Vintage B3 Wah effect controls in MainStage
The name wah wah comes from the sound it produces. It has been a popular effect with electric guitarists since the days of Jimi Hendrix. The pedal controls the cutoff frequency of a bandpass, lowpass, or—less commonly—highpass filter. The wah pedal is also used extensively with the Hammond organ.
For the most dynamic and musical performance of the Wah effect, consider attaching an expression pedal to your MIDI master keyboard. Your master keyboard should transmit MIDI control change #11, which would normally be used to control Vintage B3 volume while playing.
Vintage B3 Wah parameters
Wah On/Off switch: Turn on or bypass the Wah effect.
Sweep MIDI Ctrl pop-up menu: Assign a MIDI controller to the Wah effect.
Type pop-up menu: Choose one of several Wah effect types.
Classic Wah: This setting mimics the sound of a popular wah pedal with a slight peak characteristic.
Retro Wah: This setting mimics the sound of a popular vintage wah pedal.
Modern Wah: This setting mimics the sound of a distortion wah pedal with a constant Q(uality) Factor setting. The Q determines the resonant characteristics. Low Q values affect a wider frequency range, resulting in softer resonances. High Q values affect a narrower frequency range, resulting in more pronounced emphasis.
Opto Wah 1: This setting mimics the sound of a distortion wah pedal with a constant Q(uality) Factor setting.
Opto Wah 2: This setting mimics the sound of a distortion wah pedal with a constant Q(uality) Factor setting.
Resonant LP: In this mode, the Wah works as a resonance-capable lowpass filter. At the minimum pedal position, only low frequencies can pass.
Resonant HP: In this mode, the Wah works as a resonance-capable highpass filter. At the maximum pedal position, only high frequencies can pass.
Peak: In this mode, the Wah works as a peak (bell) filter. Frequencies close to the cutoff frequency are emphasized.
Range knob and field: Determine the sensitivity of the Wah effect to incoming MIDI controller data.
Bite knob and field: Boost the levels of signals surrounding the cutoff frequency. Bite is effectively a filter resonance parameter, where high values make the Wah effect sound more aggressive.