Wilson Effects Wilson Wah V2 Smooth Taper

The Wilson Wah V2 Smooth Taper is a wah pedal made by Wilson Effects, built around the company's Smooth Taper potentiometer. That pot is the heart of the pedal: Wilson Effects replicated it by measuring the taper of a vintage Car taper pot, the component that defines how the wah's frequency sweep responds as you rock the treadle¹. The V2 Smooth Taper is sold in a Brushed Aluminum finish, listed at $185.00 USD as of October 2026².

The Smooth Taper design exists for a practical reason. Wilson Effects says the pot provides "Smooth Taper for full sweep in enclosures with wider physical sweep"³, meaning the pedal reaches its full frequency range across the treadle's travel rather than bunching the useful sweep into part of the movement.

What the Smooth Taper pot does

In a wah pedal, the potentiometer under the treadle controls where in the sweep the peaked filter sits at any moment. The taper of that pot, how its resistance changes per degree of rotation, decides whether the sweep feels even and vocal or abrupt and compressed. Wilson Effects built its vintage taper pot by measuring the taper of a vintage Car taper pot and reproducing it¹.

The same pot is available on its own as the Wilson Effects Wilson Smooth Wah Pot and the Wilson Effects Smooth Taper Wah Potentiometer, listed at $25.00 USD, as a genuine OEM replacement for all inductor based Wilson Smooth Taper wah pedals³⁴. If you own a Wilson Smooth Taper wah and the pot wears out, the replacement is a drop-in part rather than a hunt for NOS vintage components.

The Wilson Wah family and prices

The V2 Smooth Taper sits in a range of Wilson Effects wahs that share the same pot but differ in their Q controls and enclosures. The 12 Position Wilson Wah Smooth Taper Version takes the classic vintage wah circuit and modifies it to increase the bass response on the input of the circuit, and it features a 12 position selector switch for choosing between darker and brighter Q settings, clockwise for darker and counter-clockwise for brighter¹. It is listed at $225.00 USD¹, with a Brushed Aluminum version at the same price⁵.

The brushed aluminum finish runs across the line: the Brushed Aluminum Rippah Wah Smooth Taper Version is listed at $185.00 USD⁸, and the Brushed Aluminum Rippah Booster Wah Smooth Taper at $240.00 USD⁹.

The Rippah's six-position Q switch

The Rippah Wah models take a different approach to Q control than the 12 Position Wilson Wah. Instead of a rotary selector, the Rippah Wah Smooth Taper Version has a six position DIP switch on the main board that lets you adjust the Q position of the wah, with settings Wilson Effects describes as ranging from very subtle to very drastic⁶. The pedal ships set to a stock setting with position one on, so it works like a standard wah out of the box and can be voiced from there⁶.

On the Rippah Booster Wah, the Q switch is offered in six or twelve position form, and Wilson Effects says it lets you adjust the position of the Q in the sweep, from a deep synth like growl to a high, almost envelope filter type of sound⁷.

The Rippah Booster Wah also carries a Sweep control that sets the range or depth of the sweep, and the Rippah Wah Smooth Taper Version includes a fuzz friendly output buffer that lets the wah work seamlessly with most fuzz and overdrive pedals⁶⁷. That buffer matters if you run a wah into a vintage-style fuzz, a pairing that often misbehaves without one. The Rippah Booster Wah runs on a 2.1mm center negative power supply or a high quality alkaline battery⁷.

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