Pedals, pedals and more pedals… Today we have a thousand options, but within that pool of possibilities, it is very rare to find a pedalboard without a wah-wah. It is perfect for that funky rhythm part, that Hendrix-style solo or a somewhat more creative arrangement. The unit we are reviewing is the wah-wah from Budda, known as the BudWah. The company started in 1995 building guitar amplifiers that were very well received and that were brought into the concept of boutique amplifiers.
The only pedal they have built is the one we have in front of us, so it is a company that seems to convey the "less is more" concept. But first of all, let's take a quick look at history and see where the wah-wah comes from.
A trip down memory lane
The wah-wah is a guitar effect consisting of a high-pass filter with a variable cutoff frequency. This ability to vary the cutoff frequency gives us two types of wah: automatic and manual. The former are more conventional pedals, with an on/off switch and parameter controls; the latter is what we know as a wah-wah pedal, in which we move a platform with our foot to control its cutoff frequency.
The wah first appeared from a design by Leo Fender. Later it was Vox that released the first wah pedal, then the well-known "Cry Baby" appeared, and from there an endless array of wah pedals.
And if anyone is not very familiar with the wah sound and wouldn't know where to find it, here is a short reference list of well-known songs in different styles where the wah is an essential element. The first example on the list is Hendrix's "Voodoo Child," which we surely all know; "Bulls on Parade" by Rage Against the Machine, where Tom Morello has a whole riff built around the wah-wah; the solo in Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child o' Mine," whose second part comes in with the wah sound; the solo in Metallica's "Enter Sandman"; Satriani's "Summer Song"… And we could go on forever, since the list of well-known songs with wah-wah could be very long.
Differences between wahs
We might ask ourselves: "So how does each wah differ?" "What makes each one different?" These are very sensible questions. To simplify, you have to consider what type of sound the pedal is designed for: if it is designed for a clean sound, we will use it for funkier or more relaxed, bluesier sounds; or whether it is designed more for aggressive tones. At the same time, another important factor is the pedal's sweep. This tells us how much ground we can cover in terms of tonal frequency or foot travel; that is, sometimes the wah pedal has a long sweep and other times it is much shorter. Depending on the styles, riffs and solos, one option or the other will suit you better. The closest example might be a car's clutch pedal: every car has a different clutch pedal and the feel is different.
Budwah
Now that we have made a long introduction to the world of the wah-wah, let's move on to our guest: the Budwah. On the outside, it looks very similar to the Vox pedal, especially the frame that supports the moving platform. What is certainly true is that it is really sturdy; it stands up to the abuse of rehearsals and the wear and tear of gigs and tours. One of the biggest enemies of wah-wah pedals is dust. As the days go by and the pedal suffers through rehearsals and/or gigs, dust gets into the mechanism that makes the platform work and perform the frequency sweeps. When dust gets in, a slight scratchy noise starts to appear, which grows over time and ends up being extremely annoying, to the point where the pedal can't be used. With the BudWah, I have found that with use and over the course of tours it keeps its sweep perfectly, without the slightest hint of scratchiness. As I was saying, the pedal is completely sturdy, so even if you drop it into your pedal case nothing will happen to it.
If we look at the different parts of the pedal, we have a jack input and an output. A 9 V power input and the option of fitting a 9 V battery, but without having to open up the whole pedal, as is usually the case with wah-wahs. The platform and the base on which the whole pedal rests. It has no other connection features or knobs to adjust. The moving platform, at the end of its travel, when it touches the base, has a click that turns the pedal on or off. Having a click to engage it is quite common on wah-wah pedals. The switch has just the right resistance, no more, no less, since sometimes too much resistance means we never manage to switch it off, and if there is too little resistance you may end up switching it off by accident during your wah sweep. Perhaps one possible improvement, though it applies to most wah pedals of this type, would be to add a small LED to show when it is on and when it is not.
Sound
This is where the pedal can stand out the most, since it sounds good with great ease. You don't need to fiddle with it much or combine it with anything very special; simply connect it to a quality amp and a good guitar, and the pedal will respect your instrument's tone, whether it is engaged or not. When you use it, you can tell that you can control the waveform with your foot, to the point of feeling, in an analog way, the path of your note. As to whether it is for clean sounds or more saturated ones, we can say that it is a pedal that performs perfectly in both fields; perhaps with the more metal sounds it may fall a tad short, but it comes pretty close. For clean funk tones it is perfect, and for the Hendrix sound it is great. For blues it gives you a perfect warm tone that lets you get the most out of your licks. You can connect any guitar to the pedal, and that will let you get a lot out of the effect itself. Personally, I have connected Strats, Les Pauls, Telecasters, 335s, etc., and it has performed exceptionally. I could say that Les Pauls sound especially good, as do Strats, with crunch tones.
If we had to decide which sound it most resembles, we would have to say the Vox sound, but without such high frequencies, and perhaps a little fatter and with a bit more body.
Conclusion
To wrap up the article, we can say that the BudWah pedal will surprise you. Whatever style you play and whatever gear you have, it will always be an option worth considering. But if your style ranges from blues to hard rock and your budget fits the price of the pedal, don't hesitate to try it; it will give you a lot to think about.
