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Hatsubai « Continuation of the Whammy »
Published on 03/22/11 at 09:10DigiTech is now on their fourth revision of the original Whammy pedal. This model features full MIDI implementation, which is a HUGE plus. Aside from MIDI, the other new features that the Whammy WH-4 brings to the table are the "divebomb" and "droptune" presets. This allows you to simulate a floyd rose or a downtuning effect, respectively.
UTILIZATION
DigiTech did a great job with this pedal. Its footprint is small enough to where it's not bulky but big enough to where it feels just right. The manual does a wonderful job at explaining the new features and showing you how to wire everything up. Setting this pedal up for MIDI in a rack is a piece of cake. The rotary knob is sturdy and feels great when spinning it, and these things are pretty reliable. I just wish it had an on/off LED indicator.
SOUND QUALITY
The sound of the Whammy WH-4 is pretty good. It's not the same as the WH-1, but it's closer than the XP-100 was. There's actually a cool comparison between the two on Youtube if you search. The sweep feels nice, but the divebombs aren't that realistic. If you're expecting it to be the same as a floyd rose, it won't be. It also doesn't track good enough to be a real pitch shifter. What I mean is, you're not going to be able to sound like you're in D when you're in E. That said, the chorusing effects on this are actually pretty good. Keep in mind that this pedal sucks a little bit of tone, so it might be worth looking into putting it into a true bypass loop or modding it for true bypass.
OVERALL OPINION
If you're looking for a Whammy pedal, your choices are fairly limited. The Whammy WH-4 has been out for awhile, but given its price, it's still a strong contender. The new Eventide Timefactor is awesome, but it's quite a bit of money. There are some budget knock offs, but this pedal still remains a whammy pedal worth considering if you're looking for that kind of effect.
UTILIZATION
DigiTech did a great job with this pedal. Its footprint is small enough to where it's not bulky but big enough to where it feels just right. The manual does a wonderful job at explaining the new features and showing you how to wire everything up. Setting this pedal up for MIDI in a rack is a piece of cake. The rotary knob is sturdy and feels great when spinning it, and these things are pretty reliable. I just wish it had an on/off LED indicator.
SOUND QUALITY
The sound of the Whammy WH-4 is pretty good. It's not the same as the WH-1, but it's closer than the XP-100 was. There's actually a cool comparison between the two on Youtube if you search. The sweep feels nice, but the divebombs aren't that realistic. If you're expecting it to be the same as a floyd rose, it won't be. It also doesn't track good enough to be a real pitch shifter. What I mean is, you're not going to be able to sound like you're in D when you're in E. That said, the chorusing effects on this are actually pretty good. Keep in mind that this pedal sucks a little bit of tone, so it might be worth looking into putting it into a true bypass loop or modding it for true bypass.
OVERALL OPINION
If you're looking for a Whammy pedal, your choices are fairly limited. The Whammy WH-4 has been out for awhile, but given its price, it's still a strong contender. The new Eventide Timefactor is awesome, but it's quite a bit of money. There are some budget knock offs, but this pedal still remains a whammy pedal worth considering if you're looking for that kind of effect.