Say Wah? Five Essential Signature Wah Pedals
Five ultra-cool signature wah pedals you should know — by name.
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Morley Steve Vai Bad Horsie Wah
By now, you’ve probably guessed that this pedal was "designed according to the artist’s specifications," much like everything else on this list. And that is indeed the case for this pedal, Morley’s Steve Vai Bad Horsie Wah.
Vai has a close relationship with Morley Pedals, and the company makes three Vai signature models: the Bad Horsie, Bad Horsie 2 and the Little Alligator volume pedal.
As any Vai fan knows, this pedal is named after "Bad Horsie," the wah-heavy opening track from Vai’s 1995 album, Alien Love Secrets. (Check out a video of the song here.)
The pedal features Morley's electro-optical design, so there are no pots (which tend to get scratchy and wear out over time). Another cool feature is that you simply step on the pedal -- as in, touch it with your foot -- to engage it, and then just step off the pedal for true bypass.
What does it sound like?
Check out the two audio samples below, both of which are from Morley Pedals’ official website:
You also can check out Morley’s official demo video for this pedal, featuring Tommy Bolan, below. (And feel free to watch this additional video by Gearmanndude, who reviews countless pedals from all makers, large and small.)
MSRP: $204 | Learn more about this pedal.
Related
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ceramic_magneto
May 02, 2013 at 9:29pm
Forget these overpriced models and get the MXR MC404 CAE Dual Inductor Wah. Switches between the classic Hendrix tone and throaty tone similar to what Iommi used, very versatile pedal.
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jayster2
December 28, 2012 at 3:53pm
I realize it will never win any awards for sound quality, but I really love the feature set of the Ibanez WD-7 weeping demon. I wish I could find a schematic to play around with the circuit.
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divebomb
October 03, 2012 at 3:10pm
Perhaps Guitar World can explain how a signature wah pedal is "essential" to begin with. Thoughts? Somewhat suspicious that you're in bed with most of the musicians and companies on this list to begin with. Doesn't do much for your credibility you know.
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Electric Ring
October 03, 2012 at 3:05pm
Thanks for adding the videos reviews to these roundups, that makes these MUCH more useful :)
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johnnycnote
October 03, 2012 at 12:38pm
What sort of mark-up does putting a signature on something add? What if I want my name on it? If I'm buying it, the only name I want on it is mine!














