DigiTech WH1 Whammy

Just plug this slut in and boom you have at your feet one of the most innovative effects to ever be created, this thing is very self explanatory, up 1oct, up 2 oct, down, 1 oct, down 2 oct. My unit is the very original WH-1 no upgrades mods or anything.

This effect is the very first one in my chain, then my wah, overdrive then to the amp. This unit doesnt produce any hum or noise, i did notice though when the pedal is just on and not being used it imparts a little bit of fuzz to my sound but it isnt harsh its kind of organic actually, As far as it working on time every time it does in spades never had a problem it, i use this with vox amps, Can i get the sound of some of my favorite artists with it? you bet i can and only can i with this original unit not the reissue, but ya i can get tom morello, dimebag (RIP Dime), joe satriani sounds out of this, wanna know why? Because they used this exact same model pedal, again not the re-issues either. This best effect on this pedal? to me is the up 1 oct and up 2 oct effects to me it sounds like stepping on a kitty kats tail!

Ya this pedal has been around for about 17 years now and still works like i bought it yesterday, im sure it will outlive me lets put it that way, if it got lost or stolen, ya i would definitely get another one they are so much fun to play with, the re-issues just dont cut it, hell i think the ad for the re-issue even says "reminescent of the original" that says alot. you cant beat the original.

never had to deal with them though i've heard they are slow to respond.

What style of music do you play? i play mostly metal and everything in between.

Is this a good match? O yeah it can create some very wild sounds thats typical to harder styles of music, (R.A.T.M)

How long have you been playing? For just under 12 short years.

What other gear do you own? Crybaby Classic, Boss SD-1, Boss RC-2, Boss CE-5, Boss RV-3, And finally vox head with marshall 4x12 lead cab. oh and ibanez, schecter, gibson, dean, and fender guitars.

If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again or get something else? if it were stolen or lost ya i would definitely hunt another one down, i would only get the original though, the re-issues just dont have "it" they tried but if you want true whammy wackiness then only the original will do, trust me im not making this up.

what do you love about it? The whole shebang man, while there is some things on this pedal i'll never use (3rd over 4), i just love the sound it creates, it does it without sounding shrill like the later versions do.

What do you hate? Nothing, well my only gripe is that you cant switch the settings without having to bend down and do it, but i dont hate it

What is your favorite feature? The up octave and down octaves, also the detune is pretty cool too, it sounds like a real lush chorus, actually it sounds more lush than my dedicated chorus LOL!

Did you compare it to other products? Ya, before i bought this i tried digitechs own immitation of this classic in the form of an effects pedalboard i think it was the RP-20 valve, man that one and the re-issue sucked mad sack, this is what they were trying to recreate but couldnt, like i said before the originals have something unique to them, they just sound right, i cant explain it.

Why did you choose this one? Because i tried the immitators and once i bought my own original WH-1, there was no turning back.

Anything you wish it had? a way to change the settings with your feet.

Does it help you make music, or does it get in the way? It helps me get creative most definitely, its just hard figuring out a way to do it tastefully.

Anything else you'd like to share? Ya, if your creative juices are flowing and aint afraid to try out something new, Then this pedal may be just what the doctor ordered, if not then dont bother, this pedal is definitely not for the timid, in other words there nothing subtle about this pedal, one of the boldest i've ever used. Also a note regarding the Original and Re-issues, Fellas i cant stress this enough, if your willing to go with a whammy in the first place make sure you do it right, the original has a nice warm tone and tracks just about perfectly, its real organic and can inspire some truly original sounds, the re-issues eh, they have a nasty shrillnes to them, they dont track good at all, and have this annoying time delay when the pedal is engaged. The original has none of these problems and is the reason they are highly sought after. enough said.

For reasons I won't go into I ended up just buying TWO of these. I have previously used a Boss PS-5 with an expression pedal, Boss GT-6 and a Digitech XP100. The good thing about this unit is that you select a mode and switch it on. No level settings so dead easy to use, plus it auto-calibrates.
That's the easy part. The difficult part is learning to use one tastefully. There are neat tricks like bending up an octave and at the end giving the guitar trem heavy vibrato at the end, only bending chords with a strong root note etc etc.

I don't remember much about the PS-5 or GT-6 but I only just sold the XP-100 - which I thought was a well made unit and great fun and value for the current used prices.
Before getting into the effect sound quality I should point out some immediate benefits.
Firstly I can put the WH-1 into my high gain amp and hear virtually no background noise. This is a revelation. Second, when the unit is switched on there is far less of a delay between playing and hearing a note. I did find that very frustrating before getting these. In fact when I turn both WH-1 units on the delay is still respectable short. Thirdly I'm amazed at the sound of the unit when it is off. Because I connected 2 of these together I decided to put them in a switchable loop. I was surprised to hear very little difference in sound between both units together and the bypassed sound so for the time being I decided that I'm better off taking the switch and cabling out of the signal path.
So how do the effects sound? To my ears great! The sound is really full bodied whether shifting up or down. On really high notes you can hear how the pitch shifting is being achieved but I then don't expect miracles and in any case Dave Gilmour uses these artifacts to great effect with a Strat. There is something inherently right about this unit, you just enjoy the effect and forget about it. Even the gains are spot on whether the unit is off or on.
Bad points? Well if you turn the unit on in Whammy mode and leave the pedal up (no pitch shift) you can hear a loss of quality but you wouldn't normally do this, except.......I've had fun turning both units on with one set to octave up and one set to octave down and with both on you definitely lose tone. But hey that is asking a lot isn't it? And being able to go up and down an octave by just moving your feet is really cool.
The best guitar combination for me is with something like an Ibanez Jem where you can mix the effect with the trem of the guitar, but with something like a PRS Singlecut you can combine awesome tone with the ability to now emulate a tremolo.

It's built like a tank. Both of these units are over 15 years old and having looked inside the only thing I could possibly imagine going wrong is the optical sensor cable for the pedal but even that might go on forever and in any case would be easily fixed.

These units cost 250 and over in the UK but even when they were new they were 200. There are over 20 integrated circuits on the main board and I'm sure the component count has a lot to do with both the speed and quality of the sound. So I would say they are actually good value, given the rarity. Providing you like the effect then this is the unit to have. No regrets for me. Peace of mind is worth spending extra for.

12 years ago i was going to buy a Wahwah pedal, i couldnt find one so i bought this instead.
This is the original one, not one of the reissues, i havent compared this one to the reissues but this one sounds just great.
I mostly use it for its octaver function adding an octave below the original signal, it does this beautifully though it only tracks single notes, not chords.

I have never tried to play Rage against the Machine licks with it or used it for those horrible harmonized guitar solos you would hear on early 90s rock albums, mainly i use it to f##c things up with such as putting the whole mix through it to instantly make white boy blues sound like The Residents, its also cool to run a microphone through it and imitate Isaac Hayes or Darth Vader.
I sometimes run this thing into separate channels of a guitar amplifier using less volume on the effected channel and setting the pedal on a octave down, its an incredibly funky sound that i have used on countless songs with my band.

This is a really solid pedal, it hasnt ever broken down, i replaced the power supply unit a few years ago and thats it.
I wouldnt hesitate to use this on a gig without backup.

