Dunlop Bass Crybaby

This was the Bass Crybaby, not the 105Q. It wasn't designed with Flea. I bought it new in 1993, and it was the first wah pedal I every tried. It's simple; Input, output, stompswitch under the treedle, thus activatied by stomping on the treedle. No pots. Can't imagine a simpler wah (the design's been around since the 60's).

This was a great pedal to learn how to use wah with. I don't know why everyone's breaking bad on this wah, mine was subtle, but basically what I expected; a Crybaby pedal that was optimized for bass frequency (the standard Crybaby for guitar didn't work for bass at all). It influenced the mids and highs, but didn't sweep as far as a Morley. A Morley is more exagerated and throaty. The difference between the Bass Crybaby and a Morley is kinda like the dialogue of a Star Trek movie; the Bass Crybaby being the english lines, the Morley more like the Klingon lines, that throaty. Bassically at the time, most prefered one or the other.

I like pedals that have replacible components. The stompswitch was essentially a Switchcraft, same as the jacks. The pot for the treedle was also replacible. Granted, I never had to replace either. The casing was cast metal and picking it up was like picking up a brick.

I eventually picked up a vintage Morley, and sold the Crybaby. The Bass Crybaby was a great learning pedal, plus it didn't get too shrill. The Crybaby was also about $30 cheaper, and more indestructable.

the pots are a bit small for my taste, but they do what they are supposed to do. Touch sensitive is cool, but only when it works...

I liked the high end going through this pedal, but was never happy with the bass through this unit. It seemed like it was one or the other, which dosn't always work out live. Decent for recording though, if you find somthing you like. Battery life is poor, and often times the pedal wouldn't shut off when released.

Worked ok for the first few years, but soon I found that the tiny little button under the heel that is supposed to shut the effect off stopped diong its job. At first it was once a week, then once a day, and soon it was every other time I took my foot off the pedal would stay at the spot just before the unit bypasses, that shoddy mud-like sound that drives me nuts.
I checked the button to see if it was being depressed and it certainly was. It looked to me like a textbook example of shoddy-component syndrome, a disease that is plagueing the music tech industry. One would think that a company like dunlop would not skimp out on a silly little button, but suprised am I? Not really.

I didn't even bother trying to resolve this pedal problem, ended up selling it to get a MOOG.

Well, I have to say, for the rediculous amount of money they charge for a unit which is quite simple in design you would think it would last a long time, but this is not true in my case. I've made the MOOG conversion and I'm not looking back. My new low-pass filter is the freakin' balls, and wouldn't trade it for any wah pedal. Selling my bass wah was the best decision I've ever made. If you really want the foot wah sound, get a vox or a budda wah.

So... there is no need for a manual
sure it need practise but...

CRY bassist...!
...here is the problem,
he loose a lot of volume when switched on and
yes it sounds whawhawhich but not bassistic, for special effect maybe is good but your band mates will hate it (expecially the drummer)
I hope to find a way to fix the volume drop and the horrible bottom end, any idea?

It is so well bulit that it makes you crying seeing it collectin dust

No idea

I got one lesson: never buy before trying
but it was so nice, solid, and with that brand...
and I was so in urge to spend some money...I better waited for an envelope filter like FLEA...

the problem is with the on-off switch. you can't always be sure... and the wah effect begins always with treble.

REAL BAD BASS sound . i just hate it.

i think trere's no problem like this

i m from Greece...

i don't like it because it has very bad bass and it changes the volume of my sound when i turn it on.

Very easy to use. Two knobs on the bottom of the pedal. Adjustable Q (wah amount) and volume. There isnt even a switch. Just rock the pedal and it turns itself on.

I think the bad reviews are from an older version of the pedal. The adjustable parameters are nice. I usually keep the Q up all the way for max funk. Sounds meaty! I do not believe that standard guitar wah pedals are good for bass like others suggest because they roll off the bass and sound pretty thin. This pedal puts through your low E without signal attenuation. Allthough it does roll off highs if used with a guitar or other high frequency instruments. I use it sometimes with my Yamaha SY-1 (their first synth ever from 1975, check the review!!!) and it sounds fat on the low octave but rolls off the entire signal in the high octave. Cant blame Jim Dunlop though, not what its meant for! My most major problem is when it switches off (about .5 seconds after you let off the pedal) you can usually hear it switch. Thats why they get a 9. I have learned to pause for a beat before continuing playing so the switch is not heard.

Its pretty reliable. I dont believe its going to break or anything. No need for a backup. Dunlop makes pretty reliable products. Unlike Morley...

Never dealt with them.

