Dunlop GCB-95

If a wah-wah pedal isn't easy to use, I don't know what is. :) Just click and move up and down with your foot. The only suggestion would be to adjust the rubber "feet" on the bottom of the pedal to where you like them. You can cut them if you want. Otherwise, it's sometimes hard to "click" the wah on and off. Other wise, a "10".

The Dunlop GCB-95 is a good sounding wah pedal. It was my first wah pedal and is one of the most popular wahs on the market. I've owned 2 of these same Crybabys and although I enjoyed them when I had them, I won't go back to using them. I much prefer my Vox V847 re-issue. The sound quality is very good however. Good on clean sounds and distorted. I just find I've outgrown the tone of these pedals and the Vox just seemed to have more of what I was looking for. (ie: TONE!) :)

I find the Dunlop pots to wear out and get scratchy quickly. I've owned 2 of these pedals and they both felt a little different from each other. Kind of strange since they're made ruggedly. I've found my Vox and it's original pot to hold out longer although I'd like to try a Fulltone "Clyde" pot which they say lasts a lot longer than your standard wah pot.

I've e-mailed Dunlop on occassion about their MXR pedals, but not asking anything about these Crybabys. They answered quickly and precisely. Most guitar companies I've dealt with through e-mail with general questions have be kind and helpful.

The Dunlop GCB-95 Crybabys are very popular wahs mainly because of the price and sound. I found that I prefered the Vox wah over the Dunlop a GREAT deal. I owned a Morley PWA wah and disliked it a lot. I don't like how you have to push the pedal down parallel to the floor and I didn't like the tone. It was kind of sterile and it reminded me of Kirk Hammett's (of Metallica) wah sound which I can't stand! I enjoyed owning the 2 Dunlop wahs I had, but I honestly don't see using any other wah besides a Vox or a Fulltone Clyde. Everyone seems to slam Dunlop, but they make great, reliable gear, even if their re-issues aren't EXACTLY the same as the original models.
You can check out my review for the Vox wah in the Vox section of The Effects Database.
Check out a collection of links to my other Harmony-Central reviews at my web site and also see what gear I have for sale!
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The crybaby is a traditional good wah pedal.You just click your toe on the front of the pedal and it's on.And swing your foot to alter the sound.Push up with your heel for a bassier wah,push down with your toe for that hendrix screaming treble.Battery compartment is a little awkward though.Takes a bit of practice to get used to.

I was using my zoom 9000 and my customized strat,with a small marlin practice amplifier,And it sounded great! I left it on the reble and didn't bother changing the sound of the pedal with my foot.Very jimi hendrix and clapton (not to mentio slash) Add only a little bite of distortion or you'll take your head off!

The pedal is constructed like a tank and will take years of abuse. I use it always now,and don't have to worry about breaking it!

Havent had the need to and i don't think i will not for another five years or more!!

This pedal is a must for all rock and funk guitarists! This pedal is what will give you those screaming solo's and chunky rythms.i've only had it for awhile and i love it!! This is the only wah pedal you should buy and all you will ever need.It will always be a part of my sound and i will always use it.Go find one and buy it now!!! Rock on!

Sometimes its hard to turn on, as you have to step on it to activate the effect, but once it's on, it sounds great. There's really not much to say about how to use it, just rock yer foot back and forth.

Through a Peavey guitar and Crate amp, she sounds great. Of course the distortion gives bite, and when played clean it is crystal clear. You get good sounds for guys like Guns N Roses, Cream, Metallica and other rockers. My only problem is that dust can get in the exposed pot and this makes it sound "hissy". Go to Radio Shack and pick up some cleaning spray and give it a squirt when you get the problem. I keep it in a bag when Im not playing, and this helps.

Like I said, when the pot gets dusty its a pain, but the thing has been very durable. I got it used with out any problem to it, and I havent had any complaints yet. I cant afford a backup, but I probably wouldnt get one anyway, cuz not having a wah for half a gig isnt the end of the world.

N/A

I play rock music and thats obviously what its built for. A great buy.

since no manual was included with this particular pedal i will just have to add my own! to turn the pedal on...STEP ON IT! to turn the pedal off..STEP ON IT! to USE the pedal (ala the great Kirk Hammett) rock it back and forth in any desired rhythm or to accentuate certain notes...and i find it pretty cool to keep it in the treble position and play (sounds pretty cool to me)

i use a peavey high gain amp with a 300 watt peavey cabinet in my band i also use a kramer rhoads-type V with locking trem and seymour duncan distortion high-output humbuckers (dont try to get my guitar cause they dont make em anymore and they are extremely rare especially the neptune, new jersey type) i have been playing with this pedal for a year and a half ((in the life of metallica hehehe)) and it ALWAYS sounds great..no scratchy, weak sounding noises! whenever i plug this pedal in with some heavy distortion and improvise on a solo...it sounds great i would say 95% of the time! it also sounds GREAT on clean...and as i said before this sounds ALOT if not exact like kirk hammett of metallica (im pretty sure this is the kind he uses) distortion is great...never tried with chorus...delay can make for some cool ideas :) i heard flanger is pretty neat with it... but all in all...if youre looking for a cool wah pedal for metal or rock or whatever you play (i play metal) hehe...it sounds great! although the only problem i face (avid metallica fans know what im talking about) i cant get that REAL heavy wah sound in the beginning of "the outlaw torn" (last track on Load-1996) but it doesnt matter cause they use an auto-wah for that!

