Dunlop Crybaby 95Q

Very easy...just wah. There's three smaller knobs but you get the hang of what they do real easy--I never remember which is which anyways, I just set them to where the sound good. The switchless feature is awesome; one of the real reasons I bought this pedal. Just so you know if you rock all the way back then it will cut off, but it's easy to feel that out.

This baby sounds awesome. There's really two kinds of wah-players--classic ones who do Hendrix et. al. and then modern ones who like to use it w/ a lot of leads and dirt and stuff; this wah does it for both parties. It's the straight Crybaby sound that you can shape and customize at will. Looking for that really subtle harmonic-shifting rocking that will just make your leads and solos jump out? You can just dial in for that. Going for the Shaft "wicca wicca" sound? That's also easy. I compared this with a bunch of other wahs (Morley, Vox, other Dunlop)...it just blew them away.

I don't know how common this is, but if I leave the pedal on full-on forward position with my amp turned up a ways, it will give you high screeching feedback really easily--There's some harmonic up there that the wah's filter doesn't cut out. There's also a slight delay when coming out of the effect but it's not more time than it would take to switch off one of the original toe-switch models.

Haven't had it long enough to comment on long-term prospects.

I've emailed Dunlop several times...and they get back to you (no speed records though...a several day wait is usual) so I know there's someone there. No other experience though.

Great product...I play mostly modern rock (U2, Third Eye Blind, Goo Goo Dolls, Fuel) with some classic rock (Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, Beatles) running LP Goldtop --> Mesa Boogie Maverick 4x10 (EL84 all tube sounds phat) and probably use wah more than any other effect (except maybe delay)

crapped up manual....but who needs one anyway? just step on it and wah.

u can get that "voodooo chile" by SrV...the auto off switch is a good feature......although the half second delay from wah to non-wah mode...u can hear the change from wah to non-wah... thats a real s**t a$$ thing...its like playing a chord and sustaining it...and then turning off the overdrive and u will notice the change in sound (not referring to overdrive to clean...but the noticeable non bypass to bypass sound)... also...if u were to rock it back and forth constantly...u have to make sure u dont stay more then half a sec at the heel position...or the thingy will go into bypass mode..which again leads to an audible irritating "silent click" (i dont noe how to describe it)...so u hafta be extremely careful when rocking back and forth if u rock it SLOW>....coz the delay effect be4 the pedal gets auto bypass kicks in after u leave it a heel position for more than half a sec..also..the booster seems to add more gain...not real useful..

brick hard stuff...heavy stuff...realiable stuff i shuld guess..

never dealt with em

its a good wah though....but its hard to get subtle wahs...(dont trust my ratings (since when are ratings trustable)..read my opinions instead...and decide for yerself
best thing go test it out yerself

This pedal is extremely easy to use. Its switchless, so you just need to put your foot on it to activate. The Variable Q dial is pretty simple, and the volume is also straightforward. The boost switch on the side can sometimes be bumped, and will radically alter your tone if you hit it.

I run a Squier Strat through the wah, then through an Ibanez TS-9 Tubescreamer reissue, and then to a Fender Deluxe 90 amp. I think that it sounds a lot better when I run the wah before the overdrive. I play hard rock, alternative, blues, and a little punk, and this wah is extremely versatile. It gives a great reproduction of Hendrix's sound on Voodoo Chile, and it can also reproduce a White Room Clapton like tone. I don't like the boost switch at all, it adds a little overdrive to your sound, but it boosts the treble so much that it makes me cringe. Luckily, you don't have to use the boost switch, so thats not that big of an issue.

I have had this pedal for almost one year, and it has worked fine. The fact that its switchless made me a little nervous at first, because I was worried that it would just stop working, but the pedal has proven me wrong. The battery has a tendency to run out without any warning, so I would recommend using a power supply system to insure that the battery will not run out, because if it does, your signal will not get to the amp at all.

Never dealt with the company

It is a very versaltile pedal, it should cover most wah applications that someone would need. One important thing you should know is that this thing sounds like crap without any reverb, so if you don't have any reverb in your sound, I recommend that you try it out without any reverb on and see if you like the sound. Email me and tell me what you think about the pedal.

