How would you like to use your shoe to add a Wah to any plugged in guitar? Well, in the ever-growing sphere of technology, now you can. That’s right, Converse’s Chuck Taylor All Stars have found a way to take out the middle man and produce a style of high-tops, the unofficial shoe of all rock stars, with a built-in Wah pedal. All you have to do is motion your foot as you would lay the sole down on any pedal, while playing the guitar, and the technology in the shoe adds the effect.
How does this even work? A flexible sensor in the sole of the shoe is able to register the foot’s movements as being similar to those pressing against an actual pedal. The sensory information is then sent to a Wah Box via Bluetooth to give your guitar the desired distortion. Named after Chet Atkins, the first guitarist to ever use the Wah pedal, the All Star “All Wahs” have the ability to wirelessly connect to an amp, a Mac, or even an iPhone.
The original design was invented by Critical Mass agency during a “Chuck Hack” event back in 2013, and was eventually fashioned by the technological brand CuteCircuit to be completely wireless. While there is no promise that these new shows will become available to the public, it has been tested by 13 guitarists already. Watch this video of the original concept, which still needed to be plugged in at the time, to understand the premise of the device’s functionality. The product even has the seal of approval from Dinosaur Jr. guitarist J. Mascis.
Chet Atkins All Wah
Converse releases sneaker with a built-in wah-wah foot pedal
[via CoS]