Never dealt with them. I think every other Digitech pedal i have tried was crap, this one isnt.

I play in a Progressive House band, we have released a bunch of songs on various labels, i have also been in a few rock/blues/alternative bands, i think this pedal would fit into most kinds of music except maybe country music.
I go from a Fender Stratocaster into a Boss compressor into the Whammy, from there either to an amplifier or into a Behringer V-amp, i have been playing guitar for more than 20 years.
This thing is great, i totally recommend you check it out.

EZ.

Roughly, the reissue of a true legend. It is interesting that in this case each and all of the original sonic nuances of the VH1 had been achieved, and is possible to own a ?time capsule? brand new effect. I learnt to consider reissues as a mere intention to push sells by manufacturers, as in most cases not even the original components are available anymore. Anyone checking the latest DS1 or Distortion + boxes should admit this.

Trying to cope with any reissue is a challenge, but when we?re talking about a classic, the challenge skyrockets. It has been decades since DigiTech introduced the original Whammy, and it has been in high demand ever since by top players as diverse as Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Dimebag Darrell and countless others. Every guitar God made sure to have one of these in their arsenals. Established players and rising starts alike depend (and did depend on the Whammy) for more than ten years! Tom Morello broke the neck of more than a few notes with it, and Vai redefined virtuosity with it as well. Smooth pitch bends; fat, spacious detuning; furious ?dive bombing? and radical harmony shifts are what you can expect from this baby. And it delivers.

Every feature of the original WH-1 has been included in the ?new? Whammy, with all the exact same interval selections, components and design. However, the new Whammy has added an interesting and quite welcomed feature: MIDI control, which is vital to integrate this classic within a more contemporary environment, such as complex rigs and home studios. Together with this, a new "Dive Bomb" preset has been introduced (a handy effect for hard tail guitars, giving the effect of a whammy bar pushed all the way to the body of the guitar). Aside from these additional features, the rest is 100% pure old Whammy.

This red wonder earned a place in where is difficult to be present these days: the menu of classic guitar effects. Why I?m so sure about this? Because of the path that followed its introduction. Different manufacturers (such as the all mighty Boss) offered alternatives to a similar effect (to be found on their PS2 and PS3 stomp pedals), Zoom did so and DigiTech itself (after offering some incarnations of the effect, such as the Whammy II) offers this effect in their more contemporary pedal boards (GNX 3000, GNX 1, GNX 2, GNX 3, GNX 4, RP 80, RP 100A, RP 200A, RP 300A and RPx 400). Many other effects tried that with no significant success (Yamaha?s Symphonic, Ibanez? Lo-Fi, Electro Harmonix? modulators and filters and even Digitech?s YAVA and AutoYA, inter alia). Guitar players are conservative and, in general terms, refuse innovation. If you want to see it in a simpler way, you?ve got to deliver the goods to survive. The Whammy did and seems to be here to stay.

Two general problems are identified with the Whammy. The first one regards its ?ability? to ?suck? tone. Just a simple check at Internet forums or reviews from actual (or alleged) users demonstrate that?s there are more than a few guitar players that think that this pedal destroys the original tone of your instrument. I?ve got two comments in that connection: First of all, we should not forget that guitar players adore posing as elitist tone connoisseurs, capable of capturing any minimal nuance in the variation of tone. If you ever met any guitarist (together with his/her tone) that is obviously not true with the vast majority of cases, and I might not be an exception.

Having said that is true the bypassed Whammy did color your original signal a bit. Nothing that could not be sacrificed in the name of one of the most radical effects ever, or that could not be fixed with one or two tricks: first of all, place the Whammy as your first pedal (only second to your compressor if you have one, otherwise the very first one) and second, if possible, use the Whammy on the effects loop. This second option will render the effect milder, but will maintain your tone intact. The second detrimental comment is commonly associated to erratic behavior, nothing that could not be fixed with a simple calibration procedure. I almost see no cons with this, aside from the fact that you cannot run it on batteries.

You can depend on it, no question about that.
If you really use this one, you WILL need a backup, not because it might broke, because you could not be able to mimmick this sound with nothing else. Having said that, I'll say again that you can put this red thing under a great deal of stress with no fear.

Just a brief question to them which remained unanswered for 90 days. When they finally did reply, their answer was cordial.

I become in love with DigiTech (a bittersweet relationship in the end, I?ve got to admit since quality of their products are plummeting in quality as years goes by) by the cause of this pedal. It is useful, is inspiring, is virtually indestructible and looks dope. What could you ask for more in a guitar pedal?

pretty simple if youd listened to enough rage against the machine songs...i have, and i knew the presets before i even saw the pedal in person!

i tracked one down on ebay and bought it. i had it come in on the same day my friend was going to bring his. i compared the two...AND THE REISSUE BLOWS! why are people wasting over 175 for a piece of tin that makes the creator of the original whammy shit red? this is byfar the coolest pedal ive ever owned. ive had it for a few months now, and i see this thing as being my main part of my rig. i always figured it was good for two things

1. octave up
2. doubled 5th down and up

but I JUST figured that theres A CHORUS setting on it? it doesnt say chorus, but i swear to god it sounds better than my MXR MICRO CHORUS...and that sucker is top notch! every setting is usable if you know a thing or two about experimentation. im actually going to build a replicate tom morello board. ive got this, the original DFL, eq, and over 20 wahs to pick from...gonna git myself a dd2, and im in tone heaven!!! i LOVE tom morello, but im not a 13 year old with an attitude and 4 rage albums...im a serious musician, as well as collector. but im not old and burnt out...quite young actually...SO THERES PLENTY O POTENTIAL! and thats what important...innovation, right? i love the chorus type effect this thing can produce...the pitch shifting is far above par. outstanding so long as its in your effects loop, or after distortion units...otherwise it will be worthy of an 8 or 9...and the whole power supply thing? kiss my ass, digitech can supply you with a power supply that is made for driving these things...so get off your high horse about power meaning more than beans!

their customer support is awesome...and theyll completely fix this thing practically free!

this thing should pretty much last forever!!!

awesome

too fucking cool...quite honestly, a dream come true. after seeing tom play at the free tibet concert in san francisco, i knew i had to play guitar and have whatever it is he used for the solo of killing in the name and whatever waaah sound he used for bulls on parade. it took me roughly 8 years to buy my first wah! i was one of those "i dont get shit until i deserve it!" this whammy is just toooooooooooooooo good for words compared to the piece of shit can they call the whammy 4. it almost as if theyre two completely different companies, and the whammy reissue is the brand-x version...

Easy like sunday morning.

The best pitch shifting pedal out there.

Just to add another 2 cents to the previous reviews.I also got a WH-1 for a good (well,as good as it gets) price and I thought I can spare a couple of euros for a digitech PS0913B-230 (the three last digits are for voltage of course,I live in Europe).With this adaptor the unit works as it should,no glitches.Besides,as Scott was told from Digitech,and as an electrical engineer I agree,the unit will JUST utilize 750mA from the 1300mA the new digitech adaptor provides,so stop looking for old ps750's which will probably not give 750mA due to old age,misuse,or anything else and can damage your precious whammy.And by the way,the VAC output of the old ps750's, 9.6 Volts, is NOT what the pedal internally utilizes!One more thing is that I got the whammy while changing my cables (ALL of them) to George L's.I tried it with my old cables,and my new ones.With the old cables I was getting a bit of a "warbling" sound when the pitch decayed.The unit worked perfectly with the George L's! I e-mailed AnalogMike for that reason (I will be sending him my WH-1 for the true bypass mod) and he said that the pedal requires a strong signal to lock on to the note,which makes perfect sense to me,considering the nature of the effect.The point is,if you are having problems with your adapter or your whammy,change them both to new ones,don't blame the whammy first.These things where built to last.

