BOSS revolutionised the pedal world with the 1977 release of its first compact pedals – the OD-1 Over Drive, PH-1 Phaser and SP-1 Spectrum. Since then, the compact series has been ubiquitous and there can’t be many guitarists who haven’t owned one at some time. But while there’s a massive range of BOSS compacts available to buy new, yet more models have been discontinued over the years. Perhaps they were ahead of their time, or possibly their qualities were overlooked in a crowded marketplace – and thus only remained in production for a couple of years. Today, the very scarcity of such pedals has granted them a cachet and collectibility that has made them among the most sought-after effects in the world.
You only have to look at the Instagram pages of collectors such as and to see that the BOSS collecting bug is not purely about visual impact or a completist desire to own them all – many early BOSS pedals are desirable for their unique sonic qualities and can still play a part at the cutting edge of music. Before we take a look at
