Should You Put Your Wah Pedal Before Or After Fuzz & Distortion Pedals

Here's a demo of how your wah wah pedal will affect your sound depending on whether you put it in front of, or after your fuzz and distortion pedals. I'm using a Gibson Les Paul, a Fender Blues Deluxe, a Black Arts Toneworks Pharaoh Fuzz, a Crybaby Wah Pedal, and a BJFE Mean Green Distortion Machine Pedal.

[@NoPlaceForTheDead]

Before and after. My setup is: fuzz>wah>fuzz>wah

[@patrickdaia6099]

wat?

[@MrCaddySlash]

Patrick Daia waht*

[@henriquemontalvao8492]

Wah the fuzz?

[@RonnyBGoode]

Mine: wah-wah-fuzz-wah-fuzz-fuzz-octafuzz-wah-fuzzwah-wah-fuzzwah-wahwahfuzz-wah-fuzz.... Sounds killa!!

[@NoPlaceForTheDead]

@@RonnyBGoode I am going to actually try that, when I get a chance.

[@UnsFor]

I run my fuzzes before wah i.e. I put the fuzzes first in my signal chain. I put wah before overdrives, distortions, amps with dirty channels, and that gets my wah love.

[@bobbyberetta4206]

I been playing for over 20 years and never even thought or questioned it, I always ran the Wah first in the chain. But after seeing this video, you have opened my eyes (ears) to a whole new Fantastic sound! Damn I wished we had KZbin back in the day, everyone always kept there rig a secret and was hard to get info without being sold something outright, always had to take a chance on a new pedal. Again Thank you, I appreciate it.

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

Glad you liked it buddy :0)

[@jeffwagner2707]

Before

[@KeeperOfPoops]

fuzz and distortions before wah is perfect for John Frusciante's wah sound cos that's how he did it, placing his DS2 and Big Muff before the WH10

[@WhiteNacho]

This was just the info what I was looking for. Wah will never go out of style!

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

Good stuff!!

[@robgen06]

me 2 ty

[@andyginterblues2961]

So think- "Fuzz before Wah- makes you say "aah".

[@SasquaPlatypus]

Wow! Makes quite a difference. Makes sense - the wah is rolling off a lot of the high frequencies the distortion is adding in. Never would have thought of this. Thanks for the demo! I shall probably rethink the board now.

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

SasquaPlatypus No problem my friend!

[@hassansabri6637]

Dude your playing is awesome 👏 Great video too

[@jensenbell]

Great video! Thanks for taking the time to make this. - I was just doing an experiment with recording. The wah after my Colorsound Tonebender is, as you say, "more pronounced"... but in the track it tends to get lost if you roll the wah pedal all the way back. It stays clear and present if you put the wah before the fuzz. If I want to put the fuzz first ... I will have to EQ the track to "bring back" the notes. Fascinating stuff.

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

Jensen Bell Thanks dude. That's interesting to know!!

[@RootsBassCanada]

Thanks for the video. Just reminded me again that it's all up to me how I wanna put my effects in order. 👍👊🏼

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

No probs

[@thisnameiseitherrestricted6270]

Totally agree that a wah sounds better after all OD of fuzz.. especially a Harmonic Percolator circuit.

[@jeremiahlasola9892]

thank you for this useful vid! my first time to have pedals and don't know the arrangement. And again, thank you! keep it up!

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

No worries buddy. Glad it helped.

[@JoshuaStromer]

I have experimented with putting a mild overdrive pre wah and a harder overdrive post wah and it was really nice. Give that a try sometime, a little unorthodox for wiring schematics especially if you have a pedal switcher, but fun nonetheless.

[@MindkontrolTV]

Let me set the long time debate to rest... There is no "right" way to do this. You can always put the Wah Before or After your Fuzz/Distortion. If you put the Wah before it, the Wah sound will be more subtle and behind the distortion. The distortion will(obviously) not have it's frequency changed. Placing the Wah after however will cause the distortion itself to be effected by the Wah pedal giving you a very clean and less dirty sounding Wah. Both styles are 100% completely valid. It all depends on A) What you prefer, and B) what fits the song best! Personally I love the sound of the wah pedal AFTER my distortion because I like the distortion itself to be filtered. I'd also like to note that if you are placing your Wah BEFORE the fuzz/distortion you will notice that it has less of an effect the lower tone the guitar is(using the neck pickups for example!) I hope this information helps someone, and keep rockin on! PS GREAT VIDEO!