Digitech does NOT make great stuff,but this pedal IS an exception! (Oh IVL,where art thou?)

Other reviews cover this enough.

I'm going to add my 2 cents to help squash this whole power supply thing. The last review sums it up perfectly. There is no difference in sound with the PS750. I bought a whammy with a different power supply - 10vac, etc. The whole concept of power supply changing the sound of a regulated unit seemed absurd. However, I found a ps750 at a local music store for $8 so I figured I'd give it a whirl. No difference. End result: I've got a spare power supply for the WH-1. Now, I'm going to rant a bit: I'm sick and tired of all these people on HC trying to beef up the value of their pedals with stupid claims. This Whammy power supply thing is just one example - the whole BOSS Japan vs. Taiwan thing is another issue - don't even get me started on that. A given circuit is going to produce a given sound, no matter what country it was built in. Bottom line is you should make your call based on sound or at the least, electrical/acoustic physics. Don't believe everything you read - hell, you should think twice before believing my review.

Works great - 15 years old and still kickin'

Never dealt with them.

Hopefully this will clear up some controversy about the power supply issue for the original WH-1 DigiTech Whammy. Another reviewer somewhere below wrote that he called Digitech, who told him that only the original PS750 power supply will correct power the unit. You can't believe everything you read, so I checked this myself yesterday with DigiTech after I bought an original WH-1 without a ps.

Below I will quote Dean (with his permission) who is a leader in DigiTech's technical support group. What he wrote makes perfect sense to me. This is submitted not with the intent to criticize the other reviewer, but to set the record straight and help the many who appreciate DigiTech's wonderful musical tools which aid our creative self-expression.

"Thanks for your interest. The [new replacement] PS0913B-120 will power any Whammy pedal Digitech has ever made, and it will do this without any sound quality or performance degradation. It is not true that only the PS750 will make the WH-1 function right. No one at Digitech would make such a statement. Honestly, there is no performance or sound difference when using the PS0913B-120 with a WH-1. Please consider the fact that most famous guitarists who use the WH-1 (Morello, Vai, etc.) use pedal boards or custom power supplies that are not PS750s.
I should note that a PS750 does say 9.6 v on it, and a PS0913B-120 says 9v on it, but the Whammy pedals are internally regulated so they all utilize the same voltage. As far as the higher milliamp rating of the PS0913B-120, a product will use only what it needs and discard the rest.
It is thoughtful and kind of you to ask permission before publicizing our response. People who disagree will reason that a Digitech employee has to say what I did to support our product. In fact, honesty and personal integrity are the primary virtues I use to evaluate my tech support staff. They can aquire product knowledge, but the core values have to be there." [end of quotation]

The best pitch shifting pedal. Look at who else uses this. They would also only use the best.

Several years old-- works perfectly-- strong metal casing.

Answered my e-mail within a few hours completely and honestly with very helpful information.

DigiTech makes great stuff, and this pedal is no exception.

Built like a volume pedal with a rotor nob for selection of the pitches and a stomp bypass. It would have been nice had they implemented a stomp to cycle threw the pitches.

SETUP:The setup i am using this in is in the studio.
SOUND QUALITY: the sound quality of this original WH-1 is what i would call dirty digital, where the reissue is 'too clean'. it leaves wonderful dirty digital artifacts in multipule strings being played. This gives it it's original and unique sound.
AMP: i use a Line 6 Pod Pro
ARTISTS WHOM USE IT: Audioslave is the band that really got me on the sound. if you seek to find whom else uses it check out www.guitargeek.com
SPECIFIC SOUNDS: i don't find i use a lot of the assigned pitchs like 2nd and 4th but it is a taste thing and unique to the situation i am sure. The Chours on it is controllable in depth by the footpedal. Again the sound is unique to itself and desirable because of its tone.

The unit is old that i bought and has already had the power supply jack fixed on it. In the research that i have been doing for this unit, i found that these original WH-1 whammys input jack if used on the road tend to fail and/or the power supply craps out. But it is replacable though i don't know if digitech would do that. if you look online i am sure someone can tell you what you need for it.

i don't know that i would not have a backup for this pedal of mine on stage. it is old and has seen better days. the footpedal powersupply is what worrys me.

N/A

Overall this product rocks. If you are looking to see what the difference between the reissue (whammy4) and this orignal that is why i am writting this.

DIFFERENCE IN REISSUE AND ORIGINAL:
the reissue has lights to show you what pitch is being used which is a nice feature because the original your not quite sure in the dark what you picked. the reissues physical wah is cheaper made and the metal seems quite lighter in quality then the original. on the reissue the wah itself the soft pads they use to stop the wah at full use is soft that doesn't allow for a solid pitch if you 'waver' in your wahing.

if you want the orignal 'dirty artifacty' WH-1 Whammy sound then get the original, but if you like the feature of the Wah and don't really care about specific tone, the features of the new reissue rock and does the job just as good as the WH-1 original besides the tone. the new feature on the reissue is the MIDI jack. i suspect if you are a midi user or sequencer kinda player, this would be adventagous. i have not setup for it. if i get a chance to review the reissue i will be sure to talk about it in my review of it.

It is very easy to use, especially if you have a foot.
The manual is very easy to read because it is written in English.

The setup I am using is the Pedal setup. This means that I am lining the pedal up with the rack and the carpet.

Is it very noisy, especially when you turn your amp up to maximum level.

The effects are weak because I have beaten this unit in an arm wrestle.

I am using a guitar amp with it.
The sound of my favorite artist is very hard to get because he produces a sound that does not go very well with a person with two ears. FYI.. My favorite artist is the TRASHMEN.

The effects are good and bad but more good than bad. I especially like the RED COLOR, which goes very nicely with the fact that I am using an amp with a guitar.

I can certainly depend on it. When I need it to walk the dog, it never disappoints me.

I would certainly use it on a gig if I knew what a gig was.

I play a style of music called LOUD MUSIC.
I have been playing for 75 years and I don't own any other gear.
If it was stolen, I would be very sad. I would definitely buy it again
I love the RED COLOR and what I hate about it is that there is NO LETTER H in its name
I compare it to many products I own like the maximizer and optomizer.
I wish it had a bit of purple in it.
It helps me make real cool music by way of Treight Froklam.

I would like to share with you that I am being silly but seriously, I really do like this unit and recommend it highly

Takes a knack. Give it time. Not all settings sound great on all things. Very f@#%upable Hendrix definitely would have used one...

