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5K views 29 replies 16 participants last post by  Rotti 
#1 ·
Hello Everyone,
I really need some help and advice and I hope everyone that reads this message will pass this around:

I keep breaking and wearing out my wa wa pedals!!!

What is the best one on the market and the most durable or should I customize the ones I have with heavy duty parts??????????

I have gone thru two Cry Baby Pedals and an older Vox pedal!!
Last show I did, one crapped out on stage!!!!

Please give me all opinions.

Someone mentioned the Steve Vai Bad Horsey pedal- has anyone tried that one yet???

Thank you so so much for the opinions and help-
Amy Schugar
 
#2 ·
If you dont care what they sould like, the Bad Horsie is ok. I have had both versions and wasn't a fan of them, but they did work fine for years. I just replaced the BH2 with with a Dunlop Crybaby from Hell, and I htink it sounds grea, but you dont seem too happy with the Cry babys. Im a pretty fat bag of crap though, and when I step on something, it stays stepped on and mine hasnt let me down yet, although I've only had it a couple of months.
 
#3 ·
One of the huge problems I get is feed back from my wa wa's and/or "bypass" when I shut them off- I am super confused about what is happening..
when they are working great, all is wonderful! Then, something goes wrong.. does anyone know of anyone to fix the pedals I have in the Bay Area?????

I hope I get a ton of responses from this Thread- I really need help on this wa wa issue-
Thank you for replying-
 
#9 ·
A lot of times, when I step on the pedal, it will bypass my system and shut off everything and I am left standing there with no sound. I always have fresh batteries, so not sure why my pedal would shut off the sound when I step on it..
Then I have a pedal modded and when I step on it , it acts like a boost and gain pedal-
 
#13 ·
I have had my Bad Horsie I for years and it has never let me down. I like it because I really love the fact that it's spring loaded and returns to the off position as soon as you take your foor off of it. I also like the optical switch in it, no potentiometers to wear out. And I am quite happy with the sound of it although I know it is a matter of taste.
 
#29 ·
Must say the switch-off-when-lifting-your-foot and the fact that it works optical are 2 things I always found making the Morley wahs stand out compared to other brands. The optical system should be a lot more reliable, it simply can't wear and keeps mechanical scratchy wearable parts out of your signal. (like computer mice. trashed tons of mice on the ball-driven era. My optical mouse, has been working more accurate en perfectly for... pfff... years ! indestructible ;))

The switching system is just plain logical en well thought off, I wonder why other brands don't implement it.

atm I use a 535Q (18volts version), has several range pots to alter to sound to you desire. a BH2 is a pedal on my which-list.

Good luck!
 
#15 ·
I had a similar situation like Amy. I tried everything after I decided to get rid of my BH1, and I finally found what I wanted in the VOX Clyde wah.
It is more 'musical' to me than the others plus it has true bypass.

Amy - I suggest you lose the batteries and go with a powered board -you'll be less likely to crash during a show. There are some low-cost powered boards in the Musician's Friend catalog or website....good luck.
 
#21 ·
Amy, if you're not opposed to a rack setup, I'd suggest the Dunlop DCR-1SR Crybaby Rack, you can buy the controllers for less and there is less to go wrong. I've had the 1SR for 7+ years now and it's running strong.

On JimDunlop.com you can check out the latest iteration the 2SR:
http://store.jimdunlop.com/product_...id=28&osCsid=fb0ec6998948fe8e44cc6ad26b8ef5c7
or just e-Bay the DCR-1SR. They are becoming rarer, but they sound great and are very adjustable.
See what you think,

Bamm
 
#22 · (Edited)
Amy,

Try this (it's one if Joe's old setups but it should work):



Jimmy:smile:

P.S.: I would also have your PR person call Dunlop and see if they can make you a custom one. From what Cid mentioned in a different post sometime ago, his crybaby from hell has a feature that I would love to have in my 535Q. It's a tension adjustment screw of some sort that allows you to regulate the pedal's travel motion up and down, so it's either nice and loose or tight.
 
#23 ·
One of the best wahs out there are the Teese wahs. I know all the toneboys over there at The Gear Pahe swear by them. I picked up an RMC3 last year, and I love it. It can get any wah sound I want. If you don't want a tunable one, you can just pick up the Wizard Wah or the RMC1, RM2, WoF etc.

http://www.realmccoycustom.com/
http://www.analogman.com/mccoy.htm

You can get them at Musictoyz too.
 
#25 ·
The Tone Bone is awesome, and yes, it has a tube in it. I have so many over dirves on there because some work better with different amps, and this way I have all my pedals together so when Im going to jam somewhere I just need to grab and amp and the pedal board and not worry about having the right pedal with the right amp. All my cables roll up in the pedal board so set up is easy this way.
Plus I like single channel amps so the different pedal give me more options.
 
#28 ·
I've got a BH and a George dennis GD-30, both work fine, they've different sound, the BH is more aggressive, I use it with distortion and when I need more higs, the GD is milder and is good for rithms and vintage wah sounds.
Try to put your volume pedal in the effect loop, and plug the wah directly from the guitar in the amp, consider that, for good it is, te volume pedal always cuts some frequencies when you turn it down!
 
#30 ·
I use a Morely PWA II. I like the form factor. It is a little more subtle than some other wahs which some people may not like. I'm also tempted to switch it with something more intense but it is rock solid. No issues. Sure if you play it at bedroom levels you might hear a little distortion added at some parts of the sweep but when I'm playing live and everything is cranked it sounds just fine.
 
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