MXR Booster Mini M293 Review

The MXR Booster Mini gives you the sonic secret sauce of the Echoplex Preamp with the legendary boosting power of the MXR Micro Amp in a space-saving mini housing.

The pedal is deceptively simple, featuring a volume knob that offers a boost level up to +25dB, and a tone knob that rolls off the high frequencies. 

The Echoplex EP-3 has long been a favourite of legendary players such as Eric Johnson, Jimmy Page and Eddie Van Halen, not just for the tape delay but also the tone shaping and sweetening effect of the unit’s preamp, in particular the signal’s midrange frequencies. 

The output of the Echoplex preamp circuit can be adjusted via an internal trimpot. To access this the M293 bottom plate must be removed. This of course means it is a set and forget function as it cannot be adjusted on the fly as you play. 

Given the dimensions of the casing, no battery compartment is offered so a 9-volt adapter is required. For powering any pedals we recommend using a quality source from the likes of Dunlop or MXR over an inferior generic make. Pedals respond well to clean power in terms of output and noise.

The M293 added a subtle but nice ‘sheen’ with some added grit to my strat; ideal for early blues tones. Where it really shone was using it as a preamp when playing slide with my Les Paul. Rolling the tone off help to smooth out some of the harsh overtones that can be evident when using a glass slide and a subtle boost helped add some more body to the guitar’s overall tone. I found this to be a great addition to the guitar tone I was able to get when playing slide.

This MXR Booster Mini could easily be an ‘always on’ pedal for the enhancements it offers to your guitar tone. 

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