I just want to add my 2 cents worth about the differences between reissues and the Whammy1 (and2) pedals. The big difference is in the latency of the original note when the pedal is on but not yet shifting. In bypass, it's not noticeable but when pedal is engaged in the reissues (not the whammyII, but the XP's and whammy4), it is a noticable time lag making the reissues unusable for me. By the way, I believe the WhammyII to be an improvement over the original only for the ability to toggle with your foot and see where your settings are while you are switching. With the original, you need to devolve an attachable thumb to your foot or stop singing and playing, bend over and switch it where you want it to go. I never could make that move entertaining.

Way easy.

Now here is the reason why I'm writing this review. The whammy WH-1 will only sound right, work right, if it has the correct power supply. It's kind of a mystery to find out if you do not have the original adaptor. The manual for the WH-1 says you need a special 10 volt Adaptor, yet an "original" Whammy wh-1 adaptor says the output is 9 volts. In fact they are both "wrong"! The actually voltage the WH-1 needs is 9.6 Volts, not 10 or 9. The original Whammy WH-1 adaptor that ""states 9 volts"", really is a 9.6 volt adaptor! I called Digitech and got the info straight from them. Only the model PS750 adaptor will make her function right. Now here's the problem. People see 9 volts as the stated output on the original adaptor and think any digitech 9 volt adaptor will work. Yes, a regular 9 volt will turn the thing on and kind-a work...but not with exact accuracy. And this maybe one reason why people give The WH-1 a bad review, and say it's "really" close to the reissue. Well it's not. The reissues is a toy, plane and simple. The original WH-1 with correct power supply is a professional piece of equipment.

Only had her for two months.

Fast, very nice and helpful...when you can reach them! Man, Digitech has the dumbest hours! And they go by mountain time, so they close at bizarre hours.

awesome.

This is a totally honest review, and I will be comparing this to the re-issue, as I have both. Very easy to use. 1 selector switch, 1 pedal and on/off button.

I made sure to get mine true bypassed as I think it suits my amp (Traynor YCV-40) better when I plug it in the input (true bypass meaning I now have no tone loss/colouration at all), instead of the effects loop. When I pluged it in the loop, it didn't track as good or sound as clear/direct. A lot of people say bad things about the re-issue but it really isn't that bad. Honestly speaking I can say the original is superior, regarding sound quality - I.V.L. chips which Digitech don't use anymore and make this unit very warm and analog sounding, tracking and it's more compact. The re-issues' large number of L.E.D's and Midi are a step in the right direction. On the other hand the 'Divebomb' is not very useable, it's a lot more digital sounding and it has grown in size which isn't a good thing either. I love the detune/chorus sound, not as good as my Boss CE-2 but very nice.

It looks sturdy enough but the power supply really is a pain in the ass. For those of us with multiple effects units, like me, will understand that a daisy chain is a great invention (powering all those units up with 1 adapter - except the Whammy. Now I've got to use a seperate power supply plus find another socket to plug it in. PAIN IN THE ASS!!! The pedal = 10, unfortunatly the voltage/adapter brings my rating down.

Have just e-mailed them asking them if my original adapter will work in my re-issue and vice versa...

It really is one of the best pedals you can buy. It's like having about 4 'boss-like' pedals in one - Octave, Chorus, Pitch Shifter, Harmoniser! Get one as soon as possible as the price will only rise! I was happy with my re-issue until I got hold of the original. The re-issue did the job, but if your like me and want the hairs to stand on the back of your neck, then you have to go with the original! Also, if your into Whammy effects, it's worth checking out Korg's AX-30G. I feel (and my friends feel) that you can get an amasing whammy effect by using the whammy + exciter, which is better than a Digitech re-issue (not as good as the original.) Digitech really need to listen to their customers needs, and should release a proper re-issue which incorporates different qualities from both of the models. It would great if they would release an 'ultimate' model which would include : True bypass, midi, the I.V.L. chips, the large number of L.E.D.'s, the compactness of the original and also a change to the voltage/power supply to someting more universal! If they don't, someone else should!

Once the honeymoon period of playing with the +2 octave mode ends, you reach a period, where you no longer want to play 'noise'.

that is when, if you are a wise / talented guitarist, you will begin to use it discretely and wisely, lol, to aid and compliment your playing. not every song needs +2 octave mode sweeps, not every note needs harmonizing....

however some do, and its ace for that. takes a while to get to grips with though..

editing patches is obviously not an option, but DigiTech just about covered every single pitchshifting / harmonizing option you can think off, so not much need for that either.

the tracking, harmonizing is nigh-on perfect.

this is easily the best alternative to Eventide rack harmonizers, and the 'whammy' option is the best on the market....

Vai, Satriani both use this..... i've found it possible to replicate the sound of the Harmonized tunes by them (e.g. Ballerina 12/24 by Vai) with the WH-1 and a Boss DD-2...

i use it with my custom built / hotrodded Jap RG / Washburn Culprit into WH-1 - into modified Crybaby Wah - into Extreme III distortion pedal - into Boss DD-2 - at the moment running into a 15w SS amp... not for much longer though - once i finish setting up my rack rig setup compromising of a Mesa Boogie Power Amp, boutique pre-amp, Marshall 1960B cab..

but even now, thru the 15W P-O-S it sounds AMAZING.

it survived two gigging owners and 15 years of play, and still going strong.

very solid, very reliable, havent had any issues with it yet.

never dealt with them - thankfully

i play a whole lot of music...

like i play in a progressive death metal band, where i am the leading songwriter...

but i also play in a jazz / rock band....

in addition to recording instrumental neoclassical / experimental (shred-like) projects...

works best for my instrumental work, because due to the nature of the pedal, it requires a deeply experimental, and methodist approach - you certainly DO need to know your theory to make the most of this pedal.

it goes without saying, it BLOWS away all reissues, and any half-hearted copy's of it by other manufacturers...

prices are steep, but IMO you get exactly what you pay for.

Super easy to operate, just on/off switch, one knob, and the treadle. I got mine off ebay, I was lucky and got a 1993 model that included the original box and manual. Bone stock, no mods!

Let me start by saying: DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THE WH-4 WHAMMY REISSUE! I started out with one of these, they are total shit! Most people describe them as "coming close" to duplicating the original, well, they don't! The WH-4 is eratic. Sometimes it bends the pitch to to the right spot, but more often than not it just gets close and sounds really, really fake. The WH-1 gets there every time! Extremely accurate bends. Sometimes the WH-4 gets lost and the treadle needs to be recalibrated. NOT the original, always returns to the 'home' position.
I use either a 1979 Les Paul Silverburst with DiMarzio pickups or a Strat style parts guitar with EMG pickups and a Morello style kill switch. They run into a crybaby wah, the WH-1, a boss tremolo, and a MXR phase 90. This is all run into the front of a 1985 Marshall JCM 800 2205 with a new Mesa/Boogie cab with Vintage 30's. I have all my effects daisy chained (with the exception of the wh-1) and there is no noise or hum in the signal.

Built like a tank. Very, very rugged design. The only thing that is not original is the power supply. You can get a replacement from harmon/digitech for like 39.95. I actually have 2 WH-1's I bought the first one on Ebay and before it came in I saw another one go for way too cheap so I couldn't pass on it. The way these things have gone up in value, make them an excellent investment. I'm gonna hold on to both of them for a while and possibly sell one in the future, for a nominal profit of course!!!

