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MXR M83 vs Tech 21 Boost Chorus
- Thread starter the_puma
- Start date
Sub'd, I have the MXR, and it serves me well, however I've heard nothing but good things about the Tech 21. The Tech 21 has the Detune control, which seems to work great, however its lacking the low-cut of the MXR, which IMO is fantastic, and I use all the time. Interested to hear anyone else's experiences.
Very interested in your feedback. These are exactly the 2 I''m considering. I like the flanging and x-over options, but I've read about hissing issues with the Deluxe. On the other hand, real estate is a bit of an issue on my board and the BBC is quite pricey around here (almost 300 $ with taxes). I checked sound clips and they both would be great for me. MXR and Tech21 are by far my favorite pedal makers... choices man, choices.
Gee, TorontoAlex, aren't you nice?
Count me in as curious as well.
I have a POG which has the detune feature but it choruses even the low notes which doesn't sound so nice (Boss and Behringer have a LowPass feature on their pedals which choruses the higher notes where it can really be heard). I see the Tech 21 can also do flanging. Cool feature, especially if I could get the rest of the band to play Tempus Fugit by Yes.
Have fun!
Count me in as curious as well.
I have a POG which has the detune feature but it choruses even the low notes which doesn't sound so nice (Boss and Behringer have a LowPass feature on their pedals which choruses the higher notes where it can really be heard). I see the Tech 21 can also do flanging. Cool feature, especially if I could get the rest of the band to play Tempus Fugit by Yes.
Have fun!
$300? Yikes, I walked out the door with the BBC today for about $220 Canadian, taxes in at L&M. Prices can't be the much higher in La Belle provence?
I've been putting both through their paces this afternoon, and they each have their respective pluses, however I can't say I'm ready to make a conclusive judgment yet. I have a gig Saturday night, I'm thinking of taking both, and reporting back afterwords.
The only unit I saw was in a downtown shop and with a sticker price of 245 $. Could be a mistake, but that's the price that was on it. With taxes, it comes threehundred-ish
.But prices can differ greatly from store to store: last weekend I saw the same amp (Roland cube 80 xl, guitar version) priced at 349 $ in one place and 399 $ in the other. The only explanation I got is that they were probably bought at respective times when our dollar had different values when compared with our compadre's US $. Maybe, maybe not, eh ?
I owned the MXR, and sold it to buy the Tech 21. I love chorus, it's one of my favorite and most used effects, but I've never enjoyed the "warble" or "shimmer" that most chorus pedals produce. I've always wanted a full, lush chorus sound WITHOUT the modulation, and now I have it with the Tech 21!
The MXR is a well-built, great sounding chorus and it works well for some guys, but I'd rather turn the speed down, turn the depth down, turn the DETUNE to taste(Sometimes I turn it a lil sharp, sometimes I turn it a bit flat, just for a slightly different sound), and just enjoy what I think is the chorus sound. And if I happen to want an extra kick, I just hit the MULTI-VOICE button and there's a little bit more sparkle.
If I had to get a different chorus pedal, it'd probably be the Iron Ether Polytope or a Strymon Mobius, they both do the detune without the modulation...
The MXR is a well-built, great sounding chorus and it works well for some guys, but I'd rather turn the speed down, turn the depth down, turn the DETUNE to taste(Sometimes I turn it a lil sharp, sometimes I turn it a bit flat, just for a slightly different sound), and just enjoy what I think is the chorus sound. And if I happen to want an extra kick, I just hit the MULTI-VOICE button and there's a little bit more sparkle.
If I had to get a different chorus pedal, it'd probably be the Iron Ether Polytope or a Strymon Mobius, they both do the detune without the modulation...
I did the same thing as pbass above me and use it in the same fashion. Sounds fantastic - lush and fat. Only issue I have, really a non issue for me, is it's not true bypass. This could only be a problem if the power for knocked out of it at a show. Hasn't been an issue
For last night's gig I brought both and put them on the board. Switched back and forth between the two when I was looking for a chorus sound. I think after last nights gig, I'd have to agree with pbass6811, the Detune function on the Tech 21 puts it over the top against the MXR. That said, the MXR still sounds great IMO, and I'd be happy with either. In fact, I might return the Tech 21, not because I don't like it, but I don't know if I like that much more to not return it and get a full refund (L&M has a generous return policy).
I play in a rock cover band, we play tunes from the 90's to today. We usually have two electric guitars going, however last night the singer ditched his for acoustic, so I had lots of sonic space to work with. I found that I really liked how the Tech 21 filled out the sound of the bass, and made the bass sound a lot thicker. The MXR sounds 'prettier' to me, with a bit more a detailed top end. But really once we're talking about the live mix, we're splitting hairs at best. Its not like the differences between the two are going to be night and day.