I can depend on this as if my life depended on it (with the exception of a dead battery) it is made up solid steel and EXTREMELY hardened rubber the kind you couldnt jackhammer through! and no i wouldnt use it as a backup on a gig (not to mention the fact i cant afford another but they are fairly cheap) i got it for christmas a couple years back, and it has not crapped out once...(and i beat this thing to death)

never ever had to deal with customer support...and have a very strong feeling i never will!

all in all...this thing is GREAT! i have heard morley and vox wahs! and well, though they are good for some things...dunlop surpasses them in all...i hear people complain about no led light, well...all you have to do is STEP ON IT! and when you feel it click! (and there is no mistaking it) then its on and vice versa! this thing improves my solos DRASTICALLY! if this thing ever got stolen or lost, i would just buy another one.. its that simple! in other words...buy it...hehe..buy it now!

Just a simple wah, folks. Not much to explain here.

This is one of the best wahs out there, much more organic than a Morley or some other type of photo-optic pedal. Frequency operating range could be somewhat fatter, I guess, but this one is still very good. Wah is kind of abrupt. Try hooking it up backwards, and, while you won't hear your guitar at all, you sometimes can get some pretty crazy sounds by rocking the pedal. This works best with distortion. Of course the thing sounds bad when the pot craps out, as any pedal would. Under these circumstances, it gets very noisy. I still prefer the Vox sound.

I use this thing on gigs without a backup, and it hasn't let me down so far (Except once when I forgot to put a battery in!, but that was my fault). The real reliability question comes when discussing the potentiometer. The thing got really scratchy and noisy within two years after I bought it. This wouldn't be so bad if the pedal didn't use a sealed pot (I couldn't squirt tuner cleaner in to fix it). New pots cost about 25 clams, and if you can't do it yourself, that'll cost you another 10 or 20.

Never dealt with the co.

For funk and fusion, this pedal does the trick. If it were stolen or lost, I would probably spend a few extra bucks and get a Vox Chrome top, just because I like the operating range a little better-a matter of opinion. Overall, this is a really good pedal for a good price.

Just step on the pedal with slight pressure and it's on. Rock the pedal back and forth for a wah sound. Cant get any simplier than this

I use the wah pedal through my effects loop on my crate gxt100 combo amp using an ibanez rg450dx guitar. The sound is nice and smooth, it's not very noisy for me but since i play loud anyways, so I wouldn't notice any noise.
On high volumes using the treble filter (pedal forward) can hurt your ears. The bass filter (pedal up) is not weak sounding as i've heard from some other people.
However one thing that gets to me is when i start using the pedal is when I turn the thing on and i hear this big pop noise but it goes away after minutes of use. Funny thing is this only happens when i use my fx loop but when i patch through direct from my guitar to the amp, the pop noise doesn't occur however in this method but the wah is weak and very noisey.

batteries take ages to drain. Thing is made out of metal so i suppose it's durable and i'd use it in a gig without a backup

never bothered dunlop so no opinion from me

I've been using this pedal for almost a year now. Hasn't given me any problems whatsoever except for that pop noise as i mentioned above but i suppose you should wait a few minutes before using boxes through the fx loop <?>.
i play mostly a funk and metal style with it and it works good on clean and a distorted tone. This pedal is very versatile in terms of sound.
One thing that would be nice on this pedal is a led light to see if pedal is on or not.
I have yet to see the problems that arose for other owners of this pedal.

Very simple to use.

Some noise with quiet imput in far toe position. A noise gate or noise reduction unit might help. The noise is not noticable over a drummer and bass, howevever.
I also noticed that the sound varies greatly depending on your amp. I have a cheaper solid state amp here that the crybaby sounds very poorly with. It sounds excellent with an older Gretch tube amp I have, and sounded very good with the Crate practice amp I tested it on at Guitar Center.

Indestructable. My friend has the same device, we used to stand on his all the time.
I purchased the power adaptor, so battery life isn't an issue.

Haven't talked with Dunlop.

This thing is a whole lot of fun... Now I can play mad disco riffs and cheesy slow wah-wah muzak like in those low-budget porno flics... Totally elite.

Very simple to use. Some people complain about the bypass switch being hard to switch, but I have no problem with it(unless I'm sitting down). I wish it had an LED, but otherwise its great.

