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Wah-wahs

Started by Funk, April 13, 2004, 10:16:20 AM

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Funk

I got a Mk I stage 73 and I'm getting a clavinet soon. I'm wondering about buying a wah-pedal, and I think I'll go either with the Vox v847 or the Dunlop crybaby.  

Could you please share some advice or experiences? I'm not a professional, so I don't want to buy the most expensive pedal to have a supreme sound. I just want a pedal that is good for an affordable price.

AndyGrigg

The asnwer is - try some and see.  It depends a lot on your setup.  Many have had success with the Wahs you suggest (I think they are very similar pedals), but I personally found these pedals far to harsh for the Rhodes.  I use a Morley wah, which is optical rather than using a pot - so nothing to wear out.  It produces a slightly more subtle wah but you can still get it to 'quack' without any problem - just more refined IMHO.  Try it out.  

Cheers,

Andy.

PS. I also found the ability of the CryBaby to pick up local radio stations a major drawback!

Jake Keys

Just a thought:

The Morley wahs have the great on/off switch that is not in the moving part of the pedal, that is, in order to turn it on and off you just hit the switch rather than stomping really hard.  I have a Morley and love it.

zsarrr

I have got a Dunlop JH-1. I like the sound but you have to hook it after a preamp otherwise it will reduce the volume dramatically! That's probably an issue to consider with other wahs too...
Regards,
Dan

rthreads

I recently purchsed a rhodes and was thinking of trying a Real McCoy or Fulltone wah.  Love them on guitars, but they are rather expensive and hard to find so I'd appreciate anyone's experience before I trudge off and track one down.

Tbird65

I've been using a Boss V-wah.  It has quite a variety of wahs as well as a chorus and gain.  Some of the sounds work better than others.  I guess it also depends on how you intend it to sound.
***Tbird65***

P-Action

I've got a Boss V-Wah. I used to own a crybaby, and I had to many sound problems with it; radio stations, feedback, etc. i've had the V-wah for two weeks, and it's great.  I especially like the uni-vibe effect on it.

axg20202

I use a Morley Wah too (it's the Classic Wah model). I tried several pedals before opting for this one. I didn't get on at all well with the Crybaby, McCoy etc - far too harsh and the range isn't quite right for the Rhodes. I found the McCoy was the worst and most expensive! Having said that, the Crybaby sounded OK through an amp but the noise it added really became apparent in the studio. Also, because the traditional pedals use a pot, I was getting interference from radio stations - very annoying. I have to place my wah after a preamp to prevent tone/volume sucking, but it works a treat. The range of Morley pedals can be adjusted because they work on an LED/LDR system -  the movement of the pedal operates a kind of simple 'shutter' which alters the amount of light hitting the LDR - you can adjust the position of the LED to get the tone and range you want.

Andy.

Manic Hispanic

I am extremely pleased with the George Dennis GD30 wah and highly recommend it to all of you.  George Dennis is a really obscure company from the Czech Republic that makes cool gear.  Although they don't distribute in the where I live (USA), you can get their stuff on Ebay.  The wah has the perfect sweep range for Rhodes (not so much for guitar!) and tracks the pedal depression optically.  It is quite sturdily built and doesn't compromise tone or volume either.  Best of all I only paid $40 for mine.  Czech it out!

http://www.george-dennis.cz/pages/fxpedals.htm

sidney logon

I just got a Jim Dunlop but it doesnt sound too good with the Rhodes 73 and Behringer preamp. Is there some way I should change my set up, or just get a different pedal?

axg20202

Hi,

I didn't like the Jim Dunlop either - far too harsh a sound for the Rhodes, IMO. Try some others if you can. I definitely recommend the optical wahs made by Morley - smoother, quieter (no scratchy pot involved) and more subtle, but still capable of getting that 'quack' when you want it.

Andy.

axg20202

Hi,

I didn't like the Jim Dunlop either - far too harsh a sound for the Rhodes, IMO. Try some others if you can. I definitely recommend the optical wahs made by Morley - smoother, quieter (no scratchy pot involved) and more subtle, but still capable of getting that 'quack' when you want it.

Andy.

sidney logon

I wonder if anyone can recommend an auto-wah pedal. I have some danelectro effects which I'm really happy with, and I was thinking of their French Fries pedal...

axg20202

I've only tried the Boss autowah, which went back to the shop the day I bought it. I haven't used any Danelectro pedals. I prefer a manual wah because it sounds much more authentic and musical to introduce the wah at specific points in a phrase - the cyclic nature of an autowah was just too much wah in all the wrong places. The Boss autowah did have a kind of touch wah mode, whereby the wah filter is controlled by the attack of the note played. However, being designed for guitar picking, it produced very poor results with a Rhodes. Get yourself a manual wah, I think you'll be much happier with it.

Andy.

