ped

Absolutely - and I gather they’re not allowed to make them like the used to due to some of the components, cadmium etc? I’d say my FX25 is ‘squelchier’ in terms of sort of a spluttery raspy squelch. The mutron has more of a juicy 3D warmth which never gets out of control. It’s like the fx25 is a rowdy teenager and the mutron is a mischievous old man with a sparkle in his eye 😆

Thanks mate I think I’ve read some of your posts on the subject over the years!

I found a great condition Mu-Tron III recently. I’ve been interested to try one for a very long time but never quite got round to it. This one has just had a full service and calibration. It’s all original except the power input has been changed to a UK three pin custom made adapter which is super neat and convenient. Though of course it takes batteries too. I saw a few that had been modified to true bypass but I read that this can alter the way the gain control behaves so I wanted it standard. The bypass does take some very top end out of your signal but it’s by no means a bad sound and in fact as the gain control works with the pedal ‘off’ you can use it to get some grit if you like. When it arrived I left the parcel to acclimatise for a while before opening it up and I realised how nervous I was to try it. Partly I wanted to discover it doesn’t live up to the hype as I’ve found with so many pedals of late. In such case I was able to send it back and chalk it up to experience but the only way to know for certain was to try one. So I put my sensible hat on, picked up my Stingray and plugged everything in (backwards at first, as the input is on the other side) The feeling of playing the pedal was akin to playing a new instrument entirely. The second I turned it on everything sounded perfect. I didn’t even touch any knobs or switches, just started with everything on 5. I have many filters and have tried a lot over the years. Favourites of mine really squelch when pushed rather than ‘whistle’ and remain responsive when playing finger or slap. In ‘high range’ The Mutron is very interesting in that you can play softly and it’ll sound almost like your normal sound, and when you dig in the depth and squelch becomes apparent, making any toppy clank go all gloopy. It’s like your clean sound with a seriously funky topping. It never sounds harsh even with the peak on 10, it just sounds wetter and more sparkly. I feel like when you dig in, rather than sending the top end into harsh zone it deepens the background of the note. In low range you get the seriously warm depth with a quickness of decay that means your next note is always a surprise, catching the filter at some point along its bouncy journey. Again the clean sound and the character of the bass always feels present without sounding separate, but the effect is very obvious and all encompassing. It sounds cliche but it just sounds ‘musical’ and makes you want to dig in and be inside your bass in a fully sexual way. With a big smile on my face I took my five fingered hand on the end of my right arm and selected my index finger to push the ‘down’ mode switch which clacked agreeably over on its axis like a mad one way see saw. I’ve never really liked down mode sounds before, and haven’t really experimented much as a result. Normally I find when the filter closes the note becomes a bit muddy and therefore you don’t get much time to identify the note clearly before you go too subby, if you see what I mean. But this gives a really nice growl that goes down to your rubbery note below with some extra stank. I’ll definitely use that. I was fully prepared to not like this pedal; even hoping not to - the prices they go for are getting silly but this is one time that the hype really is deserved. It has so much character in build and sound; it’ll probably only go up in value and after all it’s the pedal everything since is based upon. I’m really happy with it, as you can tell. My wife said it looks like R2D2 which is cool too. A couple of pics. I think mines quite an early one, 1974 ish, ‘pat pending’.

A chap on TB says that a couple of other options are still being considered and that the input will take a standard cable too, so you are able to use a custom job if you wanted to. @ybassman are you able to comment?

I don't know why it needs to be flush fitting anyway - it's on your back, not like you'll be touching it all the time. Doesn't need to be 'tactile'

Lol yep I have tons of those, but you know, not very neat - and some have unnecessarily high power consumption. Companies like EWS do some very clever design that maximises the use of a battery, which speaks to my type of thinking. Darkglass don't use batteries for 'environmental reasons' but I don;t use dark glass so they can do one

I absolutely HATE punk 😂

So what's that going to look like? A single cable from bass to unit to output? They haven't released anything official with regards to the inputs/outputs as far as I know

To be fair for a first attempt I think the thing is fantastic - V2 will be interesting; I've just had some info about the tactile buttons, backlighting, and build (coated in rubber)

That looks like an excellent idea!

Paul just bought a pedal from me and he was the equivalent of a five star food standards inspection throughout. Thanks for a smooth deal and enjoy the pedal

Funkle bought a bass from me, he sorted postage and was very pleasant to deal with indeed. Everyone deserves such a kind funkle.

I much prefer and pretty much only buy pedals that take a battery. I don’t use them much and when I do I only use a couple and I don’t want to faff around with adapters etc. there’s no point in a pedal being small if it needs a wall wart too (granted that’s different if you use a pedalboard which most people probs do)

I put up a wanted ad for a Boss OC2 and Aidan messaged me. He sent the pedal before I had paid, making sure I was happy first. Excellent guy to deal with, thanks a lot

Hopefully they don’t sell or he’s in for a long wait at the very least! I saw the Proton. Mental price. I couldn’t get rid of mine fast enough!

I just took delivery of an MXR Phase 90. I prefer it to the 100 - sounds fuller and then n between the super liquify or slightly janky 100 settings. I’ve also been a bit naughty and bought something pretty special that will be here on Tuesday or something.

The pic doesn’t work, is it the black five string you were thinking about respraying? I’m not surprised, my Atelier Z was amazing. It’s been interesting to see you try out so many basses, as I think we probably have a similar taste in 70s jazz type basses.

Just to complicate things, it also depends hugely on how you’re using your compressor. For peak limiting I always have mine right at the end

Yeah it's fine - fairly thick plastic leather and decent padding. Good for the price and comfortable to wear. I think Fame are. budget brand who put their name on a number of budget items, like Harley Benton etc.

Every time I listen to a pre-amp demo I always think the bass sounds better before they switch it on!

Wear a disguise