Joe and Scott Gagan wah creation-

***** compare to other ' boutique' handwired vintage style wahs costing up to 2X as much. we promise to exceed your expectations for the true vintage 60s wah experience, regardless of price. if you don't agree, we'll even pay your return shipping with your 100% refund -( no one has returned one yet, however.) 

"ITALIA" wah. the filmcan ( some say trashcan ?) experience.

we finally did it! 2014 was spent designing, testing, running computer simulations, measuring/testing original filmcan inductors and more; this resulted in capturing the elusive, rainbow-like, 'SQUISHY' tone that wah freaks consider one of the best classic wah tones of all time
 -- the late 60s italian made jen/vox 'filmcan' inductor wah.

wah aficionados everywhere have praised the authenticity of the tone of this great pedal. read the raves at 'gear page' , 'DAM forum' and other guitar forums.

features:
- absolute minimum of parts used, for the most pure signal path. compare to other ''vintage style' or  boutique wahs, we simply have the lowest parts count around.

-new 'dimpletop' gagan designed inductor made to replicate the inductance, resistance and harmonic sweetness of the filmcan originals. you must play it and feel it to truly appreciate the response!

- gold plated heavy duty sockets for input resistor to allow tailoring to single coils, humbuckers, varying signal chains etc. TONE MOD kit with extra parts included** + our 'over the top' customer service to advise you any time a question comes up.

-specially selected NOS and new parts for pure vintage response.

- each wah tuned by joe gagan in the final setup process, using marshall & fender tube amps with a great strat and ibanez artist classic 2 humbucker ( LP style) guitars. This assures that every italia has that near perfect 60s tone that made the early voxes famous. this is not an assembly line wah!

- low gain vintage 2n2417 npn transistor@ Q1 for era-correct tones.

- all carbon comp resistors ( exc input resistor ).

-high quality military grade PCB. nice upgrade from the 60s originals. Original vox layout and board size.

-famous joe gagan 100k smooth pot. A very durable pot, which gets the true vintage tone due to the carbon construction. Modern plastic pots do not sound as warm in our tests.  no cost option: 1996 era NEW old stock clarostat hotpotz1 made for dunlop, for people wanting that faster quack. please, you must message us at time of checkout for this option.

-power jack optional: modern 2.1 mm power supply input w/ reverse polarity protection and modern filtering available for an additional $26. please message at checkout for this option, you will be billed after initial purchase for the upgrade. please allow an additional 3 days handling time  for us to schedule and perform this mod. 


** notes on the tone mod kit: stock values in sockets- best for all around humbucking OR single coils = 56k input cap w/ .001 cap. the 'gagan tune'.
extra parts you can swap in to change the response:
-47k (louder), -68k (less loud than stock) -  one of these go in the first socket pair in place of the 56k.
470pf ( less pronounced highs enhancement than stock, OR you can also leave the cap socket empty for a more pure 60s vox type tone, which has less defined low end, less harmonics) - please contact us if you need any assistance, we are always happy to help.

NOTE-- more detailed tuning instructions at bottom of page.

soundsamples on youtube -  SEARCH   "    f-KY8lY8S2o   "  -( ITALIA compared to REAL 69 vox V846 with filmcan )
OR  search:
' hMUJaov-YaQ ' (humbuckers on music man sterling)
NEW SOUNDCLIP marshall and fender amps with hot strat. =  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47CQ2T8TvKo
or, message us for the direct links.

Visual Variations:

since these are made in tiny batches in the gagan shop, colors in the painted areas may look different from  photos. color pallette may shift from time to time, photos will be updated to reflect changes, however no guarantee that yours will exactly like the photos. your satisfaction is guaranteed however.


note: we use new  & used US ( dunlop mfgr '92 thru '04) or China made vox shells. minor chrome and  finish wear is possible. if you prefer a brand new shell with zero wear, please add 15$ surcharge ( billed after checkout, please send a message at time of purchase if a brand new shell is desired).
we have found the casting, machining and chromework of the '05 and newer chinese voxes to be excellent quality. no worries!

chinese shells have a block off plug where the power supply input once lived.  your bottom plate may or may not have blocked off battery cover hole, depending on type of vox used and current availability.