Simple. Two Cords: 1 from your guitar to the Crybaby, 1 from the Crybaby to your amp (don't forget the 9V in the pedal..via a convenient battery access door...no more unscrewing the whole bottom). Turn the amp on and step on it...that's it. If you want to mess around, there's a Q control (depth of Wah) and a 0-15db volume boost control on the left and a kick-type switch on the right which either enables or disable the boost (which only kicks-in when the effect is on). You turn on the effect by pressing on the pedal (which is spring-loaded and returns automatically to the heel-down position). The effect automatically shuts off 1/2 second after you release the pedal (or if you hold it in the heel-down position).

Pretty great wah sound. However, the boost tends to muddy things up a bit...I don't use it. It might be handy if you want to squeeze a little more gain out of a not-so-high-gain amp or patch. I run my CyberTwin pretty hot in the preamp, so this feature does nothing for me. But its a Crybaby and it sounds like one...very good quality...and extremely quiet. On-off switching is hardly even noticeable...you really have to listen for it.

You can use Dunlop stuff as a hammer, and anvil or to chock the wheels of an 18-wheeler. Trust me on this.

Never needed it...good, right?

What a great live pedal. Auto on-off and great sound. The only thing you compromise is that if you like to leave the pedal half-cocked...you won't be able to do it on this one (because of the spring-loaded return). Also, you won't be able to get the effect in the heel-down position because that's the position that shuts the effect off. However, the switchless convenience is a worth-while tradeoff, and being able to dial in the Q is a great feature. Awesome product, and well worth the extra money over the original Crybaby.

Very easy to use - just plug in your guitar cables, put a 9V battery in (you don't need to unscrew the feet this time, the battery compartment has a easy to open cover) and start wah-ing. There's a side switch that toggles the boost on or off, and 2 knobs that control the Q and the level of boost if the boost in being used.

Sounds excellent - the size of the wah sweep can be adjusted over a wide range using the Q control, which I am sure will accomodate most people's requirements. Can sound quite aggressive, in fact I think the mildest setting may be a little too wide for some. As for noise level, it is as silent you can ask for in an effect; at most all you hear is a soft hiss even with the amp at high volumes. The supposed boost switch doesn't help much really, just makes the sound rather fuzzy, in any case I see little need for a signal boost with this pedal. The auto off feature is an excellent touch and sends the pedal seamlessly into bypass mode when the cradle (spring loaded, by the way) returns to its rest position. An intentional delay is added so you can use the whole sweep range while wahing, without it turning off every time it reaches that position.

The ~1kg steel casing is very heavily built and the plug sockets and moving parts are solidly set into it, though the 2 control knobs do move a little. In any case, they're quite small and are quite unlikely to break. I would easily use this on a gig with no backup. Mine is quite new though, so not having really put it to the test yet I can't give it a 10.

Never dealt with them before

Overall, I'd say it's an excellent pedal though I think I may have overpaid for it a little. It's spring loaded cradle with auto-off and the fact it uses only 1 battery are excellent features that the 535Q lacks, though if you want sheer versatility just get that. The sound quality is excellent - about as good as you can get, really. With the regular, somewhat risky crybaby leaving you with no option to shape the sound, I'd say this pedal is the best compromise between features and price; you can't go wrong buying it.

I don't think you could get a bad sound if you have a decent rig. The adjustments are pretty simple..there's two knobs that are labeled on the bottom of the pedal...unless you illiterate..no problems. There is a manual..and it just repeats the obvious. No mods and none are needed. The knobs need to be bigger though, they are a pain in the ass to adjust, especially while playing. It's solid for one sound at a time...that's for sure. The tiny controls are my only complaint. I would personally like to thank Dunlop for making the 9-volt accessable from a door instead of unscrewing all the screws...I love it!

I'm still using a Samick SG, Amer. Std. Strat, and Jackson USA dinky reverse, now they have a nice Hughes and Kettner combo to go through. I have no trouble with noise and the switch on or off is suprisingly very quiet, the only thing that changes is your tone..there is no "snap", "crackle" or "click" when the wah engauges or disengauges, but there is boost which can be turned on or off on the fly. The "Q" dial is really like an EQ for highs...when all the way up you get a Tom Morello like "QAUCK" and when it's rolled back it's nice and mellow for playing underlying tracks like the eletric parts of "what it's like" by everlast or "It's time to move on" by Petty. It's very flexible play wise, but you won't reallly notice the difference if you just turn the "Q" dial if your rocking the thing back and forth while playing. I'm using a Hughes & Kettner 100watt combo and a Marshall guv'nor(the original). While the highs can get crackly but that's the guv'nor not the wah, just a treble knob that I never bother to turn down,(I keep it nice and crunchy for Master of Puppets and Cemetery Gates, then use the lead on my amp for the solos). I can sound like Dime, Tom and Kirk, and close enough to KWS..what more could I ask for??