I like this pedal. The adjustable parameters are cool. Other wah pedals suck because they attenuate the bass range which is unacceptable. Max Q setting is pretty funky. I admit that I dont use the pedal much because using it all the time is overkill. It is a pretty specialized pedal though. I like to use it as well as an envelope filter because it is like a fully controllable envelope. I would eventually buy another if stolen or lost. This is a good bass pedal.

It's a simple wah. Kick it all the way forward to turn it on/off. Rock it forward for treble, backward for bass. Surprisingly, there was a manual...which I only consulted to find out why they gave me a manual.

Believe it or not, I'm playing this with a guitar. Yeah, a 6 string electric guitar...not a bass. On a whim, I tried it at Guitar Center (the 105Q, actually), and I loved it. So I looked for the standard and ordered it. My God, it's awesome. It's so mouthy...if that means anything to you. I have a standard Crybaby guitar wah, but I was looking for something a little different...a little off the wall. This is definitely it. On the OD channel, it sounds kinda weak. I play tuned to B, so on the lower strings it sounds wicked...but up on the high end, my sound just doesn't have enough bass to create a good sound. On the clean channel though, this baby sings. It's so funky. My pops says I need a big fro. It's totally funky. I recommend giving this a try.

I would depend on this. Dunlop has a good rep in my family (my bro's wah lasted him ten years before he needed a replacement...and he probably could've easily replaced the potentiometer, but he got the Hendrix was instead). I would take this without a backup...it's solid. It has good weight to it...which I love. Keeps it from sliding around on the floor. The Crybaby's do have a tendency to suck batteries if left plugged in...so I use an adapter and all my problems are solved.

Never dealt with them. I assume they're good people though.

I play mostly metal/stoner rock/grindcore...but I love to bust out a little funk now and then. Now that I have this, I really want to get myself a funk band.
For all the guitarists reading this, I'm playing a '99 Dean Caddy (tuned to B) into a Crate Blue Voodoo 60. Totally killer clean channel, and this bass wah makes it extremely unique.
Alot of people prefer the Q series wahs to the standards, but I prefer the standards. The Q's tend to dirty up my clean channel a bit, whereas the standards keep my sound as pure as possible. In addition, the bass Q wah is spring loaded with the automatic on/off...two things that I hate. I prefer the no-springs and on/off toe switch.
If this were ever lost or stolen, I'd immediately order another one.

Duh...it a wah

I use this not only as a bass wah but also as a wah for my acoustic guitar...really cool.

has a tendency to suck my battery. Now I have an adapter

Never had to contact them

Great pedal. I love it I do think however that I like it when I use it with my acoustic guitar.

How easy? It's a wah, so if you want you can leave your brain at home. Couldn't believe there actualy was a manual.

Like it. And I really don't understand why others seem to rate this cool wah so badly. The output doesn't really change, the frequency does. IT'S A WAH! And ofcourse you have to watch yourself at the low end (heel down): you play the BASS. It's bound to be a whole lot of low.

I play a 5string active Ibanez & a 4string paasive Hagstrom frettless through the wah and a Zoom 3000B into anything I come across. It's fine.

It's been working for I while and so is the battery.

Can't say I've met 'em.

Like it. The trick is to really be deliberate about your wahing. Practice practice practice. And remeber: you can sometimes leave the thing out.

One thing it should have: a button so you can ajust the range. But there forgiven.

If you want to funk; check it out!

It's a very easy pedal to use. I't doesent have the button like the guitar version, but that doesent matter. Recommended strongly.

I play on a washburn bass and a 60w amp. I use this pedal with fuzz from my Zoom 506, i get a really cool sound. I'm kinda trying to get the same sound as Cliff Burton former bassist in Metallica.
Of course he a different pedal, but i almost got the same one.
This pedal works great with fuzz. BUT..if you hook the fuzz before the wah wah in the amp, you almost dont hear the wah wah. Therefor;hook the wah wah FIRST.

I wouldn't doubt it a second. I would use it on a gig without backup.

Havent contacted been in the need to contact them.

I play heavy metal like Metallica, Mercyful Fate, Ozzy Osbourne....
It fits VERY good in my style. I have only been playing for about 1,5 years, but i like it very much;if i lost it, i would buy a new one.
I had to have another wah wah, cause the one on the Zoom 506 is horrible, mostly when you overdrive. If you use fuzz, you cant hear it at all. I wish it had a really good soft fuzz to it, that would be the ultimate.

Step on the toe switch its on, rock back and forth, step on the toe switch again and its off, my dog can do this and has. The timing on turning it on and off at the right times take a little finess

To make the bottom of the sweep clear(I had a problem with this too when I first got this) 1. you have to adjust your EQ with a little less bottom than you usally have(and I just know you have it all the way up) 2. buy better cords such as monster cables. I know the're a little pricy, but get the right ones designed for bass and you'll notice the difference in just you natrual tone. After this my 5-string bass mimicked all off the sounds of many favorite artists even on the b-string(which is tuned to an a on mine.

