RJM Music RJM Mastermind PBC/10

The RJM Mastermind PBC/10 is a switching unit designed for use on a pedalboard, built around ten true bypass audio loops and a full MIDI controller. RJM Music describes it as designed for players who have outgrown traditional switchers and need a central brain for their entire system: one button press can activate audio loops, control amps and send multiple MIDI commands¹².

The Mastermind PBC/10 is RJM Music's first switching unit designed for use on a pedalboard, built to get the most out of pedalboards by combining audio loop switching, buffering and MIDI control in one unit³. It carries a sale price of £948.00 GBP as listed by the maker³. The last four of its loops are stereo capable using TRS jacks, and each of those four loops can be switched between series and parallel routing using an internal line mixer¹².

What the PBC/10 does

The unit combines analog loop switching and MIDI control. Its ten audio loops are arranged in a group of four loops, a group of two loops and another group of four loops, with insert points in between the groups¹³. All loops are true bypass and relay switched, which RJM describes as being "for maximum transparency"¹. The Mastermind PBC uses relays to perform its switching, as MusicPlayers.com's reviewer noted in the original PBC review⁴.

On the MIDI side, the PBC/10 can control up to 16 MIDI devices, and 20 MIDI messages can be assigned per button, including PC, CC, Note and Sysex messages¹. The MIDI section is powered by the MIDI "brain" of RJM's Mastermind GT controller³. A single button press can activate audio loops, control amps and send multiple MIDI commands².

The loops, buffers and outputs

The loop layout gives a player three groups to organize effects around, with insert points between them for volume pedals or other always-in-line gear¹³. The last four loops, loops 7 to 10, are stereo capable using TRS jacks, and each of those four loops can be switched between series and parallel routing using an internal line mixer¹³.

Three audio buffers sit in the signal path, one before loop 1, one before loop 7 and one after loop 10, and each can be enabled or disabled by an IA (instant access) button or as part of a preset³. The original PBC shipped with the buffers on by default, though they can be turned off⁴. The Click Stopper noise reduction circuit can be switched between two positions, before loop 7 or after loop 10, so it can be placed where switching noise is most likely to appear¹.

The two outputs can be used as left and right outputs for a stereo signal, or as A and B outputs to A/B switch a mono signal between two amps³. The B output has a switchable isolation transformer and a programmable phase switch, useful when running two amps that hum or cancel each other's low end¹³.

The buttons, display and expression input

The PBC/10 has 11 buttons, each with a multi-color LED indicator, and the buttons are user configurable: any button can be set to any function and LED color¹³. The backlit LCD display can show preset and song names plus other status¹³.

An expression pedal input can be programmed to generate MIDI messages, so one pedal can drive parameters on MIDI-equipped pedals in the loops³. The original PBC also carried an assignable external switch input capable of adding two additional switches to a setup⁴, and a built-in tuner, which guitarist Ross Chapman's Strymon pedalboard feature noted in his rig⁵.

Power and connections

Power requirements are 9VDC at 500mA, or 12VDC or 9VAC at 400mA³. RJM states the unit can be powered with Voodoo Lab power supplies that have a 12VDC 400mA output¹. MusicPlayers.com's reviewer of the original PBC noted that because it runs off 9V (500mA) or 12V (400mA) DC, powering it from a typical high-current pedalboard supply should not be a problem, and that an AC power supply is included⁴.

Connections include MIDI input and output³, a USB device port for connection to a PC or Mac to send MIDI commands to a computer or communicate with the editor software¹, and a USB host port for use with a USB thumb drive to back up and restore settings and perform firmware upgrades¹. The original PBC line also offered a flash storage option and the PBC Editor for Mac or PC, as Premier Guitar's reviewer noted⁶.

How it differs from the PBC/6X

What defines the PBC/10's loop architecture is its ten-loop layout with configurable routing and buffering. The last four loops are stereo capable using TRS jacks, and each of those four loops can be switched between series and parallel routing using an internal line mixer, so time-based effects can sit in parallel paths rather than chained in series¹². Three audio buffers, placed before loop 1, before loop 7 and after loop 10, can each be enabled or disabled by IA button or as part of a preset, giving control over where the signal is buffered¹².

The PBC/6X also draws less current, 220mA at 9VDC or 12VDC on a Boss-type center negative barrel connector, making it easier to run from a conventional pedal power supply⁷. Both units share the USB device port for the Mastermind Editor software¹⁷.

What reviewers said

RJM Music describes the Mastermind PBC/10 as its first switching unit designed for use on a pedalboard, built to get the most out of pedalboards³. The maker's own pages detail the unit's configuration: 11 buttons each with a multi-color LED indicator, with buttons user configurable so any button can be set to any function and LED color, and 625 presets for storing setups³.

The maker's pages also note that the three audio buffers can be enabled or disabled as part of a preset, so buffer states are stored alongside loop routing¹². The last four loops are stereo capable using TRS jacks, and each of them can be switched between series and parallel routing using an internal line mixer, which allows stereo effects to be placed in parallel paths¹².

The PBC/10's maker page lists a sale price of £948.00 GBP³.

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