Byron Chambers, aka Mr. Talkbox, is an American Christian hip hop and R&B musician playing urban contemporary gospel, R&B and funk, and (as the name suggests) is known for his use of the Talk Box vocal instrument.
He approached MXR to create a new talk box tailored to his own sound.
What is a talk box?
A talk box is an audio effects unit which routes the sound from a musical instrument via a tube into the musician’s mouth. Shaping the mouth in various ways changes the effect, effectively creating vocals with the original instrument’s sound, without the performer actually vocalising in any way (they’re not singing or speaking, merely silently mouthing). An external microphone then picks up the altered sound.
It differs from a vocoder in that only a single instrument sound source is used. A vocoder combines the sound from both an instrument and a human performer’s speech.
Other well-known talk box musicians include Bon Jovi, Peter Frampton and Daft Punk.
Mr. TalkBox Signature Talk Box
MXR built the professional-grade Mr. TalkBox Signature Talk Box to offer more power and headroom, control over voice, and better articulation of each sound over a low end that stays thick and full.
Keyboardists and guitarists alike can appreciate this instrument, though talk boxes do tend to require quite a bit of practice in order to sound good.
Features
- Collaboration with Grammy-recognized artist Byron “Mr. TalkBox” Chambers
- Lightweight neodymium driver for more low end without weighing you down
- 25W amp for increased headroom and improved dynamic response
- Volume, Tone, and Gain controls allow you to shape your voice
- Gain bypass switch helps keep hot signals under control
- Fit for desktops and pedalboards with an 18V power supply, 8’ tube, and mic stand clip
Pricing from $449.99
