MXR Phase 90

This pedal is very straight foward, just plug it in then power it up with either a 9V battery or a 9V AC adapter. The knob adjusts the rate of the Phase sweep, it does not however adjust the amount of coloration of the effect. This particular pedal that I bought from a local Guitar Center did not come with any instruction manual, just a warranty card and a booklet that advertises a variety of MXR pedals (also the plastic knob jacket was missing too, but who cares, I never needed to use one).

My current setup is a MIM Standard Strat (w/ Seymour Duncan SSL 1's 50's style sound with a slightly hotter brigde p/u) into a 535Q Dunlop wah pedal(with the 16db boost always ON) into a vintage ProCo Rat distortion into the MXR Phase 90 reissue into an Ibanez DE7 delay into either a Marshall mini (1/2 watt SS amp) or a Fender Blues Jr (15watt tube amp).
My decision to buy this pedal was mainly 2 reasons, one being that I got into Van Halen stuff within the last year, and two i wanted some kind of filtering effect in my setup for a larger variety of sounds. Something extra that I did with this pedal after purchasing it (thus voiding its warranty) was removing the R28 resister from the Phase 90's circuitry. This did make a noticable difference to the sound of the effect when used with my RAT and 16db boost from my Crybaby. What it seems to me from listening closely was that the strange mid range 'tubby' sound was diminished quite significantly. Although alot of owners of this pedal (or so I've read of in this review on Harmony Central) seemed to be content with just removing R28, I still thought that there was too much of that midrange tubbyness going on when being used with my RAT and 16db before that coming from the 535Q. So what I went ahead and did was remove the two capacitors C11 and C12. In turn I got closer to what I was looking for 'sound-wise'. It became more closer to the tones that I associate with early VH 1 passages in which EVH uses the phase shift effect. From what I hear on Eddies early stuff is that his Phase shift when turned ON, was arguably subtle in that it didnt sound too swishy or shooshy (with the exception when the rate was turned up), and more arguably didnt have such a pronounced mid range tubbyness. Although I have a very different setup from EVH's early days of Plexis and self wound humbuckers and the like from those days, I can argue that the MXR Phase 90 especially when used with any half decent overdrive or distortion can get closer to emulating the early EVH vibe because of the basic tone coloration that you get when using a phase shift effect.
So all in all, for the results that I got with this pedal after taking some components out from its circuitry I think that the pedal is more usable with distortion effects, well thats with my setup, everyone's is different. I think that if anyone is looking to buy either the EVH MXR phase 90 or the reissue MXR phase 90, to buy both and take them for a listening test, and see which one suits all your preferences then take the other back for a return. I actually prefered the reissue Phase 90 (after removing r28, c11, c12 ) over the EVH P90 because I thought this pedal sounded more 'univibe-like in the 12-2'oclock settings. Simply because I wanted to have Hendrix's Univibe woodstock type stuff on hand without having to buy an expensive Vibe unit. So that's that. This unit gets an 9 for doing nice phase sounds with and without distortion or overdrive (after the mods of course).

The orange box is all metal and solid, the only gripe is the orange peel paint job that seems to chip quite easily. The internal guts and circuitry is ALL done within one solid circuit board, even the jacks. The only thing about that is some ppl want to use true bypass DPDT mods but thats not going to be easily feasible with its current construction compared to the older (pre 82'?) MXR Phase 90's. This gets an 8 for the sake of repair purposes that the internal jacks and stomp switch are incorporated into the actual circuit board (not easy to service).

I havent turned in the warranty card that came with this unit because I voided it by changing some of the internal circuitry so I probably wont be dealing with the company in the future for any repairs or service.

Most of my overall view of this pedal is in the previous sections of my review. It has a nice phase shift effect for applications that I sought it for such as early day EVH type stuff and even Hendrix Univibe type stuff (with the strats neck PU). My advice is to buy the units that you are interested in (permitting they're not out of your ballpark cash-wise, and can be returned without fees) and try them out side by side to figure out which you prefer, then return the other.
This pedal gets a 9 because it does do nice phase shift's that sound appealing to me.