E-mailed digitech a couple of times asking various questions. There turnaround time on answers was impressive. One or two days and I had my answers. Thumbs up to the folks at digitech in this department. But, then again, someone needs to make up for all the boneheads that are designing some of the most overpriced crap on the market today!

I play a heavy, riffy kind of "stoner metal" as I call it. Drop D tuning, hook oriented. Do not buy a WH-1 unless you plan to be missing in action for a while. That is, you won't wanna leave your practice room if you get ahold of one of these. Sometimes I catch myself hovering over this thing like a mad scientist just making crazy 'Greenwood', "MORELLO" style SOUNDS for extended periods! If it were stolen, I do have the backup, but the streets would be flooded with the blood of the bastard that stole it as I handed him a serious beat down! Beats the hell outta the WH-4, hands down! NOTE:this pedal will not make you Johnny Greenwood, 'Douche'bag Darrell(one is tooo many!!), or even TOM MORELLO. What it will do is give you the option of going in a totally different direction than everybody else. You WILL develop a special relationship with this pedal. To the point of laying your life on the line for the WH-1! Don't ask anymore about the relationship, all I can say is its 'special'!

to me, this thing is really easy to get a good sound out of it. i
remember when i got it, i had a bit of a problem getting it to hit
the exact note of the octave when i went from heel to toe. however,
after actually messing with it for about an hour, i realized that it wasn't the pedal, but my technique(i don't play like anyone else that i've ever met). tell you the truth, if you told me to play an a chord,
i couldn't do it. i'm a by ear guy. anyway, back to the pedal. now,
after about a week, it was like a part of my foot. the sounds flow out
like no man's bi'ness. the harmony settings are really neat, though
i imagine someone who knew what down 2/3rds meant would have an easier time. if you can read music-good to go.

i use this pedal through the old two channel boogie triple rec. y'know, the one before that first run of crappy 3 channels? anyway.
point being, it's a pretty good match for this pedal- and it's LOUD.
this pedal sounds awesome- smooth transitions, i love how easily the
expression pedal on these things slides. the thing about this pedal is, it sounds nothing like what i think it was meant to sound like.
if you're looking at this, you've probably heard one. most of the
artists that record with them don't use the reissue. but that's irrelevant. even though it failed it's mission, the thing sounds SO
crazy and awesome. i love hitting really high notes on the guitar and
never going to either the heel or toe position. it makes that 1930's
flying saucer sweeping bloop sound. i love weird sounds. this thing doesn't sound crazy in conjunction with any of my pedals, and i have A LOT! but with delay. oh, mother glory. and for the brave- trying having one foot on this, and the other foot waving over the light jack theramin thingy on a ring stinger-utter madness. but before anyone hurts themselves trying this, i recommend something to sit on.
unless you have harnesses suspending you over your pedal board.

this pedal-you can depend on it. it will not break. the friggin' thing weighs like 5 pounds. 2 mm folded steel or something. my friend came to practice the other night and i let him get on my rig.
he doesn't use almost any pedals, so he was in heaven. so i look over and he's freaking standing on my whammy one like it's a fucking wah pedal! it'd be cool except this dude is huge. you could put a sock and a shoe on his arm. so after he leaves i'm of course trying it, unplugging it, trying it again. it still works, of course, but it's worth so much money, man-that stuff makes me nervous. ok, so yes-
i would gig it without a backup. the only reason i give this thing a
9 for reliability is the power supply.they're 10 volts ac which is weird. luckily, the reissue power supply works for mine because they have such a high miliampage. they should work. i read one guy on here's review, and unfortunately he had a bit of an ordeal with his, but he got it worked out. good deal. anyway- baby the power supply.
i don't have a backup whammy, but i've sure got a back up power supply.

when i got mine, the guy sent it to me with the cord connecting the plug to the jack cut. he said all i had to do was splice it together.
i thought cool- my other guitar player is an a/c man. so i take it to his house and we test it. nope. the transformer was dead. but hey,
it was the original power supply and my pedal is like 12 or 13 years old. so i get on the horn with digitech and they tell me about the reissue adapter and all. so i order it. about a week after it should've been at my house i call 'em up and i'm like "what the fluke?" and the guy tells me they'll ship it tomorrow. what's up with that trash!? it shouldve been out 2 weeks ago!! oh well, it came 5 or so days later so it's all gravy. at least they were polite.

i play stuff that's hard, yet experimental. after all, i've got twenty pedals to make funky sounds with. it totally goes with my stuff. i have been playing about 9 years. i'm 23. i work 2 jobs just to support my gear habit. if this thing got lost or stolen- i would definitely replace it regardless of cost. it's one of my favorite pedals. right up there with my meatball, my ringstinger, moog stuff.
i've heard the reissues. they really just don't sound the same. my other guitar player has a whammy 2, which is an awesome pedal. if you cant afford this one get that one and be happy, you did well. when i took it to the band room, i was like, did i get my money's worth?(he's my mentor, too). he was like, "my whammy doesn't sound like that! i can't believe i got it so cheap, too!275! so- like i said
if you like to make weird sounds, even if you only use it to record and you put it really low in the background- even then! buy it!
this box definitely opens doors for me. i don't know how weird the readers of this review will be, but it'll make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. a 10!

The Whammy functions and detune functions are really a breeze to experiment and play with, but the Harmony options require a little more knowledge about music theory than your average effects pedal would demand from you...

Really you just plug in and go. For those of you who bought this pedal off eBay or whatever and are desperately searching for a
manual, go to: http://www.digitech.com/ftp_mirror/PDFs/Discontinued%20Products/Manuals/Whammy.pdf and download one for free. (hope that saves some people a few bones...)

Quick Story:
At a new years party for '03, my band did a cover of Audioslave's 'like a stone' (say what you will?it?s fun to cover live). Anyways, the song sounds pretty good for our little local band, but when I kicked on my whammy re-issue for the solo, it sounded like crap-ola. Half the time my whammy re-issue didn't even bend the notes all the way. Anyways, after the embarrassment wore off, I vowed to get the REAL thing, and the difference is like day and night...

I've never had a problem with it. Just to be safe I always make sure I run through any song parts that use the whammy a couple times before I play it live. Sure, the thing could kill somebody if it fell of the stage and into the crowd, but I mean come on. Old faithful (my WH1) here is over ten years old, and something's bound to go wrong some day...

DigiTech has my respect. I bought my WH1 from a chap across the pond in Jolly ol' England, and when I got it, it didn't have an adaptor. I spent a good two weeks researching electrical stuff to find out how I could power up my puppy. Yes, it is true that these have a unique power supply. DigiTech was actually REALLY helpful and informed me that I could use the PS0913B-120 power supply (which replaces the PS750). Well, I got the supply, plugged it in and... nothing. Well, after I stopped weeping and trying to end it all, I called up DigiTech again, and as it turns out the english model is wired slightly different internally to account for the different current over there (or something like that). DigiTech had me send it out to their factory and they had it repaired and back to me in a matter of two weeks. I plugged it in and... woohoo! WHAMMY POWER!! All in all I think it cost me around 35 bucks...

http://www.digitech.com/digiforum/view_thread.asp?forum=expression&threadid=1062262010

Well, this is really the one and only... The others will suffice if you're just doing the occasional shriek in a random song, but if you want a quality sound that you can actually use with out embarrassing yourself, go for the real thing. I'll admit that guys like the Edge and Tom Morello really turned me on to this pedal, but this pedal can really do ALOT if you invest the time and effort into it. Personally, I've benefited from it, and I'd definitely replace it if I could find one for a descent price. (and yeah, I'd beat the thief to death with it if it got stolen... it'd probably still work after that, too!)

