The BOSS DM-2W is a Waza Craft reissue of the DM-2, a bucket-brigade analog delay that first shipped in 1981 and became one of the most coveted vintage delay pedals around. BOSS brought it back with the same BBD core, the same three-knob simplicity, and one meaningful addition: a Standard/Custom mode switch that unlocks longer delay times and slightly brighter repeats. It’s been my go-to delay since I got it.
What makes it special is how little it asks of you. Three knobs, a mode switch, and you’re making music. The repeats are warm and slightly dark in the way only a real BBD circuit gets, with a natural high-frequency roll-off that makes them sit behind your dry signal rather than compete with it.
The panel runs three knobs across the face: Rate on the left controls delay time, Intensity on the right sets the feedback (number of repeats), and Echo in the center adjusts the wet/dry mix. A small mode slide switch sits between Rate and Intensity.
Standard mode covers 20 to 300ms, which is the original DM-2 range. Custom mode extends that to 800ms and opens up the repeat character a little, giving you brighter, longer-lasting echoes that still sound analog rather than clean and digital.
In the demo above I’ve set up the Standard vs. Custom Mode sweep so you can hear both characters back to back at the same knob positions. The other presets cover the main use cases: 8th Note and Dotted 8th for tempo-synced picking patterns, Slap Back for a quick single-echo rockabilly feel, Bathroom Delay and Fake Spring Reverb for thick, washy textures, and Looong Delay in Custom mode for sprawling ambient trails.
The BBD circuit gives repeats a warmth and slight muddiness that digital delays can approximate but never quite nail. As the echoes decay they lose high-end progressively, so Slap Back stays crisp while Bathroom Delay dissolves into a murky wash. That’s not a flaw, it’s the character.
Intensity is the knob to watch. Below noon the DM-2W stays polite, echoes fading cleanly behind whatever you’re playing. Past 3 o’clock, repeats pile up and saturate. At maximum you get self-oscillation, an endless runaway. I’ve leaned on high feedback in the Bathroom Delay and Fake Spring Reverb presets for thick, washy textures rather than full runaway. Custom mode’s Looong Delay preset runs Rate to minimum for up to 800ms of trail, showing the extended range without chaos. Both modes feel distinct enough that the switch earns its place.
One thing I can’t show in the widget: the DM-2W has an expression pedal input for delay time and a second output for a wet/dry rig. Both are genuinely useful live.
The Summer School Electronics Snow Day Delay is another BBD analog delay that makes a fair comparison. The Snow Day runs two bucket-brigade chips simultaneously and has a Blizzard mode for parallel or modulated dual-delay textures. The DM-2W is simpler and more focused: one BBD circuit, three knobs, and a mode switch. It’s more predictable and immediately musical, where the Snow Day rewards experimentation and deliberately chases lo-fi degradation. If you want a delay that inspires you to get weird, the Snow Day has more tools for that. If you want the classic analog echo sound with no fuss and a well-understood range of settings, the DM-2W is the cleaner answer.
The DM-2W suits players who want a no-nonsense analog delay that stays out of the way of a great amp or overdrive. It handles slapback accents to slow ambient swells without changing its fundamental character, and sits well in blues, country, classic rock, and anything where the dry tone is the priority.
If you need tap tempo, MIDI, modulation, or stereo I/O, this isn’t the pedal. For players who want analog warmth over features, it’s hard to beat.
Eight innovative pedals that transform your guitar into an ambient and experimental soundscape machine. From reverse delays and octave shifters ...
Discover budget-friendly guitar pedals that punch above their price point. From the classic BOSS DS-1 to the versatile Walrus Audio ...
Master the cinematic guitar tones of Explosions in the Sky, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and This Will Destroy You with ...
Indulge a little 
Just one more pedal... 
Shred responsibly Buy through these links and support Loopy Demos at no extra cost to you.
Get detailed specs on BOSS' website
<div data-loopydemos="boss-dm-2w-delay" data-title="BOSS DM-2w Delay | Loopy Demos" data-width="400" data-height="610"></div>
<script src="https://loopydemos.com/embed.js" async></script>To embed this demo on your website, copy & paste the code above or customize your demo widget