TW-1

When I got mine (in a trade deal) it was "not working".  In 5 minutes it was working fine, and in 15 minutes I had found *my* sound - the right sensitivity, sweep and low noise.  It's not rocket science folks, but I'm still, after decades of this, stunned by how many experienced players know exactly zero about how to make adjustments in pedals - or understand that they were *designed* to be adjusted, since no two players' "tonal target" is alike. Yes, it WOULD be nice if Boss and everyone else put this stuff in the manual (some of the boutique guys do) but it's such common knowledge it's a waste of print.  Then again, most players don't read the manual for any gadget they get hold of so it's probably a lost cause. Anyway - once you make the fine adjustments it's tremendous.  My setup (today - it'll change tomorrow...hehehe) is a Partscaster Pullstring Tele with a custom Fralin (switchable, extremely high output) boost-coil bridge and Harmonic Design Mini-Strat neck pickup, Klon, T-Wah, Way Huge Green Rhino, Way Huge Blue Hippo, Marshall Vibratrem, EH Flanger Hoax, Ibanez Soundtank Phaser, SIB Mr. Echo, Musitronics Octave Divider, Sireko tape echo, MXR Noise Gate/Line Driver, Fender volume pedal and Holland Little Jimi (modded with EL34's), '64 Vibroverb Custom, '69 Pro Reverb or '55 Deluxe. By carefully working with multiple "One Spot" power supplies and some individual units the noise floor is very low - I still like having the gate so it's zero when I'm not playing. The T-Wah is set so that I could leave it on all the time with almost no effect and then have it quack/wah just by digging in.  It sounds incredibly good with my setup.  I tend to pick very lightly with the amp cranked so that I can "play" the dynamics of pick attack - and this pedal is made for players like me.  If you use one consistent level of picking dynamics, a triggered or touch wah is NOT for you; if you have to rely on a compressor to keep your sound consistent - it's not for you.   But if you vary your pick attack and work the dynamics of guitar=>effects=>amp you'll really like it.

I dislike most Boss pedals - to me they are "lowest common denominator" tone tweakers, but don't come close to many high-end pedals.  But they ARE built like tanks and I have no worries about it.  The trim pot is not a "reliability" issue so I won't address it in this category - it's a "know how your stuff works" issue.

"Ease of use" is sort of a Catch-22 (if you don't know what that means, you're probably under 30...see Wikipedia...); with two knobs as previously described, an up/down switch and the standard bulletproof Boss footswitch it's a no-brainer - unless you think it sucks, has limited range or sound constricted, isn't close to (fill in the name of a boutique $800 pedal here). That's because this pedal, like just about EVERY envelope filter, "auto-wah", phaser, flanger and other "spacey" effects, if you buy a used one it is NOT a "plug 'n play" device. I'd wager folks posting bad reviews didn't do the one *required* setup activity:  remove the bottom plate, gently lift the circuit board (which is not screwed down for a reason that will shortly be obvious), find the little white trim pot (a small, mini-screwdriver adjustable variable resistor) and carefully adjust the settings with guitar, pedal and amp all ON!  THAT is how you adjust it for more top-end, a wider sweep, more bottom, less sensitivity, a "fixed Q" setting - and on other types of pedals trim pots adjust sweep range, speed, and frequency response. They also have a HUGE effect on noise. If you have some experience working with and tweaking your own equipment and know what you are doing with pedals/amps/guitar electronics it's bonehead-simple to use.  If you don't - buy a book and learn something.

Never tried to call them as I've had so few Boss pedals (usually throw ins on trade deals and quickly dumped) for such a short time I haven't had a chance to break one - and I've never purchased one new.

I play everything from classic rock to blues to country-rock to worship-band music (and crossovers of ALL those styles) on the aforementioned Tele, a couple more similar ones (Including an elusive and rare Nashville West), a Trussart Steel DeVille, '63 Jag, and modified 50's/60's Fender pedal steels.  I use it with all of them, and it's especially effective on pedal steel and lap steel.  In 45 years or so of playing I've been through hundreds of pedals, amps, guitars and other instruments/gadgets.  VERY few are in the category of "if it disappeared or broke I'd flip out".  This is one of them, and I'd replace it in a heartbeat. AND open the back and adjust the trim pot.... ;-)

I bought it brand new probably in 1985. I do not use it very often but this does not mean that is not good but I think it has a very specific sound so I cannot see using it all the time. However I found its sound very interesting and it is a real fun to play with this type of pedal. The sound is very clean and there is no much background noise. My set up for this pedal is here; Guitar=T-wah=Boss Distortion=Boss graphic equalizer=Behringer tube ultra gain preamp MIC-200=Fender amp FM212R. You can produce very interesting crying type lead sound combining with distortion & setting T-wah intensity knob at Full and senstivity knob at Zero and toggle switch to Low. As I said earlier that this pedal has a specific sound for specific music so I use it not very often but I must say that every guitarist at least should have one such type of pedal in his collection to give a different/classic touch and flavor to his sound.

No words for Boss pedals they are life-time guranteed.

As with every Boss pedal the operation is very simple. It has two knobs for controlling the senstivity and intensity and third controller is the toggle switch for forward/reverse wah effect behaviour. I think the T relates to touch and its means that this pedal basically works on the concept of string picking force. The more force you apply for picking the more intense the wah effect will be and vice versa.    

Never ever had a chance to deal with them and that is proof for Boss reliablity.

I mostly play rock, blues, popular and country. I have been playing guitar for the last 28 years and I own lot of amps, guitars and effect pedals mostly from Boss. If this one stolen I would buy there new Auto wah pedal AW-2. There is nothing to hate about it but rather its use is somewhat limited in general music. I choose this one because it was a new item in the market in 1985 and I wanted to experiment with it to explore something new with my sound.