Budda BudWah Guitar Wah Pedal

The Budda BudWah is a top-class way to get wah tones. With boutique quality components and a heavy-duty build, the BudWah is a real keeper.

Overall User Ratings (based on 21 ratings)
  • Overall:
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Sound:
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Features:
    4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Ease of Use:
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Quality:
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Value:
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Manufacturer Support:
    5 out of 5 stars
  • The Wow Factor:
    4.5 out of 5 stars
Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(21) (see rating details)
Submitted March 28, 2008 by a customer from comcast.net

"Me Love My Little Budwah!"

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
Verified Customer zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
I will keep this wah for a long time! I've tried the Bad Horsie wah. It's a good wah, but as soon as I turn it on it has this loud hum to it. That pretty much ruins it for me. I use high gain Marshall amps, so every little noise is heard. It's important for me to keep unwanted noise to a minimum. That's why I like the Budwah!
Sound
If you like the Jimi Hendrix wah sound, then you will love this!
Features
I love the true bypass. Other wah pedals sound like they're still on when they are bypassed, but not this one!
Ease of Use
Simple to use, no controls to worry about.
Quality
It seems to be built well, I am very happy with the product!
Value
I think it's a little pricey, but it seems like a high quality pedal. This thing is very quiet when it is on. That's important to me
Manufacturer Support
Haven't needed support.
The Wow Factor
It's chrome and purple. That's pretty cool.

Musical Background:

Active Musician

Musical Style:

Rock
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Submitted January 9, 2008 by a customer from comcast.net

"more like a whoa pedal"

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
Verified Customer zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
I've had a few wahs through the years and this one takes the cake. I suppose there could be better ones out there but that would be more of a personal preference. For the price this one can't be beat.
Sound
None of that face melting high end squeal with the toe down like a lot of the more popular brands. Everywhere is a sweet spot. Very vocal and smooth.
Features
An LED may be helpful but I don't mind not having one.
Ease of Use
Step on it and sweep.
Quality
Solid build - I don't see any issues.
Value
I would buy another one immediately if something happened to mine.
The Wow Factor
Purple and chrome - awesome.

Musical Background:

active musician

Musical Style:

hard rock
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Submitted December 24, 2010 by a customer from gmail.com

"Possibly the Perfect Wah—the BudWah by Budda"

