Fulltone CLYDE Wah Wah

easy enough

Sounds nice, but it doesn't sound like a Clyde!

I was so dissappointed to try this pedal only to find out it sounds like any other wha on the market. In all honesty, I say the Digitech Jimi Hendrix Experience pedal sounds much more like a Clyde wha. I even like the wha on my Boss ME-50 better than this. I certainly like my old Chigago made Thomas Organ wha's better.

Real quiet, but just doesn't have the vowelly sound an old Clyde has. It especially doesn't have the volume at the lower range a Clyde has. Why all these wha's sound like foot operated tone pots instead of like wha pedals is a mystery to me.

I real Clyde almost sounds like a Heil Talk Box. Think about that!!!

I've been playing guitar since 1969. I remember the first time the radio station played Purple Haze on my daddy's car radio. I love Hendrix and am very thankful for Digitech to create the Jimi Hendrix Experience pedal. It's not perfect but it is great.

As far as the Fulltone "Clyde" goes.....It's a nice wha at a nice price but NEVER should it have been named a Clyde. I heard a real old Clyde {with the Clyde picture on the bottom} and it was awesome! Alot like a talk box and the lower register was a loud Ooooh sound and not just a dark tone pot tone.

Oh, a used a reissue 1965 Fender Strat for the test and an old Marshall 2x12 combo amp set as clean as possible.

Right now, my best suggestion for obtaining a Clyde sound without buying an old Clyde is the Digitech Jimi Hendrix Experience pedal and for the sound, price and features the Digitech SMOKES the Fulltone!

mash it down turn it on go wah wah wah

In a honest opinion the wah sounds just like it suspose to it replicates the 60's Clyde sound i think in this case it does a good job and sounds 60ish ..no more no less

it reacts good to multiple distortions i have tried ..i havnt try it on a fuzz as i am waiting for my pedal to arrive just purchased so no comment for there..

unlike most modern made products you can simply tell its made to last
even the pot that is used and abused are made to last..

i dont someone having major issues with it as for pro gigs

I persoanly think they have great support..its usualy short but straight to the point..thats all you would want in the first place right?

for example ..i needed info on how to wire a used fulltone replacment board ..sent me a full scale diagram of how to do so
to me thats cool.

its a good useable wah..if you like the vintage wah sound you will like a fulltone ...

I have been playing for 25 years have and do own many wahs i would replace if it where stolen..to me a fulltone is another added to my wah collection.

I have to be honest, when I first bought this pedal I expected it to have a long vocal sweep ala Hendrix/Vaughan. Right out of the box, the pedal sound very nasal-ly with very little wah. I had the pedal for several weeks before I went on the Fulltone website and read the specs of the wah. When I got to the part about the "Resonance Control" knob, I was relieved that Fulltone added a control for the bass and gain on the pedal. When I fiddled with the internal (that's right open her up) control and lowered the knob, it was like having a whole new pedal. I put it back in my rig and it has never left.

When you use the internal control you can a great sound, whatever your preference. On my rig it sounds awesome.

I'm using the fulltone wah===>Barber LTD===>TS808 Reissue===>MXR 10 Band EQ===>Fender Bassman 50.

I can get a Kenny Wayne Shepherd/Walter Trout/Clapton/Vaughan/Hendrix Tone.

Bought this off Ebay from MusicTunnelVision. Fast Delivery Decent Prices, Good Collection of Boutique pedal

If you want a wah, BUY THIS ONE FIRST.

This is essentially a follow-up to the review I submitted in April '04, or to be more precise, a response to a few of the subsequent reviewers who have commented on my critique.

Let me clear up a "misunderstanding" here: I know where to put a wah in the effects chain, thank you very much! It comes directly after the guitar! While I am sure the folks who mentioned this as the probable culprit were well intentioned (or worked for Herr Fuller (sounds like a baldness elixir), for all you conspiracy theorists out there--just kidding!!), it assumes user error, where in this case, there was none. To completely dispel this notion, let me add that I have also tried it without any other effects. I have had dozens of wahs in my career. I KNOW WHERE TO PUT IT(heh heh)!!! People want to make every excuse for them (the pedals, the company, what, or whomever), rather than believe Fulltone occasionally, perhaps more and more frequently puts out some duds, despite the hype (Search around on the TTE reviews, and find the very credible issues expressed by one writer, that I read, among others, last night) . As I've written, I'm sure yours is fantastic, I am not insulting the pedal that you own, in fact I'm not insulting anything or anyone (not that there's anything wrong with that...). I just want to stress that the all-powerful, all-mighty Fulltone really did send me a clunker, AND IT'S REALLY NOT MY FAULT! Honest to goodness! This is a quality control issue worsened by arrogance, and not to be constantly blamed on the hapless musician!

