Dunlop Volume (X)8 Pedal

The Dunlop Volume (X)8 Pedal, model number DVP5, is a volume pedal and an expression pedal in one unit. Dunlop's manual puts it simply: "step on this pedal to create incredibly smooth volume swells or control your favorite FX parameters"¹. It sits in Dunlop's Volume (X) series alongside the Dunlop DVP3 Volume (X) and the mini-format Dunlop DVP4, and it was designed in collaboration with Pedaltrain, the pedalboard maker, with an 8-inch housing sized for efficient board layouts²³.

Dunlop's current list price for the DVP5 Volume (X) 8 is $149.99⁴. The pedal's housing was designed in collaboration with Pedaltrain², and it uses Dunlop's patented Low Friction Band-Drive².

A volume and expression pedal in one

The pedal does two jobs. In volume mode it sits in your signal chain and the rocker sweeps your level, driven by Dunlop's patented Low Friction Band-Drive, which the company describes as road-proven and built for smooth swells²¹. In expression mode it connects to another pedal or unit and the rocker controls a parameter there, such as delay feedback or modulation depth. Expression mode uses a 10 kΩ pot¹, the value most effects with expression inputs expect.

MusicRadar's review of the pedal notes the dual role: "Hook up a TRS cable and you can use it as an expression pedal"⁵. Because the volume and expression paths are separate jacks, you can run both at once, controlling your level with the rocker while the same motion drives an effect parameter.

The Volume (X)8 is part of a series. The Dunlop Volume X (DVP3) covers the same ground in a larger-format design, and the Volume (X) Mini (DVP4) does it in a smaller housing. Bass Gear Magazine's launch coverage notes that "like all pedals in the Volume (X) series, the Volume (X)8 Pedal allows you to create incredibly smooth volume swells"⁶⁷.

The controls and jacks

The face of the pedal is a treadle, with the rest of the control set inside the housing. Guitar World lists the controls as "Treadle, internal"⁸. The jacks are where the two modes live:

The Tuner jack is worth a closer look for anyone who tunes onstage. The signal to the tuner is active regardless of rocker position¹, so you can roll the volume down for silence at the amp while the tuner still sees your guitar. MusicRadar's reviewers point out that "it has an input jack for your tuner, so you can take it out of your main signal chain"⁵, which keeps the tuner's circuitry from touching your tone at all. Dunlop's page for the series DVP3 describes the same jack as "a convenient Tuner output for silent tuning onstage"³.

Internal controls: minimum level, polarity and tension

Inside the housing are the adjustments that shape how the pedal behaves. Dunlop's product page states that "internal controls set the expression mode's minimum effect level parameters and the rocker's heel/toe polarity"². In practice that means two things you can change without tools once the pedal is open:

• Expression minimum level: sets how far down the controlled parameter goes when the rocker is at the low end, so an effect does not have to reach fully off²¹.
• Heel/toe polarity: a blue push switch reverses the function of the heel-down and toe-down positions in expression mode¹. Guitar World's reviewer, Trevor Curwen, describes it as letting you "reverse the heel/toe action for maximum value at the heel-down position"⁸, which suits players who want the effect to open up as they rock back rather than forward.

The rocker tension itself is also adjustable. Dunlop describes the rocker tension on the Volume (X) series as fully adjustable³, so the treadle can be set stiffer or looser to taste.

How it compares with the Volume (X) Mini

The Volume (X)8 and the Volume (X) Mini (DVP4) do the same job in different footprints. Dunlop says the Volume (X)8's 8-inch housing gives "the most efficient use of your pedalboard space"², and that it was designed with Pedaltrain for efficient layouts on their Metro Series boards². The Mini, by contrast, "controls volume and FX parameters without crowding your pedalboard"⁹. Both are volume and expression pedals with fully adjustable rocker tension³⁹, and the Mini carries its own internal switch to reverse the heel-down and toe-down positions⁹. The choice between them comes down to board space and how much treadle you want under your foot.

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