I am just updating my review. I found the Phase 90 schematic on DiscoFreq's site and I looked for something that connected like that. Blammo! A 20k resistor that looked like the culprit. Desoldered her out, and immediately ran to the next room for my amplifier. Results below!

WOW!!!!! What a vocal sound. Much less swooshy, more like a sweeping wah. The only boost or cut in volume I had was due to the non-feedback version's wider volume range from top of sweep to bottom. I didn't pull any capacitors out, and when I really bang the strings on the neck pickup of my Les Paul Spec., there's still a bit of breakup. But the breakup sounds more hi-fi. I sure do love playing with this thing clean. I know I'll miss the swoosh-fart of the block sound eventually, but would keep the capacitor *out* of the circuit if I had to choose. And until Radio Shack opens, I guess I'll have to.

no change

no change

When that thing gets put on a toggle, it'll be like I got TWO classic pedals for ten bucks at a garage sale. So GREAT VALUE!

This unit is very simple to use. Just plug it in and adjust the knob. The farther to the right, the faster the "swirling" tone. With the a Boss DD-3 Digital Delay, the tone is awesome. If you can chew gum and change your Tampax at the same time, you can figure out this pedal.

I use this pedal with a 2002 Peavey Wolfgang guitar and a 120 Watt Crate Amp. This peadal also works well with a DD-3 Digital Delay and the SD-1 Super Overdrive. This pedal has a warm and clean sound, no noise or buzz. Set it at 9 to 10 O'clock and you can nail the Van Halen Brown Sound.

This Phase 90 is built as solid as a German tank. I have had this pedal for 3 years and have stomped the hell out of it more times than anyone could ever count with no problems with the unit or the switch. I have 100% faith in this pedal.

I have never had to use any kind of customer suppport. This Phase 90 has worked perfectly from the day I took it out of the box.

The only thing I can tell others about this pedal is you do not have to spend twice as much for the new special red/black/white striped EVH Phase 90 pedal. All your doing is spending a lot more money for a fancy paint job and the EVH name. The original Phase 90 ( solid orange pedal) has the same tone and sound. I highly recommend this pedal. There is nothing really to dislike about it at all. I did not compare this to any other kind of phasers out there, because this one is the only one to have.

1 knob increases speed. In that respect easy, but you gotta watch your pickup volume so 8.

I use it with a 1993 double cut Les Paul Special (P90s) and 1967 Melody Maker (SG cut with wierd little single-coils); Ibanez TS5 and DD5, DOD FX50, Dunlop Crybaby, Sovtek Small Stone 2 different kinds of green Big Muffs, Ebow; and I run these into my Roland JC-50 or I record direct with either a Behringer V-Amp2, Zoom 505 (rarely), or the modelling in my bandmate's Korg D1200.

If you want to sound like Rod Stewart's "Tonight's The Night" you need that block logo sound. I, however, use it to make strange space warbles and also like it clean with the speed real high like a fast leslie.

It's very easy to get a good sound if you are using distortion after, or if you watch your volume on the clean stuff.

Which is why so many people do the r28 mod.

Basically you cut out the feedback resistor or stick it on a switch which is what I want to do, but my 1994 block logo reissue that has a different circuit board than the current reissue. The jacks and pot are connected by wires, not mounted on the pc board. All the opamps are in a vertical column down the center of the board which is labelled "MXR" and "101-3001-105". It does have an LED and AC in. I can't seem to find this layout anywhere on the net. I'd love to mod it myself. Maybe someone's seen this before? I have pictures and will happily email them.

I seem to remember fixing the switch and the output jack back in high school. Had to the switch in my crybaby a few times too, though. I wouldn't use the dunlop switch again. Wierd voodoo. I would probably gig without a backup as phasers are not a necessary part of my sound. If it didn't turn on, I'd just turn it back off again.

