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Pros:
- Bulletproof
- Full control over your tone
- True bypass
- Double output
Cons:
- LEDs might be too bright
Sometimes I sit down by myself and contemplate the things we tend to do as musicians. Though we all have our own peculiarities, there are certain patterns that we share among one another. And the most common one is belittling certain units and appraising others. We are so caught up in the world of overdrives, delays, fuzzes, modulation and crazy synths that we forget about the effects that are most crucial to our tone. We concentrate on drastic changes rather than professionally shaping our sound and performance. We satisfy ourselves with two-knob-control over various parameters and hardly ever think about the better ways of crafting the masterpieces. What I mean is that we underestimate the importance of equalizers in our chains and are not willing to spend money on them. If you think about it, such an attitude does not make sense at all. But the good thing is: we are all open-minded and have desire to experiment all of the time. For that reason, I will introduce to you one of the most prominent equalizer pedals out there – MXR M108S Ten Band EQ. This bad boy utilizes simplistic approach in order to deliver powerful performance. If you want to explore the ways in which you can bring studio right to your rehearsal room, then keep on reading!
Features
MXR M108S Ten Band EQ is one of the equalizers from the brand. Though there are certain perks about all of them, this one stands out particularly for several reasons. And that is exactly what I am going to tell you about. First of all, it has noise-reduction circuitry, which guarantees noiseless and quiet operation. This will be rather helpful, especially if you have longer chain with numerous pedals and even more cables. Second of all, this bad boy has additional output that allows you to route it in two effects chains simultaneously or connect it two different amplifiers. Either of these two will give you broader sonic possibilities and more control over your sound. Furthermore, M108S Ten Band EQ has a true bypass switching that will help your tone stay intact throughout the whole chain. MXR considered all the scenarios a gigging musicians might be in, so they incorporated brighter LEDs that are visible even in the direct sunlight. Since this fella is slider-type equalizer, this addition makes a lot of sense and allows you to see the settings even from far away. But some players think that they are too much and I guess that is completely up to personal tastes. M108S Ten Band EQ has “bullet-proof” enclosure that looks extremely expensive and classy. The silver chassis with blue LEDs and sliders will stand out even on the fanciest pedalboards. One more thing to keep in mind is that this pedal can be powered with 18V adapter, so do not even try to shove your beloved 9V one in its DC jack. I have tried my best to find faults with this one but man, that is simply impossible. Amazing job, MXR!
Controls
The control section of M108S Ten Band EQ is configured in the slider style. You will not see any knobs or switches here, all we have are brightly lit sliders that are assigned with different tasks. I prefer such a configuration to the encoder one since here you have the ability to visually discern between the frequencies and settings. I believe that makes the whole process of shaping the tone way easier and more convenient. In short, I really like the control section on this one.
Now, with one more simplistic pedal you will find the sliders that are solely dedicated to the equalizing process. But M108S Ten Band EQ has an additional two for Volume and Gain. The former allows you to alter the overall level of the effect, while the latter alters the amount of the gain boost and lets you steep your signal with some power and strength. In the center you will find 8 sliders with the following frequencies: 31.25, 62.5, 125, 250, 500, 1K, 2K, 4K, 8K, 16K. Each of them provides you with the ability to accentuate or cut ±12dB on specific frequencies. As you can see, M108S Ten Band EQ has quite a wide range in this sense, which means you can get absolutely meticulous and craft your tone with detailed approach. Lastly, we have a footswitch that allows you to engage the equalizer and get going.
MXR 10 Band EQ Sound
And finally, we have approached the awaited part of this article – now that we have touched up on the technical details, we can freely discuss the sound of M108S Ten Band EQ. This bad boy has enough frequency range to cover both electric and bass guitars. Since it starts low and goes quite high, you have the ability to refine bottom-end and high-end with equal forces. The direct effect of this one is not too drastic to be afraid of touching the sliders, which is amazing, since your modifications will not ruin your sound. The clarity of the M108S Ten Band EQ adds a couple of winning points to the greatness of this unit. It works wonderfully anywhere in the chain as well as in the effects loop – opening up numerous possibilities for you. It can add a touch of gain to your signal to prepare it for distortion or round up a bit your overdriven sounds. Either way, it does not turn into unidentifiable mush at any setting or placement.
Conclusion
On the whole, MXR M108S Ten Band EQ is one of the best equalizers at a very convenient price point. It has an extremely durable chassis and a sound that will crank your performance up a notch. It is straight-forward, since you only have to move the sliders up and down and each setting is visually perceivable. It is not an exaggeration by any means when I say that this bad boy has hardly any downsides. In other words, M108S Ten Band EQ lives up to all the expectations all the musicians have towards MXR. Good luck on your journey of equalizing the hell out of your sound!
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