MANUFACTURER: Lexicon, Inc., 3 Oak Park, Bedford, MA 01730-1441. Tel. 617-280-0300

APPLICATION: Spatial effects and reverb for guitar racks, music recording and mixing.

SUMMARY: Performs well, offers functionality not found elsewhere, great sounding reverb.

STRENGTHS: High quality sounds, built-in help function, well done display, digital I/O, extensive MIDI control, 200 good presets.

WEAKNESSES: Mutes momentarily when changing effects, menus can sometimes be overwhelming.

PRICE: $1,299

This could turn out to be the shortest review I have ever done. All you really need to know is that it is a Lexicon, it sounds as good as the name implies, and it is affordable. Now go buy one. See you next time.

The Basics

For those of you who have decided to read on, I will dig a little deeper into the MPX 1. By now you are familiar with the term “multi-effects processor”, which is a box that can provide you with many effect simultaneously. All of the effects are added to the single stereo audio source.

The MPX 1 can provide 56 different Pitch, Chorus, EQ, Modulation, Delay and Reverb effects. Combinations of these effects are available in 200 preset (and 50 user) programs designed for a wide variety of audio sources and applications. You can also sort the program database by type so that only the ones you are interested in scroll by as you audition different programs.

The MPX 1 is designed by a company whose expertise is high quality reverb sounds. There is not a studio in the world that doesn’t have at least two Lexicon reverbs. To maintain the high standard the MPX 1 employs two separate DSP processors. One, the Lexichip, is dedicated to delivering the world-class stereo reverb and ambiance algorithms. The other is a fast-math DSP used to create the other effects. This means that if you decide to throw every effect at the incoming audio, no amount of complexity will compromise the quality of the ambiance or reverb settings.

Some reverbs with a single DSP start stealing processor power from one effect to allow the addition of another effect. The reason being that you wont notice a few missing early reflections if you are slicing and dicing the sound with bizarre algorithms from other effects. No cheating here.

The MPX 1 also contains a multi-level Help system built in so you don’t have to keep referring to the manual to remember how to access less often used features. At any time just press and hold any button to display a message explaining the function of that button without executing any action. There is also a sleep mode that, when selected, displays useful messages when the MPX 1 is idle.

Oh, don’t let me forget, the MPX 1 also has digital in and out through SP/DIF connectors on the rear panel. Thank you, Lexicon.

Front Panel

The front panel has many dedicated indicators and displays to let you know where you are and what features are available at all times.

• Effect Select buttons light to show which effects are active in a particular program. Each effect can be turned on or off individually so you can hear how a complex effect is built.
• Tempo LED that flashes at the current tempo in any program that uses tempo controlled delay times or modulation rates.
• Tap button that lets you change tempo on the fly.
• A/B button that lets you morph between two effects or parameters when lit.
• Numeric display that makes program and patch numbers highly visible.
• Alphanumeric display that shows programs, parameters, and routing displays.
• Mix button give you instant access to mix and level settings without having to navigate menus.
• Patch button lights whenever a patched parameter is displayed allowing you to access the patch directly.
• Options button lights whenever additional features are available.
  
  

The front panel also includes input and output level controls when connected to an analog source. There is an EDIT button to access the parameters of a program for editing, a STORE button to save edited programs and a SYSTEM button to change some of the global settings like digital I/O, MIDI response, and whether TEMPO and MIX are global or program specific. I won’t mention the on/ off switch because I don’t ever expect to see an MPX 1 in the off position.

Patching

PATCH is a feature that you don’t see very often, yet can make the difference whether an effect is so-so or amazing. When you have a bunch of separate effects boxes connected to an audio source, the order in which you connect them determines the final sound. Sometimes the audio goes serially from one to the other and sometimes they should be connected in parallel to obtain the desired results.

The MPX 1 provides a graphic method of connecting the effects together. They can be connected any way you want, just as if you were using a physical patch bay and mixer. You can go through one effect, split the signal and feed it through two other effects, merge them back together for another effect, split them apart again, tie them in a knot and then merge them together for the final output. Throughout the patching all routing remains stereo.

External Control

Of course the MPX 1 has MIDI bulk data dump and load capability, but the MIDI features don’t stop there. All effects parameters can be controlled via MIDI. You can also have MIDI control over master and individual bypass, mix, level, A/B morphing and tempo TAP. Tempo parameters can be synchronized to incoming MIDI clock. The MPX 1 can also generate MIDI clock based on its internal tempo setting.

All of the MPX 1 internal control sources (audio level, LFO, ADR, S/H, pedal, etc.) can be transmitted as MIDI Continuous Controller messages.

Sound Quality

I knew it would come to this. I played with the MPX 1 for two weeks before writing this review. Sometimes when you first listen to a new piece of gear it sounds great, until the novelty wears off. Then you start to hear problems. Not so with the MPX 1.

The reverb quality is dense and smooth. You can’t hear any unwanted artifacts in the reverb tails. The ambiance is as good as a Lexicon 480, the flagship of the Lexicon line. The delayed audio sounds as good as the original audio. With each effect it is easy to tell the difference when a parameter is changed only slightly. Drums pumped into the reverb don’t rip your head off, they are smooth and the space is realistic.

Actually, I hope you don’t believe me. You’ll just have to buy one and try it out for yourself.