Strymon Lex

The Strymon Lex is a digital rotary speaker pedal: a stompbox that recreates a Leslie-style rotating speaker system, the kind long associated with organ players and adopted by guitarists for its swirling, three-dimensional modulation. Strymon describes it as "a studio-class pedal that faithfully recreates the classic, unmistakable sound of the most sought-after rotating speaker system," modeling the low-frequency bass rotor, the rotating treble horn, the tube-driven amplifier, and the microphone placement around them, along with the interactions between those elements¹. The name is a play on the source: Strymon notes the "rotary" speaker is a Leslie².

The pedal was announced on January 6, 2011³ and sold out shortly after release, with Strymon reporting it was building more units to meet demand⁴. The original Lex is now discontinued; the current version is the Lex V2, a second-generation pedal that Strymon says keeps the same rotary sounds and adds significant new features, including stereo in and out, full MIDI, and a new ARM DSP chip⁵. This page covers both generations; see also the Strymon Lex Rotary and Lex V2 pages, and the wider field of speaker simulation pedals.

What the Lex does

Strymon's goal with Lex, in the maker's own words, was "to create the most realistic sounding, flexible rotating speaker effect ever fit within a pedal"⁵. The pedal reproduces the complete rotating speaker system: the bass rotor that handles low frequencies, the treble horn that spins above it, and the internal tube-driven amplifier whose grit "creat[es] additional harmonics that spin around the room"⁵. The signal path is digital, running 32-bit floating point processing on an ARM DSP chip through ultra low noise 24-bit 96kHz converters, with a premium analog JFET input circuit in front of the conversion⁵.

What that means for a player is the full rotary experience in a pedalboard-friendly box: the chorusing as the horn and bass rotor speed up and slow down, the ramp behavior of a real mechanical speaker, and the option to stop the rotors entirely. Holding the Slow/Fast switch engages a brake function that winds the rotary down and stops it, with the horn and drum positioned at an optimal brake angle at rest; releasing the switch sets it spinning again⁵.

The controls and the hidden knobs

The Lex V2 carries the four knobs from the original, Speed, Preamp Drive, Mic Distance and Horn Level, plus a Volume knob⁶. Two footswitches handle On/Off and Slow/Fast rotor speed⁵.

Several functions live behind knob-and-footswitch combinations rather than on the panel. The Volume knob doubles as the entry point to the Cab Filter Live Edit setting, which tailors the speaker cab filter response for use with audio interfaces, mixers or full-range speakers⁵. A Bi-Amp Live Edit setting splits the output, sending only the horn signal to the left output and the woofer signal to the right, for running the two rotors into separate amplifiers⁵.

The input level is also configurable. Holding the On footswitch while powering up enters Input Level setup; you turn the Speed knob to choose between Instrument mode (green, the default, set for guitar or bass level) and Line mode (red, set for keyboards or synthesizers, adding 10dB of headroom), then press either footswitch to store it⁷. Strymon notes the line level mode suits bass guitars with active pickups, synthesizers, keyboards and effects loops⁵.

Power, MIDI and connections

The Lex V2 runs on 9V DC, center negative, with a 300mA minimum rating; the power supply is not included⁵. That is a step up from the original Lex's 250mA minimum on the same 9V center negative standard¹, so an older supply sized for the first generation may not have headroom for the V2.

The EXP/MIDI jack is a multifunction communication jack. It accepts a standard TRS expression pedal for continuous control over the knobs, or it can be configured for MIDI and accessories such as the Strymon Conduit, MultiSwitch Plus and MiniSwitch⁵. Configuration is done by holding the Slow/Fast footswitch while powering up; Expression Pedal mode (green LED, the default) allows continuous control over any knob with a TRS expression pedal⁸.

Full MIDI implementation means you can control just about every switch, knob and setting remotely via the EXP/MIDI jack or the USB-C connection, and rotor speed can be synchronized via MIDI Clock Sync⁵. There are 300 MIDI preset locations for loading and saving settings⁵. MIDI defaults to channel 1, and the presets map across three banks: Bank 0 holds presets 0 to 127, Bank 1 holds 128 to 255, and Bank 2 holds 256 to 299. Program Change 0 recalls the Favorite setting, Program Changes 1 to 3 correspond to MultiSwitch Plus footswitches 1 to 3, and Program Change 127 is manual mode⁹. MIDI input can come from a Strymon Conduit MIDI Hub, a compatible 5-pin MIDI to 1/4" TRS interface, or a USB connection to a host device such as a computer⁹.

The USB-C jack on the back handles both MIDI communication and firmware updates. Updating is a simple process¹⁰:

1. Download and install Strymon's Update software.
2. Connect the powered pedal to your computer with a USB-C cable.
3. Click "Check for Updates", then "Install Update"; the software detects the pedal automatically.
4. The program shows "Your device is up to date" when finished.

A November 2023 firmware update for the Lex V2 addressed minor issues and added requested features¹¹.

Mono input, TRS stereo and the V2 update

The Lex's input story has three chapters. The original pedal, manufactured before May 2012, had a high impedance mono input with stereo output¹². In June 2012 Strymon introduced an updated design with an internal jumper allowing selectable TRS stereo input; it shipped in mono configuration from the factory, and using the stereo input required a TRS stereo input adapter¹². Strymon states plainly that the earlier mono-input units cannot be converted: "There isn't any way to convert your Lex mono input to Lex (TRS stereo) specs or upgrade to the silent type switches," because the designs are different and parts are not interchangeable¹³.

The Lex V2 makes stereo a panel-level feature. A single TRS input jack with a rear-panel Mono/Stereo switch lets you select mono or stereo input, keeping the compact enclosure, and a TRS adapter cable is required for a stereo input signal⁵. Both outputs are low impedance: use Out L for mono output, or Out L and Out R together for stereo⁵. Premier Guitar's coverage of the updated line noted the full stereo inputs and outputs, the rear-panel Mono/Stereo switch, the TRS MIDI jack for bidirectional MIDI communication, and the new ARM processor that consumes less energy than previous iterations¹⁴.

Who uses it

Stanton Edward, touring with The Wallflowers as of June 2014, listed the Lex in his signal path in a Strymon pedalboard feature¹⁶. Strymon's own rotary demos with keyboardist Peter Dyer were created entirely with Lex, with the maker noting "All rotary sounds are created by Lex"¹⁷.

Versions and editions

The original measured 4.5" deep by 4" wide by 1.75" tall¹⁹; the V2 is slightly taller at 2.4", in an anodized brown aluminum chassis where the original used a mahogany anodized finish⁵¹. Both were built in the USA⁵¹. The V2's street price of $349.00 was also reported by Premier Guitar when the updated line launched¹⁴.

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