I found that at home, the MXR will have a bit of a high-end hiss when the treble knob is cranked, however the Tech 21 will do the same with the tone knob at the same setting. Again, in the mix on stage this is unnoticeable.
The MXR is a fair bit smaller that the Tech 21, so 1 point MXR. MXR is true bypass, Tech 21 is buffered, either could work for you, depending on your setup.
Again in closing, both are great, and I'd be happy with either. I will say I like the Tech 21 just a bit more, owing to the Detune function. I'll wait a few weeks for a final decision, but I'll be happy with either I keep.
I play in a rock cover band, we play tunes from the 90's to today. We usually have two electric guitars going, however last night the singer ditched his for acoustic, so I had lots of sonic space to work with. I found that I really liked how the Tech 21 filled out the sound of the bass, and made the bass sound a lot thicker. The MXR sounds 'prettier' to me, with a bit more a detailed top end. But really once we're talking about the live mix, we're splitting hairs at best. Its not like the differences between the two are going to be night and day.
I found that at home, the MXR will have a bit of a high-end hiss when the treble knob is cranked, however the Tech 21 will do the same with the tone knob at the same setting. Again, in the mix on stage this is unnoticeable.
The MXR is a fair bit smaller that the Tech 21, so 1 point MXR. MXR is true bypass, Tech 21 is buffered, either could work for you, depending on your setup.
Again in closing, both are great, and I'd be happy with either. I will say I like the Tech 21 just a bit more, owing to the Detune function. I'll wait a few weeks for a final decision, but I'll be happy with either I keep.
I've been considering the mxr. At the moment I have a boss chorus but when I play at love volume, which is always, the effect is too subtle to be heard so I may as well not bother with it. I am not sure if this will be resolved by buying a different chorus or if I should maybe try a more obvious modulation such as a flanger? I like the sound of the boss, it's just too quiet.
Thx for the feedback. I'm leaning towards the MXR unit, mainly due to available real estate and even with that compact size, it'll be a challenge to have it fit. I admit the flanger is an intriguing option, but I'm not much of a flanger user anyway. Besides, I'll have 2 Tech21 pedals and 2 MXR, so that reflects my love for both companies
.
Yeh, I really don't think you can go wrong with either unit, if bass chorus is your thing. I will say I previously owned the Boss CEB-3, and either of these will blow it out of the water, in regards to both tone and functionality. If you're willing to spend the extra cash for one of these, you won't be disappointed.
TorontoAlex,
Thanks for the review and I hope the gig went well. When I wrote my comment earlier last week, I didn't realize this was such an apples-to-apples comparison as both units can flange. The MXR M83 has the lowpass filter so most of the chorusing can be heard in the upper range. Were you able to see if the Tech 21 had this feature or were you able to get it to work so your lower notes stayed in tune but higher notes were detuned?
Thanks for any help.
Thanks for the review and I hope the gig went well. When I wrote my comment earlier last week, I didn't realize this was such an apples-to-apples comparison as both units can flange. The MXR M83 has the lowpass filter so most of the chorusing can be heard in the upper range. Were you able to see if the Tech 21 had this feature or were you able to get it to work so your lower notes stayed in tune but higher notes were detuned?
Thanks for any help.
Eriky,
The Tech 21 doesn't seem to have a low-cut option, but in the mix I never noticed the chorus was over-powering on the low end.
Still making up mind between the two.
The Tech 21 doesn't seem to have a low-cut option, but in the mix I never noticed the chorus was over-powering on the low end.
Still making up mind between the two.
This alex(and yes, my real name is alex) was once curious about the mxr bass chorus deluxe. I did checked out both the mxr bass chorus deluxe and the tech 21 bass boost chorus on youtube and personally I do like the mxr bass chorus more because it's got a great sound, it's got some some nice features(especially the flanger feature), and the controls seems pretty flexible. If I were in the market for a new chorus pedal, I would go with either the mxr bass chorus deluxe or the ebs unichorus.
As someone who has had both, I think the MXR sounds prettier and the Tech21 sounds fatter, especially used with the settings previously mentioned. For classic chorusing, the MXR may be the better option. It does sound great.
For a fat, wet, slightly detuned harmonic character, the Tech21 is the way to go. There's just more control over how the chorus is working.
For a fat, wet, slightly detuned harmonic character, the Tech21 is the way to go. There's just more control over how the chorus is working.
I finally got to try out the Tech 21 last night and I love it. It suits me better than the MXR BCD, I always felt the MXR was lacking the essence of bass even if I would boost the bass knob. With the tech 21 using the detune slightly sharp and with the multiple voice engaged it gives me a very rich sounding chorus and my bass is still there. No modulation. That is my experience other will prefer the BCD.
