Updated on 12.21.2021 – See also our Best Wah Pedals article for all regular size wahs.
A Buyer’s Guide to the Best Mini Wah Pedals
After over 50 years from its birth, the Wah Wah is still an effect many guitarists choose to include in their pedalboard. But as time advances and progress makes our life easier in everything we do, many players look for ways to make their gigging rigs less heavy and cumbersome – and a small-footprint wah pedal can go a long way in shrinking anybody’s board…
Because of the treadle, which in the classic designs is over 8 inches long, wah pedalss are among the most space-demanding stompboxes. In the last few years several companies have tried to minimize this effect’s footprint, coming up with a mini-version of it. Here’s a gallery featuring the best mini-wah pedals organized by perceived popularity.
BEST MINI WAH PEDALS ORGANIZED BY POPULARITY
This list of the best Mini wah pedals is organized by perceived popularity. They all have slightly different features, we highlighted them in the descriptions. Click on the pedals’ images to see and hear a YouTube video.
Dunlop Cry Baby Mini 95
$99 - A tiny version of the classic wah featuring the Fasel inductor, a full sweep range, and three internally adjustable voicings: Low, Vintage, and GCB95
1st tap: info, 2nd tap: video
Sonicake VolWah
$59 - An affordable, Chinese plastic mini wah/volume that does the job and that's very popular on Amazon or eBay. Its active circuit prevents Impedance incompatibility issues with other finicky pedals like fuzzes.
1st tap: info, 2nd tap: video
Mooer The Wahter Wah
$108 - A clever mini-wah with extending arms that sports a Fasel inductor with some custom adjustments. It sounds just like the classic. It gives you the option to switch it on by simply put your foot on the pedal.
1st tap: info, 2nd tap: video
JOYO MULTIMODE WAH-II
$79 - A dual mini Wah/Volume pedal. The wah effect can be modified through the 6-position Range knobs and the Quality knobs on the side panel, affecting respectively the center frequency and the sharpness of the filter's resonance.
1st tap: info, 2nd tap: video
Valeton Surge EP-1 Mini Wah/Volume
$68 - A mini- wah and Volume pedal that offers a vintage, classic tone in a tiny enclosure and light casing. The volume circuit in this purple version is active, there's also an orange one with passive volume.
1st tap: info, 2nd tap: video
Hotone Soul Press
$99 - A 3-in-1 pedal in a compact size that can do classic, Cry Baby-style Wah, but also Volume, and Expression. A "Bottom Value" dial lets you modify the lowest point of the filter.
1st tap: info, 2nd tap: video
AMT Japanese Girl Wah WH-1
$129 - An optical wah with a 3-switch selector that lets you choose the range of the filter (0.2-1kHz, 0.3-1,5 kHz, 0.4-2kHz). The optical circuit is more durable than others.
1st tap: info, 2nd tap: video
PLUTONEIUM Chi-Wah-Wah
$144 - This is the smallest wah on this list, it sports and optical design. Three controls on the top front (Level, Contour and Gain) give you a certain amount of control over the tone.
1st tap: info, 2nd tap: video
- Dunlop Cry Baby Mini 95
A half-the-size version of the classic Dunlop Cry Baby featuring the Fasel inductor, a full sweep range, and three internally adjustable voicings: Low, Vintage, and GCB95 - Hotone Soul Press II
A multi-mode, multi-function pedal in a compact size with two wah modes (Warm and Classic), that can add as Volume and Exp pedal (can also do Vol and Wah at once). Q knob adjusts the frequency width of the wah and a four-light system on the side indicates the pedal’s position in real-time. Tuner and Expression Outputs give you extra routing options. - Sonicake VolWah
An affordable, Chinese plastic mini wah/volume that does the job and that’s very popular on Amazon or eBay. Its active circuit prevents Impedance incompatibility issues with other finicky pedals like fuzzes. - Donner Vowel 2
Another affordable 2 in 1 mini-pedal with wah and volume modes and basic functionality that sells like candy on Amazon but gets mixed reviews. The wah sound is voiced after the Cry Baby. The case is made of plastic, which is not ideal, but at this price range is to be expected. - Mooer The Wahter Wah
A clever mini-wah with extending arms that sports a Fasel inductor with some custom adjustments. It sounds just like the classic. It gives you the option to switch it on by simply put your foot on the pedal. - JOYO Multimode Wah-II
A flexible, dual mini Wah/Volume pedal. The wah effect can be modified through the 6-position Range knobs and the Quality knobs on the side panel, affecting respectively the center frequency and the sharpness of the filter’s resonance. - Cry Baby Mini 535Q Wah
At half the size of a standard wah, this pedal provides the perfect balance of wah control and pedalboard-efficiency. The Range Selector lets you choose one of the standard 535Q Wah’s four most popular sweep ranges. With the Q control, you can shape the wah’s response, from a narrow bandpass that emphasizes high-end harmonics to a wide bandpass that emphasizes lower end ones. - Valeton Surge EP-1 Mini Wah/Volume
A mini- wah and Volume pedal that offers a vintage, classic tone in a tiny enclosure and light casing. The volume circuit in this purple version is active, there’s also an orange one with passive volume. - Hotone Soul Press I
A 3-in-1 pedal in a compact enclosure that can do classic, Cry Baby-style Wah, but also Volume, and Expression. A “Bottom Value” dial lets you modify the lowest point of the filter. - AMT Japanese Girl Wah WH-1
An optical wah with a 3-switch selector that lets you choose the range of the filter (0.2-1kHz, 0.3-1,5 kHz, 0.4-2kHz). The optical circuit is more durable than others. - PLUTONEIUM Chi-Wah-Wah
This is the smallest wah on this list, it sports and optical design. Three controls on the top front (Level, Contour and Gain) give you a certain amount of control over the tone. - Wilson Mini Q-Wah
A boutique (therefore not exactly affordable), fully adjustable, fuzz friendly, vintage spec mini wah pedal. It includes volume control, internal Sweep range trimmer, internal 6 Position DIP switch for adjusting “Q” range, external mid-range control and external resonance or growl control.
You can find more articles about Wah pedals here.
Here are a few video shootouts featuring some of the best mini wah pedals!
• Mini-Wah Shoot-Out by Gear Gods
• Mini-Wah Shoot-Out by Total Guitar