Here's one more area some other reviewers have commented on from my initial review. Having forked over a good chunk of change for a bunch of their pedals, I emailed Fulltone several times about powering them, and received no response. One fellow on Harmony wrote that they should have responded, but seemed to imply this was a trivial matter, akin to asking them how to velcro your pedals to your board (in other words, to put it unkindly, a bonehead question). Another guy "explained" the company's rudeness by stating they probably don't answer any questions which can be answered on the website. Don't make excuses for them! IF that's the case, that makes them Soup Nazis of the worst order. Ever been snubbed in a restaurant by a waiter? Did you figure he ignored your question about your entree because you could have found the answer in the fine print on the back of the menu, page 9? Would you tip him, or eat there again? What sane person in a service industry, employee or president, has the chutzpah to essentially tell his customers to go screw themselves? Who out there thinks they deserve to be treated like that? Talk about Stockholm Syndrome! What about users who don't have the time to search around on their site for answers "hidden", in this case, I am informed, under the president of the company's personal gear page (I'm not gonna call him by his first name. I knew Jerry Garcia, Jerry Garcia was a friend of mine, and Senators, he's no Jerry Garcia!!!). Talk about lousy places to stick important info on the website! Hello, if powering these pedals is so crucial to tone, and tone is your business, it is a no-brainer to let your customers know how to power them for best results, without their having to spend an afternoon combing your vanity museum! While I was a littled ticked off when I found my Clyde to be a dud, having now heard all the excuses from the minions (OR employees-- call me paranoid, but I think he writes some of these reviews himself) and having had all this nonsense blamed on me, I can't wait to replace my Fulltone gear. It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth...insulting...

Can't wait to get my Hughes and Kettner Rotosphere from UPS.
Wouldn't consider buying another Fulltone product, ever.
The hype ain't worth the hassle.

It's a wah-probably the simplest pedals to use out there. Switch it on, play your guitar, use your foot, and make music. It has a wider "sweep" than any other wah i've played, and i like that. The stiffness of the "sweep" is adjustable, if you want it to be a little stiffer or looser. There is also an internal trim pot than can be adjusted to tweak the sound. Mine sounded like heaven right out of the box, so i didn't bother adjusting anything.

Here's the setup: 2004 Suhr classic into Peterson Strobostomp > Clyde > Fulltone Mini Deja-Vibe > Fulltone Fulldrive 2 > Digitech Digidelay into a Fender Blues Jr amp.
This is easily the best sounding wah i have ever played. I don't really use a wah with clean sounds, so it's the wah and Fulldrive 2 that i'm talking about. The sound is deep and throaty, full of quack, and very expressive, which to me is the point of a wah. Using the neck pickup of the Suhr, i could solo all night with this setup.
Different combinations of gear produce different results though, so different overdrives/distortions or amps may react differently with this pedal (as they should). Depending on your setup, and what you're looking for, it may or may not be right for you.
It also seems to add a bit of a boost when engaged, which to me is a good thing.

I've had it for a couple of months now, with no problems. Seems like it's built to last, and Fulltone has a good reputation for quality.

This the area where there seems to be the most amount of varied experiences/opinions on Fultone.
My own experience is limited to one email i sent regarding power supplies, and i got a one line answer a couple of days later that was all i needed to know. So at this point, i have no complaints.

I've been playing over 25 years, mostly blues to space rock, and my priority is getting the sound of my fingers out of the amp when i'm playing. This pedal, like the other 2 Fulltone products i own, allows me to do just that. As i stated earlier, i consider a wah a tool to get a more vocal quality to my sound, and this one excels at that.
Like all Fulltone products, it's pricey, but quality always comes at a price.
peace

Its a Wah pedal. Works just the same as any other wah. It has a bit more travel than the Crybaby, and Vox I had, and WAY more than my vintage Arbiter Wah-Face.
An important note about wahs. You have to learn to "play" one like you learn to play guitar. You have to listen to whats coming out and put the treadle where you want it to get the desired sound. A good wah will not make you a better player. It will help you to achieve a desired vibe and get "that" sound.

