MXR CSP204 Custom Comp Deluxe review

A CSP with an extra tonal control USP

  • £134
  • €188
  • $159
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The CCD also boasts a low knob, which allows you to cut the compressed signal's low-end

MusicRadar Verdict

A warm, vintage-voiced compressor that does subtle to squash, all with utmost tonal clarity.

Pros

  • +

    Uncoloured compression. Low noise floor. Low cut control.

Cons

  • -

    Not much.

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The Custom Shop line has taken MXR into the upper echelons of the pedal market and it shows no sign of stopping with this Custom Comp Deluxe.

It promises to be MXR's best compressor yet, thanks to the addition of the CA3080 IC, as found in vintage Ross comps, plus RF suppression components to reduce noise and interference.

"The CCD offers an uncoloured, lightly squeezed take on your tone"

Alongside sensitivity, attack and output controls, the CCD also boasts a low knob, which allows you to cut the compressed signal's low-end.

Elsewhere, it's business as usual, with nine-volt battery and power supply operation, plus true-bypass switching, all in the robust MXR enclosure.

Sounds

From the off, the CCD offers an uncoloured, lightly squeezed take on your tone - not as squashed as a Dyna Comp, but not as hi-fi as, say, the Empress Compressor.

Always-on compressor users will appreciate the low noise floor, too - hiss becomes apparent only once you're into heavily compressed territory.

The low cut control is the real sell here, though: it removes some of the woolliness of highly compressed tones, for record-ready sounds that sit well in a mix.

It's great for funk players, but also humbucker users; stick your pickup selector in the middle position and cut the lows, and you have a passable single-coil impression.

MXR has a long line in compressors, but we reckon the Custom Comp Deluxe is its best yet. It's easy to get a great tone, and with the low control, it functions as a master tonal shaper, too - brilliant!

Michael Brown
Michael Brown

Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism, and has spent the past decade writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as a decade-and-a-half performing in bands of variable genre (and quality). In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.