BOSS FZ-1W Fuzz joins Waza Craft line as modern take on vintage fuzz
April 8, 2024 · 4 sources
BOSS introduced the FZ-1W Fuzz on November 4, 2021, as the latest member of its Waza Craft family of compact pedals, according to a press release dated Los Angeles that day12. The pedal was slated to reach the U.S. market in early November at a list price of $199.9912.
The Boss pedal is all-analog and built around silicon transistor circuitry. BOSS says its engineers created a unique circuit that provides authentic tone and response while maintaining stable performance in any temperature or operating condition12. The company describes the FZ-1W as its modern interpretation of vintage fuzz rather than a reproduction of a past design, and says the number "1" in the name marks respect for the classic circuits that shaped rock guitar3.
The FZ-1W has three knobs (Fuzz, Tone and Level) and a two-position mode switch for Vintage and Modern4. In Vintage mode, BOSS says the Tone knob adjusts high and low frequencies together; in Modern mode, the company says it offers a different tuning that changes brightness without altering the midrange31. Delicious Audio describes the Modern-mode Tone control as working more like a presence control that pushes the high end without affecting mids or lows4.
BOSS's descriptions of the two modes:
| Mode | BOSS description |
|---|---|
| Vintage | Retro fuzz experience with aggressive tone, dynamic touch response and extreme sensitivity to input volume3 |
| Modern | Fatter sound and more mid focus to suit a wider range of music styles; gain range wider than Vintage3 |
BOSS also says turning down the Fuzz knob and cranking the Level lets the pedal work as a boost for an amp and other gain pedals, and that the FZ-1W has a high-quality buffer for clean tone when bypassed31. The pedal carries a BOSS five-year warranty34.
"Unlike previous Waza Craft models, the FZ-1W does not provide a reproduction of a past design. This pedal is our modern interpretation of vintage fuzz"
Delicious Audio, which lists the pedal among fuzz pedals, writes that it delivers classic fuzz tones without the instability issues it attributes to vintage units, including temperature, buffer and impedance-related compatibility, and component degradation4.