This is the closest thing I have found to the vintage fasel inducted crybaby's of the past. If you want Hendrix, SRV, Clapton, Page ect. they're all in here.

My setup Les Paul/Strat-Clyde Wah-Fulltone Deja-Vibe- SoulBender- DD2 Delay-Bad Cat 30 Amp (Class-A Matchless style amp). There are some others that go in depending what kind of gig I have, but these stay there all the time for the most part.

I've heard some talk about bad switches in certain years for the clyde. I know Fuller changed over to the Carling 316pp. You can see a picture of it on his website. They have a longer shaft length and work better for wah than the smaller 3PDT. Mine has the 3PDT and it is still going strong. I have a 316PP as a backup just in case. That being said, this thing is built like a tank and I see no problems in the furure.

Mike has responded quickly to the few questions I have had. Some people on this forum think that just because you buy something from this guy, he is supposed to be your friend. The guy stands behind his products, thats all you can ask for.

Tried quite a few different wahs before I broke down and dropped the bones it takes to get a Fulltone. Tried Crybabys, Vox reissues, both of which were pretty pathetic. I modded several of the Crybabys and voxs for true bypass and then got rid of them. I picked up an old Italian made Arbiter Wah-Face with a Fasel inductor, Icar pot etc.... sounded pretty good, but has a really small amount of travel. THEN...I got the fulltone. Search is over...blah blah blah. Its a great pedal, give it a try before you waste your money on some mass produced piece of garbage.

Like othere responders, I had some issues with the stiffness of the switch. The clyde replaced a Dunlop that switched almost from the weight of the pedal on itself. I liked that. I don't like feeling like I'm kicking a field goal when I switch on and off. But that was minor compared to the other problems

I'll be fair, my Clyde has a bad switch problem (I think) which makes a sqealing pitched-out squealch sound that other people have mentioned too. The problem is not a quality issue really. My band and I made a CD which features this nifty sound during a quiet spot in a song. Everytime that part of the song comes up I mute the CD or scream (honk the horn, fire pistols) player because I don't want my luke-warm feelings for Fulltone going any further south (I want to be a believer!). I'm sure that fixed, the pedal would sound nice as I have read in other users comments. I don't doubt that. And, oh yeah, I had a similar problem with my primary dist/drive unit - the Fulldrive II. Twice. Luke warm

It worked good for a short while, although I think that whatever the problem was/is affected the original sound quality. That is, before the solar-sqealing, underwater rocks crashing together sound began. I say that because my Crybaby (that I sold for $30 - can I have it back whoever you are?) sounded much better and had a much better action. Still, I want to believe.

Here is the crux: If you own a business and manufacture a product, you must deal with the public. Most of the time I think people pat the Fulltone folks (Mike?) on the back for great work/products. When a run of pedals has a problem though -- a shitty switch or a cheap something or other that breaks or fails -- then you need to do something. I have spent more time inside my Fulltone pedals than outside, and when I contact Fulltone I get snorty, quick-flicked and snide responses that barely help or don't help at all. I needed a new switch, twice, for my Fulldrive, and I got them. Okay. I ordered the replacement for the Clyde, and now I have to search the web for wiring instructions. I asked Fulltone...no response. Not right. If the maker flubbs a run, the maker should at least extend some support for those believers who want to fix the problem on their own. Am I missing something? I know what dealing with the public is like and I understand that 90% of the people you deal with (the ones who don't pat you on the back) are fools and will waste all your time if you let them. Mike would probably say that I qualify as one of these jerks. But we jerks are the vast majority of buyers as well, and we don't need a 'soup nazi' on the other end making us feel like we are bothering the maker with our piddly little $300 problems. It's a paradox for sure. That's why we have weekends and marijuana, though, so that we can rest up for the next wave of believers that need help fixing their factory screw-ups.

Luke warm. I still believe, but I also bought some other gear in the year I've been sitting on these problems. I use my analogman Tubescreamer more and more and my Fulldrive less and less (I look at it...pretty blue with those handy chanels...I miss it). I miss my Clyde too, and I hope to get him wired up and rolling again soon. If anyone knows where the wires go from the 3PDT to the Carling, let me know, we'll start a company together.

