Boss Compact Pedal 40th Anniversary Box Set Boss

A must-have for any vintage Boss pedal geek or aficionado, this is the Box-40 box set featuring re-issue OD-1, PH-1, and SP-1 pedals, first launched in 1977. The pedals are affectionately known as the “traffic light series”. The reissue OD-1, PH-1, and SP-1 pedals are produced exactly as the originals were, with wiring and circuit adjustment performed by hand on a special production line in Japan. All electronic components are carefully selected, ensuring fully accurate reproduction of the original pedals’ sound and response. Each pedal also features useful modern performance improvements that have absolutely no effect on the tone. These include a PSA-compatible power supply section with a protection circuit and noise filter, a reinforced battery snap, and an LED that shows effect on/off status. (On the original pedals, the LED’s main function was to show battery status by lighting only when the switch was pressed.)

The OD-1 reissue features a circuit with four op-amps, just like the earliest versions of the pedal. In addition, the diodes have been carefully selected to accurately reproduce the original OD-1 response characteristics.

For the PH-1 reissue, the FETs for the four phase-shifting circuits have been carefully matched to make the response characteristics exactly like the original pedal. Furthermore, each individual preset resistor has been meticulously tuned by hand, replicating the same process that went into building the original PH-1.

In the long history of BOSS compacts, the SP-1 stands out as one of the most unique pedals. Derived from an effect built into some early Roland guitar and bass amps, the SP-1 is basically a single-band parametric equalizer with a fixed level boost. The Spectrum knob allows you to sweep the center frequency from 500 Hz to 5 kHz, while the Balance knob adjusts the mix of the direct and effect sounds while keeping the overall level consistent.