I want an auto-wah really bad but worried about losing tone...HELP!!!

[suitlandkid2005]

So here's the thing, I want an auto-wah. I was actually thinking about getting the Boss AW-3 Dynamic Wah. It sounds really good; but I saw someone on here complaining about losing tone and now I'm like I don't know. So has anyone have any problem with the aw-3 if you have it? Also, what is a good wah that doesn't suck tone if that is a bad one? And is there a way to get the tone back that you would lose from a wah?

[bongomania]

There is no way to regain any signal that is lost. E.g. if upper harmonics are the quality called "tone", then there is no way to "put back" harmonics that are rolled off.

The MXR and Guyatone auto-wahs are good. Try before you buy whenever possible.

[niftydog]

Worry about it when you have actually noticed it happening in your rig - there are many variables at play and it could be that what is true for someone else might not be true for you and your rig.

Bongo is wise, listen to him!

[suitlandkid2005]

Originally Posted by bongomania

There is no way to regain any signal that is lost. E.g. if upper harmonics are the quality called "tone", then there is no way to "put back" harmonics that are rolled off.

The MXR and Guyatone auto-wahs are good. Try before you buy whenever possible.

Couldn't a blender pedal fix that?

[katri]

Possibly because it blends in signal from before it has passed through the Auto wah

[ga_edwards]

That's somthing I love about most of the effects on my shiny new zoom B9.1ut, is the blendability (if that's a word), esp on things like drives and wahs. I always felt I was losing something when I kicked in my wah before, be it footwah, or auto, or filter. Blending your original signal let you retain the low end and body, whilst the wah funks away on top. Can be tricky getting the two signals balanced, but totally worth it.

[kevteop]

If you get the sensitivity set right and play it right, the sound will work at 100% wet. It just takes a bit of familiarity to get used to how a particular filter behaves with your guitar and your playing technique.

[Jake of Bass]

Originally Posted by bongomania

There is no way to regain any signal that is lost. E.g. if upper harmonics are the quality called "tone", then there is no way to "put back" harmonics that are rolled off.

The MXR and Guyatone auto-wahs are good. Try before you buy whenever possible.

With this in mind, considering the way in which wah affects the sound envelope it's impossible to have wah and put back in the upper harmonics... correct? Almost an oxymoron of sorts?

[niftydog]

Originally Posted by suitlandkid2005

Couldn't a blender pedal fix that?

Not really - putting back the upper harmonics by mixing in some of the clean sound just makes the envelope effect sound weaker.

Originally Posted by Jake of Bass

...it's impossible to have wah and put back in the upper harmonics...

I think the "upper harmonics" bit was just an example of what a bad pedal might do to your sound.

And depending on the pedal, you can have your upper harmonics and eat them too - eg; the EBS BassIQ has a circuit that blends in clean top end to retain definition in your sound.

[suitlandkid2005]

What is exactly is "upper harmonics"? Are you all talking about like when you tune by harmonics and that sound you get when you are listening to the beats. And is upper referring to the sound you would get from playing on the part of the neck that is closer to the pickups? Correct me if I am wrong...

[niftydog]

Harmonics are just a component of a sound. They are part of the reason why a double bass sounds different to an electric bass - totally different harmonic content = totally different timbre. Also called 'overtones'. Upper harmonics really just refers the high frequency content of a signal.