Not for everyone, but totally worth it for those of us who love it...

Muy facil uso, elegir el preset y tocar, nada mas. Si bien solo lo uso en los presets de "whammy", hubiese sido interesante un control de "mix" entre se?al procesada y se?al seca para los efectos de "harmony".
El manual es sencillo, acorde a la facilidad de uso (en realidad no hace falta consultarlo).

Mi setup es el siguiente: guitarra custom con Di MArzio AirNorton y ToneZone - Vox Valvetone - DIGITECH WH1 WHAMMY- Ibanez Whawha WH10 - Boss DS1 - Digitech RP50 (con efectos de Detune, Reverb y para afinar)- Amplificador Marshall o Yamaha Soldano... Segun tenga ganas de tocar coloco un Delay Zoom 508 con control de Tap Tempo (Boss FS-5U)y Boss HR2 Harmonist.
El sonido es EXELENTE, es el efecto mas importante para mi sonido y forma e tocar: puedo prescindir de los otros pedales pero sin este mi forma de tocar esta claramente alterada. El "whammy" es totalmente fluido, la buena salida de mis humbucker seguramente influyen en la respuesta. Espectacular combinarlo con delays largos (sonidos totalmente marcianos). Ideal para fans de Ton Morello. Otro forma de usarlo es encender el boton de ByPass en ciertos pasajes de una cancion, con el preset de "harmony" en una octava abajo, logrando un sonido mas "gordo".
EXISTE UNA MINIMA PERDIDA DE SONIDO (TONE SUCKING), PERO NADA DE IMPORTANCIA (NO ES UN CRY BABY).

Sin este pedal toco blues y rock clasico.
Con el whammy puedo tocar otras cosas (Audioslave, Vai, etc).

?

Toco hard rock, desde cosas a lo Van Halen hasta Audioslave... y toco hace mas de 25 a?os (nunca habia hecho la cuenta!!!).
Este pedal lo consegui en una super oferta, pero si algo le pasara no dudaria en comprarme otro a cualquier precio.
El Whammy original, el que usa Morello, Vai, Satriani... mejor que cualquier reedicion!!!!!!!
AMO ESTE PEDAL!!AMO ESTE PEDAL!!AMO ESTE PEDAL!!AMO ESTE PEDAL!!AMO ESTE PEDAL!!AMO ESTE PEDAL!!AMO ESTE PEDAL!!AMO ESTE PEDAL!!

quite easy to understand the user interface, but you have to study (music, not the manual) if you want to understand how the harmony works.

i think that one thing has to be clear: THE WHAMMY IS A LOW FIDELITY EFFECT.
people think that you can use it as an Eventide harmonizer, but this pedal is not intended for this.
It has a bad tracking, it glitches, and it is noisy: consider than an eventide H3000 costs about 750 dollars, and i've seen people paying more than 500 dollars for this pedal... something is going wrong uh?
Abotu the reussue, it sounds as good as this one: perdiod.

i had to replace it three times due to intense live usage during years. many other pedals never got broken, can't say the same of this.

never delt with them

I wrote this reveiw to clarify some important points about the whammy: seems that everybody wants an original WH-1, but my question is: do you really need a whammy? can you really use it to achieve an original sound? Can you spend hundreds of dollars for a pedal that you're going to use in a couple of songs?
IMHO, it's just a momentary public lapse of reason.
i started using it when it first came out, and i'm still using it for the same 2 songs.
Use your brain!

If you are reading this, then you are no doubt a stranger to the Wh-1. Congratulations. If you are *serious* about buying one, you will definitely put yourself into a very exclusive group of guitar players. When the WH-1 went off the market and it became certain that it would never ever return in its original form (due to lost partnerships between companies) it is rumored that the Edge of U2 immediately went out on a mission to find some WH-1s. As a consequence he now owns 8 of them.

If you are new to the WH-1, then this is the sort of deal you are getting yourself into.

For those who don't know, the operation of a Whammy is pretty simple. It does basically 3 things. There is a harmony mode (you can select what intervals. It will switch between two depending on the treadle position), a "whammy mode" (what you are all here for, pitch shifting like Pavarotti being sacked in the family jewels) and also a detune section (kinda like hitting a FRT bar). Its not rocket science to figure out, however it does take some getting used to. This thing alters your sound so drastically that it almost takes a whole new outlook on guitar playing to really be able to use it effectively and creatively.

This isn?t for people just wanting to make loud noises. Hell, Robert Fripp owns one. If being creative in an unconventional way doesn?t appeal to you, head on over to the Wah-Wah section and knock yourself out.

All right. This is by far the most controversial part. Does a WH-1 sound better than the "reissue?"

I have one thing to say about this. Does a TS-808 sound better than the reissue? Or how about a Clyde McCoy Wah? You don't even want to *know* how much an original one of THOSE is going for. Expect the same for the WH-1.

Here's the low down. The reissues are *not* the same. I cannot stress this enough. Look at all the reviews on the re-issues. Every single one of them, even the "ones done by a professional." They all say the same thing. "This whammy sounds *REMINISCENT* of the original, or sounds *NEARLY* the same. They wont lie, they know there is a difference there too. The real question is for you. Are you willing to drop 4-500 bucks on a piece of equipment? If no, then consider the re-issue. However, if you want the real mccoy, there is only one true whammy pedal.

We all know the story. Digitech was kinda starting out, and had a cooperation with a software company called IVL. That partnership has since ceased to exist and gone with it are the chips and software that drove the original whammy.

Does the re-issue do the same thing? You bet. Does it sound the same? No. The original has a much more analog feel to it. Still confused about the price and if it is worth it? Go look up how much a vintage Boss analog delay pedal costs. Then re-assess if you think the WH-1 is over priced. I wouldn?t be surprised if in 5 years the prices on these go to around 900 bucks a unit. Not only are they rare, but there is virtually no chance another unit exactly like it will ever be made.

Few more things to consider. This has a true bypass in it. The reissues do not. It is also built stronger.

Here's the deal, if Digitech were to build another whammy to the exact specifications it would be very high priced and probably would not do very well in the guitar effects market (whammys are NOT for everyone, after all). Cheaper components and such make for higher profits.

The original is still the one and only.
End of story.

Power supplies. Lets talk power for a moment.

Already got a WH-1? TAKE GOOD CARE OF THAT POWER SUPPLY!

Thinking about buying one? Here's some things to keep in mind.

The power supply for the WH-1 is a ten volt power supply. Never seen a 10volt? That's because they are rare. Usually voltage only goes in 3.5, 7, 9, 12 and so forth. Digitech made a special power supply for this unit. Not only is it 10volt, but it has its own size of plug on it. Universal adapters? Tough luck. Gotta have the real deal.

