# wah wah's



## SCREEM

what do you guy's use? I have been looking at the Teese models, but they just seem to be modded vox/dunlop wah's, if thats the case i will just grab the basic crybaby and mod the hell out of it, lots of info available on modding them. How about other types of wah's? (morley,budda) how do they compare?


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## CocoTone

V847 with bypass switch, and a couple of resistors swapped out for a touch more gain and bottom. For the amount I use a wah, it kicks ass, and sounds great.

CT.


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## traynor_garnet

I owned a Tesse Picture Wah and it was amazing! Expensive though, and since I didn't use wah that much . . .

Wahs are really one areas where I think the boutique stuff REALLY outshines the mass manufactured stuff. That said, if you have the skills to mod you can probably put something together just as good for cheap.

TG


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## SCREEM

CocoTone said:


> V847 with bypass switch, and a couple of resistors swapped out for a touch more gain and bottom. For the amount I use a wah, it kicks ass, and sounds great.
> 
> CT.


I got one of these coming, $91 shipped off ebay, I'm going to do the same mods as you Coco. I will also try the volume pedal mod, you just need to add a mini toggle to turn the wah effect off, I may as well add another switch to to the imput so i dont have to unplugge the lead cord all the time to save the battery.


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## CocoTone

Right on!!
CT.


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## clarkee

vintage Jen Mister Cry Baby.. nothing beats it


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## scuffelwood

*wahs wahs*

I just scored,,,,well i`m still waiting for it to come in the mail!! Its one of those Classic CryBaby with Fasel. Picked it up for 75$ American, anyone one tried one of these and did you like it.


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## faracaster

I really like and use the Budda wha. Does what I need very well. It records great too. I had a Teese and it did not last long. I have also had the Vox Clyde McCoy reissue and it was just okay. I have an old Cry Baby (late 60's) that is the best IMHO. But it runs off batteries and that doesnt cut it on my pedal board. Also tone sucking when not in use, and noisy, but when engaged....Still Raining, Still Dreaming.....Wha Nirvana.


Pete


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## scuffelwood

I think thats whats different about this one is it has an ac adapter and easy battery access.


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## Chito

Try the George Dennis Wah-Switch Pedal. I've had it for close to 10 years now. It has a great sound, very quiet, uses optics control meaning no pots so it's never scratchy and has true bypass as well.


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## SinCron

Series A wah pedal is what I got. Old as hell and no adapter plug.


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## PaulS

I have a vox 847 which has been modded and it sounds great. I also have two old thomas organ crybabies, one is the california TDK inductor model and the other is the chicago stack of dime inductor model. I have a home built wah that uses both a red and a yellow fasel. The home built allows for inductor selection or to series them which is quite fat. It also uses the dunlop idea of selectable sweep caps. I am now in the middle of building another one that uses the yellow fasel and selectable sweep caps with a few other new mods I found so it should be interesting to hear what it sounds like. Heres another mod which has a good sound and that is to wire a cap (.01 or .02) across the inductor resistor adds to the vocal quality. All these pedals are TB'd .


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## scuffelwood

PaulS said:


> I have a vox 847 which has been modded and it sounds great. I also have two old thomas organ crybabies, one is the california TDK inductor model and the other is the chicago stack of dime inductor model. I have a home built wah that uses both a red and a yellow fasel. The home built allows for inductor selection or to series them which is quite fat. It also uses the dunlop idea of selectable sweep caps. I am now in the middle of building another one that uses the yellow fasel and selectable sweep caps with a few other new mods I found so it should be interesting to hear what it sounds like. Heres another mod which has a good sound and that is to wire a cap (.01 or .02) across the inductor resistor adds to the vocal quality. All these pedals are TB'd .



Show us how you do it PaulS!! Your a wealth of knowledge it seems when it comes to wha`s, hell i never knew there were so many brands of wha makers, i would have shopped around.


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## stratace05

vox, man, vox..


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## PaulS

It is a little too long winded for here but if you go out and search for wah mods then put them all together you will find that with all makes there is the basic wah circuit and each have added there own twist to it. I agree with the vox it was a nice pedal to work on and there were very nice results.
The older crybabies are close to what the vox is but with older components which by the way was one of the mods to the vox, replacing resistors, capacitors with better quality items. The new crybabies are a bitch to work on I'd rather gut them and start over, everying is on a circuit board and TB becomes a little more work. Also the dunlop inductors suck with the exception of the reissued fasels. When I get a chance I post picks of my wah collection. Later....


