MXR Dyna Comp Deluxe

MXR describes the pedal's range as running "from squishy '70s compression to the open, transparent 'light touch' compression favored by many modern players"¹. In the company's own history of the line, Dunlop's staff call it "the culmination of 46 years of Dyna Comp Compressor design and innovation"².

What it does to your sound

A compressor evens out the volume differences between your notes, raising quiet passages and taming loud ones so your playing sits at a steadier level. The original Dyna Comp, released in 1972, is an OTA-based design that Guitar Pedal X calls "considered the first of its kind"⁶. The Deluxe keeps that core circuit but gives you ways to shape it: Delicious Audio describes its circuitry and updated control interface as delivering "that classic sound along with the ability to shape it and season it to your taste"⁷.

In Sweetwater's demo video, Brian Kehoe of Dunlop Manufacturing characterized the pedal's compression as "more of a transparent and a buoyant feel it's not gonna be so squashed out," and noted that when the compressor feeds an overdrive, "I'm building gain stages and it sounds fantastic"⁸.

The controls

The Deluxe carries the two controls every Dyna Comp has had, plus three additions. Guitar.com noted at launch that the Output and Sensitivity knobs "are identical to those on existing Dyna Comps"⁵.

The Clean control is the biggest change from the original. MXR's history article says it "allows players to blend in the uneffected signal, restoring bite and immediacy at whatever level works best"². Blending dry signal back in is a common way to keep pick attack and definition while still getting the sustain and evenness of heavy compression.

The Attack switch changes how quickly the compressor reacts to a note. The slow setting is the vintage behavior, letting the initial transient through before compression engages; the fast setting clamps down almost immediately. The Tone control "allows for further refinement of the compressed signal," in Delicious Audio's words⁷, and Guitar Pedal X notes it "can go Bright too"⁹.

History and versions

The Dyna Comp line began in 1972, when MXR released the original Dyna Comp, an OTA-based compressor made in Rochester, New York⁶. Early examples carry the block logo; TONEHOME documents a non-LED version from 1980 with the model number MX-102¹⁰. The original's two controls, Output and Sensitivity, govern volume and compression respectively¹⁰.

The line has since branched into several versions:

The Deluxe sits in the middle of the family: full-sized like the original, but with the expanded control set. MusicRadar's review team calls the Dyna Comp "a classic for good reason," noting it "has been featured on pro boards for decades and cloned many times"¹¹. Guitar.com's guide to compression lists Dave Gilmour, The Edge and Adrian Belew as Dyna Comp users¹².

What reviewers said

Published reactions to the Deluxe and its siblings have been mixed in the details but positive overall. Guitar Pedal X, comparing four four-knob compressors in September 2024, concluded that "MXR have done a great job in maintaining the innovation within the genre they pioneered"⁶. The same site's comparison with the Ross compressor and its clones found the MXR offering "Clean Blend and greater granularity" than the Ross equivalent⁹.

On the vintage side, Premier Guitar's review of the Custom Shop '76 Vintage Dyna Comp called it "a fine pedal that does a lot of heavy tone lifting with minimal effort and a reasonable" price¹³, while MusicRadar's Trevor Curwen flagged its "Basic feature set" as a drawback¹⁴. Ovnilab's review of the original Dynacomp was harder on build quality, writing that "the main difference is that the MXR has lower quality of components and construction" compared with the Ross¹⁵. On That Pedal Show, Dan and Mick found the vintage Dyna Comp "has a higher noise floor than the other compressors shown"¹⁶.

In Sweetwater's demo, Brian Kehoe walked through the Attack switch, Tone knob and Clean blend, describing the feel as transparent and buoyant rather than squashed, and demonstrating the pedal feeding gain stages⁸.

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How it compares within MXR's compressor range

MXR's current compressor lineup spans several price and feature points. The standard Dyna Comp and the Script Dyna Comp keep the two-knob vintage format¹⁷¹⁸⁶; the Mini adds an Attack switch in a smaller box¹⁷¹⁸⁶; the Deluxe adds Clean, Tone and Attack in the original-sized enclosure¹⁷¹⁸⁶. For players who want studio-style control rather than vintage character, MXR also makes the Studio Compressor³.

Videos

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Questions