Wah-Wah True-Bypass Mod

Wah-wah pedals without true-bypass are notorious for sucking tone from your guitar signal when not active. The problem is that even when not engaged, the input of your guitar is connected the circuit board of the effect. The fix is to change the stock stomp switch to one that will allow you to configure the input and output wiring of the effect so that the circuit board is only included when the pedal is "on". This mod works for me and I make no guarantees that it will work for anyone else. Use it at your own risk.

I learned how to do this from several sites on the net. For more information about what I'm doing here, check out the Geofrey Teese Tourbleshooting FAQ and S. Castledine's Wah Wah Mods page.



  1. PARTS: You'll need at least a double-pole double-throw (DPDT) stomp switch (a triple-pole double-throw (TPDT) will also work) , a soldering iron, some solder, and a 47kohm resistor.
  1. Open your pedal by taking out the four screws on the bottom. Remove the bottom cover and put it off to one side.
  1. Remove the stock stomp switch and replace it with your new one. Note that the third bank (pole) of the switch is not being used here. Wire the switch as shown in the photo.
  1. To even out the change in volume between the pedal when it's on and when it's off, remove the circuit board from the chassis and replace the stock 68kohm resistor with a 47kohm resistor.
  1. You're done. Close it up.


Return to ToneWorks Salmagundi