MXR ‘74 Custom Shop Phase 90 - Hands On

MXR have made great pedals for decades. The Phase 90 is a classic pedal but now has a custom shop model, build to reproduce the model made in 1974.

This pedal is build for the guitarist who only needs tone and only likes simplicity. Luckily, that’s me. With a pending gigs I scurried off with it. It was destined to be the only pedal between a Les Paul and an Orange stack and I was looking forward to hearing it all come together.

The pedal feels very different from the normal Phase 90, it is much smoother and has the old script writing which I really love. There is no LED which I don’t usually worry about because I’ll only use one pedal anyway. In order to have an LED the circuitry is very different and changes the sound, in ’74 they didn’t bother. The responsive clunk from the switch is perfectly weighted and can be felt through the sole of a shoe or boot.

As I don’t use chains of pedals I’m not too bothered that there is no 9v adapter socket but this could be really annoying if your pedal board looks like a New York City tttraffic jam. Four screws hold the base of the pedal on and inside is a cavity for a 9v battery, I am not a great fan of this as it means a quick battery change mid set is a tough job. Also if you stick your pedal to a board it will be a real pain. But, this was how it used to be.

MXR ‘74 Phase 90 Product Page

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I have to put my hand up to a school boy error. The pedal doesn’t have a pre-fitted rubber bottom, thus, you will probably find it a different way around every time you want to use it. There are four little feet in the pack which my collegue later informed me.

My sound is a classic Free or Cream tone and is complimented utterly by the ’74 Phase. Sometimes pedals can take away from the tone giving the effect but no heart. This widened my sound and gave it lift, there was also a boost to the upper mids. Just a little, almost a presence kick. I love dynamics in sound and this had it, reacting to the controls on the guitar perfectly. Guitar, Amp and Pedal working as one dynamic phat tone.

I moved the speed a little for different songs to try and match tempo, but it didn’t really matter too much as it seemed to fit in anyway. Should you find one position that you must keep then you can use the supplied lock pot.

What a sound with such simplicity. If you love the sound of old effects this is one to own. I can’t say this pedal is perfect because it does have a few hang ups. There is no LED, 9v DC and it is also £50 more that the standard pedal. The old style paint had a chip on the side with just one gig, I have seen modern phase 90s years old still looking new.

If you are like me and just look for old rock sounds then you can not be disappointed but you will have to forgive the lack of the expected features of stomp boxes.

Rich Turner
rich@soundunlimited.co.uk
07921 788 153