Boss AW-2 vs. AW-3 educate me

[IRG]

I'm looking at both of these pedals, more as something to play with than anything. Maybe to replace my large mini-Q-tron. The AW-2 is older, out of production (analog?) auto wah, the AW-3 is the current model, digital I believe, called a dynamic wah. How close/similiar are these pedals to each other? Are these considered evenlope filters? or just wah? And how does the Digitech Synth wah compare to either of these two? I need more info on these pedals before I make any choices. Thanks y'all.

[IRG]

Other options ($100 or less)

[gambit]

I've owned both but kept the AW-2.

 

Essentially, the AW-3 is to the AW-2 how a PH-3 is to a PH-1. ie sound-wise the AW-3 is a digital tone-f*cking piece of shit next to the AW-2.

 

The AW-3 does the humanize or vowel stuff (super gay) and has tap tempo and expression control. all of which i found pretty redundant anyway after A/Bing it to the AW-2.

 

the AW-2 sounds nicer and is great at doing the auto-sweeping wah sound that i was after. it has more control over the depth and range for this effect than the AW-3, which peaks and troughs far too deeply. the AW-2 can be set as shallow as you like, and it goes slower too.

 

um.. what else.. for auto-wah sounds, the AW-2 wins too. i think it is analog, so it does have more soul in its sound which is pretty important if you want your playing to interact with a pedal. the AW-3 just chomps on your playing and spits out a digital interpretation of auto-wah.

 

the AW-2's go for about half the price of an AW-3. people are stupid..

 

i wish the AW-2 had a wet/dry mix, but that's the only issue i have with it. i use it in a looper with a blend control though. there's a clip of it in my sig doing a really slow rate auto-sweeping wah effect.. sounds a bit like a phaser but different..

 

actually that clip has auto-wah and faster-rate stuff too. the fast rate sounds with the sensitivy at zero (ie auto-sweeping with no envelope opening/closing) are decent too.. a bit like tremolo or vibe effect.

[Kassanova]

I own both pedals. The AW-3 sounds fine. If you're analog-obsessed, then you might want to go with the AW-2 but I'd bet you that 9 out of 10 people can't tell the difference between the two. The AW-3 has much much more functionality than the AW-2. Essentially, its the combination of an AW-2 and a Boss FT-2 (also out of production), along with a humanizer (talk box type wah) thrown in. You can add an expression pedal to the AW-3 and use it as a wah pedal, too. Also, the AW-3 is set up to work on bass as well as guitar.

I have the Digitech Synth Wah and the Digitech Bass Synth Wah. I actually use the Bass Synth Wah more. Even on guitar, its the better of the two in my opinion. Its all personal preference, though. I think the concept behind the Digitech pedals are different from the Boss pedals. Think of it like this:

Digitech Synth Wah & BSW - various types of filters with 2 knobs of control over each of them and a mix control.

Boss AW-2: An Auto-wah with extensive controls (rate, depth, manual, sensitivity)

AW-3 - Three different types of wahs, an auto wah (with tempo control) as well as manual, decay and sensitivity controls, a pedal wah (like a crybaby), you need an expression pedal to use it like a regular wah; and a "humanizer", basically a talk box type wah where you can set the vowels and make the guitar talk.

The AW-3 wins in bang for the bucks in my opinion. If you only want an auto wah, get an AW-2 and call it a day. The other three have a lot more to offer. They are all different and sound different. The Synth wah pedals are various wahs and synths (7 on each pedal) with three of the knobs acting as controls. They have auto wah, envelope filter and 5 various synth types with range and sensitivity controls as well as a Mix knob. They are all good pedals. I'd say go to your local store and try them out. Trust your ears over all else. Not every analog pedal has sounded best, so don't get caught up in labels. Trust your ears.

[IRG]

 

I own both pedals. The AW-3 sounds fine. If you're analog-obsessed, then you might want to go with the AW-2 but I'd bet you that 9 out of 10 people can't tell the difference between the two. The AW-3 has much much more functionality than the AW-2. Essentially, its the combination of an AW-2 and a Boss FT-2 (also out of production), along with a humanizer (talk box type wah) thrown in. You can add an expression pedal to the AW-3 and use it as a wah pedal, too. Also, the AW-3 is set up to work on bass as well as guitar. I have the Digitech Synth Wah and the Digitech Bass Synth Wah. I actually use the Bass Synth Wah more. Even on guitar, its the better of the two in my opinion. Its all personal preference, though. I think the concept behind the Digitech pedals are different from the Boss pedals. Think of it like this: Digitech Synth Wah & BSW - various types of filters with 2 knobs of control over each of them and a mix control. Boss AW-2: An Auto-wah with extensive controls (rate, depth, manual, sensitivity) AW-3 - Three different types of wahs, an auto wah (with tempo control) as well as manual, decay and sensitivity controls, a pedal wah (like a crybaby), you need an expression pedal to use it like a regular wah; and a "humanizer", basically a talk box type wah where you can set the vowels and make the guitar talk. The AW-3 wins in bang for the bucks in my opinion. If you only want an auto wah, get an AW-2 and call it a day. The other three have a lot more to offer. They are all different and sound different. The Synth wah pedals are various wahs and synths (7 on each pedal) with three of the knobs acting as controls. They have auto wah, envelope filter and 5 various synth types with range and sensitivity controls as well as a Mix knob. They are all good pedals. I'd say go to your local store and try them out. Trust your ears over all else. Not every analog pedal has sounded best, so don't get caught up in labels. Trust your ears.

 

 

Thanks for that reply. I will have to try it out. I did try the Synth Wah and was very disappointed in it, but maybe with my own stuff it would have been better. I just didn't find anything I liked about it. I liked the clips Iheard, but this pedal didn't sound like it. I might try the Mojo Hand Analogue Filter 442. I'll give the Boss a try too maybe some time next week.