SmallAxeMusic.com Blog — MXR

Since trying to copy Jerry Garcia's tone by buying vintage MXR pedals (It didn't work), I learned that many popular 1970s and 1980s guitar stomp boxes ran on 9V batteries only and couldn't accept a wall power supply. Sure, the owner of a 1974 MXR Bud Box Script Phase 90 could drill or modify the case to accept 9V power. Then, again, that might damage the pedal and it would surely slash the value of a rare pedal that might be worth $400 to $500. As a result, I was constantly scrambling to find or buy 9V batteries. Inevitably, I...

If you are into vintage, classic guitar pedals, chances are you have run into the debate over "Script" versus "Block" MXR pedals. MXR, of course, is the legendary maker of an array of high-quality pedals behind a lot of great music and artists in the 1970s and early ‘80s. Randy Rhoads (Distortion +), Jerry Garcia (Distortion +, Phase 100, Analog Delay), Jimmy Page (Phase 90), Eddie Van Halen (Phase 90), David Gilmour (Phase 90), and the list goes on. You get the picture. While the MXR brand is still around and quite relevant, like many pedal companies over the past...