So what does this mean in terms of buying it? MAKE SURE THEY HAVE THE POWER SUPPLY TOO, AND IF NOT ADJUST FOR THAT PRICE. With out power, the unit is worthless. Make sure the person you are buying the pedal from is honest and knowledgeable. I've seen way too many sellers saying "yes, we have tested it and it works and sounds great!" only to have the buyer find out that they never tested it and just assumed that a standard 9volt power supply would work with it.

WRONG.

Make sure YOU realize this and that THEY realize this before you agree upon a price.

Digitech is good. I sometimes get the feeling that some of their support staff see the whammy like a mechanic would see a classic car. They are generally really helpful from what I have experienced.

I saw someone write in here that the whammy is not a very subtle effect. That made me smile when I saw it because nothing more true could be said about the whammy. I've seen so many people in here bashing on this guitarist or that guitarist saying they have no skills and such and that they just use their whammy blah blah blah whine whine whine.

Thats great, so where can I buy YOUR album?

Thats right, sit down.

Thing is, the whammy is only as creative as the person operating it. It wont make you a better guitarist, but it will make you a different guitarist. It wont make you sound cooler, it will only give you more creative options for you to use, if you are capable.

Once you get into the "whammy world" you find other WH-1 whammy owners have a near zen-like relationship with their whammy. This is probably due in part to the drastic changes that this pedal will make to your sound. No other pedal is anything like it. It almost is like a whole other insturment.

I got lucky and got mine just at the tail end of when original whammy pedals were somewhat easy to find. They are becoming more and more sought after now, and the prices are not surprisingly rising in accordance with that.

That being said, I can?t imagine going out on a gig with out my whammy. In fact, I?m currently looking to drop another 450-500 bucks for another WH-1 *just in case*

Yeah, they are like that. Once it gets under your skin and into your heart, money just doesn?t matter so much anymore.

But then again, if you are looking all this up because you want one badly, you probably already know this.

Easy, but no LED's

Basically same as reissue. Only minor differences eccept for the huge ass price and with less features.

Less reliable than new gear, but well built.

Never dealt with them

Played origional and reissue. Both sounded very close. Reissue was $20 cheaper so I bought it. Origional is definetly worth $140, but with skyrocketing prices it's worth no more than $200. Dont buy into the hype started by people who paid way to much wan wish to justify their insane purchase. Buy the reissue, you wont be sorry. Dont believe me? Read a professional review here: http://guitargeek.com/gearview/22/

plug in a couple of cables, twist the setting knob, rock the pedal, hit the switch. this baby is DEAD simple. NO menu-diving.

it is rare that ANY piece of gear EXCEEDS my expectations. this is one of those. it sounds AMAZING!! i know everyone talks about those Rage Against The Dimebag Radiohead guys,...but i could really care less. i've heard how THOSE guys use the pedal and, well, OF COURSE it sounds "cool". i play atmospheric and ambient guitar. this pedal helps me create some VERY unique sounds. yeah the "octave-up" setting does that high-pitched squeal we've all heard,....but the DETUNE settings are just drop dead beautiful. the HARMONY settings require a bit of preparation and brain power to get them to fit into a melody/concept you are develoving,..but the ability to rock the pedal to SEAMLESSLY "bleed-in" the DETUNE or alternate HARMONY setting is absolutely GORGEOUS. you can pitch shift chords with this thing!! VERY IMPRESSIVE!!!!!!!

mine was glitchy when i got it. it has been fixed and now seems solid as a rock.

VERY IMPRESSED. i called to get an RA# to return my unit for repair. i spoke to a very friendly person. my repair was quite affordable. the repair department even called me with status/update. very nice experience (my FIRST with Digitech). Digitech is in Utah. how can anyone who lives in Utah be anything BUT relaxed and personable (i LOVE that state)??

i would buy another in a SECOND,..at ANY COST. this is VERY UNIQUE piece of gear. if you are buying it JUST BECAUSE "what's his name" uses one that is YOUR business. i am stating that this pedal is capable of MUCH MORE than that NASALLY, DISTORTED SQUEAL that "whatever their names are" ONLY USE IT FOR.

Very simple. Only pain is swithcing from setting to setting if you want to use two in one song.

ummmmmmmm excellent!

Yeah the pedal is huge and metal and there was no prb. The power supply fucking pissed me off. It broke after 3 days. the new one cost me 50$. Thats 300 dollars for 1 petal damn it!

10!!!! excellent! When my power supply broke it only took 12 hrs to reply to all of my questions. Digitech is very organized in my experience.

8 If the sound is what your looking for this is probably the best pedal for this sound. The adapter jack pisses me off and it makes me have to give it a 7. i couldnt use my power supply anyway because it was too big for the jack. Digitech made it so your only option is to use their power supply. Now i have to put a damned surge protector on my board! GAY!

This pedal is unbelievably easy to use. I am very confident that you could give it to someone who'd never touched a guitar before and they could work it out in about two minutes. Like everyone already knows... you have a twistable dial and key printed on the pedal. You twist the dial to the setting you want and rock the pedal; if you find that difficult ask yourself if you should have spent all that money! :^)
The only slightly complicated bits about it are:
You have to plug it in to the wall. You plug the guitar thru the 'input' and the amplifier into the 'wet added output'. There is a 'dry' output which allows complete bypass of the pedal. A stomp switch controls the bypassing of the pedal, it's status shown by an LED over the dial. Like shooting a barn door with a cruise missile. There is no way I can think they could make this simpler, genuinely.

Just to fuel those on here who have a major problem with buying things someone famous uses... I bought this pedal because I know Morello uses it for a lot of his stuff and because of the reviews of it I'd read.

All the reviews below should tell you the effects this will produce but basically it's a pitch shifter. You rock the tredle and it alters the frequency of the note going into it. It does this absolutely superbly! The sound quality is great!

I don't have the original power supply so I can really judge what your's may sound like. My reason for the 9 is that the person who sold me this gave me a non-Digitech US supply with it. This in turn goes thru a UK to US converter and it has a very, very slight background noise when I kick the pedal on. This may be due entirely to my adapters however.

Musically the pedal does everything I want it to at the moment. I play through a Fender Strat Squire which I have loaded with an EMG 85 and 81. In turn, this goes out to a 1985 Marshall JCM 800 (Model 2210 100 watt) head and Marshall 1960b Cab via an attentuator [My ears don't like 100 watts at 6ft]. ;^) The transistions as the treadle is rocked are perfectly smooth sounding, it does not jump in nasty steps like old wah effects occasionally do.

This is definitly a pedal that requires some research to use it well since it so drastically effects the sound of your guitar. At first lots of the settings seem like they'd never fit into a tune. Just to give you some clues as to uses, my favourites are:

2 Octaves Up - This one is great for weird solos [RATM: Freedom by RATM]. And with a delay it creates a nice crying, echo type screech as it's rocked [RATM: Calm Like A Bomb Solo]. Now it's been released, some of you will have heard Shadow Of The Sun by Audioslave where a similar Whammy + Delay combination is used on this setting in the solo. Without any doubt this is my favourite guitar effect ever used in a tune and that includes those produced by Eventides, Lexicons and all the rest. I dislike this setting when the pedal is constantly forward (Note shifted 2 octaves up) because it makes a sort of high pitched electrical whistle that doesn't sound cool. This, again, is probably down to the adapters I have and the pedal shifting the noise from them up to a really easy to hear frequency.

