Far from being just an excuse for solo histrionics, the humble wah pedal is a versatile tone-shaping tool and, well, the most expressive of all expression-based effects. The question is – which is the best wah pedal for you? You can be forgiven for not having given it more thought in the past.
Originally aimed at brass players, the wah pedal ultimately found success with electric guitar players. It exploded in popularity in the 60s, and is perhaps most associated with the wild on-stage antics and mind-altering sounds of Jimi Hendrix. After that, almost every notable player from Kirk Hammett to David Gilmour to Tom Morello has used a wah.
Luckily, I’ve seen a million wahs and rocked just about 'em all, and I, alongside the collective Guitar World writers, am in the perfect position to recommend a host of options that don’t just stop at the standard Cry Baby that everybody uses. But we're not knocking the CB, either. Hey, if it's good enough for Tom Morello…
My top picks
If you like the voicing of the Dunlop Cry Baby but want extra control, then the 535Q is the answer – and it's now available in a mini format, ideal for crowded pedalboards. The 535Q gives you control over two of the most important parameters – frequency centre and width – which allows you to modify the Q of the unit, and even offers a switchable boost for extra output.
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Vox were responsible for bringing the first wah pedal to market – the Clyde McCoy – which was originally not even aimed at guitarists, but wind players. Mimicking the effect of a mute used on a trumpet as a filter, the Vox was the first mass-market wah, although players like Chet Atkins and Peter Van Wood had been homebrewing units to achieve the same effect as early as the 1950s.
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The Boss PW-3 is an analogue pedal with two modes. The first emulates what they call a classic wah sound – which means a Dunlop Cry Baby – while the second mode is called 'rich' and includes filtering to leave more of the lower frequencies of the guitar in the signal no matter what position the wah is in. This may be desirable if you're the only guitarist in a band, for example, but it does tend to diminish the effect of the pedal.
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Best overall
✅ Buy if you want extra control: With a frequency centre and width control, the 535Q offers more hands-on tuning than the original.
❌ Avoid if you have a large shoe size: The ‘Mini’ may be a bit cramped for some players.
If you like the voicing of the Dunlop Cry Baby but want extra control, then the 535Q is the answer – and it's now available in a mini format, ideal for crowded pedalboards.
The 535Q gives you control over two of the most important parameters – frequency centre and width – which allows you to modify the Q of the unit, and even offers a switchable boost for extra output.
What does that mean in practical terms? It means that you can fine-tune and customize the voicing of the wah and its filter. If you've not found a wah that quite works for your sound, but know you do still want one, then the 535Q is worth a try.
Best budget
✅ Buy if you need an affordable wah: The V847-A is a competitively priced pedal that doesn’t carry a heritage price tag.
❌ Avoid if you’re after something modern: Not much has changed with this since the ‘60s.
Vox were responsible for bringing the first wah pedal to market – the Clyde McCoy – which was originally not even aimed at guitarists, but wind players.
Mimicking the effect of a mute used on a trumpet as a filter, the Vox was the first mass-market wah, although players like Chet Atkins and Peter Van Wood had been home-brewing units to achieve the same effect as early as the 1950s.
Early adopters included Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa, David Gilmour and Jimmy Page, and although Dunlop rather stole a march on Vox in the marketing stakes, I've always found the Vox to be closer to the classic wah sound that I had in my head.
There's something subtly different about the voicing and filtering that makes it more musical to our ears.
Best wah for modern tones
✅ Buy if you value durability: The PW-3 carries Boss’ ‘built-to-last’ hallmark.
❌ Avoid if you value tradition: Some players simply want their wah pedal to be as simple and traditional as possible.
The Boss PW-3 is an analogue pedal with two modes. The first emulates what they call a classic wah sound – which means a Dunlop Cry Baby – while the second mode is called 'rich' and includes filtering to leave more of the lower frequencies of the guitar in the signal no matter what position the wah is in. This may be desirable if you're the only guitarist in a band, for example, but it does tend to diminish the effect of the pedal.
As you'd expect from Boss, it comes in a rugged, bomb-proof enclosure, and this is really where it shines.
The switching is better than classic units, the buffer is more modern and the form-factor a little more compact. It's also got a useful status LED so you know if it's on at a glance.
Best classic wah
✅ Buy if you want that classic wah sound: Although Vox had the original, the Cry Baby has superseded it as the most well-known and used wah on the market.
❌ Avoid if your 'board is cramped: The GCB95 is a chunky pedal and you may struggle fitting it on your pedal board.
The Jim Dunlop Cry Baby is without a doubt the most recognisable wah pedal in the world. It's been used by everybody from Kirtk Hammett to Tom Morello, with every player making the pedal their own.
