Snarling Dogs Blues Bawl Wah

Its a piece of cake to get great sound out of this pedal. There is a short manual available online a snarlingdogs.com but its unneeded. It has a volume and gain for the overdrive. It has a volume control and tone selector for the three (white room, voodoo, shaft) settings. Each settings increases the level of treble. White room is softer and smooth. Voodoo is nice and balanced. Shaft is cutting and funky.

I am using a PRS SE Standard into a Marshall JMP 2199 Solid State 30W 2x12. I bought this to warm up my sound. It is not noisy on any moderate settings though as you would expect it has some noise when the gain is cranked. This baby always sounds great if you set it correctly. I like to use just the volume control with the overdrive to match my amp and warm it up and add sustain. If I use the gain on my amps clean settings I will set it between 12 and 2 o'clock. I've used it cranked to get heavier sounds but it gets too bright and cutting for me at those levels. It is made to emulate a 12ax7 preamp with a 6L6 powered section though and that is pretty accurate to what I've heard out of most amps with that kind of setup. I can get nice usable tones out of the wah as well. The artists tones that this pedal is attempting to emulate is fairly self explanatory and done well. The true bypass feature is great as well. It takes nothing from the guitar tone when off.

This thing is built to last. Always take a backup if you can but I would gig without one if I had to and not be too worried. Its got an all metal chassis and I like to refer to it as my blue brick.

Never dealt with the company but I hear they're great from other customers so I will give them the benefit of a doubt at this point.

I play mostly, funk. blues, rock, alternative, indie, and a little jazzy. You can hear some of this pedal and my amp in action on myspace.com/heliospacemusic or myspace.com/sugarloaftheband. I also own an Electro-Harmonix Small Clone 4800 Full Chorus also true bypass. This was my first true bypass pedal and I've really become a believer in them and analog circuitry. If it was stolen or lost I would buy a new one if I could find one. I love the sound. Like others have said the switch for the overdrive is right above the side of the foot shaped pedal so its a little ackward. But, unlike Kenny Seagall (the owner and demo guy on SD website) I don't use my heel. Or my toes with barefeet. I come in from the side and use the edge of my foot beneath my big toe. I plan to either raise the switch by putting the nut above the chassis so its easier to hit or being that I work in a metal shop make the switch bigger or make an attachment to make it bigger. I love this pedal :) I did compare it to my old DOD Grunge and Danelectro Tube Style Overdrive. This trumps them both easily. This has made the tone of my old Marshall SS much warmer and more expressive. Thumbs up SD guys :)

I can't believe how easy everyone's going on this pedal.

-First of all, you may notice that the DC plugs in right next to the OUT Jack. This is real handy to tangle the adaptor plug up in your patch chord.
-The Stomp-Switch to turn Distortion ON/OFF is not only hidden behind the wah pedal itself, but get this: BELOW it, so you actually have to reach behind the stupid "foot" to activate it with the edge of your heel.

Yes, 3, not even kidding. The idea of gigging with this pedal is laughable to me.

Tone is hard for me to describe, but I'll try. I play thru a Fender Blues Deluxe tube amp: this pedal really sucks the life out of it. All 3 of the Wah tones instantly and magically transform my tone into some lifeless solid-state sounding rubbish. And I'm not being snobby, I do dig some solid-state amps, just not the one this pedal makes mine sound like. This becomes a problem especially at high volumes, when I'm trying to get my amp to break up nicely. All 3 settings just sound cheesy, only WHITE ROOM is mildly passable. I'd turn DOWN the wah volume, but the Volume switch on the Left (which i assume is either for the wah, or for the whole pedal) DOESNT WORK. In all fairness, this could be a defect unique to mine for some reason, but somehow I doubt it...and if that IS the case, then that's shoddy workmanship.

The distortion/overdrive options on this are equally poor for several reasons. First let's be clear: there is no "overdriving" of the signal actually going on here. What there is, is crappy fake-sounding distortion, controlled by ONE knob labeled "distortion/overdrive" as if they were synonymous. This you can turn all the way up, or all the way down. Like most features of this pedal, you'll want it all the way down when you hear how muddy the distortion sounds.

Next to this is the "Blue-doo" volume. The fecal reference is completely apropos. This ALSO effects distortion, but at the same time effects overall volume levels, and the overall tone of the Wah, in weird, and unpredictable ways, unpredictable except that you can always expect a poor result. With this knob you can literally turn up the "suck"

The "Wah" functionality itself is kind of secondary here, because WAH pedals are really just Tone controls you manipulate with your foot, and this pedal makes your tone suck to begin with. But I should mention that you don't get a large range of "Wah" with this pedal. I've even read reviews where people have removed the rubber stoppers below the pedal to get a larger range.