It's made by Dunlop....need I say more? I will be buried with this thing, nevermind a gig or two.

I have already owned a JD pedal, it was 4 years old when I got it, then I traded it a year later, never had a single problem, never known anyoe who's had a problem with a JD pedal either. I just didn't like the fuzz distortion or the octave wah(wish I still had it now that I've matured musically).

I play the typical stuff...metal, rock, blues..and on and on. I have no problems at all with finding a beauty tone for any style. If you want a flexbable wah get one of these they are great, not only does it have the Q dial, and adjustable volume boost but it's also switchless!!! For a measly 100$ you'll be in searching a long time to find a better deal. I even paid for the thing in Canadian funds and think it's a steal. If lost i'd get another one ASAP, My favorite feature would have to be a toss up between it being switchless and the "Q" dial. The volume boost is just a nice add on( which I was happy to see was only 10$ more). I would have compaired products...but really, what is there? I own a Morley Vol/wah...it's nothing compaired to this pedal. I wish it had a nice LEAD distortion on it..but that would make it perfect.

how simple is this. a wah pedal with an autoswitch. step down and wah. the autoswitch has an interesting feature, a half-second delay between from when you take your foot off the pedal and the time it shuts off. lets you use the bass side of the sweep. a little annoying if you want it to shut off immediately but otherwise i can live with it. kickswitch on the side for the volume boost and a knob for the Q(adjusts the wah response-goes from barely there to screaming, almost says wow) and another for the amount of volume boost (from none to about 15db). simple as hell.

sounds like a crybaby. a cross between a 535Q and a regular crybaby. the best of both worlds. if you like crybaby's this is for you. i cant hear any tone being sucked out of my setup with it. setup is dime333w/emg's>wah>5150. the Q knob can get pretty extreme at the full on position, just the way i like it. sure other wah pedals sound better but i cant justify spending near $300 on a fulltone or a tesse when i can have the local electronics god mod it for me and get the same sound. does seem to get a little crackly when the pedal is toe down and i'm hitting some high notes. and it gets a hiss when the boost if maxed out but that cant be heard if you're playing. but thats all i've found so far.

there's an interesting story that goes with this. i had the local electronics god order this for me (not only does he rebuild and mod any type of guitar, bass, or p.a. gear you can come up with he gives a hellacious discount on the stuff he sells) and the first on he got wouldnt wah. i stepped on it and i heard the effect kick on, but no wah. took my foot off and heard the effect kick off. the only way i could get a wah sound out of it was to turn the Q knob while holding the effect on. so it got sent back to the wholesaler. the next one came in and lo and behold it worked. and sounded good. if history is any indication though, my last crybaby lasted me several years til i got my power supplies mixed up and fried it. this one should last me a good while.

cant say. the first one was sent back to the wholesaler so i cant really say. but thats the big advantage of having a good dealer around. he took care of that for me and was kinda upset that that firstone didnt work. i doubt i could have got another one in 3 days from musicians friend.

if you play any type of rock music a wah is almost a necessity. i like the autoswitch on this one, my other crybaby was almost impossible to turn on while sitting. i just compared it to a 535Q, and i got this one because it only takes 1 battery(9 volts are fucking expensive these days), and the fewer knobs i have to deal with the better. good pedal if you like a crybaby. kinda expensive for a wah if you pay the guitar center price ($135) but musicians friend has them cheaper and somebody that does good business will at least match that. and if you live in the north alabama area go to Guntersville and find Dixie Soundworks. John can give you a hookup like nobody else.

a very pro unit, designed for live use and it works great.

The design / functionality: They have got this sooooo right, I wish I had this design of a wah back in the 70s when I really needed it. ...oops, am I revealing my age here? :-o

Once you get one of these underfoot you will morph into Kirk Hammet....for 2 reasons:
- it does a great job of sounding like him,
- you'll enjoy the pedal so much you won't be able to quit using it, just like Kirk! :-D

Does the Betty Ford clinic have a section for wah addicts? I'm becoming one after this pedal,
it's just so easy to work, and to jump in and out of wah at the slightest moment with no worry whatsoever of *not* switching it on or *leaving* it on once you go back to rhythm (oh I hate that). And you can simply stomp it briefly during a rhythm part to add a little spice to a note or chord, man that is fun and you could never do that with almost any other wah pedal.

