Snarling Dogs Whine-O Wah

Plug it in, select the wah (3 possible!), rock! There is also a volume knob for those times you have to crank out a wah solo (like on Funkadelics "Maggot Brain"). One of the most versatile, easy to use pedals on the market today.
Did I mention that this is a cool wah? The pedal is shaped like a foot. In the middle of the foot is a glow in the dark picture of a dog. The dog has LEDs for eyes. When you stomp the pedal on, the eye light up. TRES COOL!
Most wah pedals aspire to be like some old vintage wah. The Whine-O-Wah, does the vintage sounds, *and* coupled with its volume control and wider tonal sweep, has IT'S OWN tone.

This is an awesome Wah. I have a Dunlop Jimi-Hendrix Wah (which I've used for the past couple of years). The Hendrix Wah is supposed to have a fatter bottom end than the normal Dunlop Wah. However, compared to the Whine-o-Wah, the Hendrix Wah is anemic. The Whine-O-Wah (WOW) has three selectable wahs: (1) White Room; (2) Voodoo; (3) Shaft. Each wah has a different tonal sweep, with (1) being the broadest, (2) being intermediate; and (3) voiced in the upper range of the tonal spectrum. Others may like (1), but I really like the Voodoo mode. It really cops the Hendrix tone on a song like Voodoo Child Slight return.
Compared to the Hendrix Wah, the WOW is way more quieter. However there is one caveat. Recall that the WOW has a much broader tonal sweep. At the trebliest frequency (foot all the way down), there is slight noise. However, with such a high gain pedal, this is to be expected. The key thing to remember is that the WOW is super quiet across all the tonal sweeps that your old wah pedal does. So basically, don't rock all the way down.

The thing is built like a tank! It's 6.5 pounds. If it's built like the other snarling dogs effects I have (Blue Doo pedal), then there's nothing to worry about.

I had some questions about the pedal and mailed Snarling Dogs (snarlingdogs@compuserve.com). Charlie Stringer himself (the President) answered all my questions!!! Wow. that's customer support. I personally feel that Charlie Stringer is the Leo Fender of effects pedals.
I bought direct from Charlie Stringer based on a special discount ad in Guitar World magazine.

The best wah pedal at its price point (and maybe at higher price points). The ability to have both vintage and original wah sounds is great. Be original. Get a Whine-O-Wah. You won't be disappointed.

This is the same pedal I reviewed during my last submission, i.e., the Whine-O wah pedal from Snarling Dogs. More specifically, this is about the upgrade(s) available for it. Charlie (the prez) e-mails everybody who owns one, offering two upgrades: (1) a more quiet wah, and (2) a meatier-sounding wah, especially in the two first wah settings (White Room and Voo Doo). If your pacemaker needs changing, or if your house's structural integrity has been compromised by an El Nino-driven storm, then keep away from this upgraded version! However, if dying youg and leaving a good-looking corpse is more your bag, then this is your pedal. When Charlie said that he'd make it sound meatier, he wasn't kidding! Get this: with a totally clean tone (no effects whatsoever), the Whine-O will add an amount of gain sufficient to make the sound distort... and this isn't even a distortion pedal!!! Despite this, there is surprisingly little white noise, or hiss, coming from the pedal at full volume, even when in the full-treble setting. Better yet, both of these upgrades are free! How often has Dunlop called you in the last 20 years to say, "Hey dude, here's our new upgrade offer, and it's free" ?? Can't beat that deal!!!

See above. The Whine-O will give your sound a serious kick in the nads, to say the least. A Dunlop Crybaby gains out at about 11 dB; the Whine-O kicks out a terrifying 18 dB gain over baseline. Wimps need not apply.

As I mentioned in my previous review, this thing is a tank. It weighs like 10 lb or something, so unless you're out playing a gig on a stage directly above the San Andreas Fault, it ain't gonna move! As far as durability, I use (and abuse) my gear daily for about an hour or so, and it hasn't failed me once.

Also see above. Charlie has given me the best customer support I've ever received for ANY product, bar none. You gotta query for him? E-mail him; he gets back to you within the hour... and he's the prez of the company! He's also very knowledgeable about his gear, so you'll never get a "Uh, I dunno...I'll get back to you later...maybe." I think he might have gotten his brainbox slightly rattled by the power of the last upgrade, but hey, whoever said that was a bad thing? :) As far as turnaround time, this is my report: I got his notice for the upgrade Monday of last week, I sent the pedal to him the next day (Tuesday), he upgraded it and had it back on my doorstep by Tuesday of this week, exactly one week after I sent it off. If you're gonna argue that this isn't great response time, you're on a different time-space continuum than the rest of us.

Two words: it rules. Better yet, Charlie informed me he plans yet further upgrades for the Whine-O. I know this may sound like a totally glowing review, but it's the straight poop; nothing more, nothing less. I think Charlie got ripped off by Infiniti (the car company) when they stated "Own one and you'll understand."

Very simple wah pedal. Very nice: has a volume pot and a selector between "White Room", "Voodoo" and "Shaft". This pot works as a "tone" switch: White room is guttural while Shaft is ear-splitting. There is a manual with it but you don't really need to read it. The sound is great and the rocking action of the pedal is great.

