MXR M101 Phase 90 Script Logo Vintage

There is a huge debate that has been going on in the community since forever, and I might as well set the record straight. Yes, script pedals do sound different. That said, whether or not they're worth it is very debatable. The pedal is a phaser pedal, and it's meant to only do one tone -- the classic phaser tone. You've heard this on all kinds of albums ranging from EVH's famous Van Halen and pretty much every single one of Pink Floyd's albums. It has been the staple of old school phaser tones, and it still remains the king to this day.

UTILIZATION

There's no need for a manual for this thing. It's so simple to use that anybody could figure this thing out. The more you crank the knob, the more pronounced the effect gets. It's really as simple as that. These are housed in the famous MXR housings, and they're known to withstand crazy amounts of abuse. I've seen these things thrown across the stage, smash on the floor and function perfectly fine. People jump on them as hard as they can and no problems ever really occur except for maybe the switch needing to be replaced. These can withstand 30+ years of abuse without any real issues, so don't worry about buying these if they have a few scratches on them (unless you're a collector).

SOUND QUALITY

This is the phaser sound that everyone has come to know and love. It has this warm and organic sound to it that other phasers can't seem to match. I like to run the rate knob pretty low and use it for leads. To me, this is where the pedal really excels, but some people don't like that. They prefer the more 70s kind of Pink Floyd sound with the rate up higher to make the overall sound more pronounced. This is very cool, too, and it works great with clean tones. With high gain, the higher rate starts to get a bit hectic, in my opinion. As far as tonal differences, these are warmer and smoother sounding than the later block logos, and that means the world to some people.

OVERALL OPINION

It's crazy how these pedals are still the king in today's effects world. The Phase 90 really is one amazing pedal, and the script version is probably the best model you can buy. The problem is that they're super expensive. I'm not sure these are worth it, and I actually tend to recommend people buy the custom shop model if they're not collectors. Some of these go for very high prices that I just don't feel is worth it, but it might be to some people. Either way, awesome pedal.