The Mr Black Mini Reverb Universal Reverberator is a compact reverb pedal from Mr Black, the Portland boutique brand, released in July 2019 as part of the company's Mini range of small-format pedals. Guitar.com, reporting the launch, described it as a handmade stompbox with a versatile range of cavernous sounds, retailing at $99.951.
Despite the small enclosure, the pedal covers a wide spread of spaces. Guitar.com describes the options as ranging from a 50s-inspired studio plate to 60-foot ceiling concert halls, and to what the brand itself calls the "depths of nearly endless caves"1. In practice that means one small box that can sit behind a dry amp sound or push a lead line to the back of a hall.
The controls: wet/dry, tone and decay
The Mini Reverb keeps its front panel to three knobs. Guitar.com describes the layout as three familiar controls: wet/dry, tone and decay1. That is the classic reverb control set: the wet/dry knob blends the reverberated signal against your dry guitar, the tone knob shapes the brightness of the reverb itself, and the decay sets how long the space rings out.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Wet/dry | Blends the reverb signal against the dry guitar signal1 |
| Tone | Shapes the character of the reverb1 |
| Decay | Sets the length of the reverb tail1 |
Guitar.com notes that reverb character can be further tweaked with these three controls, which gives the pedal more shaping range than the knob count suggests: between the blend, the tonal tilt and the decay, a player can move from a subtle room behind the notes to a long, dark cave tail without touching anything else1.
Power and switching
The pedal draws only 60mA, according to Guitar.com's report1. For a player building a board, that is a light load: it sits comfortably within what typical compact pedalboard power supplies deliver per outlet, and it does not demand a dedicated high-current supply the way some digital reverbs do.
The Mini Reverb uses true-bypass switching, as reported by Guitar.com at launch1. With the pedal off, the reverb circuit is removed from the signal path entirely.
Where it sits in the Mini range
The Mini Reverb Universal Reverberator expanded Mr Black's Mini pedal range, Guitar.com reported at launch1. The Mini format is the pedal's defining trait: a pocket-sized enclosure carrying a full reverb circuit, handmade rather than mass-produced, which is where the boutique branding shows. Players comparing it with larger reverb pedals are trading the extra features of bigger boxes, such as presets, MIDI or multiple footswitches, for a small footprint, a simple three-knob interface and a low power draw.
Questions
Is the Mr Black Mini Reverb true bypass?
Yes. Guitar.com reports the Mini Reverb Universal Reverberator uses true-bypass switching, so when the pedal is off, your guitar's signal passes through without the reverb circuit loading it. That matters on a pedalboard where the reverb may sit at the end of the chain and stay off for clean rhythm parts.
How much current does the Mr Black Mini Reverb draw?
Guitar.com lists the power draw at only 60mA. That is light enough for most standard 9V pedalboard power supplies, and it means the pedal can share a supply with other low-draw pedals without needing its own high-current outlet.
How much does the Mr Black Mini Reverb cost?
The pedal retails at $99.95, according to Guitar.com's July 2019 report on its release. That placed it in the accessible range of the boutique reverb market when it launched as part of Mr Black's Mini range.
What reverb types does the Mr Black Mini Reverb offer?
Guitar.com describes the range of sounds as spanning a 50s-inspired studio plate, 60-foot ceiling concert halls, and what Mr Black itself calls the depths of nearly endless caves. The tone and decay knobs then shape the character and length of whichever space you dial in.
Sources (1)
- Mr Black continues Mini pedal run with Reverb Universal Reverberator, Guitar.com, 2019-07-15