It is big and sturdy seeming, I wouldn't be surprised if it survived a few kicks down the driveway.

But here's something I ran into not too long after buying it. Immediately hating it, I left it sitting for a few months. Picking it up again later to futz around with it one night and give it a 2nd chance, I found it sounded even worse than I remembered. I noticed it was pretty dusty, so I blew off what I could and kinda cleaned its insides with a damp cloth. Then it sounded like it had before again.

Seriously though, why should DUST have bearing on how a pedal sounds? Bad dog.

Have not dealt with the company, but I'm gonna give them a 7 for not bothering to make an instruction booklet for the thing (Even T-shirts have washing instructions on the tags)

I generally play blues, blues/rock stuff. My setup goes like so: Strat-->Boss Compressor-->Ibanez Tube Screamer-->Fender Blues Deluxe, very simple. I wanted to just get a dedicated Wah pedal for some Clapton and Hendrix stuff and was planning to get a Crybaby. I'll admit, the design of this pedal caught my eye (it does look pretty cool), and the wah seemed specifically tailored to my tastes with the "Purple Haze" and "White Room" settings. I figured it would allow me to throw a little extra distortion in the mix of my signal chain too if I felt like it. Sooo, like the genius I am, I read a few reviews and ordered it without hearing it first.

Let me be clear about this: This pedal is a toy. It's a gadget with alot of bells and whistles, it does 5 things at once, but all poorly. Don't even make direct eye-contact with the barking dog's face on musiciansfriend.com, just keep moving. However, if you see it up on Ebay next week, do me a favor and buy it, I'm saving for a nice crybaby...

I have the latest version of this pedal - circa 2005. Three position wah switch & wah level (volume). ALSO Distortion level & volume for distortion button. The ONLY problem is trying to push the distortion button with shoes on. Barefoot you use the toe next to the pinky-toe.
Turning the wah on/off is stiff but there is no way you'll accidentally turn it off (like the cry baby)

Best sound ever. I've used this pedal with Soldano SLO-100 & Mesa lonestar special. Great with both. Kinda noisy when engaged - but takes NOTHING from the sound when off. Even sounds better than the cry baby rack unit!

This is my 3rd pedal. BUT, if you have an old pedal with the surface-mount jacks (which fail immediately) call the mfg (I talked with the original pedal designer/manufacturer!) & they will upgrade or switch it out for the newer (which actually follow the original designs) pedal. Somewhere in 2000? An unreliable, $$-oriented, company bought them out and used mass-produced boards made in BF egypt to save some bucks. I bought one of those crap pedals from Musicians Friend for $49 clearanced price. BUT, the original company/designer took over & made it right. SO reliabiliby is 10 for the new pedals, 1 for the old pedals. So I give it a 5.

Wonderful. You actually talk to a peson. READ THIS: Repairs/upgrades/replacements TAKE 3-4 MONTHS - that's if you keep bugging them (no toll free number for tech support!)

I'm a Pastor and play Christian Rock/Blues/Contemporary/Metal. I love this pedal. I've owned it for 8 or so years and woud replace it with the EXACT, SAME, pedal. DON'T BUY ONE FROM EBAY THOUGH - you'll probably get one of the old, crappy, pedals

Simple to use, switch layout is as intuitive as you can expect for a footpedal, and the lights, are real helpful. The glow in the dark logo on the pedal is a very cool, thoughtful touch.

I can't imagine how it could sound any better.
As with the newer Snarling Dogs wahs, it has low, mid and high wahs (White Room, Voo Doo, and Shaft). It's AWESOME!! You can get so many different sounds.

I haven't used the overdrive/distortion to much, but it is very powerful, very bluesy, after all, this is the BLUES BAWLS baby!

I've used it with a Cube 30X practice amp, a big Fender Ultimate Chorus DSP (130 watt 2x12), and a Crate V3112 tube amp - it sounds amazing on all of them.

I've had it for 4 months. The thing is a 6 pound tank, lots of metal. The gears are plastic, but at least they're thick plastic. (This is apparently common for wah pedals these days). I am not a gigging player, however, the pedals designer Kenny Segall is, he uses it on the road regularly. The package included some spare knobs & feet which is nice to see.

I've never had an issue. Since D'Andrea has been running things, customer service seems to be well run, and Kenny is in the loop which is a real plus.

