The Dunlop JP95 John Petrucci Signature Cry Baby Wah is a wah pedal from Dunlop, built as a signature model for Dream Theater guitarist John Petrucci. Its tone range is based on the settings Petrucci had been using for years on his Dunlop rack wah, and it ships from the factory set to his personal sound12. Underneath, it is still a standard Cry Baby at its core: you rock your foot back and forth on the treadle to sweep a band-pass filter across the guitar's frequency range, producing the vocal, expressive tones the Cry Baby is known for23.
What sets the JP95 apart from a stock Cry Baby GCB95 is its internal control set. Where most Cry Babies hide one or two trimmers, the JP95 carries Volume, Q and six EQ controls inside the pedal, adjustable by removing the bottom plate45. MusicRadar called it "the most tweakable Cry Baby yet"6.
What the JP95 does
Plug your guitar into the INSTRUMENT jack and run a second cable from the AMPLIFIER jack to your amp's input3. From there it works like any Cry Baby: rock the treadle to sweep the filter. The sweep range is wide, with the heel-down position acting as a low-pass filter between 200Hz and 240Hz and the toe-down position a high-pass filter between 1.2KHz and 1.5KHz3.
The pedal is based on John Petrucci's rack wah settings rather than a stock Cry Baby voicing1. Premier Guitar's reviewer found that, preset as shipped, it "generates tones that effortlessly and authentically nail Petrucci's identifiable wah sweeps"2.
The Q control and the preset
All three control groups live inside the pedal, under the bottom plate45:
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Volume | Adds gain to the output4 |
| Q | Shapes the width of the effect, adjusting the band-pass width of the wah sweep17 |
| Six-band EQ | Shapes the overall tone and frequencies of the wah range, from 100Hz to 3.2KHz47 |
The Q control is the one most players will notice first. Dunlop describes it as shaping the width of the effect1; Guitar World's Paul Riario described it as adjusting the band-pass width of the sweep7, and MusicRadar's review team put it more plainly: "The Q pot alters the intensity of the wah effect"147.
The JP95 ships preset to John Petrucci's own control settings, and those settings are printed in the manual3. You can change them, but reaching any of the internal controls means unscrewing the bottom plate, so it is a set-and-forget adjustment rather than something to tweak between songs.
Output levels and housing
The JP95 is a hot pedal by wah standards. Its output gain runs from +19 dBV at heel down to +33 dBV at toe down, with a maximum output of +6 dBV and a noise floor below -94 dBV (A weighted)3. For comparison, the nominal input level is -8 dBV3, so the pedal can add a substantial boost at the top of the sweep.
The housing is a sturdy, road-ready die-cast shell with a custom smoked chrome finish and a JP shield logo tread1. Premier Guitar's reviewer was taken with the look: "It's finished in very sexy smoked chrome"2.
History and designer
The JP95 sits in a long line of Dunlop signature Cry Babies, alongside models for players like Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell and Joe Bonamassa. Its distinguishing idea is that the signature sound is not a fixed voicing: the controls Petrucci used to find his Cry Baby voice are all there for the owner to use too5.
What reviewers said
Reviews were positive across the board. MusicRadar's verdict was blunt: "Nails the Petrucci sound." The review also found the pedal works beyond its namesake, calling it "just the ticket for funky Jimi Hendrix stuff and classic porno soundtrack boom-chika fun," and concluding that "the JP signature justifies its price tag by allowing Petrucci's fellow sonic adventurers to nail their own unique wah sound." Its overall verdict: "A superb pedal that will do the job for Dream Theater fans and non-fans alike"6. The one criticism MusicRadar raised was price: it "costs £100+ more than regular version"6.
Premier Guitar's reviewer agreed on the core sound, noting that although the pedal comes from the factory set for Petrucci's sound, the internal controls "enable you to tune the wah in very precise ways" to your own taste2.
Sweetwater's demo video walks through the pedal's sound and controls, and presenter Nick points out that Petrucci's own settings are printed in the manual if you want to return to the factory voicing after experimenting8.
Videos
Pete Thorn
ProGuitarShopDemos
Guitar World
Questions
Who designed the Dunlop JP95 wah?
It is a John Petrucci signature model, designed in conjunction with the Dream Theater guitarist. Petrucci and Dream Theater engineer Richard Chycki worked with Dunlop's Cry Baby design team to replicate and fine-tune the rack wah settings he had been using for years.
What is the Q control on the Petrucci Cry Baby for?
The Q control shapes the width of the wah effect, adjusting the band-pass width of the sweep. MusicRadar describes it as altering the intensity of the wah effect. On the JP95 it is an internal control, reached by removing the pedal's bottom plate.
Does the JP95 come preset to John Petrucci's settings?
Yes. The pedal ships with John Petrucci's control settings as its factory default, and its tone range is based on the settings he had used for years on his Dunlop rack wah. His settings are printed in the manual, and the internal controls can still be adjusted to find your own sound.
How much does the Dunlop JP95 cost?
Premier Guitar listed a street price of $199 in its review. In the UK, gearnews reported an RRP of £235.59 at launch in 2016. MusicRadar noted it costs over £100 more than a regular Cry Baby.
When was the JP95 released?
Dunlop announced the JP95 John Petrucci Signature Cry Baby Wah in a press release dated February 10, 2016, and it was shown at NAMM 2016 that January.
What finish does the JP95 have?
It comes in a sturdy, road-ready housing with a custom smoked chrome finish and a JP shield logo tread on the rocker. Premier Guitar's reviewer called the smoked chrome finish 'very sexy'.
Sources (8)
- JOHN PETRUCCI CRY BABY® WAH, Dunlop (www.jimdunlop.com)
- John Petrucci JP95 Cry Baby Wah Pedal Review, Premier Guitar, 2016-09-19
- JP95.pdf, Dunlop Manufacturing, Inc., 2019
- Dunlop Releases the JP95 John Petrucci Signature Wah, Premier Guitar, 2016-02-10
- New from Dunlop: JP95 John Petrucci Cry Baby Wah, Guitar Interactive Magazine, 2016-02-05
- Dunlop John Petrucci Signature Cry Baby Wah review, MusicRadar, 2016-05-27
- Review: Dunlop JP95 John Petrucci Signature Cry Baby Wah, Guitar World, 2016-04-29
- Dunlop JP95 John Petrucci Signature Cry Baby Wah Pedal Review, Sweetwater, 2018-04-27