This pedal is very to use if you are using just the wah. You get wicked sounds. Its when you add the rest of your pedal line that things get complicated (like all pedals). Luckily I found this great article on KEELEY CUSTOM PEDALS website that has a very comprehensive article on pedal board placement, here is the website http://www.robertkeeley.com/faq.php#Effect%20Order. Look half way down the list and you'll find the article. The manual is fine. And yes it is going to get upgraded (i will speak of this more soon)

My setup is 2004 Gibson Les Paul Standard > 2002 Fulltone Clyde Wah > 2003 Fulltone FatBoost > '99 Prescription Electronics Vibe Unit > 2000 Fender Pedal Style Tuner > '99 Marshall JCM 900 (212). It took a long time to get the pedal order right so that everything sounded as it should. Now thankfully my board is all finished and all my pedals a resting a PedalTrain Pedal board (very nice). The wah sounds great (i mean amazing on its own and with a strat (i used to have one) it really sounds amazing stand alone with a bloody strat. when in a pedal board with a les paul it gets a bit more like Clapton or Page wah rather than when its stand alone and sounds like hendrix or vaughan. I have to say though this pedal NAILS Pages wah tone!!! Oh yeah everything is powered by a Voodoolabs Pedal Power2. Very distinct wah though, can be used as a boost if you are getting drowned out at a gig, i find there is volume boost while engaged. I have it set to the factory fulltone settings, i find the vox settings that mike fuller added get lost when its in a pedal board. There are major flaws in this pedal though, which i will get into next. The sound quality is GREAT for classic rock... truly nails that tone.

This is where the problems begin. First off, the 2002 clyde wahs use those tiny 6 pin true bypass switchs. I find they are very finicky. It is very hard sometimes to disengage this pedal, sometimes requiring quite a hard stomp on it. This is a major prob. as in live gigs you dont wanna be messing with pedals during or after solos or what not. Im going to get this replace with a standard 9pin true bypass by Robert Keeley (as mike wont do it) i will also be getting installed a LED indicator! Another problem is that the tiny switch is also pretty fragile and is now subsequently broken as it crackles win i sweep up near it (another reason to change it) Robert keeley WILL NOT change the 6pin switch to a 9pin!!!!!! very annoying. Also a strange hum has started happening whenever i engage the unit. Again I talk to robert and he said he'd sort it out while he's replacing the truebypass switch. I think Mike Fuller had a bunch of comlaints about the 6pin switchs as it appears that the new 2003/04's have a 9pin switch (thats what it appears like in the pics on his site) also his deluxe has them (that has always been like that) strange that he wouldn't put a 9pin in his lower model... oh well it will soon be resolved. That is the major gripe with this pedal.

didn't really have to email him as his website is very very detailed on what he does and doesn't do. That i believe is why he doesnt reply very often. Like the guy before that said he asked mike about a pedal supply for his pedals. Mike has it listed on his site that he suggests to use a voodoo labs pedal power2 (its in the section about his own pedal board) oh well... luckily Robert KEELEY make and mods pedals and his reputation is growing! check out his website www.robertkeeley.com

Great sounding wah. after ive fixed it up it should be fine. man that LED will be helpful. I'll write a follow review to tell you guys how well it works out. but great pedal. if the new ones have a 9pin bypass (as i believe they do) then you shouldn't have the same problems that i have had. goodluck

Its a Wah pedal, so there isn't a great deal of operating difficulty here. The sweep is quite smooth, and I love the extended travel of the treadle, it really allows for a lovely quack. It gets a 9 simply because you have to remove the bottom plate to access the internal trimmer. Not a problem, but on mine, I have to use a screwdriver because the rubber feet are not quite tight enough around the screws to facilitate screwdriver-less unscrewing.

Pristine something fierce. This wah sounds exactly as I've always dreamed a great wah would sound... no more, no less, just high quality tone. The true Bypass is a godsent, and the transparency of the tone when the wah is engaged is gorgeous. I've owned a couple of Crybabys and a Vox V847 Reissue Wah and I was always dissatisfied with the way they alter your base sound when engaging the wah--- it always sounded like two different rigs when hearing the wah engaged and then disengaged. With the Clyde, finally I have something that is transparent enough to let my tone shine, but dense enough to allow the sweet sound of the wah through. Fantastic. My rig is as follows:

Strat/Tele/Bluesbird >>Clyde Wah >Fulldrive 2 >Korg DT-10 Tuner >Fender Twin Amp. Effects loop: Line 6 MM4 >Boss DD-20 Giga Delay > Electro Harmonix Holy Grail Reverb. I use George L cables and a Godlyke Powerall, which silently powers nearly everything in the chain.

