Morley Power Fuzz Wah

The Morley Power Fuzz Wah is a wah pedal and a fuzz circuit in one housing, made by Morley. Morley describes it as "Fuzz and Wah packed into one pedal," with the two effects usable separately or together¹. The current pedal is a modern reissue of the acclaimed 1970s Morley Power Wah Fuzz, a pedal famously used by Cliff Burton of Metallica²³.

What sets it apart from most wahs is Morley's electro-optical design. Instead of a mechanical potentiometer, the wah sweep is controlled by a light and a light-dependent resistor, so there are no pots to wear out⁴. The original Power Wah Fuzz had a sweep Morley says was like no other wah pedal at the time, and its optical circuitry gave it a unique flavor⁴.

The controls

The wah and fuzz sections each have their own controls. The wah is switched and has a Level control, which Morley rates at 15 dB, for pushing your signal above the mix²⁴. The fuzz has Level and Intensity knobs plus a toggle switch that selects between Vintage and Modern fuzz types². LEDs show what is on or off².

On the 20/20 version, the wah level control sits on the left side of the pedal, so you can set the wah from unity gain to poking through the mix or cranked all the way up, and the fuzz engage switch sits on the right⁶.

Vintage versus Modern fuzz

The two fuzz modes are voiced differently. Morley says Vintage Fuzz mode emulates "that old-school ripped speaker sound that the original MPSA12 Transistors achieved"⁷. Modern Fuzz mode is tighter and more like guitar distortion⁵. In Sweetwater's demo of the 20/20, the presenter described the difference as subtle: Modern gives "a bit more presents a bit more mid-range," useful when you need to cut through the mix⁶.

The signal path follows the original: the wah circuit comes after the fuzz circuit, which Morley says gives "a deep bellowing Fuzz Wah roar"⁸.

Power and connections

The pedal runs on one 9-volt battery or an optional Morley 9V adapter, and is compatible with most 9V adapters⁵. The 20/20 version draws 12mA⁵. Connections are 1/4" jacks for input and output⁹. The housing is cold-rolled steel with a quick clip battery door, and the 20/20 adds a glow-in-the-dark treadle grip and toe-end logo²⁵.

How the wah switches on

Morley is known for Switchless Activation, which the company introduced as the first switchless activation wah¹¹. There is no on/off footswitch for the wah: the spring-loaded treadle engages the wah when you step on it and returns to bypass when you step off⁶⁵. MusicRadar describes it plainly: "you just step on the treadle to activate the pedal"¹². On the Power Wah Fuzz reissue, Morley notes you also start at the more desirable lower end of the sweep⁴.

In Sweetwater's demo video, the presenters walked through the 20/20's switching and controls:

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History and versions

The Power Wah Fuzz dates to the mid-to-late 1970s. GuitarPlayer's Dave Hunter writes that "If you were seeking power in your fuzz-wah tones in the mid-to-late 1970s, nothing delivered in a more high-voltage fashion than the Morley PWF," and notes the original carried controls for fuzz Intensity and tone¹⁰. Morley's history says the design was inspired by player demand and created by Ray, and that it "would go on to be famously used by Cliff Burton of Metallica"³.

The modern lineup splits into full-size and compact versions:

The Classic Series Power Fuzz Wah was announced in January 2020 alongside the Bad Horsie Wah, with a street price of $169 in a Sparkle Silver finish⁸¹³. The 20/20 version was previewed at NAMM 2020 as part of the new 20/20 line¹³.

The Cliff Burton tribute editions

Cliff Burton's association with the pedal drives several special editions. Morley calls the Power Wah Fuzz "one of the secret weapons to his tone arsenal" and says Burton used it interchangeably with one other Morley pedal, the Power Wah Boost, to get his tones¹⁴¹⁵.

The first tribute arrived on 18 February 2015, when Morley, in collaboration with Burton's father Ray Burton, released a tribute version of the pedal¹⁶. Morley's Bill Wenzloff was clear about its status: "This is not a reissue"¹⁶. While the enclosure was smaller and modernized, "The sound and tone, however, were duplicated exactly"¹⁶. Designer Scott Flesher noted that "Even though Cliff made this pedal famous, it was originally a guitar pedal that could be used for guitar, bass or keys"¹⁶.

It was originally released in silver, but fans kept asking for a chrome version like the original Tel-Ray Morley, so in December 2016 Morley released the Limited Edition Power Fuzz Wah in Chrome, limited to 500 pedals worldwide at a $250 street price¹⁷. Of those, 250 were in the optical design and 250 in an M2 European version¹⁷.

In February 2024 Morley launched the Cliff Burton Tribute Power Wah Fuzz, a reissued and modernized version with the Burton family's stamp of approval, available exclusively at Guitar Center and Musiciansfriend at $229, with a wider release from 1st April¹⁴¹². It adds a premium buffered circuit, switchless activation and a distressed chrome finish mimicking the battle-worn pedal Burton used¹²⁴. Guitar World described the Tribute Series version as "a careful recreation of the original 1976 issue pedal" with the same optical circuitry¹⁸.

The Bass Channel's demo covers the 2016 tribute pedal's tones and its updates for the modern player:

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What reviewers said

Guitar Interactive Magazine reviewed the Cliff Burton Tribute Series Power Fuzz Wah and found it "suitable for use with guitar, bass or keyboards," adding "don't be misled by the name, it's not just for bass"¹⁹. The reviewer also noted the two effects can be used separately or combined, and that "it's not actually that big"¹⁹.

Planet Caravan's review of the 20/20 noted that "Cliff used something really similar to this back in the 80s this one's almost the exact same except it's smaller it's got some more features and way less expensive than the full-sized old 80s ones"²⁰.

Related pedals

Morley's current range includes several close relatives covered on their own pages: the Classic Power Fuzz Wah, the Cliff Burton Tribute Series Power Wah Fuzz, the Morley Man FX Cliff Burton Fuzz Box, and the 2026 Morley x DOD Wah-ocTo-Fuzz, which combines Morley's 1970s wah and fuzz circuits with DOD's octave circuit.

Videos

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Questions