if you prefer a custom color, please see our auction for the ' aged italia ', we will work with on a bespoke theme to match any desires you have.   ( http://www.ebay.com/itm/italia-wah-CUSTOM-AGED-ITALIA-pre-worn-choose-your-colors-/121668305361 )

 addendum to the ITALIA TUNING GUIDE:

for the socket pair parts swapping, you can affect two parameters,1. input 'volume'; and 2. ' treble adder':

 1. volume. to make the wah louder, install the 47k R ( yellow orange purple) in place of the existing 56k. less loud, install the 68k ( blu grey blk red)
2. to change the highs :
 ~~~a. less high end and presence = remove .001 cap from socket. leaving socket empty returns italia to more pure 60s vox circuit.

  ~~b. less highs than currently = change .001 existing to the 470 pf in kit.

<experiment with the above especially the capacitor, listen to the wah with no cap in socket, you will hear less harmonics overall and especially less presence in the heel down. with the .001 or 470 pf in place even at heel down when the guitar is loud W fuzz/dist/ OD before or after the wah you get more a filtery sound ( think 'money for nothin' mark knopfler tone ) we added this option to the italia because we really liked the harmonics it adds. a lot of people also appreciate the extra presence for heel down, the notes do not get lost on the bassy end like normal wahs sometimes do.

if you do use a cap in the socket, .001 ( our stock value as  shipped.) gives more presence and lower freq to the treble adder, the 470pf moves this affect to the more trebly side and also has less intensity of presence as a result. how much the actual sweep is changed is dependant on your guitar, amp and other pedals in the chain.

generally, these parts swaps do not alter the feel of the taper very much.

POT adjust: as delivered, the italia has its max frequency range adjusted on the pot's gears. there is no more treble or bass available than the stock adjustment, however you could lessen treble at top end by adjusting it yourself. this will not increase bass, only lessen treble. do not attempt to get more treble, it is already all the way up, you would damage the pot when switching if turned any further to treble side.


Flawless Return Policy:

 We allow 30 days for our 'no questions asked' cheerful refund if you are not 100% in love with this wah. in 100s of wahs sold, this has only happened a couple times we can remember. please read our feedback comments to experience how satisfied our customers are. We go above and beyond to satisfy our people, and it shows!

Warranty:

Lifetime warranty on workmanship, 5 years from date of purchase on all parts. Simply return for quick warranty service should repairs ever become necessary.

int'l shipping note - to save weight, we now ship our wahs with super padding but very little cardboard to save weight. this allows us to offer very reasonable shipping, keeps everyone's cost down.

thank you.

addendum to the ITALIA TUNING GUIDE:

for the socket pair parts swapping, you can affect two parameters,1. input 'volume'; and 2. ' treble adder':

 1. volume. to make the wah louder, install the 47k R ( yellow orange purple) in place of the existing 56k. less loud, install the 68k ( blu grey blk red)
2. to change the highs :
 ~~~a. less high end and presence = remove .001 cap from socket. leaving socket empty returns italia to more pure 60s vox circuit.

  ~~b. less highs than currently = change .001 existing to the 470 pf in kit.

<experiment with the above especially the capacitor, listen to the wah with no cap in socket, you will hear less harmonics overall and especially less presence in the heel down. with the .001 or 470 pf in place even at heel down when the guitar is loud W fuzz/dist/ OD before or after the wah you get more a filtery sound ( think 'money for nothin' mark knopfler tone ) we added this option to the italia because we really liked the harmonics it adds. a lot of people also appreciate the extra presence for heel down, the notes do not get lost on the bassy end like normal wahs sometimes do.

if you do use a cap in the socket, .001 ( our stock value as  shipped.) gives more presence and lower freq to the treble adder, the 470pf moves this affect to the more trebly side and also has less intensity of presence as a result. how much the actual sweep is changed is dependant on your guitar, amp and other pedals in the chain.

generally, these parts swaps do not alter the feel of the taper very much.

POT adjust: as delivered, the italia has its max frequency range adjusted on the pot's gears. there is no more treble or bass available than the stock adjustment, however you could lessen treble at top end by adjusting it yourself. this will not increase bass, only lessen treble. do not attempt to get more treble, it is already all the way up, you would damage the pot when switching if turned any further to treble side.