This thing can survive an atom bomb blast. I'm glad I had it at the turn of the century...

Never delt with Dunlop before...probally cause they make good s***.

I play pretty much anything I feel like.

*NOTE: I have the old bass crybaby, not the one with all the tone knobs and stuff* It's a wah pedal, nuff said. Once you play around with it and get the feel for how it's gonna sound it's pretty straight forward.

I use this with my jazz bass through a peavy amp. Not particularly good as a stand alone pedal, sound can be pretty thin in the high end of the sweep. Cranking the pre-gain seems to help a little bit. I stay off the heel as much as possible because it just gets all mushy sounding. Still, you can get a pretty funky sound outta this.

I never had a problem with it. It's pretty solid.

N/A

If you wake up one day and say to yourself "Hey, i need a wah pedal for my bass" this would be a good pedal to get. Fun to play with but if you're REALLY serious about funkin' up your bass you may want to look around a bit more. If this were stolen or it caught on fire or was carried off by small aliens i'd probablly get a different wah pedal. The major gripe is that on my model you can't turn the dam* thing off! You really have to play with it in different positions to find one that has a realativly clean bass sound if you don't want to play with a wah. Overall though, you get a pretty good deal if you wanna to get funky.

The effect is simple. Playing it well is difficult, but that's just the nature of a wah. Step on the toe end to turn it on or off, then just rock the pedal to change the tone.

Used before overdrive into Crate 80W combo.
Noise-wise, this is almost perfect. No problem.
The tone is a little weak. It sounds good in the first half of the pedal's sweep, and anything below that gets muddy.
It gives some really weird sounds with the overdrive on. It really brings out certain harmonics. The pitch of the harmonics can be adjusted with the wah.

Fun to play with, but kind of muddy.

Built like a tank. This thing can withstand a nuclear war. It's all metal.

don't know

I've been playing alternative and swing music, very clean sound. It doesnt' really add much to that.

Simple, back for ultra bassy sound forward for treble. It's that easy.

I love this pedal with my bass/amp combination! I have an Ibanez Soundgear885GN 5-String and a 150 watt peavey amp. It has little background fuzz when not on. When it's on it has little unless of course there is a low battery. It sounds good with a overdrive or chorus. True, it lacks a little in range but it is a good pedal for all types of playing. I play Red Hot Chili Peppers to KoRn to TOOL, it sounds good for adding little accents here and there to make it interesting. I like to some times click it on and off to accent certain notes to make them stand out. Good for slap/pop styles of playing.

No problems yet. No backup.

I wouldn't know.

It is a good match for my slap pop style of playing.

This is the easiest pedal in the world, just step your foot in the pedal and then play it .....

But the sound, woow it's really suxxxxx ... if click it on, your sound volume will be drop ... and your sound very thin ... but at the one position your sound will be hear ... ggggggggrrrrrrrr .... if you connect with another effect (I use Noise Suppresor, Bass Limiter Enhancer, Super Chorus and Eq) It just makes the suxx sound going to the front .....

I'm not depent on it, if i want play using wah, i can use GCB-95 (for guitar) or i can play with morley PDW, the sound much better ....

I never dealt with them, but i don't know, where's the responsibility from Jim Dunlop Company, They has a great name with wah, but their produce a junk wah for bass ...... You know ... for my country (Indonesia) in this economical crisis, the price from this junk is very expensive ....

I play Metallica, Beatles, Police, Sting and Genesis sound, but this is not a good match .... I bought this pedal on March 10, 1999, but i want to sell this machine right now (March 12,1999). This machine only destroy my sound bass from my effect ....

It's a pretty simple effect. Tilt back for bass, forward for treble.

It has a pretty good sound, although I'd have liked more depth. It seemed to drop straight from thin to muddy without much in between. When turned off there was a little distortion, but not too much. I use a Fender Jazz Fretless, and it sounded pretty funky when slapped with the wah. This thing sounds better in a chain of effects as opposed to standing alone. When played after a BOSS Bass Overdrive, it sounded great...just like Metallica. Also heard on with a chorus and a delay. It was trippy!

Worked fine for me.

N/A Never had to.

Like I said before, by itself it was weak, with overdrive or chorus it kicked ass. Overall not a bad toy. I play funk, and as a bassist I'd rather use an envelope filter.

How hard can it be to use a wah?