[@suchitkrishnaa]

Thanks

[@PhillRobinson]

Very useful test well done

[@juanespinosa8064]

I love the sound of the wah and fuzz at the same time.I,m gonna have to get me a fuzz to compliment the wah.Thanks for the video.

[@ETILHK54]

I like both ways depending on what i want to do with it, but generally i like when wah doesn't affect my dirt boxes too much, i also have a phaser and delay before them, and i don't want wah to be after, so wah-fuzz works for me the best. Although i was thinking about making a looper that will change position of wah with a press of a button, but not sure whether or not it's worth it.

[@carlosm3895]

beautiful playing!

[@aaronsg71]

I like both b4 and after for different applications in songs! So I set one b4 and one after

[@drkam6]

That fuzz pedal is very nice indeed! Wah after fuzz = Fripp 1974. Listen to "Asbury Park", from the Crimson USA live album. The wah gives a synth-like tone to the fuzz. Just great.

[@Bodankful]

AFFFTERRR! For those psyche sounds man

[@potatoheadhaoy]

I've had the best luck with sandwiching a wah with fuzz before and after. The extra harmonics of the pre fuzz gives you a really pronounced effect, but the post fuzz kinda smooths it out by compressing the difference in volume

[@nathangray429]

Fuzz>Wha>Distortion>Delay>Reverb

[@MrAriel4444]

Wait, distortion? You already got the fuzz?

[@winnersblues]

wouldn't it be: reverb < delay < distortion < wah < fuzz ?

[@Jonnyguitar1877]

It's all a matter of taste really. Thanks for making this video it is a good thing for people to see. There is no right or wrong, just how you like it to sound.

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

IcyBluesOfDeath That is the truth! :0)

[@Whitman1819]

agreed

[@h0zzle327]

Damn, your tremolo picking sounds fucking awesome man

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

Cheers man

[@doomerius1300]

This

[@beeflin]

Your basic guitar sound is really nice.

[@deafforever1415]

Super useful vid, exactly what I was looking for, thanks! Aaaand I just became a sub (200th?)

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

+deafforever Awesome. Welcome my friend!! :0)

[@SMATF5]

It seems to me that putting the fuzz/distortion before the wah will give you more of a 1960s psychedelic kind of sound, and putting it after the wah gives more of a 1990s grunge sound (e.g. Alice in Chains, etc).

[@Whitman1819]

Agreed, I think you put it where you get the sound you want...depends on what you're looking for...and what gear your using...

[@haldumille5594]

@@Whitman1819 Absolutely right.

[@julestielens6988]

Vorretemundo. Add frusiante for the 90 sound

[@strauss885]

Love your fuzz man and I just rid of a big muff with germanium was waiting for a whole lotta love with that thing lol

[@joserami2966]

Very quick and nice test... I thin the wah pedals works better after the saturation pedals (whatever) cause at this way the satured sound mixed with the wah sound has a more defined combined colour... I made same test with my pedals time ago..and I like and choice this way.. the other (wah before saturations) I don´t like so much, cause the combined sound have not definition and the wah sounds more like a volume pedal than a wah pedal (with sats)... however.. I think you must try the two ways and choice that you really like and work in accordance with music you play... bless

[@DennisAlvey]

Fuzz then wah..... oh yeah... Winning sequence.

[@blackfender100]

Great video thanks for posting.

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

Joe Dov My pleasure Joe!

[@markferguson3745]

Couple things; Pharoh was designed to work with fuzz impedance; most will not work in this manner, unless the wah was designed to work this way..This can actually be a complicated scenario, depending on the two pedals.Besides this, many wahs are NOT true bypass, & placed first in the chain , will not only tonally effect fuzzes, but also other , usually non buffered pedals .To avoid big problems, either do your homework and learn the ins & outs, or allow for specifically testing, with the ability to return , all pedals in question .Fulltone's McCoy , and Xotic"s were designed to avoid such headaches, among others . Ultimately, some will not allow the choice, - (don't get ahead of yourself). Sound tricky? It can be.

[@johnpiotrowski3108]

I was always under the impression that effects come before the Wah. This presentations proves it.

[@graysonwilson-cacciapalle7989]

I personally prefer playing with wah first, it feels more like part of the guitar to me that way! Less loss of tone, although having the wah come later is fun for getting more of a "speech like" effect if that makes sense.