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## scuffelwood

PaulS said:


> It is a little too long winded for here but if you go out and search for wah mods then put them all together you will find that with all makes there is the basic wah circuit and each have added there own twist to it. I agree with the vox it was a nice pedal to work on and there were very nice results.
> The older crybabies are close to what the vox is but with older components which by the way was one of the mods to the vox, replacing resistors, capacitors with better quality items. The new crybabies are a bitch to work on I'd rather gut them and start over, everying is on a circuit board and TB becomes a little more work. Also the dunlop inductors suck with the exception of the reissued fasels. When I get a chance I post picks of my wah collection. Later....



cool, can`t wait.


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## zoolake

I'm new to wah's in general and am looking to buy my first one, what sort of things should i be looking for in a good wah?


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## sh333

I love the Chicago Iron Parachute Wah. It is pretty hard to beat.

I also love older vintage wahs esp. colorsounds.

I have some customers that swear by the Keeley Modded crybaby Mello wahs.


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## iggs

Pretty happy with my Fulltone Clyde Deluxe, built solid, sounds great, does what I want it to, the volume control and different voicings are a plus.


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## SCREEM

I finaly recieved my Vox 847 at work this morning after almost a month of waiting. I got it on ebay with a buy it now of $69 USD, it came to $91 CAD to the door. I could not wait to mod the thing, so before even trying it, I drove over to Ted's (Guitarpartscanada.com) and got a 3PDT switch like this one: http://www.stewmac.com/freeinfo/I-1561.html

and performed the true bypass mod....I can't say it sounds better than before because I didn't even try it before doing it Ted was very helpfull in showing me how to use the switch and knows his stuff.

The wah sounds great, It's a little honky but I will try some voicing mods, and a led, thanx to the switch Ted suggested. maybe also the volume pedal mod in the off position.

I think I got a great deal the pedal is new and still had the plastic film on it, the only thing that may have been the reason the guy sold it is because the pedal would not stay in position, it just fell to full treble position. I just tightened the friction strap and it's all good.

I will post mods as I complete them, and give my opinion on them.

Mods are here: http://homepage.ntlworld.com/s.castledine/greenfuz/wah.html

pic of pedal with 3PDT switch:


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## imbackagain2

I have the dime wah from hell. It's very versatile and sounds great. I can get any type of wah from hendrix to dimebag of course. Im sure theres others that are better but I love this pedal.


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## ajcoholic

I have an Area 51 vintage Italian wah. I bought the guts to go into my stock Dunlop wah which sucked big time. I dont have much to compare it to other than another DUnlop my friend has but I like the tone much better on mine. It wasnt cheap (ended up costing me about $220 C) but I heard good things about them and tried it on a whim.

I dont use the wah too much any how (maybe a few tunes out of a set of 35-40 songs) but its nice to have. I fool with it more at home practicing, and hope to utilise it more playing out later when I get better at using it.

I am not an effects guy really, minimal stuff on my board (just an OD pedal, eq & compressor that gets used a lot) but I like the wah.

AJC


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## SCREEM

Is it just me, or does a wah sound best plugged into a strat with single coils?

sounds much cleaner with more complexity IMO. :sport-smiley-002:


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## SCREEM

*led mod*

I salvaged an 8mm frosted green LED from an old pc front hard drive activity indicator ans soldered a 200ohm resistor to the positive lead. I then drilled an 8mm hole in the aluminum chassis and epoxied it in place...very cool, easy mod and fun to do.

I realize these mods are basic but some ppl are afraid to mess with their stuff and spend alot of money to have it done by techs that charge an arm and a leg for a few minutes of their time.


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## Milkman

This may not be a popular opinion, but I think a basic Jim Dunlop or Vox wah is fine just the way it is. 

To make a wah really sing, you have to learn to use it tastefully. All the mods in the world won't provide taste.


We as guitarists tend to focus a bit too much on the tools and not enough on the music in my opinion.


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## Milkman

SCREEM said:


> Is it just me, or does a wah sound best plugged into a strat with single coils?
> 
> sounds much cleaner with more complexity IMO. :sport-smiley-002:




Not necessarily a strat, but single coils for sure.


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## Chito

I posted earlier talking about the George Dennis GD40 Wah-Switch and unfortunately I might have shorted it out and died on me. I am clueless as to what went wrong with it. So I ended up searching for a wah this weekend. I thought about getting a Fulltone Clyde but I thought $400CND is just too much for me to pay for something I use probably 3-4 times each gig. So I ended up buying a Vox V848 Clyde McCoy. Question is, I see people getting an 847 and then modding it so it becomes a true bypass. Would it have been better for me to have gotten an 847 and have it modded?