Sam Beste

I also bought a Jim Dunlop Crybaby and thought it sounded very harsh with a Rhodes but then I took it back to the shop and exchanged it for the slightly more expensive new Jim Dunlop Crybaby 535Q which has lots of extra features allowing much more control over the sound. There's a knob which let's you adjust the frequency witdth of the effect and another knob which determines the frequency centre of the wah. So you can create a range of effects from the lowest frequencies which turn the pedal into almost a Volume pedal to the very high frequencies where you get a lot of quack. I think it's a great pedal and would recommend it though I haven't tried any other makes to compare.

sidney logon

With the sustain and my volume pedal, I didn't think I had enough legs for a manual wah. But I take your point, so from all my research (on this and the yahoo rhodes site) it comes down to:

Morley Classic
Jim Dunlop Crybaby 535Q
DOD fx25b
Boss V-Wah
George Dennis GD-30

Can anyone give a comparison between any of these? If not, then it comes down to monsy (or lack of it) and I'll go for the Morley...

sidney logon

With the sustain and my volume pedal, I didn't think I had enough legs for a manual wah. But I take your point, so from all my research (on this and the yahoo rhodes site) it comes down to:

Morley Classic
Jim Dunlop Crybaby 535Q
DOD fx25b
Boss V-Wah
George Dennis GD-30

Can anyone give a comparison between any of these? If not, then it comes down to money (or lack of it) and I'll go for the Morley...

axg20202

Before you make your decision, bear in mind that your setup will greatly affect the quality of the results you get with a wah. If using a stage piano, you may find that the sound is not that good if you simply connect your Rhodes to the wah and then to the amp. The problem with many guitar pedals, especially with a Rhodes Stage, which has a weak passive output, is tone sucking. Some pedals have a buffer design to minimise this thinning out of tone, but these can often introduce noise. A preamp connected immediately after your Rhodes and before any effects could improve the sound you get considerably. Preamp or not, make sure you buy these pedals on a trial basis or with a full refund available - you'll probably want to try a few out as I did and I definitely wasn't prepared to take my Rhodes out on a shopping trip!

Andy.

Rhodesman

I have the Vox V847, and although its pretty noisy, isn't that the point? Not really I suppose, but it does have that bark and growl that classic wahs are known for. I tried the Morley, for guitar it was alright, but it didn't have the wide variation that I wanted for the rhodes. Also if its too harsh in the higher end, you can adjust the sweep of the pot inside.
76 Rhodes Mark 1 Stage 73=> Vox wah=>Morley Volume Pedal=> Arion Stereo Phaser => Vox AD100VT

BJT3

Add another vote to not get the CryBaby. I have one that I borrowed from a friend and I agree with the earlier post that it's not voiced quite right for the Rhodes and it is very noisy. I haven't had any tone sucking issues though. What about the MoogerFooger Filter with a control pedal? Isn't that what Chick Corea uses? I'd love to have the whole line of those Moogerfoogers, drool..... 8)
-Ben-
1978 Mark I Stage Piano 88
1970 Wurlitzer 200
Hohner D6 Clavinet
1961 Hammond A100 Organ
1977 Fender Twin Reverb (Blackfaced)

jibbidyjoe

Just wanted to add my 2 cents.  I got a Budda Wah pedal (~$150US) a couple of months ago, and I am very pleased with it.

The sweep range works well with my Mark V and Ampeg J-12T amp.  I was suprised to find that the Budda wah pedal acts as a slight, but effective, signal booster even when the wah is not engaged.  This alone greatly improved the sound, in my opinion.

Good luck in your search!
Joe
1984 Rhodes Mark V Stage 73
1979 Rhodes Suitcase 88

sean p

I was looking to get the Jim Dunlop Crybaby 535Q, but the guys told me about the Ibanez WD7.  Its pretty much the ugliest thing, but it has tons of great options.  It has a bass switch that works great with the Rhodes.  And it has a Q knob so you can get a less harsh wah.  I think it works great!
78 Mark I Stage 73...Word

gunnar

I have a very old crybaby and it sounds really bad on my rhodes. Since I've had it for almost 20 years now, I havn't been able to use it for recording for most of the time 'cause it started crackling more and more and I've tried everything to get rid of it but to no avail...
1977 Rhodes Mark 1 73 stage
MicroKorg

andi85

I've just borrowed a CryBaby Zakk Wylde Signature. Hehe, yes, heavy metal! It sounds good,  I'd just like to have a bit more of the bassy growl range. Apart from that, mine is also picking up radio or television noise. However, I'm living next to a TV tower...
Tuning instruments makes the band sound thin!