This wah really suxxs. The range is extremly short and you don't get much of a wah effect at all. At fast stomping it gets a low, short wah sound wich is too weak. And when pushing it down slowly it sounds horrid, dont even do it. Don't buy this shit, buy a Morley, they are way better.

Wouldent buy it again. It suxxs. I'd buy a Morley.

Rest your foot on the pedal, rock it forward, and your bass (supposedly) goes "wah". Rock your foot back , and your notes go "aow". Easy.

Put plainly, this pedal sounds like crap. It muddies up the low end, creates weird overtones(?) that make for inconsistent tone over the course of the "wah", and cuts the volume by about a third. My individual unit also creeates a horrible squelching noise that no amount of pot cleaner has been able to fix. The sound quality, in a word, sucks.

Mine started squelching after about three months out of the box. 'Nuff said.

No idea. After commiserating with fellow bassists, I have come to the conclusion that this piece of junk ain't worth the money it would take to fix it. If I didn't recieve it for a Christmas present (instead of the envelope follower I asked for), I never even would have owned it.

I wouldn't wish this thing on anybody. Right now its collecting dust in the back of my closet, waiting for the day I use it as a trade-in for something decent. The Dunlop Bass Crybaby should be the poster-pedal for mass-marketed garbage. DON'T BUY IT! You've been warned.

Does it get any easier? No knobs no dials just a pedal.

After 25 minutes of playing the thing produced a terrible hissing noise and I returned it shortly.

It broke right off the bat.

They did everything they could but my problem was just a manufacturer defect. Returning it was easy. Got a full refund.

Good pedals if you can find one that works.

It's fairly easy to use, just step on it. The only problem is telling wether the pedal is on or off. There should be an LED or something. Takes a bit of practice to learn how to use it.

Does not really generate any noticable noise. Wah is OK but is sort weak, not enough bottom. Biggest problem is that it gets quieter when you turn it on, big problem if you using it in a band. I never use mine because of this.

It might not be good, but it is consistant. It's never broken down on me and the battery lasts for an eternity. Good tough metal casing heavy but can resist small explosions.

Never had to, but send in the warrenty card just in case.

I would not buy this again, what good is an effect if you don't use it. The wah is kind of weak and muddy, but if you enjoy weak crappy sounding whas you gotta get one of these. It's hard to turn on and off if you are standing on carpet and is hard to use if you are sitting down. If you can get one cheap go for it otherwise your probably better off with out it.

Uh... cool beavis. Any Butthead can do it.

It destroyed the bass sound, both in the high and low registers. It did not stand up to to it's big bro: original crybaby.

I used to have an original crybaby. Pretty tough. Although my guitarist is on his second original one after four years... understandable. So maintenence required: oil pivit.

N/A

Since I never bought it, I guess I could say I never will. I bought a DOD Envelope Filter on the same store visit... much more fun for $20 less. If you want a manual wah effect for bass, just buy the original. It's better than the bass one.

I find hard to rock the pedal back and forth at the right times.I can never get the wah sound in where I want it.It takes some practice.

I think the sound quality on mine is pretty bad. When it's in the back posistion the low is to muddy and you can't hear it at all. When I put it in the front posistion the volume is suddenly 20 times louder.

It's a pretty reliable pedel.Needs grease every once in a while.

n/a

I wouldn'tbuy this pedal again, I would buy amorley or an envelope filter.I wish this pedal had atone controll for the front and back posistions. The only thing I use it for is making the tone on my bas brighter by leaveing it in the front posistion.

If you can't figure it out, you shouldn't try to get out of bed tomarrow.

This isn't some pansy-assed alternative/grung pedal, marketed for gen X. It's a wah, just lowwer. If you want to add a little sleasy funk type sound to your set-up, then this a lot cheeper way to go than shelling out $350 for a mutron. Add it to a chorous, reverb, flanger or other phase shifting effect for ultra-funky vibe. Bootsy might be knocking at your door within days of your purchase.

As reliable as your guitarists cry-baby. I've had mine a couple of years, no complantes. It's with held the toil of fairly constant giging and you should see audiance's faces when you kick it in. Their guarunteed to sit up, take notice, and smile with approval.

If it don't break, no need to fix it. Right?

Not the most esential pedal in the book, but a hell of a good time, and more versitial than you'd expect. Wan't to living thinggs up in your dull little cover band? This might be the answer.

I liked it at first, but after a while it seemed more like playing under water than a wah. I got it mostly for distorted stuff but it muddied the tone up so it wasn't usefull.

Really quiet but the wah effect needs a wider range.

Sucks, I've had it about seven months and it stoped working about a month ago, works better as a cheesy volume pedel.

I wouldn't buy another one, am currently looking for a new wah.

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