Now here's an issue of major importance: You'll notice the reviewer below me here is complaining of ear piercing highs and inaudible lows... well I too had something similar with the clyde when I first plugged it in... for some reason without thinking I went into My Fulldrive 2 and then into the Wah.... bad move. This is the so called "Synth" sound, and I hated it. At first, I thought there must be some mistake with the Clyde, but after five minutes of piercing high-end when I hit the fulldrive, I realized my own error. Hendrix, Clapton, and SRV all seem to prefer going into the wah BEFORE going into the overdrive pedal, and I totally agree! This problem is compounded by the fact that the Clyde has a longer sweep and thus more high and low end, so If you're distortion is before it, watch out. Perhaps the reviewer below made this same error?

If you know Fulltone, you know that these things are built to last for an extremely long time if treated properly. I always baby my gear, and I would not hesitate to gig without a back-up for the Clyde. The treadle seems to be solid, and the nylock nut makes adjustment easy and effective.

I emailed a question regarding the best way to attach pedals to a pedalboard using velcro and got no response. I'm not surprised, as it wasn't a hugely important question and I basically answered it myself later on, but some sort of response might have been nice.

I play primarily Blues, Blues Rock, Rockabilly etc... After 12 years of toiling with sub-par wahs, I've finally found a gem in the Clyde. You do get what you pay for, and I'm really quite impressed. I fell in love with Fulltone stuff after recieving my Fulldrive 2 in the mail, and this Clyde Wah upholds that tradition of excellence. I also think it looks incredibly cool, the stark white contrasts nicely against my other pedals....

Operating it is theoretically like any other wah. However, mine was impossible to use on the gig, as, when engaged there was a large increase in volume in the upper registers, and a large decrease in the lower ones, making it jarring at one end, and inaudible at the other. Adjusting the internal trimmer did not resolve this problem. I'm fairly certain my particular pedal was a dud: this can't possibly be the way Clydes are supposed to operate! Still I can only evaluate My pedal.

My usual set-up is a 2001 Gibson Custom Shop 1958 "Authentic" Les Paul re-issue with Burstbucker pick-ups - FD2 - Fatboost - Fender pedal-style tuner - Fender '65 Deluxe Reverb Reissue. I also occasionally employ a Soulbender fuzz. Expecting a wide tonal sweep, my pedal had a perplexingly narrow one-- there was no effect to little on 1/2 to 3/4 of the pedal, then once it did "speak up" it "jumped" very quickly through the spectrum, accompanied by a harsh boost in volume! Everytime I'd quack I'd cringe! I must have gotten a dud! This could not be the intended sonic palette! The pedal had, as advertized, a lot of movement, but only effected the sound in a frustratingly narrow portion of the wah!

I couldn't even rely on it for the one gig I used it on. The rating scale indicaters on this database suggest a rating of "1" if "I think it worked once". However, it didn't work once to my satisfaction- but that's the lowest rating option available.

I've emailed Fulltone on 3 seperate occasions with the same, simple, polite question regarding powering my other Fulltone pedals, and they have never bothered to respond with even a one, two or three word answer (that's all that was necessary). As I've invested some 700 odd dollars in their pedals over the past six months, that's pretty insulting. And a bad business practice to boot!

I mostly play electric blues in a variety of styles, also rock, R&B, funk & soul. I make my living working pretty much the Florida chitlin circuit and private parties. I've been playing over twenty years. As you may have guessed, I've returned my Clyde for a refund. I don't believe it's performance was typical. However, it was extremely disappointing to get a defective unit from a "boutique" company like Fulltone. Each unit is purportedly played/demoed by the President of the company. If so, I say shame on you for letting this one out after hearing it! I bought it over ebay (new) so I didn't have a chance to hear it prior to purchase. I must say that I love their Fatboost which I bought from a local music store back in December- as they claim, I never turn it off! Likewise, my Fulldrive2 is a winner. I had a lot of faith in the company's products, my customer support issue aside, but now I'm ambivalent. I think I'll look elsewhere for additional pedal purchases. I will not buy another Clyde under any circumstance! For $215 you should get a sure winner-- Fulltone, I love you anyway, you're getting sloppy!