The pedal sounds awesome. I've used it to play some of Cream's songs, e.g. White Room, and also Hendrix's Voodoo Child - this pedal will give you those effects, effortlessly.

The "cool factor" of this pedal is tops. I mean, there's nothing else out there like these. It adds instand mojo to your rig. I also love the blue finish, it's amazing looking.

For the price, you can't go wrong. Unfortunately the Blues Bawls is discontinued. They show up on eBay from time to time though.

I personally like the Voodoo position, and pretty much keep it there. I found it VERY easy to get a good sound out of this pedal.

I only play this pedal on one song gigging, "Can't get enough of your Love" Bad Company. It has a Distortion effect on it also, but I've never used it. I get enough Gain on My Marshall TSL 122. I use it playing an Epiphone ES 335 Dot Copy, and also A 70's Gibson Les Paul Deluxe, with Old DiMarzios. I love the Sweep on this pedal, in my opinion, it is much better than My Vox Pedal, it had better bottom end, and is TRUE BYPASS. That is what I like best. I use a power supply with it an it isn't noisey.

I think its very well made. This might sound stupid, but IIke the way the Dog's Eyes light up!! I used it on a few gigs already, no problems!

I've never dealt with the Company, but I heard they're great to deal with.

I play Rock and Blues. I've been playing for a long time! Marshall TSL 122 Gibson Guitars Epiphone Guitar I would replace this in a heartbeat if i lost it or it got stolen! Better than a Vox 847

It's just like any other Wah pedal, but with a Tubescreamer complex. It does an excellent job of both, and changing settings is a breeze. Don't like the wah setting you're on? Pick one of the other two. Wah's not loud enough? Turn up the volume. Need some crazy overdrive? Hit the switch, crank the knobs.

The only reason it's a 9 is because the knobs are, due to positioning, REALLY easy to turn by accident. Duct tape is a good idea.

I'm using it with a Vox AD30VT amp; while the overdrive doesn't add a terrible lot, volume-wise or distortion-wise, to anything maxed out on gain already (i.e. the Modern UK High-Gain, American High-Gain, and Nu-Metal modes), it will make any excellent clean amp shine with killer distortion.

I've grown to love the Wah as well. While it's a great wah to begin with, with a decent range of versatility in the three modes (I'm torn between the Shaft mode and the Jimi mode), I found it hit the "sweet spot" for me once I took off the rubber stops on the feet. I could be mistaken, but that little centimeter makes all the difference in my book.

It will hold its own with the big boys - and if you want a volume boost like the one that comes with, say, The Crybaby from Hell, just max the volume on the overdrive with a little crank on that sucker and "getcha' pull".

You can get the sounds of your favorite artists with this - but most of the talent lies in your fingers, and not just your settings. You can get bluesy hard-rock distortion, old-school heavy metal, classic rock crunch, and maybe more - go find out!

I haven't gigged with it yet, even though I have owned it for over a year. It has survived falls, spills, band practice sessions as an overdrive pedal for my bass amp(!), and everything else that can happen to a young guitarist in the course of a year. It's a goddamn tank!

I would, without doubt, gig without a backup.

Have not contacted customer support.

But if they found out that it could be used as a means for bassists with 15 watt practice amps to hear themselves over guitar players with 100 watt Crate amps, they might be interested...

I play hard rock, classic rock, a bit of blues, and some metal. This sucker is versatile enough to keep up with my spastic tastes, and handles wah styles from Hendrix and Clapton to Wylde, Slash and Morello.

Plus, it fit in my budget rather nicely - for somebody who's not willing to go out and drop $200+ for a signature series wah and an overdrive pedal, it's a real giant-killer.

Well, you pick which of the three wah styles you want, set the volume. On the other side of the pedal you set the amount of gain you want when you turn on the overdrive and set it's volume. How hard is that???

I use Carvin guitars and a Carvin X100B half-stack. Effects include a Boss NS-2, Boss CH-1, Marshall Guv'nor 2, Scott Ian Black 13 (awesome pedal, btw).

The pedal is extremely quiet, even without using the NS-2. I cranked the gain all the way up on the pedal and still had no noise. It has a true bypass and therefore sucks no tone in any way when it is off.

The effects sound great. I'm really partial to the 'Voodoo' (Hendrix-style) wah setting. I don't have a lot of use for the other two (the Cream and Shaft styles), but they are there and they sound fine - just not my style. The wah is smooth and responsive and pretty much perfect - just what you want a wah to be. I would put it up against my old Crybaby any day of the week.