stig

Hi funk punk
I just bought a behringer hell-babe hb-1 It doesn't have pot's that wears out. Instead it has this optical control thing. It has adjustable Q, Adjustable frequency range (can even use it with a bass) Adjustable boost, has boost on off. It sounds really good, is built sturdy and is really cheap (47 euros). The only major drawback is that the boost on/ off button is placed on the side of the pedal. That really takes your mind off the keys -"where the f... is that motherf... button !" doesn't function that well in the middle of a rhodessolo !. so you kind'a have to take your pick. Do I play with boost or without  -but apart from that its really great pedal, and what can you expect for 47 Euro - thats like 350 Norwegian kroner
you can see it here on this link
http://www.behringer.com/HB01/index.cfm?lang=ENG
Kind regards Stig ,Denmark

SWANG

What about a fuzz wah?  Would y'all recommend the Morley Power Fuzz Wah?  Which one did Herbie use?
1972 Mark I Stage 73 with Vintage Vibe "Stage Vibe" custom preamp

Ok, bye!!!

andi85

The Crybaby is mine now - I just liked the sound, so I kept it.

A fuzz-wah might be nice, too, but I haven't tried yet. I'm rather looking for a phaser/flanger...
Tuning instruments makes the band sound thin!

Pale

Quote from: "andi85"The Crybaby is mine now - I just liked the sound, so I kept it.

A fuzz-wah might be nice, too, but I haven't tried yet. I'm rather looking for a phaser/flanger...

You could try making one. I made MXR phase 45 for around 6-7€ ( without metal box ).
'80. Stage 73 Mk II

gunnar

I still had an old Cry Baby that I tried on my Rhodes but it sounded really terrible, which makes me wonder if the problem is with the Cry Baby or the way I use it when I play the Rhodes. I know how to use it with a guitar but maybe there is a different technique when playing it on the Rhodes?
1977 Rhodes Mark 1 73 stage
MicroKorg

andi85

I guess there's not "THE TECHNIQUE" to use it - but I'm still at the very beginning of wah artistry. Somehow my left foot is also damn clumsy :)
I'm using it for changing the color of long sustained chords, which also works as a kind of quasi-crescendo or decrescendo, or for make two-handed funk grooves "talk". Then I try to accentuate melodies pretty much like a guitarist would probably do. It isn't easy, but it's fun. And it's screaming loud - haha :D
Tuning instruments makes the band sound thin!

gunnar

haha, I know all about clumsy feet! When I try to play the drums, my feet go off on their own! With the wah-wah pedal it's more a question of finding out what works with the sound of the Rhodes. When you play rhytmn (sorry about the spelling!) guitar, it's so easy to keep up with the wah-wah, but playing keys is so different, I don't know which hand to follow with my foot! :shock:
1977 Rhodes Mark 1 73 stage
MicroKorg

andi85

Haha, I know that, too! But I think it just takes a while, like the EXP pedal of the Hammond.

Pale, right, I could try to build one. I'd like to achieve a sound like this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gw9UM_SXRf8
Tuning instruments makes the band sound thin!

kitchen

Got myself a George Dennis wah on loan from the guitar player of my band. It's the GD40. It's an optical wah identical to the GD30 but with an added lo/hi frequency switch. This switch enables you to color the sound even more from a warm wooly wah sound in the lo position, to a sharp somewhat metallic wah in the hi position. Actually it's a guitar and bass wah.....
Sounds incredible, hardly any added noise and no tone sucking whatsoever !
I'm considering buying this one.
Mind you, my Rhodes don't have a pre-amp, has yet to be teched and is out if tune and already it sounds wonderful. As an amp I've got a borrowed marshall 75 reverb (solid state)
On the George Dennis site there are soundclips from this wha. Go check em out !

http://www.george-dennis.cz/pages/fxpedals.htm

Kitchen
'76 Mk I Stage 73 -> 70's Small Stone

andi85

How sounds the Rhodes with the Marshall? Slightly OT, I know...but it's mostly Fender, Roland and Musicman, so I'm just curious.

I still like the Zakk Wylde Wah. It sounds rather aggressive, but that's fine with me.
Tuning instruments makes the band sound thin!

kitchen

It's a little too harsh for a Rhodes if you ask me. The Marshall has one 12" Sidewinder speaker in it which is more of a overdrive/distortion type speaker if you ask me.The guy I borrowed it from was/is a lover of hardrock when he was still playing guitar so that explains why he went for Marshall I guess.
On top of that I think the amp is somewhat triggerhappy on the controls (gain, volume) where as the eq is hardly audible if you change the parameters.
I, personally wouldn't buy this amp for my Rhodes but anything beats a 15watt 10" bass practice amp, doesn't it.
I love the vintage herbiesound (who doesn't ?) and with this amp it's impossible to achieve that.
Currently I'm saving up to get my piano teched, after that I will be looking out for a more suitable amp (Cube60, Behringer, Hot Rod,a Twin, who knows) and invest in a pre-amp ( which one ??? :? ??)

Kitchen
'76 Mk I Stage 73 -> 70's Small Stone