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Fireguy8402 « Good Clean Boost »
Published on 12/23/11 at 08:53The MXR Micro Amp M-133 is the most basic pedal you can find. An input from your guitar, an output to your amplifier, a power jack and one volume knob, and that’s it. It’s very similar in structural design to the Phase 90 and it’s the same size: 2 ½” by 4 ½” by 5 ½”. There is a red LED that lets you know when the pedal is engaged and the pedal can be powered by a 9 volt battery or by an additional power supply.
UTILIZATION
This pedal is a one trick pony, but you are able to use that trick in many different ways. Basically all this pedal does is boosts your signal, and this will do different things depending on where you put it in your signal path. In front of a tube amp this pedal can push you over the edge if the amp is set on the verge of breakup, while retaining your tone. When used in the effects loop of an amp this pedal can provide a huge boost in volume if needed that is much cleaner than when it’s used in front of the amp. This pedal is also handy to match the volume of guitars. For example if you use low output single coils in a Stratocaster and then switch off to a hot rodded Les Paul there will be a change in volume during a gig. Kick this pedal on while you play the Strat and off while you play the LP and you wont have to be constantly changing your volume knob on your amp during the show
SOUND QUALITY
This pedal does not suck any noticeable high end off of your tone, so I would say the bypass is very good. This pedal is not an overdrive pedal, but can be used to push an amp into that territory if it’s placed before the input of an amp and it does that while staying clean and true to the tone that you start with. I mostly use this pedal in the effects loop of my amplifiers because I don’t need a change in preamp gain/volume, but I prefer a super clean boost of volume. This pedal works wonders here. What you put into this pedal is what you get out, only at a higher volume. I have experienced no loss of tone or additional noise when used with several different guitars and amps.
OVERALL OPINION
Overall I think this is a great pedal to have in your arsenal. It can push the front end of your amp, provide tons of volume boost in the loop, match signals for different guitars during a gig, and regain a quality signal if many pedals are used in succession. It’s built like a brick and it doesn’t take a lot of space on your board. I think it’s a great pedal, and I would suggest it to anyone who would need a boost.
UTILIZATION
This pedal is a one trick pony, but you are able to use that trick in many different ways. Basically all this pedal does is boosts your signal, and this will do different things depending on where you put it in your signal path. In front of a tube amp this pedal can push you over the edge if the amp is set on the verge of breakup, while retaining your tone. When used in the effects loop of an amp this pedal can provide a huge boost in volume if needed that is much cleaner than when it’s used in front of the amp. This pedal is also handy to match the volume of guitars. For example if you use low output single coils in a Stratocaster and then switch off to a hot rodded Les Paul there will be a change in volume during a gig. Kick this pedal on while you play the Strat and off while you play the LP and you wont have to be constantly changing your volume knob on your amp during the show
SOUND QUALITY
This pedal does not suck any noticeable high end off of your tone, so I would say the bypass is very good. This pedal is not an overdrive pedal, but can be used to push an amp into that territory if it’s placed before the input of an amp and it does that while staying clean and true to the tone that you start with. I mostly use this pedal in the effects loop of my amplifiers because I don’t need a change in preamp gain/volume, but I prefer a super clean boost of volume. This pedal works wonders here. What you put into this pedal is what you get out, only at a higher volume. I have experienced no loss of tone or additional noise when used with several different guitars and amps.
OVERALL OPINION
Overall I think this is a great pedal to have in your arsenal. It can push the front end of your amp, provide tons of volume boost in the loop, match signals for different guitars during a gig, and regain a quality signal if many pedals are used in succession. It’s built like a brick and it doesn’t take a lot of space on your board. I think it’s a great pedal, and I would suggest it to anyone who would need a boost.