Have you ever looked at a pair of sneakers and thought “those are nice, but I wish I could plug my guitar into them and use them as a wah wah pedal?” Us neither, but then, we’re not design agency Critical Mass, who came up with the idea in 2013 as part of a Chuck Hack event. Yes, there’s actually an event to “hack” Converse’s most iconic sneaker, the Chuck Taylor. Fashion technology company CuteCircuit took the initial concept and made it completely wireless. They took a flex sensor and installed it in the sole of the shoe to register movements similar to stepping on a wah wah pedal. Via Bluetooth, the info is sent to a Wah Box. The video below shows musicians testing an early prototype that still had a input jack in the sneaker. Instead of the Chuck Taylor All-Star, the engineers christened it the Chet Atkins All-Wah, after Chet Atkins, the first guitarist to widely use a wah wah pedal.
These aren’t on sale yet, and might never be, but 13 guitarists got to check them out earlier this year. We’re sure when they are available, Kirk Hammett will be the first person to buy a pair.
[via Consequence of Sound]
