MUSITRONICS MU-TRON III

"the biggest, baddest, funkiest envelope filter of all-time"

This is the holy grail of envelope filters, the ultimate funk pedal - an original Musitronics Mu-tron III dating from the seventies. It's a great analogue envelope filter (auto-wah) from the legendary Musitronics Corporation - built to withstand everything seventies musicians could throw at it - with a solid aluminium and steel case and chunky controls this vintage Made In USA pedal weighs in at over 1.5kg.

This is a great-sounding Mu-tron III - in good cosmetic condition (see photos below) and perfect working order and more than ready to continue oozing out filthy funk for the next 30-40 years. There are scuffs and scratches as you'd expect, but it's in good order for a pedal that's nearly 40 years old. It sounds huge, fat and glorious - whatever you choose to ooze through it: guitar, bass or keys, it exhibits pure bona fide funk credentials. This is the real deal.

Stevie Wonder, Bootsy Collins, Jerry Garcia...

Guitars, bass, Rhodes, synths, clavinet - all work well with this pedal - it instantly transports you back in time (sonically rather than literally of course) and works its analogue magic on digital sources breathing warmth and life into soft synths and samples. This pedal is what our re-amping box was made for...

These pedals have been reissued by Haz Laboratories, but though they look the part they're a pale imitation: the originals just have that thickness and sonic mojo that the reissue units lack. We've tried many reissue pedals against vintage originals and while some do a passable job, most fall short when compared to the real thing. In addition, original pedals should hold their value or offer a good return as an investment.