Dunlop QZ-1 Crybaby Q-Zone

Not a very steep learning curve, which is nice. Volume, Q-Zone, which chooses the range of the sweep, and Peak, which choose the point in the wah sweep you want to mimic.

There are lots of tones tucked into it, but I find this to me mostly a set and forget type of pedal. Once you find your sweet spot, you don't have to make many changes. I only slightly tweak the Peak control from time to time.

This pedal is meant to basically be a stationary wah.

I bought this mostly because it was on sale, but also because I had been considering this pedal for a while because I was looking for something to add a little tonal spice but didn't want a rocker-type wah. I think this thing is great. It's kind of pseudo-versatile...there are a lot of tones that can be dialed in, but it never really makes an extremely pronounced change in your tone. It's like a really good wah....not too much coloration.

One thing I've discovered that this thing does pretty well is adds a sort of subtle, simulated feedback when you turn up the gain in the signal chain and hit it with an open chord. To me this is ubercool..you can dial in what sounds like a huge wash of sound with little bits of what sound like bubbling feedback at any level. Great for mimicing huge, Spiritualized-style walls of fuzziness. It seems like there are one or two exact points on the peak control where it will do this...but it works consistently with every single one of my guitars, so I can't say that it's a fluke. I have seriously been looking for a way to get that same kind of fuzzed out meltdown at bedroom levels, and this thing gets awfully darn close.

Single notes don't quite quack like a wah, but it adds sort of rootsy, lo-fi punch that is very cool. It can almost invike a sort of mic'd up Dobro type of tone at some settings. One or other reviewer pretty much nailed it...it adds a great "dirty" tone.

Looks pretty solid.

I'm into a little bit of everything, but mostly an indie/lo-fi/classic rock/grunge type. I've been playing Strats and Teles for about 16 years.

I think this thing has eanred a place in my permanent chain, which includes (usually) a Boss SD-1, MXR Dyna Comp, and sometimes a delay and/or tremolo. It just adds a great, subtle tonal option that I dig and fills a bill I've been looking for. Other folks have noted that an EQ pedal can do the same, and I guess it can, but this thing was cheaper than an EQ pedal, so there you have it. It definitely keeps my ears fresh, and I like the sort of whacky anarchy that happens when you push it a little bit, though it never gets too out of hand.

The Q-Zone is quite easy to use, but be careful not to overdo it on the input boost. I've always been a fan of bandpass filters, and my previous exprience with a Crybaby had left me wanting one. The only problem was the foot rocker pedal... I hate those with a passion, for the simple reason that you have to wedge something in to keep a tone setting; thanks to the Q-Zone, I can get the great sound of the Crybaby without having to fear losing my settings, thanks to the sturdy tight-feeling metal knobs.

The pedal sounds great, and when used with virtual analogue synths, gives them a warm, "dirty" sounding tone. Very useful for cutting through a mix, or slowly bringing up the intensity of a part.

All Dunlop (MXR) pedals I own have been extremely reliable. They are built like Sherman tanks.

I have had to email Dunlop about a technical question, not a problem mind you, but they still responded promptly, and with the right information. I even got the same reply from two separate techs.

I imagine if I did have a problem, I would be treated with the same professional courtesy.

I use the Q-Zone, along with other MXR pedals to process synths.
I have Dunlop/MXR effects fever at the moment, so they can do no wrong. I would definitely replace
the Q-Zone with a new one if it was stolen from me. The pedals could also be used to throw at anyone trying to steal your other valuables.

Easy to use. Others have that covered.

It sounds as good as I expected it to. I had this idea myself back in the mid 80's. I wanted to rip the gits out of a wah, and put them in a box just like this one, but never took the time. It sounds every bit like a regular wah, except they added a knob to allow you to adjust the width of the frequency band. Doesn't seem to be too noisy- at least not more than a wah pedal.

Built like it should be built.

Anyone with a 6 or 7 band EQ can put it before their distortion and boost the 800Hz frequency, cut the 100Hz frequency, and it will sound almost exactly like the Q Zone with the controls set at 12:00, 12:00, and 1:30. A/B an EQ and a Q Zone like this side by side in a store and you'll see what I mean. I did it with a Danelectro "Fish & Chips" EQ pedal just fine. Which by the way sounds better than the Boss GE-7, but not built so tough. I'm keeping the Q Zone because it's fun and a nice pedal to own, but an EQ will do the same exact thing with boost, frequency, and bandwidth.

This pedal was designed for those players who like to use a wah pedal as a tone filter i.e. in a stationary position and don?t want to fool around with constantly readjusting the wah foot controller angle every time a solo comes around. This ?fixed wah? approach was used extensively by Michael Schenker on all those old classic UFO albums and by the Scorpions? Matthias Jabs as well as countless other European metal players. The manual explains the operation of the 3 controls in simple terms so you know exactly what you are adjusting. The Q-Zone has three controls: Volume, which is really a Boost control (who knows why Dunlop just didn?t label it Boost) that adds up to 18db of boost to your signal, a variable Q-Zone control, which controls the intensity of the wah effect from High (a narrow, sharp peak over a certain range), to Low (a more subtle effect over a broader range), and a Peak control (which is the same control that is adjusted when you move the foot control on a normal wah pedal). Turning the Peak control clockwise increases the treble and moving counter-clockwise increases the bass. The controls require firm pressure to turn so losing your settings won?t be an issue.

