Choosing That Classic Wah Wah Pedal

Classic Waaagh! tone is most commonly associated with Jeff Beck, Jim Marshall and others, and you don’t want a fuzz or reverb pedal that has a similar sound. So, you want something that is reasonably priced and will faithfully reproduce that classic tone. You might be surprised by a couple of options. Take a look at the overall spec for your particular guitar(s) and ballpark what they will sound like. This will give you a ranging list of possible options. If you’re like me, you probably know your guitar needs a solid Marshall tone. Depending upon your guitar choice you’ll want everything within reason because you want an authentic Marshall tone. There are plenty of boutique pedals like the Electro-Harmonix Blues Driver or the Austin Guitar Company Classic Clean Tone that sell for $99 or more. I really dislike using boutique pedals. I spend more time shopping for good deals on vintage guitar pedals and vintage electronics to try to “dose it up” with boutique options. When I use tools for the task they are well-made and produce a sound that I like. They also have a variety of tone controls that will dial in your sound as you’d like. Humbucker pickups are particular to Marshall guitars. Other brands will also make humbucker-equipped pickups. Understanding the differences between them will give you an idea of which pickups will be your tonal foundation. Horizontally wound pickups are generally less sensitive and will produce a rounder or creamier sound. Counter-balanced pickups can produce a fuller sound or more aggression so that there is more bass response from the amplifier. Frequency response is more critical for guitarists looking to produce basslines.


Wah pedals today are engineered to output a wide range of harmonically versatile sounds known as phasing and vibrato. They also typically have complex switching circuitry to emulate real amps with tubes and/or pickups. Some boutique pedals attempt to replicate this authentic sound but are also typically priced around $250-$300. More affordable options exist for as low as $80. You want something that faithfully reproduces the experience of a classic wah pedal. So if you like modern popular rock like heavy metal, punk rock or anything in between you may want to go for a pedal that is labeled reasonably priced and has that classic Marshall tone you will have heard so many times before. In doing so you’ll be not only picking up a sonic signature you’ve heard before, but further expanding your sonic palette in all sorts of creative ways. The beauty of this wah pedal scene is there are numerous options for every budget and playing style. Tony Iommi’s Real Tone pedals are one of my favorite modern boutique wah pedals. They are built incredibly well and the whole package is a delight to listen to. He wasn’t the first to use this type of switching circuitry within a wah pedal, however, his implementation is a bit more robust and musical to my ears. His pedal is available through Sweetwater.


For a solid state wah type effect like this that you can use on both guitar and bass while keeping the volume light, a buffer booster is a perfect fit. It is loud enough to provide a more aggressive signal on guitar while opening up the spectrum of frequencies for bass. You can literally change the whole spectrum of frequencies coming out of a bass guitar when using the buffer booster on. Similar concepts apply to using the tremolo effect on guitar because the tremolo pedal is basically a buffer that lengthens or shortens the string’s stroke depending on what position you are in. Most buffer types will allow for a relatively unmodified signal to be output to a buffer type guitar preamp while providing the full range for a bass guitar. Paragraph Topic: It can be tough to find a great sounding speaker for under $100. You may have no budget at all for a speaker but love the sound you get from good quality headphones. Blog post paragraph:As much as I recommend reviewing the perceived sonic qualities of headphones before investing too much money, I don’t believe they should be the sole consideration when purchasing speakers.

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