For soloing I've found I always want that boost on, and at its max of 15db increase.

I guess for rhythm playing (ie: "Fame" by Bowie, or the theme song to "Shaft" :) ) you may not want the boost on. So far I only use wah for solos or little leads here and there so I'm considering hard-wiring my boost always on and removing the little red metal pushbutton. It's good though that the red pushbutton automatically shows you whether the boost is on or off without the need for a led. The leds location on the 535 is useless! you'll never see them.

The only negs (negatives):

Neg1:
this is really NOT any neg for live at all, but for studio use if you want the benefit of the Q (and Q is an extremely useful feature), then you may want to be using the 535Q model instead of this 95Q.

The studio-recording-neg of using this 95Q model is how the effect switches off when you stop pressing on the pedal, it is an audible switch. Although it is fairly smooth and does not make any pop or click, it's definitely there. Also there is a momentary delay for it to switch off, so for studio-precision-timing this may be a problem; but then again in a studio you'd probably be punching-in the wah track so that may be no prob at all for you.


Neg2:
this is a very minor one and it doesn't bother me at all, but since this is a review to help folks who haven't yet had a chance to try it out or (if you're in my situation your local stores suck) who may be buying it online without trying it out, so I think it should be mentioned:

the most subtle setting of the Q (widest Q, turning the knob all the way counter-clockwise) is really not that subtle, it's maybe a little bit less extreme than a standard crybaby but it's still a very audible wah tone. If you were wanting to use just a very slight wah to spruce up a rhythm track this least-wah setting may still be too much wah.


A NOTE about the new QZ1 Q-zone pedal, which is a stompbox that has a fixable wah setting: Excellent idea this box is and I've wanted this functionality for years; the old Peavey Renown amp had this in the way of a phase shifter that you could set at any given point in the cycle by pulling it's knob out. However, before you go pay for one of these QZ1s consider if you have a preamp/processor that can already do this. I have the Digitech 2112 and that box does every single thing I need except for one thing: a good wah pedal. It has a feature-rich wah effect but the optical pedal just doesn't translate the data fast enough for good pedal action, and you get more on/off wah instead of good modulated wah. HOWEVER, the stationary wah sound the 2112 can produce is excellent and it has many many parameters you can set. So, if you have a preamp/processor you might want to see if it can do the same for you as the QZ1 and save yourself $89. Other than that I think the QZ1 is a great idea and we needed it 3 decades ago just like this new 95Q.

Excellent. If you like the crybaby sound you'll like this, I've owned the GCB95, the 535(NotQ), and now this one; I like this 95Q best, I'm selling my 535, and I'll keep my GCB95 around as a backup plus it wouldn't fetch enough money to be worth selling.

I rate its sound a 9 not 10 only because I have heard slightly better sounding wahs on pro recordings and I don't know what they were using, but I think this is all I'll need.

I've owned several crybaby's, sold them to friends, etc., have never had one fail yet including the ones my friends still own.

Their website has a cool FAQ sheet about troubleshooting and I quickly found a friend's problem. His was missing the rubber footpad so I glued on a substitute which did not specify input and output; one day he plugged it in backwards and got a high pitch squeal. From his telling me the problem over the phone I found the solution on the Dunlop website; plug it in correctly, it worked fine again.
"operator error" :-).

Their website also has sample sound files and information on how the different wah pedals' features are set up. Excellent little resource.

Never had to call the company, but I emailed them for catalogs and whatnot and they sent me all the cool info I needed! 2 thumbs up.

*additional comment, I didn't realize until just now the 105Q bass crybaby sounds like it has the same features as this 95Q; so you may want to read those reviews for various opinions on functionality and reliability of the buttons/switches/etc.

I've only owned this a week but I've owned other crybaby's for years and I'm totally happy with this unit, it's the most functional / useful crybaby I've ever had. I'm glad they didn't overprice it like the 535 and 535Q models. The standard crybaby is a great buy but for the extra features I highly recommend you try out the 95Q.