Dunlop ZW45 Zakk Wylde Signature Wah

The Dunlop ZW45 is a variation on the classic GCB95 Crybaby that was made for many years. Zakk Wylde has been a huge proponent of the wah in his live rig and eventually Dunlop offered to make him a signature model based on the Crybabies he was using, but with some subtle tweaks to make it stand out a bit from the crowd. The most obvious change is cosmetic, with a very cool brushed metal exterior in dark silver. It also has a battery door on the bottom for easier access. The general construction is identical to the Crybaby in its standard form otherwise. It has the same plugins and metal switch features of the typical Crybaby, though the voicing of the pedal is definitely more suited to ZW's heavier tones.

UTILIZATION

Setting up this pedal is very simple. Like most other Crybabies, it has just an on/off switch and two jacks for your input and output. As a result, it's almost painless to set this pedal up in a rig. I find it to be less noisy than the standard model as well which is a plus. The pedal has a nice sweep to it that's less dramatic than the typical model. It centers more on the low end to get that nice chunky tone with high gain sounds. I dig it in the context of rock or metal as the tones are more catered to that environment.

SOUND QUALITY

I find that I prefer the sound of this Crybaby to the standard one. It's much thicker and punchier to my ears. The low end is much more prominent, and the high end is biting, yet it isn't nearly as out of control as a standard unit. That being said though, the pedal can be noisy at high gain settings. I gather it might just be a standard thing with the Dunlop design, so I don't pay a whole lot of mind to it. It's definitely more suited to tones with distortion that are thick and bassy on their own a-la what ZW uses rather than using it for say, clean funk tones.

OVERALL OPINION

All in all I think the ZW45 wah is a decent buy for someone looking for a thicker and heavier sounding take on the typical Crybaby. It's got a great rugged look, is very durable and has wonderful tones for rock and metal music. It's a little more controlled sounding than a typical Crybaby which is great too. Definitely worth checking out if you get the chance!

Zakk Wylde has almost always had a wah pedal in his rig, and he uses it quite a bit. Considering that he's stamping his name on everything he comes across, it was only natural for him to get his own signature wah pedal. This one is pretty much your standard wah pedal, but it's voiced a bit more aggressively to Zakk's own specs.

UTILIZATION

These pedals are built like tanks. They can withstand nearly anything you throw at them, short of spilling your beer all over them. The casing is extremely durable, and you can chuck it across the room without much of an issue. About the only thing that occurs is dust and grime getting inside the pot, but you can just spray some contact cleaner in there to fix them, most of the time. The wah is extremely easy to setup, and everything is laid out in an easy to understand matter. The manual also does a great job at explaining everything for you.

SOUND QUALITY

The wah pedal sounds pretty good for what it is. It delivers a solid sound, just like a lot of other Crybaby wahs out there. That said, I don't think it's nearly as versatile as the other wah pedals out there. The 535Q and SW95 have way more options to taylor the sound to your specifications. With this wah, it's pretty much just the same sound over and over again. To me, that's a bit of a disappointment because I could just buy a GCB95 for that.

OVERALL OPINION

If you're a big Zakk fan, I guess this is worth buying. The sound itself isn't too bad. In fact, it sounds really good. However, I just think it lacks versatility to truly be a great wah, especially for the price. I'd much rather look into the 535Q or the SW95 if I were shopping for a wah pedal today. Also, I don't think this wah is true bypass, but I can't remember for certain.

This is a wah pedal Dunlop Cry Baby "sign" Zakk Wylde.
Fasel, between / output jacks, power supply, battery underneath. Cl rgler provided to the resistance to the foot. Beautiful brushed aluminum finish. Very heavy, very solid.

USE

There is nothing to configure, if not the resistance. On the branch and plays.

SOUND QUALITY

Nothing wrong, it is a pedal wah very high quality. Obviously Idale for fans of metal and heavy rock.

NOTICE GLOBAL

I use it for a few days. She is beautiful and it sounds great! I tried a pack of models, I simply chose one that fits me best. Report quality / excellent price. I would do this choice without hsiter.