Is it noisy? Yes. Does it pick up radio stations? Occasionally. But I love Crybaby wah anyway. It has great range, and a smooth sweep. Its also very useful as a filter(i.e. STP Vasoline). The first song I played on it was Voodoo Child. I then played Bulls on Parade. I knew this was the wah I was looking for.

I've heard some bad stories about these things, mostly about the pots and switches. I've talked to a few people, and have heard both good and bad. No problems so far. The unit itself is very sturdy.

Not yet, but the pedal does have a reassuring one year warrenty.

I would buy this pedal as many times as I needed to. I was going to get a Morley Bad Horsie, but it didn't anywhere near as good as the Crybaby. I didn't want to sacrifice tone for dependability. It was pretty expensive too. That's what's great about the Crybaby; even if they're not as dependable as other wahs, the price is low enough, and the sound is good enough to make it worthwhile.

this pedal i would say is quite basic.toe down for on/off.only thing is you don't know whether it is on or not unless you strum the guitar coz there ain't any LED display.there isn't any manual included though.just a warranty with some tips and how to put the battery in it.to put a battery in is a bit of a hassle.you have to open all 4 rubber feet(but i just open two which i think is enuff) to put the battery in.the battery drain is not much.but i suggest adaptors at all times.

the sound quality is great.it is better on clean though.even with the wah in one place it sounds great.you can try out different kinds of tones with it despite being a wah pedal.

it is very dependable.built to last like a tank.although i haven't gigged with it-yet i think it doesn't need any back-up.

you don't need it!

overall it is a good buy and i think i would buy more of it if i have the money and better skills.i don't really know how to control it.one thing that lacks is no LED and you have to change the pot when it is scratchy.but not till the next 20 yrs or so!comparing to a morley i think it has better sound quality.anybody who has any techniques please email me.

No manual came with mine. Pretty easy to set up and use. "Amplifier" and "Instrument" are plainly marked on the top when you're plugging in cables. Mine seemed a bit stubborn at times when stomping in and out of the wah function. I can only blame the factory for setting that up poorly. Simple fix was to remove the bottom and adjust the switch height by moving the nuts that hold it in there. Anyone can do it. Otherwise, Ease-Of-Use should have been a 10.

What a disappointment! From the beginning, it sounded weak, thin, and not at all like Jimi or Stevie or...(pick your personal favorite and insert name here). Was it their mega-million dollar guitars and amps that made their wah-wahs sound so much better? Didn't hurt, that's for sure, but here's what I found. When I started whining to a local repair guy, he described my pedal's sound to me, without ever hearing it, as if it were his. We agreed that "whicka-whicka" was the best it could do. And the older it got, the scratchier it sounded. Solution? Certainly not throwing good money after bad by replacing the stock pot. A "hot-rodded" pot with a much wider bass/treble response changed everything. Now it sounds like Trower and all those guys who played the beautiful singing guitars I grew up with. It's that simple. Listen to a stock one, then listen to a sweet one. Night and day difference. Sounds like a human crying, which is kinda what a lot of blues is all about. It speaks now, and really says "wah-wah." And the whole sound quality is smooth enough to leave the pedal on any setting for really remarkable tone adjustments, not just wahs. It's fixed. Another cool mod was to bypass the pedal circuitry altogether when it is switched to OFF. That ran a few extra bucks, but was well worth it. All pedals tend to take a little off the sound of a guitar compared to just running a straight cable to the amp. This fixed that problem which is very noticable at high volumes. Try it. ON or OFF, it sounds better. $65 later, it's finally a 10.

Before or after, the Cry Baby is about as reliable a pedal as you will find. It's built like my Jeep - heavy and durable. Lives up to the term "Stomp Box." I've gigged with it, thrown it back in a bag with my other toys, then gigged some more. It's bullet proof. Another tip is to superglue the bottom plate screws to the rubber feet they poke through. Then when you swith batteries, you can just spin the feet off without a phillips screwdriver.

Yes, all the other stock ones I've heard and played (this is my second) needed the same aftermarket mods to get that sweet tone. I honestly can't say I've dealt with the company. The guy who turned my $65 doorstop into a musical instrument is Jeff Snider in San Diego at (619) 565-4079 - he fixes/sells cool amps and stuff too (say thank you Jeff). Any good repair shop in any city will know what you're talking about if you take yours in. Let them sell you, I'm just giving you the idea.

If I ever part with this one, I'll buy another stock one (maybe used for a better price) and get the same work done. It's just that good. I've heard those auto-wahs and they sound great in the right tunes, but I prefer the amount of control the true pedal provides. It's heavy enough so it doesn'y kick around or flop over, and it's a great landmark with which to mark your turf onstage and let the bass player know he's too far from home. When you hear a really good one, ask the guitarist between sets. It's probably been reworked. Bottom line? This is all opinion - one guy's opinion. But in my opinion, a long overdue fix put a lot of thrilling sounds into what I hear when I play my guitar.