[@OscarBenben]

That’s a very nice fuzz pedal dude

[@Kha0s1964]

after the distortions, at least on my wah, it sucks all the distortion out. so if i'm doing, just as an example, man in the box wah intro, it has no punch to it. But the way the wah accentuates itself after is perfect for stuff like voodoo child. It has a very full sound to it i'm still experimenting to see what i like more, its tough

[@Yash-ki4qk]

***** I feel ya mate! Those captions!😂😂😂😂😂

[@SpieroMusic]

I never understood why everyone says wah should be the first pedal in your chain. Can somebody please explain the advantages to me. Then only one I can really see is that it has easier foot access when it is to the right of your other pedals. When is before fuzz/distortion. I can never really hear the effects of the wah. I don't see the point.

[@calebkallander4063]

Yeah in my B rig right now, I run my amp clean with distortion, wah, overdrive, then modulation, but I mainly do that to achieve a really cool sound that I couldn't achieve otherwise. I have the tubescreamer and distortion always on and the wah always on toe down, and that's my B rig tone. My A rig, with a Mesa Mark IV, I put wah first then overdrive and don't even use a distortion pedal, just amp gain.

[@Beizeiten78]

+sour090909 You'd probably dig your phaser more before your distortion.

[@jeffsmithfpv]

Randall Yeager you don't run your phaser through the effects loop?

[@morrisonbar]

ill play in a 3 pieces band, bass player sang , drummer and me at the guitar, use to have the wah after distoriton and when is engaged make a boost and feedback totally uneven, then put it before and is pure and clean, no more feedback or unwanted boost on my signal, Now.....probably with more noise like keyboards or another guitar you can get away but not in my case, hope this explain my point, cheers

[@unabonger777]

it's because you can control the tone of the fuzz with the wah as you sweep it... the fuzz reacts to the wah, but if you put the fuzz first there's no interaction, it's just a fuzz going into a dumb filter, there's no life to it.

[@Liv1ngTheDream]

What happens if you put it in the amp effects loop, or even better put a wah in all three stages and get two people to mess around with the other ones?

[@nawank1351]

whats music you like? i placed wah first because its good for rock punk n metal. sorry for my english

[@shkwave99]

Great vid! Nice, simple methodology that clearly demonstrates the advantage of placing distortion/fuzz pedals before the wah.

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

DEEP WINTER Thank you my friend!!

[@serdar213]

I have a set up Like this ; Guitar > rack Preamp > cabinet/speaker amulator ( ADA Ampulator) > rack effect unit > Rack Power amp > Cabinet. so where should I connect The Wah ? When I look to pedal boards, It's right after the distortion in majority.

[@bigbasil1908]

How about put a jack splitter on the input of the wah with the wah first, and then run the output from the distortion pedal into back into the wah through the other splitter socket? I think it would make an interesting, different sound.

[@jamessmith-zk4co]

With the wah in front of the distortion I didn't hear much wah effect but when you switched it, man, the vive was beautiful! Loved it! Should a compressor go in front of the wah? I'm asking for a friend. 🤔

[@Phi83400]

You don't have to say it's for a friend/science when you're not asking about porn 😂

[@strauss885]

Yeah that's where I have mine the compressor sucks anywhere else in my opinion but honestly don't trust me or anyone else try it for yourself and experiment I had to do that with 12 pedals everytime I added one I experimented I also prefer my wah in effects loop and phase 90 before distortion your ear will guide you 👍

[@zawaxe123]

i think fuzz to wah is bettrr for me.. 😀

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

I agree

[@bernab]

Both ways sound pretty good to me!

[@marc-olivierjohnson8569]

if u get a boredbrain patchulator u can patch and unpatch before or after without breaking your pedals' sockets

[@barberarian1]

I generally agree in most cases but I run my wah after my fuzz face because I control the input with a volume pedal and volume/fuzz/wah seems to 'hit' my non-master volume Marshall jmp model 1987 a little more to my liking. With most other fuzz pedals I'd probably do it the other way around.

[@napomania]

Uhm.. So the volume of your guitar it's better to remain Always on 10 i suppose?

[@mr.astrophysics9115]

It's what ever you prefer best

[@alextheguitarist7282]

Won't there be an oscillation going on between the Wah and the Fuzz (Wah into Fuzz)?

[@knmhobbies]

On the Pharaoh the switch switches between silicon and germanium diodes not transistors.

[@Robdust]

Many fuzz's are sensitive to input and hence usually put first in the chain. Makes sense that it would pronounce the WAH better if placed before it.

[@metalehead95]

do you have hum problems with the pharaoh? I own a big muff and am between getting the pharaoh or a tube screamer to combine it with the muff but am not sure

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

metalehead95 No problems at all

[@analog-pedals]

For me, it's fuzz first and then the wah. I agree, there is no right way or wrong way to do this and it's completely personal preference.