It takes its name from the original mass-market wah, the Thomas Organ/Vox Cry Baby. Since Vox didn't trademark the name, it left them open to other manufacturers pinching not only the design, but the name as well.
Although Jimi Hendrix and David Gilmour are said to have used the Dunlop, it seems more likely they mainly relied on Vox units, given the photographic evidence available and the fact that Gilmour's Vox has been publicly exhibited.
Nevertheless, the Dunlop Cry Baby has become the signature 'wah' sound, and if you're unsure of which option is for you, this comes highly reccomended.
Most versatile
✅ Buy if you appreciate multi-faceted pedals: Capable of fuzzy, talk-box-like tones, EHX has created a versatile pedal ideal for making solos stand out.
❌ Avoid if you want an expression pedal: Unlike traditional wahs, you’ll have to purchase an additional expression pedal for this one.
Parked wah effects are not super common – I can only offhand think of the intro to Muse's Dead Star and Dire Straits' Money For Nothing, but Electro-Harmonix is an eccentric company, so it makes sense they'd design a versatile filter and fuzz around the concept.
The wah section has volume, frequency and tone controls, as well as a voicing switch that goes from emulating a Cry Baby to more of a talk box tone. The fuzz can be switched between being before or after the wah, as well as changing its bias, for dying battery fuzz tones.
If that wasn't enough, the pedal also has an expression in. With an expression attached, the Cock Fight becomes a regular wah pedal. If you want a standard wah form factor, then EHX also offer the Cock Fight Plus, which comes in a wah-style enclosure.
"The Cock Fight pedal provides a cocked wah effect that delivers the desired midrange tone every time. However, it’s much more versatile than that, also offering a choice between standard wah and talking formant filters, a fuzz section, and more precise tone shaping capabilities."
Read our full Electro-Harmonix Cock Fight review
Best true bypass wah
✅ Buy if you’re fed up with the chunky Cry Baby: The Wahter Mini is absolutely tiny and is a pedalboard’s dream.
❌ Avoid if you’re not incredibly accurate: The small size can make it trickier to operate for some players.
The voicing of the Wahter isn't that dissimilar to a Cry Baby. Its main selling points are the obvious – that it's even cheaper, and absolutely tiny.
If you don't have the pedalboard real estate for a full-fat wah, then there's a good chance you can fit the Wahter, as it's only slightly larger than a standard Mooer mini pedal.
That's essentially its main strength, as well as its main drawback. I tend to find that mini wahs and expressions don't work so well for me, as my big feet mean that practically I can't fit pedals above or below it anyway.
Still, I know people that have found the opposite; especially if you're less clumsy than me, the Wahter could be a brilliant compromise for a packed 'board.
Best wah for shredders
✅ Buy if you struggle clicking on the Cry Baby: Simply step on the treadle and start wah’ing; there’s no clicking buttons needed.
❌ Avoid if you’re playing on the road: This thing is huge, even bigger than Morley’s standard wah; it is not for the faint of heart.
Steve Vai's signature wah is the most popular in the Morley line, and so unsurprisingly it's become somewhat synonymous with their wah voicing.
This new and improved version of the Bad Horsie has some improvements on the original. Most notably there’s a second contour mode, which allows you to adjust frequency and tone of the pedal – in effect, its voicing – to your taste.
The pedal engages when you step on it and move it from the heel down position. This momentary action is useful if you're using it in short, sharp bursts, and is in common with some of the higher-end Dunlops, but I've seen complaints online about how it works as well, so it's probably best to try it for yourself.
There's also a footswitch to bypass the wah entirely, which could be useful if you're a tone purist.
Best wah for '80s tones
✅ Buy if you Can’t Stop Playing wah: If it’s good enough for Frusciante…
❌ Avoid if you’re looking for something classic: Traditional, this is not, instead; the added features offer something different than the Cry Baby or Vox.
One look at the Ibanez WH10 and you can instantly tell it was born in the '80s - step on it, and you'll hear that as well. This pedal may not be a household name like the Cry Baby, but it has gained quite the following over the years - with Red Hot Chili Peppers axe man, John Frusciante, counted among the slew of players using this 80s classic.
Ibanez claims this was the first pedal to use a multiple feedback opamp circuit. This results in a very different tone and sweep when compared to more traditional wah pedals. The tone from the WH10V3 is rich and warm and doesn't get as spikey as a Cry Baby.
Featuring a unique 'range' switch, the WH10V3 allows you to switch between bass and guitar mode, and better yet, there's an onboard volume boost to make sure your lead lines really pop.
