MXR
| Private | |
| Industry | Consumer electronics |
| Founded | 1972 |
| Headquarters | Rochester, New York |
| Products | effects pedals |
| Parent | Dunlop Manufacturing |
| Website | http://www.jimdunlop.com |
MXR was a Rochester, New York-based manufacturer of effects pedals, co-founded in 1972 by Keith Barr and Terry Sherwood and incorporated as MXR Innovations, Inc. in 1974. The MXR trademark is now owned by Jim Dunlop, which continues to produce the original effects units along with new additions to the line.
MXR co-founders Terry Sherwood and Keith Barr met as high school students at Rush-Henrietta Senior High School in Rochester, New York. Together they started Audio Services, an audio repair business, where they repaired stereos and other music equipment in their rented basement apartment. This experience led them to form MXR and begin producing their first original effect pedal design, the Phase 90, quickly followed by the Distortion Plus, Dynacomp, and the Blue Box. Michael Laiacona joined this early MXR team in the key role of sales. Barr later left MXR and went on to found Alesis, Sherwood co-founded Applied Research & Technology, and Laiacona went on to found Whirlwind USA.
Jim Dunlop acquired the MXR brand in 1987 and continues the traditional pedal line of original MXR classics that have come to define the brand, such as the Phase 90 and Dyna Comp, as well as modern pedals like the Carbon Copy and Fullbore Metal. Dunlop has also added a line dedicated to bass effects boxes, MXR Bass Innovations, which has recently released the Bass Octave Deluxe and Bass Envelope Filter. Both pedals won Editor Awards in Bass Player Magazine and Platinum Awards from Guitar World Magazine. The MXR Custom Shop is responsible for recreations of vintage models such as the hand-wired Phase 45, as well as doing limited runs of pedals featuring premium components and highly modified designs such as the new Custom Comp.
The first MXR effects pedal was the M-101 MXR Phase 90 phaser. The Phase 90 was used on the first two Van Halen albums. The MXR Phase 45, a milder version of the Phase 90, was also released, as well as a programmable version, the Phase 100. Like many other pedals of the day, MXR pedals (prior to 1981) did not have LEDs, A/C adaptor jacks, or true-bypass switching. Over the years, there were two distinct periods that the reference series pedals went through.
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Wikipedia