[@scottconnors8419]

Is that a old crybaby! Sounds pretty active n responsive..nice demo

[@joeypruitt7750]

You are great at guitar. You kinda sound like Isaiah Mitchell from Earthless

Very useful test, thanks! What about a compressor pedal? I guess it should be put before the wah pedal too.

[@joserami2966]

when you use the compressor before wah..your sigal have a more defined dinamyc range ( if the settings of the compressor are the rigths)... I like put the compress first in my chain, cause this sure my to take control in my D.R of the entire pedals ... and if I don´t wanna a compress signal..I only need put it off!!!

Finally, I'm using the following pattern in my gear: Guitar > Wah > Tuner > Comp > OD I noticed the Compressor before the Wah tended to "flatten" a bit the Wah effects. But I use a Marshall compressor pedal with 4 knobs to play with, the attack and compression knobs are really important settings to consider, it can drastically modify the sounds.

[@pixieloco]

***** in tastes... colors. ;) and not. compressors are not useless.

[@ahmettalha5257]

I using joyo wah 2 and boss ds1 for distortion and it sounds better and tasty when i put distortion before wah.

[@ShortFingeredShreder]

I always thought it made more sense to wah the distortion/overdrive/fuzz than to distort the wah. Doing so would make it sound cleaner, but most people put it first on their boards. If that's the case, why even have it on the pedalboard in the first place? If you want to distort the wah, why don't you just put it between the guitar and the amp to get the amp's gain and pedal's gain shaping it?

[@Ben59910]

Great now you've confused my pedalboard

[@Ben59910]

... 4 year's later

[@Ben59910]

Bet you didn't expect that!

[@Savior.Greenmount]

My wah pedal doesn't work with all the pedals I own, I tried various positions but nothing to do. My wah pedal only works with amp distortion is it a wah pedal fault? what can i do to fix this problem?

[@strassercaster]

if you put fuzz as the very fiirst when you roll guitar volume down tone cleans up as well

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

Agree. I always put my fuzz first in my signal...

[@markferguson3745]

This is another issue in the debate; that volume control ability can also be hindered by compressors or active volume pedals .

[@landofold]

Depends on what sound you want.

[@amree1991]

Hye sir, can i know what’s the type wah pedal are u used??

[@teacher5376]

I see .I listened. Both ways, do have two worlds , of best sounds , ....smart ....

[@pivoncat]

I don't use a fuzz or distortion pedal. I have a Marshall tube amp that will let me go from clean to mega distortion. So the Crybaby goes first.

[@Sevalus]

putting the wah after the distortion gives the wah much more definition and clarity but can someone tell me why people like to put it before in terms of sound?

[@mykepenney3189]

I have no clue... Doesn't even sound like a wah pedal when it goes before the dirt/fuzz! lol

[@jman2102001]

subtlety, something to add a little spice to the sound without changing it as much as it would after distortion. I use both, depending on what I'm playing

[@wrayven]

It kind of depends on the signal chain. I like a fuzz before a wah, but I do prefer a wah before a distortion/overdrive pedal. In answer o your question as to why many people prefer the wah before fuzz comes down to Hendrix. Look at stage photos of Hendrix and you will see that the first pedal is usually wah. He would move the octavia & fuzz pedals around, but the wah is invariably first. I think when using a Fuzz Face type pedal, the wah works better first due to how it loads the next pedal. You have to experiment with pedal chain to find out what works best for your needs.

[@KeeperOfPoops]

it's better with fuzz & distortion before wah cos it gets the John Frusciante Dani California solo sound

[@joshuavaldes9946]

Every time he picks the same note 5000 times I feel like tearing my scalp off

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

It was only 4987 times....

[@DWinegarden2]

Do it, post it on KZbin!

[@Shabboi]

4987 times is absurd, but 4985 would've been inadequate. Shoulda done 4986.

[@joshuavaldes9946]

Darren Winegarden do what

[@joshuavaldes9946]

Simon Guitarman not gonna lie that's a pretty clever comeback

[@thodorisvlastos6304]

One pedal pedal before the other means that its the one thats closer to the amp or to the guitar?

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

Closer to guitar

[@GtrPknMama]

I just use a vintage Crybaby Fuzz Wah first in line….✨🎵✨

[@cristiancornejo]

I always like first Fuzz then Wah especially for bass..... its a simple thing... normal is wah and fuzz ... more modulation.... Fuzz then wah.

[@XMetalChefX]

treat the input to input like reading left to right. and vice versa. Anything going Into the wah will affect the wah tone. Anything in the was output will GET wah tone. I never understood this argument. My wah is always forst in my chain so the tone of it is unchanged.

