OT: Italian vs. American Wah

[Craig V]

I am curious as to what everyone thinks of these models of wahs, especially the Thomas Organ wah.  I have a Sepulveda, California Thomas wah, with the stack of dimes inductor.  Would there be any upgrade in getting an Italian Crybaby?

I was looking at one equipped with a can inductor, is this the same as a Fasel?

I've heard some say the 'dimes' inductor wahs are over-rated.  Is there an agreement on what is the best model wah?


Thank you in advance.

[Mike Nichting]

The Italian wahs are usually considered the best. What king of "can" inductor were you looking at?? Was it a regular looking can or did it have a hole in the top??

 The stack of dimes is a great inductor. Better than the TDK "red box" inductors but not as good as the "halo" inductors that looked like a can except they had a hole in the top and a piece of metal that went around the hole that looked like a "halo".

Hope this helps.
Mike

[Craig V]

The one I saw was just a plain can.  Not the halo; I'm pretty sure that I've seen a halo; I think it's the kind that Stuart Castledine (www.wah-wah.co.uk) reproduces.  ..well, I just checked and he calls it the Halo reproduction, so I answered my question.

Is this plain can version not going to sound as good as the halo, or the stack of dimes?  ( I know good is subjective, opinions are what I'm after.)

The pedal I was looking at says "Vox Crybaby for Thomas Organ Model 95-15015 (or whatever that number is; same as my US one) and it has the Crybaby badge on the front.

Thank you all.

[Ammscray]

The one I saw was just a plain can.  Not the halo; I'm pretty sure that I've seen a halo; I think it's the kind that Stuart Castledine (www.wah-wah.co.uk) reproduces.  ..well, I just checked and he calls it the Halo reproduction, so I answered my question.

Is this plain can version not going to sound as good as the halo, or the stack of dimes?  ( I know good is subjective, opinions are what I'm after.)

The pedal I was looking at says "Vox Crybaby for Thomas Organ Model 95-15015 (or whatever that number is; same as my US one) and it has the Crybaby badge on the front.

Thank you all.

I have both the Italian Vox crybaby and the 846...they are the same exactly on the insides...and I have a clyde and a TO...beware of chrome-top 846's made in the US that have the TDK...they are not and do not sound Italian in any way...


I like the metal can (in all Italian Vox Crybabys and V846 chrometops...Hendrix, Schenker, Walsh, Page, Johnson, etc) the best, for both clean and distorted wah sounds...the halo is harsher IMO and can distort the clean sound too much...clydes are a bit over-rated IMO...the fasels (Robin Trower, Terry Kath) in the Italian Jen wahs are great too, a different sound which is a little darker, but that makes for a very thick clean wah tone...

I love the brown SOD's inductors in TO wahs and even the square TDK's can sound good if you get a good one...it's not just the inductor, but how the other parts measure up, and of course the pot plays a huge part as well...take the original Icar out of an old Italian wah and you will not be very happy...there are NO repros that sound the same and have the right taper...  

Of course last but not least, it's the way you play it...I've heard metal cans sound terrible in the hands (feet) of a novice player, and even a dunlop sound great when played by a pro...

[1wahfreak]

I've owned well over 100 wahs so I have a little background. Just like a fuzz face even 10 identical wah models can sound radicaly different. Most of the early Italians had the same exact board design. So it doesn't matter if its a V846 and Jen Cry Baby or a Vox Cry Baby they are all layed out the same. I had a Italian V846 and and an early Italian King wah both with the exact board and inductor and Icar pot but the King is real trebley and doesn't sound very good at all. If you are looking for something vintage go for it, but understand you can pay an awful lot of money and still come up empty handed. They can be noisey and tampered with so be real careful and ask questions. I agree that most Italians are much better sounding than anything American, however if you are looking for a great sounding piece be sure check out Geoffery Teese's stuff. His Picture wah is unbeliveable. That's what I have in my board.

[Ammscray]

I've owned well over 100 wahs so I have a little background. Just like a fuzz face even 10 identical wah models can sound radicaly different. Most of the early Italians had the same exact board design. So it doesn't matter if its a V846 and Jen Cry Baby or a Vox Cry Baby they are all layed out the same. I had a Italian V846 and and an early Italian King wah both with the exact board and inductor and Icar pot but the King is real trebley and doesn't sound very good at all. If you are looking for something vintage go for it, but understand you can pay an awful lot of money and still come up empty handed. They can be noisey and tampered with so be real careful and ask questions. I agree that most Italians are much better sounding than anything American, however if you are looking for a great sounding piece be sure check out Geoffery Teese's stuff. His Picture wah is unbeliveable. That's what I have in my board.

The Italian (Jen, Vox) designs from 1965-1979 all used different transistors, caps, and inductors so they're not all the same, even two wahs with the metal can inductor but different caps and trannys can sound very different from each other...the layouts are the same, there's no magic to it...

 TDK-based thomas organ wahs sound different mostly from the pots taper but again the inductors vary...you need to listen to several if possible and choose what you like...I had an Italian king-wah very rare with a factory fasel and it was one of the bets wahs ever...I've also heard US king wahs that were dull and lifeless sounding...IMO the teese wahs don't come close to any originals...he mixes the wrong inductors and transistors in his circuits as far as stock Italian circuits go...