I haven't dealt with Dunlop. However I would love to talk to anyone who can help me mod this thing. I just need to figure out which resister it is, since mine ain't labeled like the new ones.

Please help me find my feedback resistor!

I just dug this out of the box again a few weeks ago. This pedal sounds like it's supposed to but doesn't get recorded as much as the Small Stone. Maybe with the mod? Hasn't seen much live use since high school when I was pedal crazy. I think I'm more inclined to use just distortion tone live these days. My bassist had one, and it worked much better than the Small Stone for his purposes.

Anyone who can help me mod my pedal, please let me know.

1 knob? Even a drummer could figure this out ;^)

My Phase 90 is a reissue block logo with the R28 resister desoldered. Before I pulled the R28 resister out of the circuit, this was a fairly nice phaser pedal which would drive the overall sound into slight overdrive. This made it tough to use for clean work so I pulled the resister and viola! -- a transformed pedal. Now this thing just sings and is an enhancement to my signal as oppossed to a hostile takeover of it. My rating is for the mod version I now enjoy so much. Knock off two points for the unmodded version.

Well, I've had it over 18 months and with daily use plus a disassemby, modification and reassemby and it works like a charm.

Never dealt with them, but I did get a wah pedal user manual when I bought the thing and I know others who got the same thing.

A wah pedal? This doesn't give me warm fuzzies if I ever do need them...

As modded it is an outstanding addition to my sound. Before that it was just "OK". What I have now is the sound I remember from the days of bell bottom jeans and tye-dye shirts. At $69 plus a set of wire cutters you just can't go wrong if your looking for a good sounding phase pedal.

One knob, one switch, easy as pie. While the classic Phase 90 pedal apparently uses a four-stage circuit to generate its phase shifting effect (see the Harmony Central article on phase shifting at harmony-central.com/Effects/Articles/Phase_Shifting/), it is as simple as an effects pedal can be: Input and Output jacks, an on-off footswitch, and a single Speed (i.e. rate) knob, which controls how fast the phase-shift notches sweep up and down over the sound frequency range.

The Speed knob has a removable grippy rubber cover. Since it was a garage sale find, I got no manual, but there is a one-pager (with a couple of rather helpful playing tips) on the jimdunlop.com website. And you don't really need it anyway. The previous owner had glued a cut-to-size Boss rubber pad on the bottom of my pedal, but I removed it and replaced it with Velcro patches for a pedalboard. Inside, he seems to have added a bit of extra foam to keep the battery from rattling around, but otherwise it looks stock.

The particular model I have is a transitional one, with the "block" MXR logo, not the "script" one, but also no M-101 model number, no status LED, and no AC adapter jack. (Imagine the photo from the Harmony Central review page, but without a light -- yes, even simpler than that.) You have to use a 9V battery, which means you must unscrew the bottom plate whenever you need fresh power, which is about the only usability complaint I have. And I shouldn't complain -- I got it in June 2005 for $2 Cdn (yes, two dollars) at a garage sale! The money I saved over a $100-200 newer or vintage model will buy a lot of batteries.

In a pinch, you can even leave it plugged in if the battery dies, since the footswitch appears to bypass the effect completely -- I was able to get un-effected signal through even without a battery inside. I assume, however, that like most footpedals, the battery will drain whenever the Input is plugged in, even if you're not using it, so you should probably leave that unplugged when you're away from your rig.

Unlike for more complex phase shifter effects (or even the two-knob MXR hase 100), the depth, sweep depth, and regeneration are fixed in the Phase 90's circuit design. If you like the sound it makes, as many do, that's quite flexible enough. Kick it in with the Speed knob far left, and you get subtle washy sounds that work well with clean or overdriven tones. Push it to 10 or 12 o'clock for a cascading Van Halen-y crunch or lead tones a la David Gilmour of Pink Floyd. Crank it all the way to play Led Zeppelin's "No Quarter" or for weird spacy gleeble-gleeble effects.