[@benddawson]

Fuzz - fuzz - distortion - phaser - wah - chorus and pitch

[@gerodoth]

i'm a bass player, so my taste may differs, but i like wah before over, and don't see any pluses in second variant, wah works almost like volume pedal there.

[@ChrisSglimbeaelectricfingers]

if u place ur wha after the OD nd play at stage levels u will fi d out that ur wha will squeel nd loose its lower end it will sound week nd empty,vs before the OD , i knw bc i play at loud level nd it will make a huge differenve vs ur room level

[@ChrisSglimbeaelectricfingers]

Chris Sglimbea another words the WHA will be thin sounding in front of an OD .

[@unabonger777]

definitely the wah first. the fuzz reacts to the wah, but the wah does not react to the fuzz.

[@McLOVIN.....]

After the distortion sounds like Tom Morello

[@TerminalPassage]

"Heavy my the more have"

[@HELLCHILDFAN101]

No way I love all the albums you post!!!

[@LotharOfTheHillPeople]

I run my Pharaoh into a 105Q bass wah and it sounds like a cougar screaming! Put the wah first and it ends up being much more vintage sounding. I prefer fuzz first.

[@romanough]

I like after

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

Me too!

[@znellett]

based on this demo I think id have to go fuzz into wah into overdrive.

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

I agree

[@znellett]

+Simon Guitarman now the next problem to solve is where to run a compressor based on that configuration. I'm leaning towards after fuzz before wah but I see the benefits of it after all dirt and before dirt as well. your thoughts? (assuming that all other pedals are run through fx loop)

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

I'd have to experiment at gig volume I think. Some pedals really interact badly, and some really well, so would depend which comp and which fuzz I was using....

[@Beizeiten78]

In terms of compression, it's usually better after dirt. Fuzz/OD/distortion all are compressing effects, that's how they clip, compressing it beforehand narrows the dynamics, so although you still get your dirt tones, the dynamics of your playing will suffer considerable, since you are essentially double compressing it. Look at it like a boost, sort of. A boost after dirt makes that sound louder (boosted), boost before dirt saturates it and drives it harder.

[@sammourao]

that´s what i do!

[@rareform6747]

Grand Funk Red Album Before The Wah ... Other Wise Always Wah infront 💫

[@stoneyboyd]

I’m leaning more towards Fuzz/Distortion before Wah

[@Slicklickz]

I have 2 programmable bypass loop switchers that have 128 presets and any preset can have any loop in any position.The Switchblade can do 16 loops in any order.

[@DrangusKahn]

The real question mate. OD>wah>Fuzz or Fuzz>wah>OD??

[@henrimavignier]

Before - 0:59 After - 3:56

[@myfeetdontwork]

Guys, just put a wah before AND after the distortion

[@masterofthetelecaster]

I put my crybaby first... so it goes ....GUITAR---- CRYBABY ---- DIGITECH OVERDRIVE -- MARSHALL AMP and everything respons briliant. Think thats the right way

[@andresmauriciomahechac.981]

I use: GUITAR---CRY BABY---DIGITECH DF7---MARSHALL MG50FX

[@mczappa4229]

#teamfuzzbeforewah

[@nicknickson3650]

I think it sounds much better before the fuzz

[@MrBonehead1972]

the emerald green distortion machine is a fuzz pedal

[@WillGalluccio]

Try an Ibanez wh10... no more problem!

[@MGTO_87]

Son diodos. No transistores. "The diode selector switch allows for different modes of clipping. Silicon Diodes for a raspy distorted sound,Diodes out for more volume /headroom and less clipping. Asymmetrical Germanium clipping diodes give a warm, tubey old school sound".

[@T-Hawkeyes]

The theme hand the main

[@drharmonica]

Say Mate. Are you demoing a wha or a everb pedal. Sounds like your in a big cavern. I want to hear the pedal sounds not maxi reverb.

[@YMSHE]

It's probably a cathedral pedal

[@TheMichaelseymour]

i fukn hate reverb

[@BSIII]

Maggot brain sounds like a fuzz, then wah, then od, and echoplexed in post-mixing.

[@THESONICSPEEDDEMON]

It’s weird when I do Amp->fuzz->wah->guitar The wah doesn’t seem to do anything. Why is that?

[@nasticanasta]

Before, Jimi did, Robin does, so do i

[@SpankTheGargoyle]

Me too!

[@paradox7743]

Wah goes first , if your using a Over the top Fuzz a Wah w/ a built in Buffer is best/ THE Truth : I