The MXR M69 Prime Distortion is a distortion pedal made by Dunlop under its MXR brand. Dunlop describes it as delivering a "Big '80s arena rock sound" with raw, punchy sustain, and says players can dial up classic, ripping tone in seconds1. It sits in the overdrive and distortion family, alongside pedals like the MXR M78 Custom Badass '78 Distortion and the MXR FullBore Metal, and fits the wider field of distortion pedals and overdrive pedals.
What it does
The M69 is built around a straightforward gain-and-level approach. Dunlop's manual includes sample settings named Tejas Heat, Seattle Sludge and Searing Shred, giving players starting points that range from bluesy and classic rock territory to high-gain styles1. The pedal uses vintage style hard clipping, according to Pedal of the Day's review, which found it provided "bluesy 70's rock tone"3.
What reviewers said
MusicRadar's reviewer, Michael Astley-Brown, noted that the pedal comes with true bypass, a metal enclosure and MXR's distortion lineage. On the gain control, he found that "the last quarter of the dial's range drastically boosts the gain, but the sound can get woolly," so the most extreme settings trade some definition for volume2.
Pedal of the Day's reviewer, Victor L, was positive on value: "Considering its price, there is some great tones for players to get out of this box." He also highlighted the "nice vintage style hard clipping"3.
Videos
Andertons Music Co
ST Audio
Robert Jackson
Sources (3)
- M69P.pdf, Dunlop Manufacturing, Inc., 2024
- MXR M69 Prime Distortion review, MusicRadar, 2013-08-30
- Dunlop MXR M69 Prime Distortion, Pedal of the Day, 2014-09-26
