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MXR Bass Preamp

  • Based on 95 reviews
Condition: New
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$169.99 Why this price?

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Availability: In Stock.
Fulfilled by Amazon

Arrives Wednesday, Nov 27
Order within 14 hours and 42 minutes
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Features

  • Separate INPUT & OUTPUT level controls
  • 3-band EQ section with sweep able midrange
  • Studio-quality Direct Out
  • Model Number: M81

Description

The MXR Bass Preamp combines a pristine bass preamp with astudio-quality Direct Out in a Phase 90-sized box, providing clear tonewithout hogging precious pedalboard space. Use it to add a new voice toan old passive bass, sweeten up any amp, or put some special sauce on aparticular song. Dial it in just the way you want it and send itstraight to the house—pre or post-EQ—with the built-in Direct Out.


Item Weight: 8 ounces


Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 2.5 x 4.5 inches


Domestic Shipping: Item can be shipped within U.S.


Country of Origin: Taiwan


Item model number: 11081000001


Batteries: 1 9V batteries required.


Is Discontinued By Manufacturer: No


Date First Available: January 29, 2014


Color Name: Green


Frequently asked questions

If you place your order now, the estimated arrival date for this product is: Wednesday, Nov 27

Yes, absolutely! You may return this product for a full refund within 30 days of receiving it.

To initiate a return, please visit our Returns Center.

View our full returns policy here.

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Top Amazon Reviews


  • Better than anticipated
I recently upgraded my Fender Jbass MIM pickups for some Aguilar 4j-hc. Awesome pup’s and truly hum canceling. However, when I plugged in directly into the pa at my church, the output was so week. Making it hard to hear my self on the monitors. After some research for some pre-amps to boost my sound, I came across the M81. I was between Aguilar’s preamp and this one. However, I decided to get the M81 because it is half the price of the Aguilar preamp. Let me tell you, I’ve never had or used a pedal in my life, either way, this little brick is awesome! Was able get the tone I’ve dreamed of having. It was exactly what I needed and wanted. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 12, 2022 by Anson P

  • Best Bass preamp pedal
I bought it to balance out my Guild Acoustic Bass, and it was so good, I use it instead of a floor process for my Jazz Bass for Church. Great low end, and the sweepable mid range is perfect.
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 13, 2022 by Rob

  • Very clean, transparent tone. SUPER bright indicator LED!
This is a really nice box, and solved a specific problem for me. I play bass, and usually the FOH engineers wants a direct signal from my gear. I tend to like my basses EQ'ed like my amp settings (I use Warwick/Tobias basses and SWR/EBS/MarkBass gear that is very accurate amplification). Most of the time, my bass sounded 'generic' through the FOH unless the engineer is very experienced. So now I split the signal from my last effect, sending one line to the stage amp and one to this pedal. Now I have the ability to set the EQ on the bass signal before it is sent to the FOH desk. I set the EQ using a power amp running into a bass cabinet, and compare it to the sound of the amp/cab combination. Has really worked wonders. Built like a brick, and very clean and transparent. This is not your pedal if you are looking to alter or color your tone like with an SVT or Mesa amp. Also, there are only a few bass pre's that have the sweep mids that this pedal has which makes it a winner with me! Only complaint is the new MXR effects have a super-bright LED that, when I look straight down at my pedal board, is so bright it blinds me. Because of my application, I have to leave it on all the time so it's a constant problem. I have covered the LED with some electrical tap with a hole the size of a head of a pin centered over the LED. Even then, it is WAY brighter than my other pedals but at least it doesn't blind me. Dunlop/MXR ..... turn down the voltage to the LED !!! ;-) ... show more
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 13, 2015 by BfloBassist

  • Incredible tone and options
I've been limping along using some random guitar amp simulators on my board that goes into a Radial DI - none of which was designed for bass. Today was my first set using the M81. After some minor adjustment, I was feeling the floor rumble with my playing - just like it should. My sound engineer who is a former studio producer was very impressed with the tonal changes delivered by this very small package. This is the one folks - save your pennies - don't cheap out. If you do not need fuzz / overdrive, but a good clean powerful bass sound ; this is the one and only pedal for you. NOTE: It is no joke that the LED on this thing is super bright. I have a MOOER pedal cap and it glows to let me know the pedal is engaged. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 1, 2021 by B. Esposito

  • Clean, Tight, and Punchy Preamp
This is a solid, well built pedal that can add some life and fullness to your bass tone. I've used it in front of an amp and run direct into an interface for recording and in each case it was quiet, clean, tight, and punchy. I have not tried running effects in front of it so I'm not sure how well it takes them. It does everything the manufacturer description it says it does really well. Pristine is a great word for it. It is very clean. Depending on what you mean if you say you're looking for a "warm" bass tone, this may or may not be the right preamp for you. If to you "warm" means something with a bit of a growl that comes from slight imperfections people love so much about tubes and many other preamps try to emulate, I personally didn't find that in this pedal. I would recommend the Tech 21 VT Bass DI for that type of sound. If to you warm simply means an ultra clean signal with a "roundness" and fullness to the sound that lets the lows rumble without getting sloppy and the highs bite without ever being harsh then this is exactly the pedal you're looking for. I think this preamp would be good for a lot of players but I think it probably works particularly well for slap style bass lines. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 23, 2015 by SCD 010

  • Fantastic Bass Preamp Pedal
I tried a lot of preamps. The MXR M81 has all these features that made me buy and keep it. - Sounds great and doesn't change the character of my bass of amp. - Can run on battery, phantom power or standard A/C adapter. - DI on board with pre/post switch and ground lift. - Plenty of headroom. I can run direct into a power amp if needed. - Small form factor (like a Phase 90). To me this sounds a lot like a Sadowsky preamp. The MXR M81 is smaller than the Sadowsky SBP-1 but has sweepable mids and more headroom. It's more feature rich than the smaller Sadowsky SBP-2 having the advantage of a DI with phantom power and can run on a 9V battery or A/C adapter. Finally the MXR M81 is cheaper than both Sadowsky preamps. Great preamp! ... show more
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 11, 2020 by J. D. Wyatt

  • Want your rig to sound 20% better?
This is a fairly simple product, giving you extra control of bass, mids, and treble, plus a volume boost. The very slight learning curve is the sweepable mid that allows you to isolate which mid frequency you want to cut or boost. It's basically a parametric EQ when it comes to the mids. All I can say is that if you like your basic bass tone, this pedal will make it about 20% better. Just seems to make things more clear and punchy with little fuss. I have one setting and I rarely change it. Just turn it on, leave it on and go. To my ears it sounds like someone has removed a blanket from the cabinet after I turn it on. There might be other bass pedals that can make greater changes, but for the money and the simplicity, this has always been my favorite. MXR has a similar one that also offers distortion and I've always used it or this M81 since 2004 and can't imagine playing without one of them. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 25, 2019 by Mark Lester

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