Big Joe Volume

The Big Joe Volume is a volume pedal made by Big Joe. It sits on the floor and lets a player raise and lower their instrument's level with their foot, leaving both hands free to play, the way pedal steel and pedalboard players have long used volume pedals.

What it does

A volume pedal works as a level control in the signal chain: rocking the treadle back and forth sweeps the volume from quiet to loud, or the reverse, without touching the guitar's own knob. Some makers build the volume function into a dual pedal together with a wah:

• The JOYO WAH-I Classic Wah/Volume is described by its maker as "featuring both WAH-WAH and VOLUME functions" in one unit¹.
• The Harley Benton Space Wah / Volume takes the same idea further on its volume side: "the volume side gives you a boost up to +10dB when you need power," according to Harley Benton².
• The vintage fOXX Wa & Volume pairs the two functions as well; TONEHOME's write-up of the original says simply, "This thing sounds absolutely great."³

For players comparing standalone volume pedals, the site also covers options such as the Ernie Ball VPJR, the Dunlop High Gain Volume, and the Lehle Mono Volume.