Boss HM-2 Waza Craft

The Boss HM-2 Waza Craft, usually called the HM-2W, is a distortion pedal that reworks Boss's classic HM-2 Heavy Metal for modern boards. Boss announced it in 2021 as a Waza Craft-tweaked version of the HM-2, the Swedish-sounding metal staple that the company stopped making decades ago. The pedal keeps the original's layout roughly the same but adds a Standard/Custom mode toggle, a two-knob Color Mix EQ section, an improved noise floor and 3dB of additional volume [1]2, 3.

Where it came from

The original HM-2 Heavy Metal was released in 1983 7. How long it stayed in production depends on who you ask: Guitar Pedal X says it was manufactured from 1983 to 1992 when it was discontinued 8, TONEHOME says Boss discontinued the model in 1993 9, and pedal maker Wren and Cuff puts the end of the line in 1991 [10]11. Either way, the pedal was gone for long enough that the Waza Craft reissue was pitched as a return: Tone Island's guide calls the HM-2W a pedal "based on the long-discontinued HM-2" that "is more accessible and offers a neat tone mod" 2.

The HM-2W was part of Boss's Waza Craft program of reworked classics. MusicRadar later cited it as precedent when Boss gave the DS-1 the same treatment, "just like it did with the Heavy Metal HM-2W" 12, and again when discussing the Catalinbread Carbide, noting "when Boss released its Waza Craft [HM-2W] edition of the pedal" 11.

Standard and Custom modes

The headline change is a toggle switch that gives you the classic HM-2 tone or a custom mode. Tone Island's Adam Connell describes the difference plainly: "There's more punch, gain, and aggression" in the custom mode 2. Guitar.com's report on the launch put it in more detail: Custom Mode "delivers yet more gain and bottom-end, and increases definition in the high-mids" 1. Guitar Pedal X's 2024 guide calls the Custom Mode "the new killer Custom Mode" that "makes it even more special" 5.

Despite the extra mode, Boss was careful about the core tone. Guitar.com reported that Boss resolved to do its best to "keep consistency with [the] original HM-2 sound" 1.

Controls

The Color Mix is the most distinctive addition: Guitar World's coverage of the announcement highlights "a two-knob Color Mix EQ section" 3. Guitar Pedal X lists the full panel as "Controls - Level, Lows - Color Mix - Highs, Distortion, Mode : Standard / Custom" [6]4.

Quieter and louder at the same time

Two figures from the launch coverage are worth knowing together. Guitar.com reported that the updated pedal offers "an improved noise floor and 3dB of additional volume" compared with the original 1. GuitarPlayer's Jackson Maxwell also noted "a reduced noise floor" when the pedal was unveiled 13. In practice that means less hiss between phrases and more level on tap than the pedal it is based on.

Price and availability

Preorders opened on 17 June 2021 1. At announcement, Boss had said the pedal would be under $200, though an official list price had not been revealed 1. By Guitar Pedal X's June 2024 high-gain pedal guide, the HM-2 Waza Craft Edition was listed at $149 5.

What reviewers made of it

Tone Island's buying guide is the most detailed published verdict in recent coverage. Adam Connell calls it "One of the best sounding distortion pedals around" and notes a point beginners often miss about metal pedals: "It sounds surprisingly good at lower gain settings" 2. The same guide credits the pedal's lineage with some notable players: "some of those notable guitarists that have used it over the years include the likes of David Filmour, Johnny Marr, and Eric Clapton" 2.

Gearnews included the "Boss HM-2w Heavy Metal Distortion" among its picks in a 2021 year-end pedals roundup 14, and Delicious Audio's product page framed it as Boss announcing "a Waza Craft version of their classic Heavy Metal HM-2" 4.

For context on where the HM-2W sits among Boss's other drives, see the site's pages on Distortion Pedals, the Boss MT-2W Metal Zone Waza Craft and the Boss DS-1W Waza Craft.

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