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## SCREEM

Chito said:


> Would it have been better for me to have gotten an 847 and have it modded?


not unless you do it yourself, sending stuff out to be modded costs alot...with very little techical inclination + Internet "how to's" you can maintaing you gear properly, mod it...whatever.


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## gproud

SCREEM said:


> not unless you do it yourself, sending stuff out to be modded costs alot...with very little techical inclination + Internet "how to's" you can maintaing you gear properly, mod it...whatever.


I totally agree. The most important mod to be done to a V847 is true bypass, and that takes about 10 minutes and basic soldering skills.


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## Chito

gproud said:


> I totally agree. The most important mod to be done to a V847 is true bypass, and that takes about 10 minutes and basic soldering skills.


So are the V847 and V848 pretty much the same pedal except for the bypass?


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## gproud

Chito said:


> So are the V847 and V848 pretty much the same pedal except for the bypass?


No. The V848 has different innards as well. This is from the Vox site...

The Clyde McCoy Wah-Wah pedal includes details like a custom-tuned inductor made by the original manufacturer and a true bypass switch. Plus, it has some new enhancements like an AC adapter jack and a newly designed, custom taper potentiometer.

I'd much prefer the V848, but for the price in Canada, you're better off buying a used V847 and doing some mods. IMO.


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## Chito

Thanks Gproud. You mentioned that you prefer the 848 tho. Any particular reason why?


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## gproud

Chito said:


> Thanks Gproud. You mentioned that you prefer the 848 tho. Any particular reason why?


Only because of the adapter jack really. Without sending it away to be modded, the V847 either takes a battery or a 9 volt adapter that clips onto the battery clip, only you then have to make a hole either in the case or bottom panel to run it through. But for value, the V847 with TB is great. If you want to do some component swaps as well, though I've never tried it, seems fairly easy as well.


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## PaulS

Milkman said:


> This may not be a popular opinion, but I think a basic Jim Dunlop or Vox wah is fine just the way it is.
> 
> To make a wah really sing, you have to learn to use it tastefully. All the mods in the world won't provide taste.
> 
> 
> We as guitarists tend to focus a bit too much on the tools and not enough on the music in my opinion.


Your right on two things, first it does take talent to use a wah tastefully and secondly it is not a popular decision. Mods to the wah will improve it's sound and make that tasteful playing sound a whole lot better. True bypass on a wah is a must. certain resistance values and capacitor values will change the sound of the wah or the amount of gain the pedal exhibits. I have played with just about all the mods out there and tried a few of my own and some of them do have a good effect on the pedal. Inductors, transistors and circuit mods all play part in the sound also. But I think the best stock wah for the money is the Vox 487.... with true bypass of course

:food-smiley-004: If some one could tell me how to post pics from url's elsewhere I would post my collections of wah pedals... 2 original thomas organ crybabies 1 vox 487 rebuilt and my own creation...


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## SCREEM

PaulS said:


> If some one could tell me how to post pics from url's elsewhere I would post my collections of wah pedals... 2 original thomas organ crybabies 1 vox 487 rebuilt and my own creation...


I use photobucket.com, easy and free :food-smiley-004:


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## vroom

SCREEM said:


> I use photobucket.com, easy and free :food-smiley-004:


Hey there! I got a link to this thread from someone on Harmony Central and noticed your V847 pics.

You've done exactly what I am going to be attempting soon: true-bypass and LED. My only problem is that I can't quite make out all of the wiring on the 3PDT switch. Do you happen to have a closer shot of it or, if it isn't asking too much, could you do a quick diagram in Paint or the like?

These will be my first pedal mods and I want to do them right. :thanks5qx:


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## SCREEM

vroom said:


> Hey there! I got a link to this thread from someone on Harmony Central and noticed your V847 pics.
> 
> You've done exactly what I am going to be attempting soon: true-bypass and LED. My only problem is that I can't quite make out all of the wiring on the 3PDT switch. Do you happen to have a closer shot of it or, if it isn't asking too much, could you do a quick diagram in Paint or the like?
> 
> These will be my first pedal mods and I want to do them right. :thanks5qx:


i used this for the true bypass http://homepage.ntlworld.com/s.castledine/greenfuz/effects/tb3.png

for the led i used this http://www.stewmac.com/freeinfo/I-1561.html in this diagram the switch should be turned a quater turn clockwise and instaled in the wah. The bottom 3 lugs are for the led the other 6 at the top are used as a 6 lug switch in the previous diagram...hope this helps

just to be sure... the metal tabs that wrap over the sides of the 3dtp switch should be horizontal in the wah, then its just like a Dpdt(6 lug) switch with the bottom row or top row unused...the unused row is for the led, in the led wireing diagram they have the switch orientation going vertical compared to the DPDT switch....so looking at the switch installed in your wah, the soldering tabs should be horizontal then use tabs 123456 for the bypass and tabs 789 for the led


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## vroom

Okay, I think I understand now. So, where is the LED grounded?


