50 Years of Sonic Exploration: Alex Lifeson Launches LERXST Amplifiers

Article Contributed by Humming Bird Media | Published on Thursday, November 30, 2023

Legendary Rush guitarist partners with Mojotone on new line of versatile, hand-built guitar amps and cabinets - photo credit: Richard Sibbald

Alex Lifeson has announced the launch of LERXST, a new family of amplifiers inspired by the Rush guitarist’s five decades of musical exploration on the guitar while also offering modern players a versatile tonal platform upon which to build their own sonic identity.

LERXST amplifiers offer a diverse palette of sounds that range from crystal-clear cleans to raging arena rock sounds and everything in between, supplemented with key features like power-scaling and serial effects loops to suit the needs of the next generation of sonic explorers, all designed to Lifeson’s exacting specifications and hand crafted in the USA by Mojotone. The initial launch includes the OMEGA amplifier head, CHI amplifier head and combo, and an accompanying range of matching guitar cabinets. For more information and to purchase LERXST amplifiers, please click here.

Start your tone journey!
OMEGA is Alex Lifeson’s signature amplifier and the flagship of the LERXST line. This British-voiced amplifier head features footswitchable clean and lead channels with a shared 3-band EQ, meaning a consistent tonal foundation between sounds while still offering shimmering cleans, gutsy rhythm crunch, and soaring lead tones. The amplifier has a switchable 50/25 watt power section to give it an equally usable powerband on large stages as well as in small clubs and the studio as well as a high-quality serial effects loop perfect for utilizing modulation and time-based effects. Lifeson’s signature sounds are easily within reach with OMEGA, but its versatile, characterful sounds are equally useful for players looking to chase their own creative muses and sonic landscapes. In addition to its standard version, OMEGA will also be offered in a Limited Edition Hand Wired version for a short time.

Lifeson stated, “I’m very excited about the new, updated OMEGA amp. It sounds incredible and it’s very handsome – you’ll want to get one even if you don’t play guitar!”

CHI takes the growl and tone of the OMEGA and places it within a more compact form factor. The 30-watt amplifier is built around 6L6 tubes for excellent headroom and a clear, articulate sound and is available as both a smallbox head and a 1x12 combo amplifier. In keeping with its lineage, CHI also includes footswitchable clean and lead channels and a serial effects loop, making it equally versatile on stage or in the studio.

“I’ve used more amps than Dr. Frankenstein did when breathing life into his creature, but the LERXST CHI is an awesome monster in its own right and one of the sweetest sounding amps I’ve ever heard,” said Lifeson. “All the great character of the OMEGA in a cool, compact package that you don’t have to be a seven-foot monster to carry around.”

Both amplifiers are also accompanied by a range of guitar cabinets in multiple speaker configurations, including 1x12, 2x12, and 4x12, ideal for any stage configuration or studio application. All amplifiers and cabinets are handcrafted to the highest standards with top quality components in Mojotone’s Burgaw, NC-based factory. The cabinets, head shells, and combo speaker cabinets are made of voidless baltic birch and finished with a striking race gray and red garnet levant Tolex finish for a lifetime of gigging and playing.

OMEGA Specifications

    3x JJ 12AX7 Preamp Tubes
    Selectable Impedances: 4, 8 or 16 ohms
    Switchable Power Output between 50 and 25 Watts
    Two Channels (Switchable)
    Shared three-band EQ
    2x JJ EL34 Power Tubes
    Footswitchable clean and lead channels (Can also use pull knob on Master volume)
    Speaker Outputs: 2x J¼" Jacks (16Ω/ 8Ω/ 4Ω)
    Included LERXST Footswitch
    Inputs: 1x Instrument Jack, Footswitch
    Controls: Presence, Bass, Middle, Treble, Output Master, Channel Select, Lead Master, Input Gain
    Dimensions: (H) 10 ¾" x (W) 29" x (D) 8 ¼"
    Serial effects loop
    Weight: 44lbs
    MAP $3,495 (Limited Edition Hand Wired AmplifierHead) or $2,495 (Standard Edition Amplifier Head)

CHI Specifications

    Custom CTS Potentiometers
    Finger-jointed Baltic Birch Cabinet
    Custom built in Burgaw, NC USA
    Carbon Comp Resistors
    Starman Power Indicator Light
    LERXST CHI One Button Footswitch Included
    Footswitchable clean and lead channels (Can also use pull knob on Master volume)
    Race Grey and Red Garnet Levant Tolex Finish
    Shared three-band EQ
    Power Output: 30 Watts
    Hand-loaded PC Board construction
    Serial Effects Loop
    USA Made Heyboer Transformers
    Mojotone Dijon Coupling Capacitors
    Selectable Impedances: 4, 8 or 16 ohms
    Three JJ 12AX7 preamp tubes and two JJ 6L6 power tubes
    MAP $1,995 (CHI Combo Amplifier) or $1695 (CHI Amplifier Head)

“There has been an explosion of guitar music within the past five years that has been incredible to witness in its diversity of sounds and players. LERXST amplifiers provide a platform for these players that offers the power and quality of tone of the best amplifiers of the past, while also providing key features like power scaling and high-quality effects loops that reflect the needs of players today.”