Glossary
Buffered bypass: This is a bypass type where the signal still passes through a buffer when the pedal is switched off. On wah pedals, a buffer can help preserve high-end clarity. However, some players feel it can subtly change the tone.
Centre frequency: The specific frequency that a wah pedal boosts at any given point in its sweep. As you move the treadle, this centre frequency moves up and down creating the wah effect.
Cocked wah: This is a technique where the wah is left in a fixed position rather than rocked back and forth. This creates a mid-focused filter sound famously heard on Money For Nothing.
Expression pedal: A foot-controlled pedal that is used to change parameters in real time. Some wah pedals can take an external expression pedal, while most have the expression pedal built in.
Filter sweep: The movement of the frequency range as the wah pedal is engaged. This sweeping motion is one of the things that gives the wah its vocal character.
Q (resonance): A measure of how narrow or wide the boosted frequency band is. A high Q gives a sharp and focused wah, while a lower Q produces a smoother sweep.
Range: This refers to the span of frequencies that the wah pedal sweeps through from heel-down to toe-down.
Treadle: The rocking footplate of a wah pedal. Moving the treadle controls the sweep of the filter and is what makes a wah pedal so expressive to play.
True bypass: Opposite of buffered, this is a bypass type where the signal completely avoids the pedal’s circuitry when it’s switched off. This buffer will not colour your guitar tone, but it won’t help by boosting your signal if it needs it over longer stretches.
Voicing: This refers to the tonal character of a wah pedal. It's influenced by its circuitry and filtering. Voicing determines whether a wah sounds bright, dark, smooth, or aggressive.
How to choose a wah pedal
If you are looking for a new wah pedal and don’t know where to begin, this section is for you. Having worked in a guitar store for 10 years, I’ve helped countless players select the best wah pedal for their needs. These are the three main factors I advise players to consider to help whittle down their choices.
Voicing
Every player will have a different opinion on what a great wah pedal is, usually based on its voicing. It's no accident that wahs are often described as a 'vocal' effect.
Voicing is quite simply the character of the wah. Since most have few-to-no controls besides the rocker plate, the tastes and design choices of the builders matter a great deal. For example, some wahs have a wide but treble-focussed range, like the Dunlop Cry Baby, meaning they are very shrill with the toe down.
Others are darker, meaning that even toe-down, they are smoother in sound. The range of boost and the centre frequency of the filter differ too. For instance, the Vox V847 and Cry Baby have a comparable range, but the Cry Baby attenuates low-frequency harmonics much more aggressively, making for a different voice.
Purists say that voicing has most to do with the type of inductor used, with the most common types today being red and yellow fasels. However, there's enough supporting circuitry that the overall voicing change due to inductor type is subtle. That said, plenty of forums would disagree.
Q and Range
As with other filter-based effects, Q refers to the ratio of centre frequency to bandwidth. If that sounds too technical, think of it simply as whether the frequency range boosted by the filter is narrow or wide. For many wah pedals, the range and Q are fixed, making up the 'voice' of the wah. However, some more expensive models have control over the range and Q, making them radically more versatile.
Additional Features
Finally, some wah pedals have additional features. The Hotone Soul Press can double as a volume pedal, while the Bad Horsie, CAE and Xotic all sport a boost feature. Of course, additional features are not mandatory; you may prefer keeping things simple, particularly for a wah pedal. However, it’s good to know there are options out there if you want to maximize your purchase.
FAQs
How do wah pedals work?
Most have only one key control - the treadle which controls the centre frequency of the filter. Wah pedals work by moving the centre frequency of this filter, and boosting a band of audio. This resonant peak sweeps up and down as the player moves the rocker plate, attenuating the other frequencies. This is what creates the dynamic, vocal effect of the wah.
Where should my wah pedal go in my signal chain?
While most players place a wah pedal at the start of their chain, you can get dramatic, psychedelic sounds if you place a brightly-voiced wah pedal after your drives, or after a fuzz. With the toe down, a Cry Baby can make even a bass-heavy Russian Big Muff sound like a cranked Fender Blender.
What is better, true or buffered bypass?
For most pedal types, whether or not a pedal is true bypass is an important question. Most wah pedals are not true bypass though, so there is the question of whether you will experience 'tone suck' from the wah. This often has to do with the chain around it, so it's a case of trying a few, and making sure you're happy. We delve into the topic of true bypass vs buffered bypass in this article.
What's the difference between a Cry Baby & a Vox wah?
So what’s the difference between these two famous wah pedals? Of course, they’re made by different manufacturers, but that’s not the only distinction. While both pedals do a similar job, their characteristics are a little different in practice.
