bottom plate first. It names the country and whether the pedal wants an ACA or PSA adapter. Then ask about mods, since Boss pedals are among the most modified around.

16 pedals we cover.