Just bought an original 60's Italian-made Vox/JEN Cry Baby wah

^^^ Not an easy instrument to play/manage, especially while standing; it's a very "neck-heavy" geetar, the Model I in particular.
 
I have always loved the sound of EC's 'Bird, a Model I. Not many FB users get everything outta them but EC sure did in the late 60s.

^^^ Not an easy instrument to play/manage, especially while standing; it's a very "neck-heavy" geetar, the Model I in particular.

I always liked the sound of his Firebird too. I'd agree that a lot of players don't use them to their full potential. I think the Firebird and their pickups especially are a highly misunderstood beast. IMO, they are very amp-specific to find their sweet spot. Much more so than other guitars. Clapton sure knew how to make his sing though. I've always heard people say there was "something special" about the Firebird I models, but I always thought that had more to do with Clapton's use of one than anything.

I've never understood the issue with neck heavy guitars though. I've never had a problem with one. Unless you take both hands off and put them on a mic or something, then I can see it, but my '68 SG Standard is neck heavy and I am not even aware of it when playing. I really want a Firebird again though. I miss the non-reverse '66 Firebird I that I used to have. It had P-90s of course, but that thing could rip in its own right. I loved the middle position on it. It had a really accentuated honky, vowel-like sound that sounded awesome. I would have liked to hear it with the wah I just got.
 
I always liked the sound of his Firebird too. I'd agree that a lot of players don't use them to their full potential. I think the Firebird and their pickups especially are a highly misunderstood beast. IMO, they are very amp-specific to find their sweet spot. Much more so than other guitars. Clapton sure knew how to make his sing though. I've always heard people say there was "something special" about the Firebird I models, but I always thought that had more to do with Clapton's use of one than anything.

I've never understood the issue with neck heavy guitars though. I've never had a problem with one. Unless you take both hands off and put them on a mic or something, then I can see it, but my '68 SG Standard is neck heavy and I am not even aware of it when playing. I really want a Firebird again though. I miss the non-reverse '66 Firebird I that I used to have. It had P-90s of course, but that thing could rip in its own right. I loved the middle position on it. It had a really accentuated honky, vowel-like sound that sounded awesome. I would have liked to hear it with the wah I just got.

Johnny Winter surely found "the sweet spot" with his Firebird III (IIRC?). As did Phil Manzanera (Roxy Music) w/ his V (or possibly a VII -- I recall a "lotta gold-plated hardware @ his 'Bird).

IIRC, Adrian Gurvits (later "Curtis") of Gun and, alter, Baker-Gurvitz Army fame, used a 'Bird (III or V as I recall) now & then.

Then there were a few who used the "forward-bodied" variant, most notably Gatemouth Brown.
 
Johnny Winter surely found "the sweet spot" with his Firebird III (IIRC?). As did Phil Manzanera (Roxy Music) w/ his V (or possibly a VII -- I recall a "lotta gold-plated hardware @ his 'Bird).

IIRC, Adrian Gurvits (later "Curtis") of Gun and, alter, Baker-Gurvitz Army fame, used a 'Bird (III or V as I recall) now & then.

Then there were a few who used the "forward-bodied" variant, most notably Gatemouth Brown.

Steve Winwood hit the sweet spot with his too. ;) His was a non-reverse V model in rare Inverness green. Great tone here. He was stoned as hell in this video though. lol...

 
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Steve Winwood hit the sweet spot with his too. ;) His was a rare non-reverse V model in Inverness green. Great tone here. He was stoned as hell in this video though. lol...


Yep, I do remember seeing Stevie playin' this one, and remember that Dave Mason also played a 'Bird, a reverse-bodied 'Burst III or V. Don't know if it was Mason's "go-to" @ Traffic, but it sure was in the early and definitely (I know: I saw him in concert using it) mid Seventies main ax.
 
@OP Nice score! But I wouldn't plug it in till it's been re-caped or it could blow up on you!
LOL... Sorry just kidding ... I couldn't help myself... This is AK somebody had to post sooner or later "Must Be Re-capped!"
A bit of advise if you do De-Ox the pot make sure re-lube it with fader lube or something similar or you might lose the "sweep feel".
Personally if it was mine & it's not noisy then I would just clean up the old dried up grease on the gear and re-lube it.

If you wan't to leave this fine vintage pedal at home and are looking for a great Wha to play out with you might want to check out the Dunlop MC 404.
It's now hands down my favorite wha. (It took the place of my Fultone Clyd Deluxe on my board) It does the both the Crybaby and Vox tones at the kick of a switch and cocking the pedal back and kicking in the boost depending how you set it can make it pretty growly and nasty.


https://www.jimdunlop.com/product/mc404-7-10137-01663-7.do



Congrats on the great find and rock on!
PQ
 
@OP Nice score! But I wouldn't plug it in till it's been re-caped or it could blow up on you!
LOL... Sorry just kidding ... I couldn't help myself... This is AK somebody had to post sooner or later "Must Be Re-capped!"
A bit of advise if you do De-Ox the pot make sure re-lube it with fader lube or something similar or you might lose the "sweep feel".
Personally if it was mine & it's not noisy then I would just clean up the old dried up grease on the gear and re-lube it.

If you wan't to leave this fine vintage pedal at home and are looking for a great Wha to play out with you might want to check out the Dunlop MC 404.
It's now hands down my favorite wha. (It took the place of my Fultone Clyd Deluxe on my board) It does the both the Crybaby and Vox tones at the kick of a switch and cocking the pedal back and kicking in the boost depending how you set it can make it pretty growly and nasty.


https://www.jimdunlop.com/product/mc404-7-10137-01663-7.do



Congrats on the great find and rock on!
PQ

Oh, god! This thing is a ticking time bomb!!! :eek::p

Yeah, to find one for $70 was pretty remarkable, really. It's pretty rare that they come up for sale at that price. I may not Deoxit it yet though. Surprisingly it's scratch-free and has a nice action, so I may leave well enough alone for now. I've seen that Dunlop /CAE pedal before, but never played one. I just may have to get around to doing that at some point. ;)

Cheers. :)
 
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