MXR

Former high school buddies Keith Barr and Terry Sherwood were in their early twenties and making a living repairing audio equipment from their basement apartment when they founded MXR in 1972. They had been unimpressed with the tone, build quality and general character of existing effects pedals, and sought to bring some colour into the market.

Their initial offering, the Phase 90, quickly became one of the definitive phaser pedals in the guitarist's toolkit. Eddie Van Halen took advantage of its slow subtle sweep to make his guitar solos stand out when dealing with lousy PA systems and lousier sound engineers, and it can be heard on much of his recorded output.

MXR produced one of the first guitar multi-FX units in 1983, the Omni, offering sustain, distortion, delay, equalization, flanger and chorus in a single rackmount unit. Unfortunately, as with many professional audio companies, the early 1980s was a difficult time financially for MXR, leading to the bankruptcy of the company in 1984. Barr left the company to found Alesis, and Sherwood co-founded Applied Research & Technology. Jim Dunlop acquired the rights to the MXR brand and product line, and continues to create straightforward, high-quality effects pedals based on the original designs, as well as some modernized updates.

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Effects

All Products

MXR Carbon Copy Analog Delay M169

The pedal for real rich, warm analog delay... The MXR Carbon Copy provides a delay time of up to 600ms. With the modulation switch that sits on top of the device and the internal trim pots, you are able to create unprecedented delay tones. The Carbon Copy has an all analog audio path that delivers warm delay sounds. The 3-knob layout design with Delay, Mix, and Regeneration makes this pedal very easy to work with, and when combined with the modulation switch, you are looking at a wide range of sound possibilities, from a fairly compact pedal. We invite you to take the MXR Carbon Copy M169 for a ride on the TonePedia player and find out why it is one of the best selling delay pedals out there.

MXR Script Dyna Comp Compressor

The musical compressor. The MXR Dyna Comp that was produced in 1976 has long been regarded as the ultimate stomp box compressor. Thereâs something inherently musical in the way it âtightens upâ a guitar signal, raising the volume of quiet notes and leveling off peaks to create rich, full bodied sustain. From country twangers to metal monsters, guitarists have long relied on the MXR Dyna Comp to make their riffs stand tall in any live or studio mix. And now the MXR Custom Shop brings back that highly sought-after sound with the â76 Vintage Dyna Comp.

MXR Carbon Copy Bright

Carbon Copy with a brighter sound! The MXR Carbon Copy Bright is a modified version of the beloved original Carbon Copy delay that offers the same features with a brighter sound. The bright version is not supposed to be a competitor to the original one but it is created as an alternative to it. The Carbon Copy is famous for the fantastic saturated and vintage sound it delivers, and the added mod switch. The repeats on the Bright version are more defined and distinct. Choosing between the two is not easy as for some musical pieces the Bright version fits better, while for other the standard version does. Compare both MXR Carbon Copy pedals on the TonePedia player to make your pick.

MXR Distortion Plus (1977)

Rocking since the '70s. The MXR Distortion Plus (Distortion +) has been around since the 70's and is known to be the signature sound of Randy Rhoads.The word distortion makes guitar players think immediately about that heavy distorted sound, however the Distortion Plus is more on the tame end of the spectrum. Setting the distortion knob to minimum and the output to maximum, the Distortion Plus will drive your amp nicely. When the distortion is set to maximum the distortion-fuzz sound it's famous for comes to life.The MXR Distortion Plus pedal is germanium powered and feels very 'vintage', powered by a power supply or a 9 volt battery, it's so simple and works a treat!

MXR Phase 45

The Gilmour Phaser The Pedal which started it all for MXR was the famous Phase 90 (1974) waaaaaay before Jim Dunlop bought the company out (1987).The Phase 90 was obnoxious, sweet, Harsh and delicate all at the same time. Later use by EVH later in the decade made it one of the most famous pedals of all time however back in '74 a model called the Phase 45 which was somewhat more subtle meant everyone could have a phaser which suited them.We urge you to compare this with the other vintage phasers on TonePedia as they all have their own specific flavours, many people find they prefer something different than the one the first expected to like!

MXR M102 Dyna Comp

A Popular secret. One of the most popular compressors of all time, the Dyna Comp is the secret weapon on many stars' pedalboards. This box will produce that percussive, clicky sound on a clean guitar that you've heard on so many pop hits. It also adds smooth sustain to lead lines.

MXR Phase 100 (Block)

The Elegance Of BLOCKThe Pedal which started it all for MXR was the famous Phase 90 (1974) waaaaaay before Jim Dunlop bought the company out (1987). The Phase 90 was obnoxious, sweet, Harsh and delicate all at the same time. Later use by EVH later in the decade made it one of the most famous pedals of all time however back in '74 a model called the Phase 45 which was somewhat more subtle meant everyone could have a phaser which suited them.The next phaser released needed to be something different and so in 1975 the MXR phase 100 was born. A 6 stage phaser with 4 selectable wave shapes, this was MXR's most complicated pedal yet. This version is a Block version from approx '83, it has slightly boxy tone compared to the earlier Script logo versions.

MXR Phase 90

The Phaser Its hard to say anything about the phase 90 which hasn't been said many times before, this is one of the all time classic pedals and after the crybaby and maybe the tubescreamer this is probably the most famous pedal out there. On the ground its a very simple idea, duplicate the signal and move one signal in and out of phase providing movement within the tone. Guitarists have been adding vibrato to their playing for a long time for the same reason, phasing is another way of doing this in a different manner. However when players started adding the phase 90 to their songs it produced tones which had never been heard before and as a result sounded out of this world. Remember, this is the phaser that all other phasers (and many other modulations) are judge by!

MXR Micro Chorus M148

One knob is all you need. With its simple operation and stellar analog toneâthe MXR Micro Chorus joins the ranks of MXR Classics such as the Phase 90, Dyna Comp and Micro Amp. This 80's reissue delivers a stunning range of rich chorus textures, from sparkly watery shimmers to intense rotating speaker simulation with a twist of the Rate control. The Micro Chorus is designed with old-school bucket brigade technology for warm analog tone and features true bypass for pure guitar tone when the pedal is off. Its road-worthy hardware and components are housed in a space saving Phase 90 sized box.

MXR Phase 100 (Script)

The Elegance Of Script The Pedal which started it all for MXR was the famous Phase 90 (1974) waaaaaay before Jim Dunlop bought the company out (1987). The Phase 90 was obnoxious, sweet, Harsh and delicate all at the same time. Later use by EVH later in the decade made it one of the most famous pedals of all time however back in '74 a model called the Phase 45 which was somewhat more subtle meant everyone could have a phaser which suited them.The next phaser released needed to be something different and so in 1975 the MXR phase 100 was born. A 6 stage phaser with 4 selectable wave shapes, this was MXR's most complicated pedal yet. This version is a script version from approx '76, it has a sweeter less boxy tone than the later Block logo versions.