These are some of my favorite filters for just having "fun" with. If you are new to instruments, you can sound like you know what you're doing if you have one of these to play with. Its the funk "wick wicka wick wah" sound, the "bow chicka wow wow" sound. To the new, they all seem the same, but to someone presented with the 3, it becomes a little more clear. So here's what they are, and consequentially the differences.
First off I should talk about the origins. The origins in modern music is thought to be traced back to the 20's and 30's when horn players learned they could manipulate the horn mute in and out to create a "wah" kind of vocal sound to their playing. Later this was reproduced in electronics in the form of a Wah Pedal, later came the envelope filters. Sitars are known to be able to make this type of sound too, but the influence in modern rock is from the horn players.
A wah-pedal is a filter that let's you change the filter's "Peak" by using your foot. Where the peak is determines where the sound gets highest or lowest in the signal modulation. You can hear it very noticeably in Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Child(slight return)". The Wah-pedal makes every performance a unique experience, with slight changes in how much the player uses the pedal affecting how the song sounds. The performance is not standardized, but there's much more "expression" from the player.
Technically an Auto-wah is an Envelope Filter. A pedal uses an Envelope follower to create a voltage from the volume signal of the guitar. This volume signal changes the peak of the modulation of the signal. The difference is that an Auto-wah typically stays set at a fixed position that you choose and creates a much more consistent sound. This is useful for recording or freeing the player from having to manipulate a pedal and focus on playing. The notes will always trigger the auto-wah at the same spot and make the same sound. What is typically known as an Envelope Filter allows the intensity of your playing to alter the sweep. If you play lightly, you sweep slower, lower, longer and softer. If you play hard, you'll trigger the sound to make a fast, quick, snappy and short sweeping sound. It brings in the "expression" from a wah pedal, but frees the player from having to mess with a pedal just like an auto-wah.
I am a huge fan of Envelope Filters on bass guitar, though my enthusiasm for wah of all types on guitar is growing.
Day 34
Wow. Some days. Some times there's like this thing in the air. Your state of mind, the atmosphere, the guitar is tuned just right or the knobs on the amp are tweaked to some kind of point... Today I had the most metal practice session ever. Like, I would not mind playing in front of some people kind of playing. I needed extra arms to make the lml etal horns while I played. I was playing so metal, I am pretty sure that I accidentally bumped into actual parts of Black Sabbath songs. I would look up those parts to see how close I was to them, but then I'd be so excited I'd play 3 more hours and I just can't do that right now lol.
Its snowing outside, and I'm pretty sure I was playing the Viking raiding anthem. I dare not entice them more.
The ironic thing is, I was like "ok, today I'm mastering the next tier of "Simple kind of man". A song that is decidedly un-metal. I just don't know what got into me, but I kinda wished it did so more often. Anyway, I have began noticing people playing chords that I know while watching TV, movies or youtube. Now I'm starting to recognize when people are playing a bunch of power chords. I was watching some really good pedal demos today, demos done by the people that make the pedals, and they sounded really good and all they did was play power chords. I experimented with power chords which lead to my metal practice today.
I know there's a hipster sort of thing going on and has been for a long while, where if someone is playing a lot of power chords, some smart ass says "pfft, they're just playing a bunch of power chords" and frequently its by people that a power chord is just about the only term outside of "note" that they know. Come on. People are better than that. Music is music. Do not become a snob of technique, because let me tell you, unless you're Bucket Head, Joe Satch or Malmsteen, there's always going to be someone that can put your skill to shame.
Appreciate the simple and complex.
And never be ashamed of the music you make(I need to listen to this advice myself).
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