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  #1  
Old 10-14-2014, 06:46 PM
cthomas1026 cthomas1026 is offline
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Default Wah Pedal Question

So, I got the urge today to whip out the 'ol strat and power up the pedal board. Upon finding out that I lost some cables for my power supply, I ended up picking up a "1 spot" and the daisy chain that goes along with it.

Long story short, when my crybaby wah pedal is engaged, I had to crank the up amp the whole way up just so I could hear my sound. However, whenever I disengaged the wah, the amp was at normal (ear piercing, since it was cranked) volume.

It's been a really long time since I messed with pedals and powering them (hence why I frequent the "acoustic guitar forum"), so maybe I'm just overlooking something simple here.

Any thoughts on what the issue could be?

Thanks!
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  #2  
Old 10-14-2014, 06:57 PM
RRuskin RRuskin is offline
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Probably including the wah draws more current than your power supply can deliver.
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  #3  
Old 10-14-2014, 07:06 PM
DesolationAngel DesolationAngel is offline
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Chances are that SOMETHING in your chain is drawing too much current and when the wah goes on it's just too much. I had a 1-spot for while. Ditched it pretty quick and got a Voodoo power supply.

What else is in the chain? Have you tried running the pedals individually?
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Old 10-14-2014, 07:32 PM
cthomas1026 cthomas1026 is offline
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Thanks for the help!

The chain was crybaby wah > BD-2 Blues Driver > Aquapuss Delay > Hall of Fame reverb. I tried each of the pedals individually, except for the wah, and there was no problems. I'll have to try the wah individually tomorrow.

This is probably going to sound silly, but I actually have a voodoo power supply, but I didn't have enough power cables for all the pedals. The store I went to didn't have any, and I was really itching to play, so I decided it couldn't hurt to have the 1 spot around and picked it up. I guess that's what I get for being inpatient haha.
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Old 10-14-2014, 09:02 PM
BTF BTF is offline
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Are you certain the power to the wha is the correct polarity? If it's a Dunlop and uses the 1/8" phone plug, it's easy to have the polarity reversed. It sounds as if the pedal circuit is not powered.

Try putting a battery into the wha and see if the wha reacts normally. If so, the problem is in the power supply, it's polarity or perhaps in the power input jack. I'm betting the polarity is reversed.

Good Luck, Bill.
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Old 10-15-2014, 07:23 AM
cthomas1026 cthomas1026 is offline
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Thanks Bill!

Here is where my preference of playing acoustic really shows. I can talk about adi vs. Sitka and such all day... I'll try with a battery like you suggested, but if it is a polarity problem with the power supply, how would I correct that?
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Old 10-15-2014, 07:56 AM
clintj clintj is offline
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You'd need an adaptor to reverse the polarity of that cable, or a cable set up for the opposite tip voltage. Neither should be hard to find as there are a few "backwards" pedals out there.
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  #8  
Old 10-15-2014, 12:28 PM
BTF BTF is offline
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Clintj is correct. There a many polarity-flipping cables out there, or you or a local tech could make one.

The reason I can't help but wonder about the polarity is that wah pedals usually contain but two or three transistors and when working properly rarely draw more than 10-12ma DC. If the wah is defective, and is drawing too much current, the battery test will tell, as the battery will also become quite warm from the current draw. Most of the time, if you have a current consumption problem, it will be from a digital delay or maybe a chorus. The fact that everything is working BUT the wah suggests that the wah may not be on.

The only thing you've mentioned that has changed is that you are using a different adapter and a different set of cords. I'm betting the polarity of the cord going to your wah is reversed.

It's hard to tell from here. It's just a guess. Good Luck, Bill.

Last edited by BTF; 10-15-2014 at 12:34 PM. Reason: punctuation
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  #9  
Old 10-15-2014, 02:49 PM
franchelB franchelB is offline
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What Bill said...use a battery. I believe the Crybaby is an analog pedal, so it will not drain a battery as fast as, say, a digital delay pedal.
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Old 10-15-2014, 03:23 PM
Tone Gopher Tone Gopher is offline
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Default Too many pedals, too many things to go wrong...

Sheesh, just plug straight into a decent amp and TURN IT UP!
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  #11  
Old 10-15-2014, 04:24 PM
BTF BTF is offline
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It would help to know what kind of wah it is.
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