MXR M82 Bass Envelope Filter V.S. Electro Harmonix Micro Q-Tron

[NachoConde]

Its time to put an envelope filter onto my pedalboard, and its come down to these two. So what better place to come to for advice on the final decision than TalkBass!

Now i know most people would prefer the M82, but i would have to be really put off the Micro QTron in order to spend that much money on the MXR. Basically it comes down to the Micro Q Tron being more within a reasonable price range, or the MXR M82 sounding F**ing awesome! Butim still interested in hearing the good/bad points of each pedal from a more experienced source before i make a decision.


HELP!!!

[chicago_mike]

Both. Or... I think the MXR is better. Had an older micro err.. mini q tron..not all that impressed with it.

[cheapbasslovin]

Biggest problem with the Micro is that it has a volume jump. There is an internal trimpot that lowers the maximum resonance that will ease the volume jump, but it doesn't make it go away. Other than that I thought the Micro sounded great. No blend on the BP and HP modes neuters them for bass, though. I used mine with a parallel looper.

If you prefer a bandpass filter with a blend you'll probably want to wait for the M82. If you like the sound of a lowpass filter then you'll want to hook yourself up with the Qtron. If you plan on picking up a blender soon then it becomes a little cloudier. IMO.

By itself the MXR is the superior filter, but filters are VERY subjective. You may not want what the M82 offers, which would make it all that much more painful to pay extra for it. They're both pretty common, if you can get to a shop you ought to be able to try them out.

Good Luck.

[NachoConde]

Originally Posted by cheapbasslovin

Biggest problem with the Micro is that it has a volume jump. There is an internal trimpot that lowers the maximum resonance that will ease the volume jump, but it doesn't make it go away. Other than that I thought the Micro sounded great. No blend on the BP and HP modes neuters them for bass, though. I used mine with a parallel looper.

If you prefer a bandpass filter with a blend you'll probably want to wait for the M82. If you like the sound of a lowpass filter then you'll want to hook yourself up with the Qtron. If you plan on picking up a blender soon then it becomes a little cloudier. IMO.

Ive been playing bass for a while now, but ive only just gotten into effects now, so im not really sure what you mean by bandpass and lowpass, but as to getting a blender, i want to try and keep my pedalboard simple and i dont really want to spend more money than i have to so i would probably say no to a blender.
also, do you think maybe a compressor would help get rid of some of the volume spike on the Qtron?

[cheapbasslovin]

Originally Posted by NachoConde

Ive been playing bass for a while now, but ive only just gotten into effects now, so im not really sure what you mean by bandpass and lowpass, but as to getting a blender, i want to try and keep my pedalboard simple and i dont really want to spend more money than i have to so i would probably say no to a blender.
also, do you think maybe a compressor would help get rid of some of the volume spike on the Qtron?

Bandpass means that the filter cuts off frequencies above and below the filters center. Lowpass means that it only cuts frequencies above the filter center. The MXR is bandpass only, but the Micro has lowpass, bandpass, and highpass modes. Lowpass is (unsurprisingly) better for bass but MXR planned for that by adding the dry level knob. They're not exactly direct competition in this way so it is difficult to recommend one for you since you don't even know which characteristics you like best yet.

A lot of people use compressors for this purpose. I've read that people are happy doing this. I think Bongo recommends a limiter for this (www.ovnilab.com). I haven't done much limiting after filters for the sake of the filters, so this is all NIME.

[RickenBoogie]

I much prefer the MXR to any of the Ehx filters, (except I haven't tried the QBalls)- The MXR is capable of quite a bit of tweakability, so much more versatile than the QTron, which is still better than not having a filter.

[bassbrad]

I went with the Q-Tron XO cuz I likes a little nasty on my funk. Also the Q-Tron is a love child of my 2 favorites Dr Q (my 1st ef) and Mutron III (loved from afar but alas never to be mine). The added mix and decay controls on the MXR are very cool but to my ear it was a little too clinical or clean for me. For a few bucks more than the MXR you could get something really nifty like a 3 leaf Audio Groove Regulator.