It's cool for bass, keyboards, or vocals too. I play it as the first effect in the chain on my pedalboard (so I can unplug it when not in use). The rest of my effects -- a Fender pedal tuner, a Danelectro Daddy-O overdrive, a Tech 21 SansAmp GT2 amp/overdrive simulator, and a Boss Bass Limiter/Enhancer (for when I play bass) -- run off AC power, and so can stay plugged in later in the line. They run into a mid-'70s silverface Fender Princeton Reverb (all of 12 watts, I think) with a Strat guitar, or a Yorkville Bassmaster XM100 bass amp (100 watts) with a Precision bass.

The phaser will, of course, phase any hum or buzz too, so it's best to keep it clicked off when your amp is open but you're not playing. As the Dunlop website suggests, the Phase 90 works best either as a subtle wash when playing clean or crunchy chords, or punched in for solos when used more aggressively. It can be a nice addition to your palette for a song's bridge or the latter part of a solo, to bring in a different sound from a previous, drier tone. If phase shifting is what you want, the Phase 90 is probably what you're thinking of.

It has the orange colour, heft, and solidity of a brick, and mine seems to have taken many years of punishment without flinching. The case and components are all metal and easy to tighten, adjust, or replace if you need to -- even the Speed dial is a standard black knurled knob, with a set screw, that you could replace from an electronics shop. The footswitch is very solid and clicks hard, and is apparently better than the newer models. (It's a bare switch with no pedal surface, so I advise shoes rather than bare feet.)

It's also not critical to my sound, so I'd use it without a backup. Of course, the most likely problem is a dead battery, since you can't use AC, so I'd bring spares.

No idea. Check the other reviews here.

I've spent my 16-year professional musical career as a drummer, but I started with guitar 11 years before that, when I was 8. I also dabble with bass. I play mostly oldies and British Invasion classic rock, or stuff in similar styles, although I listen to and play a number of other styles of music as a hobby. While I haven't used the Phase 90 at a gig, if I could find a way to use it with my drums, maybe I would. :)

I'd probably replace the Phase 90 if I lost it, but I'd hunt for a deal, even though it's unlikely another $2 garage sale find would come my way. A chorus or flanger, multi-effects unit, or a phaser with more controls might be more flexible, but the Phase 90's simplicity and obvious ruggednes appeal to me, and I don't have to worry about it. Even the orange colour is cute, and I'd go for that rather than the red-black-white stripey Eddie Van Halen model.

Its only flaws are the lack of an AC jack (available on current models) and indicator light (same, although whether it's on is obvious to the ear), and the awkwardness of having to remove four screws to replace the battery. Sound- and usage-wise, it's near-perfect for what it is, and it doesn't try to be anything it isn't.

The Phase 90 inspires me to play more guitar, so I guess it does its job.

One knob, the more you twist it, the faster it goes. Devestatingly simple.

Woooosh, Sounds great on every setting. Does a good leslie speaker, a nice fast wobly Scofield thing and of course the Van Halen stuff. It also does a 'dark side of the moon' impression an all! With distortion and a strat it sounds like Hendrix. Also good for retro Albert King/Buddy Guy style intros.

This is an old one, 20 years and still throbing

N/A

I play Jazz, blues and classic rock styles and this pedal will be in my case nine times out of ten. It's to be used on one or two tunes in the set just like most modulation effects otherwise it'll loose it's touch.

This review is for the MXR Phase 90 script logo.

I use this pedal on a vintage effects board, using vintage amps. I compared the vintage script logo Phase 90 with the Dunlop reissue. The Dunlop reissue is terrible. It is too distorted and not warm sounding at all.

The pedal is 30 years and still sounds great.