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
Verified Customer zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
I cant imagine replacing or augmenting this with another wah pedal unless mine completely dies or maybe if budda came up with a multifx board using their tube driven stompbox technology and this or a more advanced wah. Im not as insane about wah as i initially was when i began playing, but if budda's new wah technology blew me away (ive never seen one to demo in a retail store, but after ten years they may have improved it or decided not to fix what has not broken. Im more interested in amps, reverbs, sweet tones these days.
Sound
I was lucky enough to know the two guys at Budda (East/ P.A.T.) who developed this pedal as they moonlighted repairing tube amps back about a decade ago when the company was just starting up (incidentally, they transformed the late 60s tube amp i found wasting away at a friends house from what sounded like a detuned radio into a work of art, with beautiful tones and quadruple volume). I get the impression that they take their time and test and retest and retool and retest until their products are absolutely bulletproof, as they were "just finishing up" the first bud-wah for over six months as I anxiously awaited its launch, having worn down two separate dunlops to squeaky metal boxes, and given up on the watered down sound of Vox's contemporaneous offering in addition to the Morleys, etc. (i think digitech and a few other brands had wahs on the market at the time) that i demoed. I must have been among the first regular customers to purchase the purple and chrome bud-wah, according to the manufacturer, almost 10 years ago and use it almost daily due to its lossless bypass and magnificent secondary function as a sweepable mid i leave in place to achieve some odd and some amazing tones when paired with overdrive or distortion, as the rocker rolls perfectly smooth and evenly through each frequency in its expertly chosen range. I cant imagine any pedal (wah or otherwise) as satisfying or as sturdily built. Ive moved cross country twice with it, dragged it to jams, gigs, practices, and spent years with a shoe manipulating it and there is hardly a scratch. It is built like tanks used to be built, and is so far indestructable during normal use. But even forgetting all that, i would still consider this the best wah pedal in production because it sounds better than any wah ive heard, its tuning is perfect for all applications from fx loaded fuzz with hot overdriven tubes in yr amp to a clean chicken scratch or curtis mayfield/70s blaxploitation chase scene angular chords, erupting staccato sounds with slow tilts, or subtle emphasis by gentle 1/4 rockings. Im not sure if the equipment people like isaac hayes and his contemporaries was all hotrodded by their techs, if they worked ten times as hard for the tone or if vox, etc. began cutting corners, but the Budda wah has the quintessential wah sound that i rate all others against. Granted, It doesnt combine ten different effects like some of the new dunlop destroyer models in camo or cherry red or that EVH crisscrossed pattern, but I wanted a wah pedal that sounds great, doesnt require a manual or two feet, and lasts the ten years mine has so far. Those options by dunlop or the revamped Vox may be a dream come true for many players, i must admit that I havent bothered trying another wah since i got this one, as it is the tone ive always sought and the addition of distortion or adjustable Q hold little appeal for me as I have a multifx board by boss with an expression pedal i only ever use to control volume, i love Boss sound, but not that wah, and my ME is loved but aging like my c. '67 Fender. I also have a pair of MXR standalone stompboxes that are excellent (im not biased against dunlop), a boss envelope filter that comes as close to the old Mu-Trons as anything ive found and satisfies any urge i might have to set my own values, not to mention the endless effects i possess on computer pro audio plugins by peak, apple, live, amplitube, MOTU, reason, etc that all require you to manually set parameters and can faithfully replicate everything it seems but the special sound of pressure escaping overdriven speakers and the classic wah sound. The range on the wah is exceptional on guitars, works well with pianos, keyboards, and harmonica—probably woodwinds and midregister strings like viola as well—for my bass if i use the wah i keep it in a static position as though it were an extra precise mid knob.
Features
The only accessory necessary is 9V of power, and while my wholesale version came with a Duracell installed, light wear, and minus a box or AC adapter, im not certain whether the retail version includes the adapter, as like all effects, batteries have a convenience factor but a plug is eventually going to be required. My boss multi has its own Boss brand adaptor, I rarely use more than 3 additional fx so i have a handful of 9V batteries, and interchangeable 9v AC adaptors that plug into my stompboxes i picked up at Radioshaq and/or bestBuy/target, etc and the like.
Ease of Use
Like i mentioned earlier, this wah, unlike some of the newer variety is almost completely intuitive. You need to know where the battery is stored and where the adaptor connects. Beyond that it is important that the cables are connected in the correct directional flow from guitar towards amp or DAW, etc. Or you may end up with that Pink Floyd (cant recall if that's from Echoes/Meddle or Shine On) whinycrying sound unique to backwards wahs. Beyond that it is difficult to generate bad tones (if you choose to call that eerie whine a bad tone), if you try to tap into bypass but fail you just get a hot trebly sound similar to the strat's pickup selector set on the bridge position, or a les paul toggled to lead with the tone up. If the rocker rests anywhere while the wah is active it just adds a very cool EQ effect to yr setup, the only learning curve is using your foot in rhythm with yr playing (which, like any wah, requires none of the dexterity of piano or drums, etc).
Quality
I know that im beginning to sound like an employee or investor at Budda (i havent even spoke to an employee there since picking up my wah), but i went through more than 300 bucks of suck wah pedals that squeaked, stained me with grease that eventually collected enough crap to clog that cheap dunlop flywheel on their mid 90s iteration, others hungup at certain positions, and all died completely before ever giving me a sound that approached the wah sounds i had heard from all those classic albums (excepting the aforementioned squelch of dave gilmores reversed cables). When i started playing guitar, i wanted an amp primarily for distortion and a terminus to place a wah pedal in front of, between isaac hayes' shaft, Cream, sly, the Doors (peace frog), superfly, the dead, playing guitar meant using a wah pedal and until Budda introduced their model, i was so unimpressed by the versions on the market i had given up and bought an envelope filter (close, but no simulacrum, especially if you want the chukka chukka sound. My decade old pedal barely shows any signs of wear, sounds identical to day one (though i am a bit better at guitar now), and seems no closer to requiring any kind of work than when it was new....if it does somehow fall apart (i might lose the rubber feet changing the battery), i wouldnt consider buying any wah but a BudWah, and im curious if this is a new design and how they may have improved it.
Value
Even if it is only as good as a wah of the same price, that one should last at least twice as long makes it twice the value. This is getting repetitive.
Manufacturer Support
I dealt with one employee who fixed my amp, he was cool enough, it took about a month but Budda was not only finishing up the wah but a line of amps, and i was at the end of a long of list of people with broken down gear. When he finally had the time to fix it, he was really kind and took the time to educate me about the structure of my amp w/o being condescending. I havent had the slightest reason to contact them about my pedal, its been as solid and dependable as an armored car.
The Wow Factor
Its a good lookin wah. Shiny chrome like the vox with a touch of purple...uh, prince might want to sex it up for the purple and because he's prince. I would say the vox is better looking and that wah pedals are towards the bottom of the sexy list for fx, and fx are at the bottom of musical equipment.

Musical Background:

Semipro recording engineer/guitarist/bass/keys

Musical Style:

Jazz/rock/Noise
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Submitted February 22, 2008

Budda BudWah Wah Pedal Customer Review

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
I've used various other wahs before (including the Vox wahs and the Morley wahs,) but this one is by far the best.
Sound
This is THE wah sound I've been looking for: Very vocal, and doesn't have that annoying piercing characteristic on the highs.
Features
The only thing that I would change if I could, would be to add a LED. Besides that, it's perfect: Simple, great looking pedal with a must have hardwire bypass.
Ease of Use
Push on, push off.
Quality
Solid, heavy metal construction.
Value
Great price for such a great sounding wah.
Manufacturer Support
I haven't had to deal with them yet, so that's a 10 in my opinion.
The Wow Factor
Try it, you'll love it.
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