I primarily bought this pedal to boost and shape my lead sound while goofing around with a small practice amp. My signal path is a Gibson Explorer => Q-Zone => Boss GE-7 Graphic EQ => original series 10-watt Marshall Valvestate amp. Prior to getting this pedal, I had a really good rhythm tone but the lead sound was somewhat lacking. Not anymore!! Due to the flexibility of the Q-Zone?s controls you can totally dial in the exact sound you want. ?Versatile? is the key word here. Basically you are playing through a custom voiced wah where you get to select the exact ?sweet spot? you want and then shape the resulting tone accordingly.

If you like a natural lead tone, this pedal can add that extra dimension you need to really get a great sound. You can use the Q-Zone to add a bit of ?edge? to your lead sound without changing your fundamental tone. (With the Q control turned full left the wah effect is real slight so you still retain your natural lead sound, there is just ?more? of it if that makes sense.) You can also go nuts and get real torqued out ?Wah from Hell? sounds. Just use the Peak control to find the tonal range you want to emphasize and then adjust the ?voicing? with the Q-Zone control.

The Volume control works great for adding ?bite? and sustain to your leads without excessively coloring your sound with added distortion the way boosting with distortion pedals usually does. The Q-Zone also helps bring out the harmonics of your guitar ? pinch harmonics scream nicely. When the pedal is off there is NO DEGRADATION of your signal !! You don?t need to worry about losing your high end or thinning out your tone as this pedal has GREAT bypass characteristics. The Q-Zone has the same circuit and controls that the Dunlop 95Q wah pedal uses so if you are looking for a traditional wah with a foot control I would highly recommend you check one out.

Disclaimer: I ran this pedal through two different versions of 10-watt Marshall Valvestate amps and a old X-100 Rockman and I got a different sound every time even though the control settings were the same on the Q-Zone. This pedal requires some level of experimentation to dial in the sound you want. I found it helpful to A/B the settings I was working on against a CD that had the type of lead sound I was going for.

This unit is completely constructed of metal. Nice and study. You can tell just by holding it that reliability won?t be a question. Gigging without a backup is a no-brainer.

Haven?t needed any.

I am a traditional metal player (20+ years of playing experience) with strong Eurometal leanings and am a big fan of bands like vintage Scorpions (?Lovedrive? to ?World Wide Live?), UFO and the Michael Schenker Group. I always like the idea of using a wah pedal as a tone filter/booster but hated the fact that you needed to waste the first 3 notes of every solo trying to find the ?sweet spot? and then finding you can?t remove your foot without fear of changing the pedal setting. The Q-Zone eliminates all that hassle. You get the exact sound you want every time at the push of a button. The controls work great and getting a good sound is effortless. This pedal is great for all those tweakers out there who like to experiment with different pedal settings as the range of possible tones is practically infinite. It lets you easily get a very inspiring lead sound and the tones it produces are wonderful. I cannot recommend this pedal highly enough. Thank you Dunlop!!

It is simple to get a great sound out of this. It is just like using a stationary wah pedal. I've always loved the sound of a wah pedal stuck in the middle and not moving it and just using it as a tone filter. Slayer did this with a Crybaby on their Reign in Blood album for all solos to get a nice mid-range kick!!! The manual explains all you need to know! It has three controls; volume, which is really only just a boost (up to 18db), a variable Q-zone control, which controls the intensity of the wah from high (narrow, sharp peak over a certain range), to low (more subtle over a broader range), and a peak control (which is the same as a normal wah pedal (clockwise gives more treble and counter-clockwise gives more bass).

I am using this through an old (1992) Marshall Valvestate 8240 2X12 stereo chorus combo, and either a Jackson Dinky HX or old Kramer St. Everything about this pedal is great!! You just cannot get a bad sound out of it. I e-mailed Dunlop to see if it had a true hard-wired bypass, and they told me no, that it had a buffered bypass (whatever that means). To my ears, it sounds like a true bypass, since I cannot detect any loss of signal at all while using it. With other pedals I can tell, especially Digitech's XP-100 Whammy-Wah. Use this as you would a normal wah pedal and plug into it before the amp. If you use it in an effects loop, the sound is not as pronounced and less subtle(many people like this sound, but I don't).

I e-mailed Dunlop to find out if it had a true hard-wired bypass, and they told me no, that it was a buffered bypass (whatever that means).

Yes, I can depend on it. It is just like the MXR pedals (same company), and weighs just about a pound! I would definitely use it without a back up.

E-mailed them a couple times and got responses within a day or two. Very nice!!

I play hard rock/heavy metal, and this pedal is definitely a good match. (But we all know that a wah-wah is a good match already, don't we?) It is great for all kinds of music. If it were lost or stolen, I would definitely buy it again. I love using a regular wah-wah pedal, but it is kind of a pain in the ass to use just as a tone filter; you find the sweet spot and you just want to keep it there. With this pedal, you have the option of keeping it in the same spot without having to worry; just set it and forget it!! I keep the volume at zero, since I don't really need it for boost, the Q-zone control at about 10 o'clock, and the peak control at about 11 o'clock for a nice mid-range honk. It works great for spicing up solos (just like Slayer, and a lot of other bands too!)