Called Dunlop looking for some parts for a 60's crybaby. We got in another discussion about the old MXR pedals. They gave me the name of a guy who specializes in MXR pedal repairs. Very helpful

I lucked out and got this vintage script logo Phase 90 in beautiful condition. It didn't cost much more, (maybe 10 dollars), than the Dunlop EVH pedal (which I'll bet doesn't sound as nice as the original script).

One Knob for speed ,easy to use with out three other knobs to distract you.

Telecaster,LP Spec>...Dunlop Crybaby>Bad Monkey OD> Phase 90>...Marshall JMC 800 50 watt combo.
No noise ,small amount of wave whoosh,but thats how the signal works.I don't understand reveiws for this or any pedal that complain about noise?That is From the sum amp!and it will boost your sig,but I do enjoy reading about the R28 mod ,Iam really enjoying this pedal as it sounds now.
Phase 90's I think have the best rotry sound ,I had a Boss PH-2 for years ,and it really sounded digital,this sounds like anolog ,7-12 o clock mild phase for rythm or solo.12-3 for a more rotry sound,and 5o clock for an almost leslie.
The sounds of Hendrix,Page,Gilmore ,Andy Summers,and Eddie Van Halen can all be had.

I have a Dyna Comp and owned other MXR pedals,but the foot swithch on this one is alittle cheaper than My Dyna Comp,and the knob can't be tighted by a screw on the side,so I guess Dunlop is cutting costs,
Would I gig with out backup ,yeah if it broke it's not my tone its a flavor,besides I don't have a guiat tech with 4 Phase 90 on the side of the stage.
If it breaks I will get it fixed ,if stolen I will have to get another.

OK ,Dunlop should really invest the time and money into updating their web sight,and put a 1800-support number for issues dealing with damage or repairs.The card to send in for the limited warranty ,(which they never tell you how long it will last)on the same manual I got my crybaby,please update that as well while your at it.
I,am on the East there in the West,
If it breaks I will get fixed ,but proably not wit Dunlop.

I have want a phase 90 for the last three years ,but on limited budget and owning a Boss PH-2 I never could justify buying it.So went to GC and just bought one the other day,the PH-2 is a great phaser,and I,m not going to knock it,but I really enjoy the sound of the 90 better.10 years ago I was in this band playing bass,our guitar player had Phase 90,and let me use it.The drummer and I just jamed Drums and bass w/ phaser we recorded it and it really sounded cool.I have always been looking for that sound ever since,so I got the Orange box that started it all (at least for MXR)
I have been reading about both the R28 mod,on this page and the new EVH Phase 90 w/ script mode,I'm going to check out upgrading my pedal like that some day,but for right now I enjoy its sound now

So easy to use apparently, they don't even come with a manual.

I bought this new at Guitar Center and it's broken right out of the box. Plugged it into my effects chain it made a huge popping sound when I turned the effect on. The popping stopped, but then there is no discernable phase effect at any setting. All I hear is a very pronounced leap in volume.

I play an '80s US telecaster through a Boss tuner>Boss super overdrive>Boss vibrato>Boss SuperPhaser into a Traynor YCV40 combo amp.

I was hoping to replace the super phaser with something more "organic"

These things happen, but I'm soured on ever relying on this pedal. I don't gig with back up gear except an extra guitar, so I'm not keen on sketchy gear.

Haven't dealt with dunlop. I'm assuming I'll get a replacement at Guitar Center or exchange it for a Small Stone without much hassle.

I play rock with a somewhat '60s, somewhat rootsy slant as well as more modern "indie rock" stuff. Thought this would be a perfect pedal to bridge that gap. I've been gigging regularly for about 8 years. Basically I wish the pedal worked. I don't know if I'll replace it or look for another phaser. I was pretty cavalier about not testing it in the store, but I figured if I didn't like it I could return it for a refund or replacement. Never thought it'd be DOA.

I'm rating this because I think it's fair to balance all the praise this pedal gets with a story about when it disappoints and doesn't live up to it.