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## Milkman

Just an observation but in my opinion, SO much of how a wah sounds is dependant on technique, far more so than for almost any other effect with the possible exception of a talk box and to a lesser extent a Univibe.


You can have the best most heavily customized pedal in the world but if you ain't got the feel......


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## vroom

Milkman said:


> You can have the best most heavily customized pedal in the world but if you ain't got the feel......


But if you give a good driver a fast car, he'll win the race. :food-smiley-004:


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## vroom

vroom said:


> Okay, I think I understand now. So, where is the LED grounded?


Sorry to sound ignorant, but can someone give me a quick answer to where the LED should be grounded?


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## PaulS

Anywhere the other grounds go, the output jack , board ground where battery black connects...


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## SCREEM

I grounded mine on the pot with a black wire that was already there.


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## PaulS

That's a good spot also.


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## vroom

Okay, just wanted to make sure. Thanks for the help!


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## Slidewinder

I've had the reissue Vox's, that were ok, and had an old Clyde wah that I sold to a buddy in California.
I just sold my 68 crybaby on ebay, and am using an early prototype Budda wah, with a teese pot, that's probably one of the best wahs I've ever heard.


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## Ripper

I've got three wahs I use right now. My main wah that I use all the time is a standard crybaby that I have done quite a few mods to and I love it. I also have an old Ibanez WH-10 which is a great wah, but the plastic case on my is about three stomps away from self destructing so I don't use it too much anymore (I'm probably going to stick it into a new case of some sort). I also picked up a Behringer Hellbabe just to see what they were like. I must admit, they are not a bad wah at all. For the price they sound pretty good and are a great starting point for someone looking to play around with a wah.


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## BoogieBoy

For a wah, I use a Dunlop Cry Baby 535Q.

Pretty expensive wah, but versatile.
Comes with a 5 setting wah range selector, a boost button that you can trigger with a tap of your foot, a volume boost and a variable Q to set your wah range. 
It covers pretty much any range of wah sound I am looking for, but you gotta spend some time to dial it in to your liking is all.


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## guitarcentral

I've got a modded V847 that gets nothing but rave reviews when ppl hear it. I threw in the Ariel Fx Halo replica, BC109B Transistors, tweaked a few of the resistors, and can't forget true bypass. I've owned a few different wahs that i've bought to modify and ended up selling, and this one here, lets just say will never be for sale. I've tried all the fasels, and IMHO do not even compare to the Ariel Fx Halo, definately worth the money.


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## Evilmusician

Hey ,got two now Fulltone Clyde Deluxe ,and 70's Jen Super Crybaby (truebypass mod) great wahs but two completely different animals cheers!:rockon:


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## mhammer

I really miss my old Schaller wah that had the Yoy-yoy setting. Delightfully different. Only recorded example I know of is the old Afro-soul classic "Soul Makossa" by Manu Dibango. You can hear it, sort of, here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRUehk0WHCk

For a while, I also had a Craig Anderton "Super Tone Control" mounted in a footpedal, that did some killer sounds. Basically a foot-sweepable parametric EQ section. If any of you recall the old tune by The Fixx called "One thing leads to another", there's a great wah sweep in there that was dead easy to nail with this.

Currently, I have a home-brew Cry Baby variant using a nice inductor I picked up locally. If any of you Ottawa-area folks know A.D.D. Electronics, across from the Parkdale Farmers Market, they have some cute surplus inductors that they sell for a buck. The label states that they are 900mh, but they have a tap just under 700mh. A larger value than most authorities recommend but it doesn't stop me from getting a nice throaty vocal sound out of it. All the properties of a Fasel for less.


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## notme

I'm just new to pedals, so sorry for such a novice question.

For songs such as Supertramp's "Rudy", "Goodbye Stranger", "Another Mans Women", etc. Is that a wah pedal that is responsible for that sound? Especially the train part in "Rudy". I would love to know what pedal was used for that.