The overdrive sounds good for what it's supposed to be. I like a little more bass/midrange in my overdrives, and this one is bright with not much bottom end. It has the overdrive quality of a Tubescreamer without the mids. It overdrives the dirty channel of my amp well and gives you a good bluesy or classic rock crunch. I do wish it had a tone control on it, but I guess you can't have everything (where would you put it, right?).

Well, it's built like a freakin' tank. It's heavy and solid appearing. I wouldn't be afraid to gig with it at all. YOu could probably throw it off a building and it would still work.

Haven't dealt with them, but based on some of the other reviews, it seems they are good.

I play a lot of metal and blues and this is perfect for my needs. It can nail everything from Hendrix and SRV to the "Enter Sandman" lead (well, not the overdrive, but the wah). I've been playing for 15 years and this is by far the best sounding and most versatile wah I've played. If it were lost or stolen I'd definitely buy another one.

I think it's a great value because it sounds great, has built in overdrive, and has a true bypass - all for $109.00! And the dog's eyes light up (left side when the wah is engaged, right side when the overdrive is on) - how cool is THAT? Also, it comes with replacement rubber feet and switch pads - nice touch.

There are a couple of drawbacks. I found the switch a little hard to engage on the wah. You really have to depress the front of the pedal to engage the switch. Speaking of switches, engaging the overdrive switch takes a little footwork as it sits above the little toe on the foot shaped pad. Also, the pedal is big. I made a custom pedal-board and this unit will not fit into the space that my Crybaby fit in with room to spare. The pots are easy to turn - nice when setting it, but not so nice when moving it and your settings get changed. Last thing, my Boss 'daisy chain' power supply cord would not fit in the hole for the AC adapter, so I'm having to 9v battery it until I get one that will fit.

However, these are really minor things when compared to the sound and value of this pedal. It's fun to play, easy to set up, and sounds great. The versatility of the three wah styles and the true bypass should have it costing $150 or more. But it's a steal at $109.00. Go buy one...seriously...why are you still reading this....go buy one....

Easy to use: its pretty intuitive and not like those other sound modeling pedals out there. This one is pretty much analog.
The manual is pretty minimal, but this pedal is pretty simple to use.

In case you are wondering, this is a wah pedal with three classic wah modes you can select, and you can control the Wah output level. Also built in is a vintage-sounding distortion pedal with a drive and level control. The Wah and distortion can be worked independant of each other (and the cool indicator lights on the dogs eyes are a real coool touch!).

The best part of this pedal is that both the wah and distortion pedal are TRUE BY-PASS. This was an absolute requirement because I am a tone freak and cant tolerate a pedal robbing me from the tone of my expensive tubes.

I have used the classic Dunlops, and have owned a Clyde McCoy Vox Wah at one time. This pedal has the tone, response, and versitility you need in a classic wah. This is not like the bad horsie wahs, this is the classic wah sound.
The wah does not really kill your tone (like the Dunlops do), and I found I was pleasantly suprised as the sound.

I am using is with a 40th aniversary USA strat with Texas specials and a Les Paul with a SH4/SH2 pickup combo. The amp is a Laney 50 watt head.

The setting I have been messing with the most is the voodoo (Hendrix?) setting. This is a true-bypass wah with the three classic sounds you can select (Hendrix, 70s chaka-chaka, and the Cream 'white room' wah).

This is also NOT a modeling wah, so you are getting an honest wah sound.

Since a 10 is theoretically impossible, Im giving this pedal a 9 (thats my 10).

From what I can tell, its built like a tank. The 'MADE IN' sticker does say MADE IN CHINA, but wait! China has shaped up as a musical instrument manufacturer (the make Behringer Vamp gear, Epiphone Les Pauls). I would trust it as any other wah (USA or not), as a wah is pretty basic and the snarling dog company is too small of a company to blow a change to offer such a cool great sounding pedal with poor manufacturing and issues from users.
I read somewhere that the plastic parts put off one user: the vast majority of ALL wahs use a plastic gear system.

I am giving this an 8 because I have not gigged day in and day out with this pedal, nor have owned it for years. I am basing the rating on what I know of contruction and other pedals I have owned (in the last 25 years).

I have not dealt with them, but they are supposed to be the Dell computer of the Wah pedal world when it comes to support (Dell leads the way in the industry for customer support and satisfaction).

I dont know the guy on the Snarling dogs site, but its his face that is the one that backs up the pedals, and he is supposed to be the owner of the company. From the looks of this pedal and the way it works/sounds, he needs to get used to being rich.

