# Steve Vai Pedalboard 2012: Full Gear & Pedal List > The 2012 Steve Vai pedalboard, pedal by pedal: Morley Bad Horsie Wah, Dunlop Cry Baby Wah and 8 more. Signal-chain order, settings and cited sources. - Canonical page: https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/steve-vai/story-of-light-rig-2012/ - Machine-readable index of the archive: https://pedalboardarchive.com/llms.txt - Evidence and reconstruction conventions: https://pedalboardarchive.com/methodology/ ## At a glance | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Artist | Steve Vai | | Board | Story of Light experimental rig | | Date | 2012-01-04 — January 4, 2012 (day precision) | | Context | Premier Guitar Rig Rundown | | Scope | Touring-period rig | | Signal path | 10 units · Guitar to amplifier | | Routing | Switchable effects loops | | Unit evidence | Reconstructed | | Order evidence | Reconstructed | | Status | Verified system · preset routing | | Audited | 2026-08-03 | | Sources | 2 | Steve Vai's 2012 Story of Light rig runs ten devices under Fractal MIDI control: a Morley Bad Horsie and a Cry Baby, an Ibanez Jemini, a Whammy DT, an MXR Phase 90 and three Red Witch pedals, with an Axe-Fx II in the rack. ## Signal chain **Order evidence — Reconstructed.** No source publishes this sequence; the order is reconstructed. The units are evidenced; their sequence is the archive's inference from the convention below, not an observation. Do not report this order as documented. Reconstruction convention: Tuner → Wah and filter → Compressor → Overdrive, distortion and fuzz → Modulation → Delay → Reverb → Amplifier. A documented routing zone always overrides it. | # | Unit | Role | Zone | Unit evidence | Position evidence | Catalog page | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | Morley Bad Horsie Wah | Provides switchless signature wah control. | Integrated board | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/morley-bad-horsie-wah/ | | 2 | Dunlop Cry Baby Wah | Provides the alternate classic wah voice. | Integrated board | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/cry-baby-wah/ | | 3 | Ibanez Jemini Distortion | Combines Vai's green overdrive and red distortion channels. | Integrated board | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/ibanez-jemini-distortion/ | | 4 | DigiTech Whammy DT | Provides treadle pitch shifts and alternate tuning. | Integrated board | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/digitech-whammy/ | | 5 | MXR Phase 90 | Adds the familiar single-control phase voice. | Integrated board | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/mxr-phase-90/ | | 6 | Red Witch Titan Delay | Provides three independently routable delay engines. | External board loop | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/red-witch-titan-delay/ | | 7 | Red Witch Pentavocal Tremolo | Adds multi-voiced analog tremolo. | External board loop | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/red-witch-pentavocal-tremolo/ | | 8 | Red Witch Medusa Chorus/Tremolo | Combines lush chorus with tremolo modulation. | External board loop | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/red-witch-medusa-chorus-tremolo/ | | 9 | Fractal Audio MFC-101 | Recalls Axe-Fx presets and effect states from the floor. | Rack insert | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/fractal-audio-mfc-101/ | | 10 | Fractal Audio Axe-Fx II | Hosts the primary programmable processing and routing. | Rack insert | Reconstructed | Reconstructed | https://pedalboardarchive.com/pedals/fractal-audio-axe-fx-ii/ | ## Reconstruction note The video and Vai's official archive verify the inventory, but the Axe-Fx presets and changing experimental-pedal routings prevent a single honest serial order. The display groups floor controls, experimental effects and rack processor and is explicitly reconstructed. ## Questions ### What pedals did Steve Vai use in 2012? This dated entry lists 10 units: Morley Bad Horsie Wah, Dunlop Cry Baby Wah, Ibanez Jemini Distortion, DigiTech Whammy DT, MXR Phase 90, Red Witch Titan Delay, Red Witch Pentavocal Tremolo, Red Witch Medusa Chorus/Tremolo, Fractal Audio MFC-101, Fractal Audio Axe-Fx II. This is the recorded inventory, not a claim that every connection or model identification is confirmed; see the evidence and routing notes. ### What order were Steve Vai's pedals in? The complete order is reconstructed, not observed. The layout follows the cited routing constraints and the archive's signal-chain convention where the sources are silent. See the diagram and routing notes for the separate paths and any unconfirmed connections. ### Is this Steve Vai's full guitar rig? No. This dated entry covers 10 units in the effects path, not every piece of gear Steve Vai owned or used. Floor pedals, rack units and routing devices are included only where recorded; omitted equipment and uncertain connections are explained in the notes. It is not a complete or current rig inventory. ### When and where was this pedalboard used? January 4, 2012. Premier Guitar Rig Rundown. This is the rig documented for that touring period, not a career-wide gear list. ### How does the archive know what was on this pedalboard? 2 cited sources, listed above with the date each was read, including Premier Guitar, Steve Vai. Among them a rig rundown and an official listing. The units are recorded as reconstructed equipment, and the page was last audited on 2026-08-03. ## Sources 2 cited sources across 2 independent groups. Two sources sharing an independent group report the same observation and count once. 1. [Rig Rundown: Steve Vai](https://www.premierguitar.com/rig-rundown-steve-vai) — Premier Guitar (Primary source · rig-rundown), published 2012-01-04, accessed 2026-08-03, independent group `premier-guitar-steve-vai-2012` 2. [Steve's Rig Rundown](https://www.vai.com/steves-rig-rundown/) — Steve Vai (Primary source · official), accessed 2026-08-03, independent group `steve-vai-official-rig-archive` ## Related pages - Every documented board by Steve Vai: [Steve Vai board history](https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/steve-vai/) - [Tom Morello — Long-term effects-loop board](https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/tom-morello/long-term-rig-2019/): shares MXR Phase 90, DigiTech Whammy, Cry Baby Wah - [Richard Fortus — Guns N' Roses touring effects system](https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/richard-fortus/not-in-this-lifetime-tour-2017/): shares MXR Phase 90, DigiTech Whammy - [Slash — Blues Ball floorboard](https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/slash/blues-ball-tour-2024/): shares Cry Baby Wah, MXR Phase 90 - [David Gilmour — PULSE / Division Bell rig](https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/david-gilmour/pulse-division-bell-rig-1994/): shares DigiTech Whammy - [Matt Bellamy — Pre-Absolution floor rig](https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/matt-bellamy/pre-absolution-pedalboard/): no shared unit; a comparable signal path (Multi-effects & Modeling, Pitch & Synth, Routing & Control, Filter & EQ, Delay & Echo) - [Joe Bonamassa — "Boomer" Time Clocks touring board](https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/joe-bonamassa/boomer-touring-board-2022/): no shared unit; a comparable signal path (Pitch & Synth, Routing & Control, Filter & EQ, Modulation, Delay & Echo, Gain) - Previous board in archive order: [Steve Jones — Anarchy studio effect](https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/steve-jones/anarchy-studio-effect-1977/) - Next board in archive order: [Stevie Ray Vaughan — Late-era effects chain](https://pedalboardarchive.com/artists/stevie-ray-vaughan/late-era-1989/)