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## Warren

Chicago Iron Works Parachute Wah!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## fraser

notme said:


> I'm just new to pedals, so sorry for such a novice question.
> 
> For songs such as Supertramp's "Rudy", "Goodbye Stranger", "Another Mans Women", etc. Is that a wah pedal that is responsible for that sound? Especially the train part in "Rudy". I would love to know what pedal was used for that.


i just listened to a live version of "rudy"- definately a wah wah- probbly some chorus too or something, but outside of wahs and distortions im ignorant about effects really- lots of wah in supertramps tunes tho


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## Spikezone

My wah is an old King Vox Wah that my parents bought me for Christmas when I was about 14 or so (36 years ago!). Somewhere along the line it started doing weird stuff, which I attributed to a crack I found in the circuit board, so I abandoned it for a large number of years. Then one day I read about Geoffrey Teese, and I went searching 411 for California (I live in western Canada), and found his number. I had read in GP or somewhere that he built and/or modded wahs for a lot of pro players, so I took a chance and phoned him. I think this was actually before he started producing his own RMC pedals. Much to my delight, he answered the phone and was most interested in my pedal and what it needed to have done. We talked, and he asked if I minded him sort of dissecting my pedal before repairing it, because he was trying to get an extensive data base built up on the components used in old wahs and how they gave the wahs their particular characteristics. He went so far as asking me how I would want the pedal voiced when he was fixing it, and I sent it to him. We chatted on the phone several times in the course of the repair job, and I was very pleased with the way it turned out in the end. BUT there's more: several years later again I was building a pedal board and was trying to figure out how to bypass the 9v battery in my wah so that I could use the external power supply I was using with my other pedals, so I found his email address (once again in GP, but this time in an article on boutique wah pedal builders), and emailed him for help. Much to my surprise, he replied to my email THE SAME DAY with the answer to my question, and we emailed back and forth a few times in the next couple of days until he was sure I was happy with the results of my efforts. He even told me about a certain resistor or something I needed to add to the circuit to get rid of an annoying swishing sound when the pedal wasn't activated. What a guy! I still use that pedal, but just based on what I know about Geoff, if I was in the market for a new wah, I would buy one of his pedals in an instant, despite the pretty price.
-Mikey


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## ENDITOL

I gotta reccommend the Silver Machine - state of the art wah!


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## Mooh

You guys make me feel so unsophisticated only being satisfied with a CryBaby, LOL! Had a George Dennis Volume/Wah for a long time but went back to a CryBaby after a while without any wah. 

Peace, Mooh.


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## Spikezone

Well, despite Geoff fixing it up for me, that's what mine is essentially, Mooh, and I love it!
-Mikey


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## Evilmusician

Actually if you think about the price on the Dimebag ,Wylde .Slash wahs teese price aint that bad:rockon:


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## Tybone

I use a modified JH-1. It has that little place in the middle of the pedal that gives you the juice. I loves it.


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## notme

fraser said:


> i just listened to a live version of "rudy"- definately a wah wah- probbly some chorus too or something, but outside of wahs and distortions im ignorant about effects really- lots of wah in supertramps tunes tho


Thanks fraser!


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## Diablo

I have a Zakk Wylde Wah...Dunlop I think makes it.
Its ok, about average, fairly well built. Nothing special otherwise, like most of Zakks endorsed stuff.


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## jv100k

I've generally just used a Vox reissue for the 23 sec a night i step on a wah.Modded true bypass,vocal mod etc etc....
In the last few months i have been lucky enough to score a couple vintage units a 68 Clyde and a mint in the box Super Crybaby.They both sound good but the Vox sounds fine too with some tweekage that is :smile:


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## devnulljp

Hey, related question. I've had two different V847s over the years. The latest one Ive modded for TB, just got a foxrox buffer and a whipple inductor but haven't installed yet. I also just snagged a bog standard crybaby as a deal sweetener - it's a bit crackly and looks like the pot needs to be replaced.
But, the "wah" of the CB is much bigger than the voxes, which sound more subtle like "weh weh weh" than the CB's "Wauw Wauw" (that's hard to express in writing). Can I extend the range of the Vox somehow? Been thinking about the 100k resistor vocal mod - will that help? Will the whipple make much of a difference?
I'm actually kinda liking the CB - sounds like Thin Lizzy from the 70s...


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## KoskineN

Diablo said:


> I have a Zakk Wylde Wah...Dunlop I think makes it.
> Its ok, about average, fairly well built. Nothing special otherwise, like most of Zakks endorsed stuff.


I got this one too! I have just done the mid boost mod, which make the bass to treble sweep much better! I'm waiting for the new switch to come in to perform the true bypass and led mode! But I'm planning to upgrade to a Fulltone soon....


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## Twanger

...


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## Chito

I have 4 wah pedals here. A Vox V848, George Dennis Wah-Plus, a GCB95 that was modded by Russ Goudie and just recently a friend lent me a vintage Colorsound Wah (not the reissue) This one has got the widest sweep of any wah I've ever tried. Great for playing funk. I like the Colorsound the best altho it needs a true bypass switch and maybe even a DC input jack. Here's a photo of it.


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