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Musitronics Mu-Tron III
Submitted on March 23, 2004.
Pictures
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original cardboard
styling mock-up
styling mock-up
Controls
- Mode (LP/BP/LP)
- Selects the type of filter: Lowpass, Bandpass, Highpass.
- Peak
- Controls volume of the cutoff frequency.
- Gain
- adjusts the filter's sensitivity to the signal of your instrument.
- Range (Low/High)
- Selects the frequency range covered by the filter envelope.
- (Down/Up)
- Selects the direction of the filter sweep: down- or upwards.
- Power (Off/On)
- Switches the power on or off :)
Specifications
- Gain
- Variable from 0.1 to 40, when driven from low impedance source.
- Input Impedance
- 1 Megohm at lowest setting of GAIN control, variable to 3.3K ohms at maximum gain setting.
- Output Impedance
- 600 ohms
- Minimum Input signal for full Mu-Tron Effect
- 1.5mV from 600 ohm source.
- Maximum Undistorted Output Signal
- 3.6 volts RMS
- Power Supply
- +/- 9 Volts from 2 NEDA 1604 batteries or Musitronics Model PS-1 Battery Eliminator
Various
- Before the pedal went into production in 1972, it was called "Auto-Wah". The "Mu-Tron" name came about when one of the four founders of Musitronics suggested it as a good contraction of the company's name. The "III" was a favorite number of Mike Beigel, the company's Engineering V.P. There never was a Mu-Tron I or Mu-Tron II.
This is the original envelope filter, developed by Mike Beigel in 1972 and brought to attention by Stevie Wonder's endorsement.
The cardboard design mock-up was constructed at Creative Designs International (CDI) in New York, and was styled by the late Herb Ross, a prominent industrial designer.
Famous Users?
uhm... almost every artist making funky music has one, uses one or wants one :)
Bootsy Collins admits: "Without that Mu-Tron, there ain't no Bootsy".
For a lot of envelope filter fans this is still the best one ever made.
Documentation
- ad
- ad (1974, Stevie Wonder)
- ad (1975, Larry Corryel)
- ad (1976, George Duke)
- diy project
- diy project (Pisotones)
- manual (early version, page 1)
- manual (early version, page 2)
- manual (early version, page 3)
- manual (early version, page 4)
- manual (late version, page 1)
- manual (late version, page 2)
- manual (late version, page 3)
- manual (late version, page 4)
- mods
- patent (Michael L. Beigel, United States Patent 3911776)
- schematics
- schematics available at Schematic Heaven
Links
- Mu-Tron
- Musitronics
- Mu-Tron.de
- Musitronics Mu-Tron III (at Mu-Tron.de)
- Lingenberg Sound (Mu-Tron repairs and accessoires: power supplies,...)
Reviews
- ActiveBass
- GuitarGeek
- Harmony-Central (Musictronics Mu-Tron III)
- Harmony-Central (Musitronics/Mu-Tron Mu-Tron III)
- NoiseGuide
- ToneFrenzy
Related
- dp Musicworks FilTron (modified copy of the Mu-Tron III)
- Funky Fish (modified copy of the Mu-Tron III)
- GEO Neutron Filter (DIY project based on the Mu-Tron III)
- Musitronics Mu-Tron III
- Audio-Phonic Mu-Tron III (copy of the Mu-Tron III, Argentina?)
- Shin-Ei MB-27 Mute Box
- Univox UTR-5 Uni-Tron 5 (Japanese copy of the Mu-Tron III)
- Pax Mute Box (made by Shin-Ei)
- Univox MU-1000 Effectmatic (based on the Mu-Tron III)
- Univox MU-1500 Funky Filter (based on the Mu-Tron III)
Musitronics Mu-Tron III
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