[Andrew311]

As a proud owner of the M82, I can say it's a great pedal. I've never used the Micro Q-Tron but I have used the Q-Tron+ and I thought it sounded okay (although in the pedal's defense, I didn't tweak any of the knobs as it belongs to a friend of mine so I didn't want to mess up his settings.) The only advantage I can think of that the Q-Tron has over the M82 is the LP/BP/HP knob and the price. The M82's bandpass filter sounds just great with bass when you have a good balance between wet and dry. Right now my dry is set around 10:00 and the wet is at 12:00. As for the price difference the cheapest I see the M82 going for is $120 on eBay ( http://cgi.ebay.com/Dunlop-M82-MXR-B...ar_Accessories ) and it's worth every penny. You could try to find a used one to save a little more. Definitely worth the price difference IMO.

[NachoConde]

Originally Posted by Andrew311

As for the price difference the cheapest I see the M82 going for is $120 on eBay

the problem with that is that i live in the UK so the shipping does tend to add up to at least $20

I went to my local music shop today and Tried out the EHX Dr.Q, the 70s reissue one not the micro version which came out later, and i was a bit dissapointed, the envelope seemed too subtle for my tastes, however one of the guys there told me that they had just gotten the MXR M82 in stock, so im going to go check it out tomorrow and see how i like it. And if i really like it then it will be a matter of either seeing my bank account balance drop or use all my willpower and wait until Christmas and hope for the best

[cheapbasslovin]

Originally Posted by NachoConde

the problem with that is that i live in the UK so the shipping does tend to add up to at least $20

I went to my local music shop today and Tried out the EHX Dr.Q, the 70s reissue one not the micro version which came out later, and i was a bit dissapointed, the envelope seemed too subtle for my tastes, however one of the guys there told me that they had just gotten the MXR M82 in stock, so im going to go check it out tomorrow and see how i like it. And if i really like it then it will be a matter of either seeing my bank account balance drop or use all my willpower and wait until Christmas and hope for the best

Dr.Q= Super lame for bass no matter how you spin it. Not designed for bass and not flexible enough to be made to work well for bass. If you like the M82, by all means get it, but don't judge the MicroQtron based on the Dr.Q.

[Plays_For_Dog]

M82 fan. The dry blend knob does wonders in keeping your tone in uneffected signal. Yes, the M82 has a knob that you can control at what point the effect comes in. (don't let it scare you... it's really simple to learn and tweak). This function helps you dial in the pedal to only effect notes you play more aggressively or all of them. User's preference. I tend to keep the dry signal about 10 'o clock and the effect on the signal knob about 2 'o clock.

Plus the MXR is built like a tank. Bright Blue LED (EHX peals tend to have dim LED's) so that helps if you're on a dark stage or the lights are blinking like their calling in the mother ship. And the sparkly purple finish attracts chics digging it.... I own quite a few MXR pedals and some EHX pedals. I prefer the MXR's. They just seem to be built better and are less tempermental. If you're running a daisy chain style power supply, the MXR works with them just fine. EHX... not so much, so another plus for a pedal train later (Daisy chain style power supplys tend to be cheaper then dedicated power supplys)

Just my personal experience. Everyone has their preference. You sir, need to experiment on your own and research A LOT via youtube and here. Good luck!

[NachoConde]

Originally Posted by cheapbasslovin

Dr.Q= Super lame for bass no matter how you spin it. Not designed for bass and not flexible enough to be made to work well for bass. If you like the M82, by all means get it, but don't judge the MicroQtron based on the Dr.Q.

Yeah i definately have to agree, dissapointed would be an understatement as to how i felt after playing it, i was like "how hard do i have to hit these strings for the envelope to do something!?"


Right now im definately swaying towards the M82, it seems so much more versatile, and the dry and fx knobs definately seem to give it so many more possible sound combinations, and it sounds f-ing sexy from what ive heard on ebay, im gonna go try it out later today, ill tell you what i think about it

[bigchiefbc]

Definitely go out and try it, to see how you like it. Personally, I prefer the EHX, because I prefer the sound of an LPF. A BPF + dry blend sounds completely different from an LPF. Not better or worse, but just different.

[NachoConde]

Originally Posted by bigchiefbc

Definitely go out and try it, to see how you like it. Personally, I prefer the EHX, because I prefer the sound of an LPF. A BPF + dry blend sounds completely different from an LPF. Not better or worse, but just different.

I wish it was posible for me to try out the Qtron too, but the guy at my local guitar shop explained to me that EHX arentshipping out to the UK in a way that the music stores could make a profit unless they got some HUGE bulk shipment deal on them, so theres no way i can try it. I might just buy the Qtron try it out and return it if i dont like it, then compare it to the sound of the M82.

I would be open to other options which people can feel free to recommend within a reasonable price range (under £100 preferably under £70)