Shallow Detune - As the name suggests, this will very slightly detune the guitar sounds. Maybe it's just me but this setting also adds a soft chorus effect to the sound when using the amplifier's clean channel. With it switched over to major gain mode another sound is made with the pedal all the way back that is hard to describe. I can only say it sounds as if the cabinet is in a large piece of sewage pipe! Kind of airy and like the amp is really groaning. I think Morello may actually leave his Whammy in this mode for some tunes with it all the way back. The pedal is almost passive in this state compared to when it's rocked forward but it adds something to the sound that a tube amp won't do even on 11 no matter what else happens!

Harmonise 1 Octave - Another tricky one to describe. It's used by Morello in Cochise by Audioslave during the verse. This one is very good for instantly dropping a note down an octave but it harmonises as well rather than just dropping the note. On the top E string this forms an evil heavy grunge sound.

This original model is supposed to sound a lot better than the re-issues of it but I've yet to try a re-issue to see how true it is. My friend has the re-issue so some day I might swap with him for a couple of nights and see what it's like. To the point... if you've heard what these pedals do on any CD's then you'll be able to reproduce these sounds just as easily with this.

Quality! Digitech have done well with this. It's good to see things being built to the same kind of standard I myself would make it to if I were designing it. The pedal is rock solid folded sheet steel. The stomp switch is not going anywhere. The dial turns with a definite click into the settings so it doesn't easily move off them. The tredle is smooth operating and also made of sheet steel. At a guess it must be around 2mm thick sheet. The input jacks are all secured well.

The guy who sold me mine swore it works perfectly but the LED has died on it. I will get this resoldered at some point. Most LED's are rated for decades so it's likely in his quest for a new power supply he's blown it. The original supplies are meant to be slightly lacking and prone to failing, so by all means replace it but get a nice high quality one for silence!

Get a screw diver and open it up. First of all, admire those two original WH-1 chips you just paid so much for! Now check out where the tredle comes into the case. On the end is an LED and photo receptor cell opposite it. This is excellent... why? Because it means that there is no mechanical contact of your foot's action with the electronics of the pedal, keeping the electrical and mechanic sections completely seperate. You don't have some dumb variable resistor to wear down and brake. This is also why the pedal has such a silky smooth transistion! The only resistance you feel rocking the pedal is from the bar supporting it. 10 out of 10 for this idea!

There are only two alterations I would have made. The sides are not joined, but due to the strength of the steel they stay tightly closed up. It would have been very easy to run a weld down each one though. Secondly I would have moved the stomp switch and dial slightly more to the right so my foot can reach them a bit easier. But anyway, these are pathetic changes. The pedal is exceptionally well made! Well done Digitech!

Digitech answered my emails about the power supply and new LED in a couple of days, they're real good to deal with. I felt they could have gone in more detail in their answers but I'm sure they would have given me those details had I asked. I have expirenced some of the worst customer service ever but also unpresidented quality from other companies which is just a fraction of a percent better than Digitech's.

On the downside, repairs.... ack! I asked Digitech's dealers over here in the UK how much they'd need to repair the LED and was quoted around #50 or so for a 50p LED and two solder joints. I will instead find an amature radio guru with a #200 soldering iron to fix it over five minutes for a drink. If something major goes you WILL pay for it. The two control chips aren't made anymore so if they are statically shocked somehow (Touching them!!!) you may as well have bought a re-issue!

The best way to summarise my feelings about this pedal are to tell you how I got it. I am 18 and for a summer job I worked alongside an old guy making metal gates and railings. I realised after a few days that this was actually, I would make the gates and railings, I would then help fit them, and only get something like a 10th of the profit from them. Hours were around 12 or so a day, manual labour [I still have a groove down my thumb were a rack of metal fell on my hands and two small patches on my leg where I was burnt]. For what he describe as my 'normal days work' I was given #250 over every two weeks. So... to afford this pedal I suffered two weeks + of this crap and I would do it again if I had to for this pedal.

About the only downside to the pedal is it's hard to change the setting mid-playing. Some real careful foot work might do it but I've tried and it's difficult to say the least. If you really need to be able to change the setting with your foot I guess you could attach a short length of bent metal rod to the dial so you could turn it easier.

Everything about this pedal is a demonstration of someone's care and wish to create a highly usable guitar effect. If you're considering one, buy it, I promise you'll be pleased with what you get.

Well, for the whammy settings, you just set it, and its not heard until you lean on the rocker. For the harmonies its the same way, but the lowered position gives you one harmony, and the upper gives you another. For the harmonies, you could use theory knowledge or you could just trial and error. There's nothing "hard" about the pedal, however

Using it with a telecaster, into various effects, into a VHT combo. Sound quality is hard to judge in a pedal like this. I would much rather the catagory be something like "coolness." I think it sounds great. All those cool harmonies, and the cool octave effects. Plus a couple chorus settings. Does the 2 octave up effect sound pretty? No, but its not meant to.

As for shifting chords? It's doesn't want to do it. But its not supposed to do it. I mean, 2 note chords will work, but once you get passed that it gets garbled if you leave the pedal depressed. However, if you have a strong signal going into the pedal it helps. ALSO, if you keep the pedal moving, it helps a lot. Rock the rocker JUST as your strike the chord, and you get your chord. This isn't an eventide, or anything like that. Two completely different animals. trying to use harmonizing effects on a chord is a nasty proposition.

Again, I think it sounds great. Whether your doing Morrello stuff, or Trey Anastasio stuff, or John Scofield stuff, its a whole lotta fun. Not a very suble effect. It can be very pretty, or very bizzare, or very...."interesting." I like to use the harmonies for leads, especially, ones that don't totally interfere with the rhythm playing. I like to use the octaves at transition points in a song. To emphasize a resolution point, or right at the end. Again, the entire chord doesn't shine through, but you get the point. You can knock it up an octave in the middle of a solo to keep the audience on its toes.

As for the Chorus effects....ehh. I just don't like chorus in general. But they sound nice for what they are.

well, i bought broken, no signal. Sent it to Digitech, fixed it. I haven't heard of a lot of these breaking. The other model whammys imagine, but this is a heavy piece of metal. You can rock on it all day. Now, part of the reason i picked it up at a decent price is because it was broken. More on that in a bit.

Very friendly, informative. I called to check up, and the guy said. "Yep, its right here, going out tomarrow." It did.

Now, if you stop by 30th street guitars in The City, they'll have these going for like 500 dollars. THAT IS INSANE. I was about to buy the reissue, until i stumbled upon the broken original one for almost the same price. I figured if i got sick of it, I could make a killing on ebay. Of course, now I don't want to part with it. I only played the reissue briefly, and long before i got the original, so i can't compare at all. But, ebay prices are really high on these, and 30th street guitars are a rip off. SO YOU REALLY SHOULD TRY THE REISSUE. Or the Whammy 2. I know Trey Anastasio plays the 2, so it can't be bad. If possible, put them side by side. You can buy hella good guitars for the kinda money it takes to buy an original whammy on the collectors market. Don't get taken.