The Cry Baby tends to sit more prominently in the midrange and is generally more aggressive overall. You can usually identify a Cry Baby by how pronounced and in-your-face its ‘wah’ effect is. The Vox, on the other hand, is typically smoother and more subtle.
I find Vox’s sweep less dramatic and a bit more natural-feeling underfoot. The Cry Baby often needs a bit more consideration to dial in a great tone, while the Vox feels slightly more plug-and-play, at least in my experience.
What is a cocked wah sound and how do you use it?
Also known as the ‘parked’ wah sound, this technique is most famously heard in the intro to Dire Straits’ Money For Nothing. Brian May was also a big advocate of this approach, using it to great effect.
Instead of rocking the wah to create the classic ‘waka-waka’ sound, you leave the pedal engaged in a fixed position and use it as a static tone filter. This highlights specific frequencies, often resulting in a nasal or honky character that works brilliantly for helping a guitar cut through a mix.
Technically, you’re creating a resonant band-pass filter that emphasises a particular frequency range. To make this practical, you’ll usually need to tighten the treadle so the pedal stays in place rather than flopping back and forth.
Do wah pedals affect your tone when switched off?
Yes, wah pedals can affect your tone when they’re switched off, particularly if they aren’t true bypass. Like any pedal without true bypass, a wah can introduce what’s often referred to as ‘tone suck’. This is when certain frequencies are lost as the signal passes through the pedal’s circuitry, even when the effect isn’t engaged.
How noticeable this is depends on the pedal itself and the rest of your signal chain, so you may not hear any issue at all, while others find it more obvious.
What wah pedal did Jimi Hendrix use?
Hendrix is synonymous with the wah pedal and began using one around 1967. Influenced by Cream’s Tales Of Brave Ulysses, Hendrix initially picked up a Cry Baby-style wah, but he’s most closely associated with the Vox V846.
At the time, the Vox and Cry Baby wahs were both Italian-built, with the Cry Baby being produced under the Thomas Organ Vox licence in the US. These early units used inexpensive Italian components, which played a big role in shaping their sound.
Modern reissues like the Vox V847 are based on the original circuit, but inevitably sound a little different due to changes in components and construction.
How we choose products
Here at Guitar World, we are experts in our field, with many years of playing and product testing between us. We live and breathe everything guitar related, and we draw on this knowledge and experience of using products in live, recording and rehearsal scenarios when selecting the products for our guides.
When choosing what we believe to be the best wah pedals available right now, we combine our hands-on experience, user reviews and testimonies and engage in lengthy discussions with our editorial colleagues to reach a consensus about the top products in any given category.
First and foremost, we are guitarists, and we want other players to find the right product for them. So we take into careful consideration everything from budget to feature set, ease of use and durability to come up with a list of what we can safely say are the best wah pedals on the market right now.
Read more about our rating system, how we choose the gear we feature, and exactly how we test each product.
Meet the experts
Alex Lynham is a gear obsessive who's been collecting and building modern and vintage equipment since he got his first Saturday job. Besides reviewing countless pedals for Total Guitar, he's written guides on how to build your first pedal, how to build a tube amp from a kit, and briefly went viral when he released a glitch delay pedal, the Atom Smasher.
Daryl is a Senior Deals Writer at MusicRadar, and is responsible for writing and maintaining buyer's guides on the site as well as testing out products for reviews. Before writing for MusicRadar, Daryl worked for many years in music retail, helping musicians of all ages find the best gear for them.
Daryl also has a passion for live sound, having worked professionally as a sound engineer in a number of venues around Scotland and holds a first-class Bachelor's degree in Creative Sound Production from the University of Abertay. He's worked for various bands, as well as his fair share of pantomimes, dance shows, opera and has operated the sound for some of the country's top comedians, including Alan Carr, Ed Byrne and James Acaster, among others.
Ross has been a music lover and guitar player since the age of 8. He has spent the five years since graduating from university working in music retail, selling guitars, amps and more. Ross is particularly interested in electric guitars, pedals and amplifiers and his current rig includes a trusty 2009 American Standard Stratocaster and Vox AC30S1 with a few Walrus Audio and Way Huge pedals in between.
Latest updates
18/02/26: The guide has been updated to include "at a glance" panels showing the pros and cons of each wah pedal featured. Expert verdict box are also included where relevant. The FAQ section has been edited and expanded to cover more questions, while a new glossary section has been included highlighting key wah pedal terminology. A new "How to choose" section also now features, which should help you make a more informed choice when purchasing a new wah pedal. Finally, a "meet the experts" section has been included so you can get to know the writers behind the guide.
Read more
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