Electro-Harmonix Cock Fight

The Electro-Harmonix Cock Fight is a compact pedal that gives you three effects in one box: a crying wah, a talking wah with an adjustable frequency, and a classic fuzz¹. Where a normal wah pedal sweeps with your foot, the Cock Fight is built around the "cocked wah" idea, a filter parked in one spot so the midrange honk stays put without you holding a treadle. Electro-Harmonix describes it as a way to "achieve that cool cocked wah sound without the wah pedal"¹. Switch to the Talking Wah mode and the filter produces what the maker calls a "stuck voice-box sound," a throaty, vowel-like tone¹.

The pedal was released in 2015¹ and carries a current list price of $132.30¹. It is an analog design with digital control, measures 4.75 x 4 x 2.25 inches, and draws 40mA¹.

The controls

The front panel is organized around two filters and a fuzz section. A CRY/TALK toggle selects which filter the FREQ knob adjusts: the UP position selects CRY, which simulates the filter found in a typical wah pedal circuit, while the DOWN position selects TALK, which produces throaty, vocal vowel sounds¹. Pedal of the Day's review put the difference simply: "Cry emulates a typical wah-type of sound, while Talk gives you a more vocal-sounding filter tone"².

The BIAS knob is the fuzz circuit's character control. Pedal of the Day described it as letting you "set the amount of bias voltage going to a transistor in the fuzz circuit," which is what produces the dying-battery sag many players associate with vintage fuzz boxes². The BOTTOM knob addresses a common complaint about wah and fuzz together, letting you restore low end that the filter takes away.

Expression and CV control of the filter

Although the pedal is designed for parked sounds, it does not lock you out of sweeping. The expression/CV input controls the frequency knob, and the position of the FREQ knob sets the maximum sweep range of the expression pedal¹. MusicRadar's review noted that "you can use the Cock Fight as a regular wah by plugging in an expression pedal (not supplied)"³. Guitar.com's launch coverage made the same point at the pedal's introduction: with the EXP input, "the player can use an expression pedal to control and sweep the wah and talking pedal filters in real time"⁴.

For players who prefer to sweep by hand, MusicRadar found that twisting the frequency knob "mimics the sweep on a classic wah pedal," so you can find a tone you like and park it for the cocked wah sound³.

The fuzz section

The fuzz can sit before or after the filter, or be removed entirely. The PRE position places the fuzz before the filter, FUZZ OFF removes it from the signal path, and POST places it after the filter¹. That routing choice matters: fuzz into a wah gives a smoother, more vocal sweep, while wah into fuzz keeps the fuzz character more intact. Guitar World's review listed the Tone control among the controls that make "the fuzz effect brighter or darker"⁵.

MusicRadar's reviewers compared the fuzz to a vintage unit: "EHX has managed to get pretty damn close to the sound of a 60s Tone Bender fuzz box"³.

The Cock Fight Plus

In 2017 Electro-Harmonix released the Cock Fight Plus, which Premier Guitar's press coverage described as offering "the award-winning tone of the original Cock Fight in a rugged, lightweight pedal"⁶. The key difference is the form: Guitar World's review noted that Electro-Harmonix "has now injected that circuit into a familiar rack-and-pinion foot controller"⁷, meaning you get a treadle you can sweep with your foot. It carries two filters, a traditional wah pedal filter and a formant filter for vowel sounds, plus Drive, Tone and Bias controls for the fuzz and a Volume control for the master output level⁸⁹. It shipped at $123.50⁹.

What reviewers said

MusicRadar's overall verdict was blunt: "This thing is money, for next to nothing"³. The same review flagged the usable range of the frequency control, noting that the best midrange tones come from a narrower band of the knob's travel.

Guitar World's review made a similar point about dialing in the filter: "Because the Frequency control is essentially a wah, the best midrange tones lurk between 9 and 3 o'clock while anything beyond may be too muddy or shrill"⁵.

In Guitar World's 2026 buying guide to wah pedals, Chris Gill found the pedal does its core job reliably and then some: "The Cock Fight pedal provides a cocked wah effect that delivers the desired midrange tone every time. However, it's much more versatile," offering standard wah and talking formant filters, a fuzz section and more precise tone shaping¹¹.

At launch, the pedal shipped with a suggested U.S. MSRP of $148.90¹⁰, and founder Mike Matthews was quoted on the design intent: "Our new Cock Fight lets a player dial in all those great tones"¹².

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