Who else offers a tough analog wah pedal that is true-bypass with a distortion pedal built in (and not some cheezy crapola distortion) for under $110.00??

I am giving this one a 9 because of the review from the guy who had to deal with the company: that review speaks volumes to me. I have been shafted by shitty companies like the Madison Speaker company and its refreshing to hear of a manufacturer that does not treat you like a used sales order (do you hear me, Madison??!!!).

If this pedal was stolen, I would replace it: who else offers a true-bypass pedal that has the vintage wahs and throws in the classic distortion as an extra? Even if you dont use the distortion, the pedal is still a great deal. My Clyde McCoy Vax was more tham 150.00, and it gave just ONE sound. This pedal has the same range, but offers three different voicings that are analog (and not some mathematical aproximation in a computer chip).

This pedal gets a 10 overall...

If someone rates this pedal significantly less than this, they either are REAL picky or have a particular pedal they fell in love with and will never be happy until they replace it. This may not be the holy grail pedal, but this pedal was the best 110.00 bucks I spent in 25 years.

Very reliable -- see below.

I reviewed this product in February, 2002 and would like to update my review. I had problems with the unit when I first got it -- see my earlier review. I was unaware of the company changing hands at the time. When things settled down, Kenny contacted me about fixing the unit and sincerely apologized for the HUGE delay in getting it back to me. Kenny upgraded the pedal with the new electronics and added true bypass for me for free. I didn't get the pedal back until mid-2003 -- but, given the circumstances, I understand and Kenny did alright by me. The unit is solid as a rock now and sounds great. Give Snarling Dogs a try if you haven't yet -- it's worth it.

Q:How easy is it to get a good sound out of it?
A:Very Easy, this thing kicks

Q:How is the manual for it (if there is one)?
A: There is one, and it's actually good!
(but, any half-decent player will find their
way around this pedal in just a few minutes,
even without a manual)

Q:What setup (i.e. what guitars and amps) are you using this with?
A: Old Les Pauls and Strats,into Marshall DSL's and older Marshalls
(and nothing else)

Q:Is it noisy?
A: Adjusted to real-world usable settings, it was fine.

Q:Are the effects weak or do they always sound great?
A: it does a great wah sound, in 3 flavors!
(Jimi is my personal favorite)

Q:Can you get the sound of your favorite artists?
A: never tried, I don't buy into all that, I look for a sound I like.

Q:Who are they?
LOL, Jeff Beck, Hendrix, Page, Clapton...get the idea?

Q:Are certain effects very good? Very bad?
A: The wah is excellent, and the fuzz is very authentic and usable

Q:Can you depend on it?
A: yes, I feel I can

Q:Would you use it on a gig without a backup?
Yes, not a problem. If it were to go down for any reason
I can get through without a wah.

OK, here is where this thing really shines!!
Nobody has customer support like these fine people.

I had a problem with the wah, I wrote the company an email...
they didn't ask stupid questions or even hesitate a second......
they asked me for my shipping address and said they would send me a new one. Sure enough within a couple of days a brand new one in it's brand new box with all new paperwork came UPS to my place. It was packed to perfection, also there was a UPS pick-up tag that I slapped on the old one and back it went. Not costing me 1 single cent!

I have been playing for over 35 years and NOBODY has ever been THAT cool about a returned product.
These people totally rule in customer sopport.
My thanx to them.
I only gave this a 10 because there is none higher.
AWESOME SUPPORT!!

I a am 53 and have been playing classic rock since before it was classic. (and original's also)
I use mostly Gibson LP's, SG's and Fender Strats.....always played through a Marshall, ---> always.
I have played almost ever "good" old wah under the sun.
Vox, CryBaby, etc...
This wah works, and works quite well.
The addition of the fuzz is a nice extra also.
It's a fun pedal, with just enough bells and whistles to work..
but not so many that you have to struggle for a sound.
Coping a good sound out of it is easy.
The light up eyes are another fun thing.
On the serious side the 9v jack to eliminate the battery is a blessing. The knobs are large and easy to work.
The 3 voices are a great option for different guitars...and the wah vol preamp is real useful. The wah has a long sweep that "may" take getting used to, but most players like that...the fuzz can be dripped in or full blown. Believe me, it's all there.
I'm sure you can make it sound bad, if you try real hard.
Any effect, guitar or amp that has the potential to be variable can usually be manipulated to a good side and a bad one.
For me it was fun playing with the variables, my old CryBaby is one
sound all the time (granted, a good one, but just that one)
It's all in there, so it's really up to you.