I use it with Peavy Classics and a Transtube. Actually there is a slight noise that can be put up with, but not scratchy as other wahs. It doesn't bother me. The wah effect is so good, I don't notice the noise. The sound deflection is very easy to control and extremely smooth and proportional to the rocking action. The Shaft setting is a bit harsh for me, but the White Room and Voodoo are awesome.

I acquired it recently, but it is a very heavy casing that can double as a weapon. I don't think it will let me down. Anyway, I am quite a do-it-yourselfer and the manual card has a listing of parts and their prices.

I called the company once to ask about other products and Charlie answered the phone. Very helpful and friendly chap.

I tried the Dunlops and the Morleys. They are the usual wah's. I bought the Whine-O for the magazine review, website info, magazine ads, and cosmesis. This is the coolest wah pedal in existence. It is fluorescent red, with glow-in-the-dark "Whine-O" decal and Snarling Dogs logo. When the pedal is on, the LED's are the dog's eyes, and the rocker pedal is in the shape of a foot. These are lame reasons, I know, but I bought the Danelectro pedals for the same reasons and wasn't disappointed. The Whine-O is at this moment the best wah pedal I have tried: and I've tried a few. The selector switch gives it the versatility no other wah pedal has and the effect tone is awesome in the White Room and Voodoo setting. I just can't wait for the Erogenous Moan pedal which Charlie told me will be out in a couple of months. Check out the Snarling Dogs website at www.snarlingdogs.com

It's a wah. Just plug in and go.

I am using the WHINO with my Start and Terry McInturf Empress running into my 64 Supr Reverb. It's sound great to me. I like the volume control on the WHINO. It's quiter than my Vox. A conpletely different wah. Can you say "white room" Jimi?

Brand new. But seems to be buit like a tank.

Charlie has been great to talk to. He seems to care about his customers. Unlike some manufactures.

Great wah for the money. Three wahs in one. I have been playing for over twenty six years and I would replace it if it was stolen. It was recommended by the music store owner/guitar player. The whino is a very musical wah with three distinct and different wah sounds. Great job Charlie.

Very easy to use...pretty well a no-brainer; stomp on it and wail. The pedal rocks back and forth very easily, with a wide rocking angle, so it's easier to get a particular tone than say from a Cry-Baby.

Sound rules. Three settings of wah are available, the most pronounced being the "Shaft" setting. Using the wah right after a Boss compressor followed by Boss MetalZone, it gives a wah sound that needs to be heard to be described. Once again, very wide tonal variance, real cool.

Metal box casing, metal stomp pad, the damned thing weighs like 9 pounds or something. This thing would stay in its spot even after a 8.2 on the Richter scale! Give it a good stomp, it switches on and off very reliably; I've never had to hit it twice to turn it on or off.

I've had no problems with the hardware. I've been in contact with Charlie, CEO of Snarling Dogs, and he's real friendly, and more than willing to help or suggest different things to try with his product.

Have had a Cry-Baby and a Morley PWV. The Whine-O kicks both their asses in a single swing.

I recently received this pedal through the promotion Mr. Stringer was running in one the guitar mags. The handsome red pedal is very easy to use. You can choose between three wah settings (classic, voodoo, and shaft) and set the volume level. Both are chosen by vintage "chicken head" knobs. No manual is included and is not necessary.

This pedal is considered band property so it alternates between several amps (four Fenders and one Marshall). Important because these amps sport different variations of 6L6's, 6V6's, and 6550's (a wide tonal palette, I must say). The quality of the sounds appear to be very good. I only tested about three pedals (Jim Dunlop Cry Baby, Vox, and Digitech) before buying this pedal without even listening to it (due to a rave review in a guitar mag (power of the press strikes again)). Although the Vox was a very strong sounding pedal, I think the Whine-O is very comparable in the classic setting. In fact, I think it has a wider tonal range of over its pedal throw. Good or bad, depending on your perspective. The Voodoo and Shaft are very useful also. I must caution that the Shaft setting combined with a Tele bridge pickup can be earsplitting (you make the call). I rate the "sound" of the pedal very highly. However, as with all products, there is a downside. The pedal is somewhat noisy in my perception. It seems to be most pronounced at the higher ranges of the pedal throw. This was not mentioned in the review. I still give the pedal a high overall rating.

The pedal is constructed of a very heavy zinc casing. The parts all appear to be of high quality. However, the pedal is new and has yet to suffer to heavily. One item though, pedal seems to always contact the on/off switch in the upper portion of the pedal throw. Hopefully this does not create premature switch wear.

I have called Stringer Industries several times they have always been professional and polite. I have even talked to Charlie himself severl times (Hooray for smaller companies!). However, a problem is the true test of customer support.

This pedal fits our band's style quite nicely. I would buy it again. However, I do believe I took a certain gamble. You may not be comfortable with such a risk. If it were more quiet, it would pretty close to the ultimate wah for me. In closing I would say give it a listen, you may be suprised.