Ts9 Ts808

[Browning Winters]

WhileBoss OD-1 was already there when the Ibanez ts808 came out, it somehow flew under the radar. Some would argue the MXR distortion + could be near, but as we used it only completely cranked up, we totally missed the point.

Another thing is that our beloved fuzz pedals was not that great on cheap transistor amps, with maybe the exception of the Electro-harmonix big muff, a class of its own.

So when we first tried a tubescreamer on our band Emthree 100w tranny amp, it was kind of a revelation: it was just like we eventually got a good amp for almost free.This was so good , I had to KNOW why and how those Japanese engineers have succeeded in that miracle, as I was already building fuzz pedals for my fellow guitar players at that time.

Intense scrutiny gave me the secret : two diodes in the feedback loop of an opamp ! Believe me at that time opamps were close to the electronics state-of-the-art , and while two diodes head-to-tail was not really new, the arrangement was ground-breaking. From this mythical times , I have been working on my own version, leading me to the fierce Overtube. But the original green Grail have been cherished all these years, and still part of my pedal collection at the best place.

For a long time, that question was utterly useless : there were only originals , they were cheap, and the reissue trend was not yet even on my mind of marketing executives : they only changed the models and the pedal became ts9, ts10 ts5 and ts7 .But when market went crazy on prices , Ibanez made these pedals again and confusion started .

Well the outside look is kind of a give away : most of the original tubescreamers have been played A LOT and therefore display the wonderful patina of time. The backplate is also different from the but there is a much safer way to know when the treasure you hold in your hand was made: Japanese capacitors manufacturers had the crafty idea to print the year of production on their products. Just read it and you will know : on these pictures , both pedals shows 1981 date .

You can also spot the registered r near the Ibanez logo which indicates older models.

All original ts808 pedals had mini-jack positive tip power supply plug input. But a much lesser known fact that their enclosure was ready for standard Boss barrel DC. A square hole was already present as you can see on pics, while it was not a good idea from the precedent owner to punch it opened.

I am wondering if the Maxon OD808 is the same as the Ibanez Tubescreamer 808? I heard originally that Maxon used to make the peals for Ibanez and has the same circuitry and chips, and have even heard that the Maxon sounds better. Someone at a local music store said that I was wrong about the Maxon/Ibanez issue. The reason for asking is I was thinking about ditching some pedals but know that the tubescreamer is a standard for OD pedals. I have heard from pedal gurus that every board NEEDS a tubescreamer. My question is do I have a tubescreamer in a different box (maxon) or do I have something entirely different. BTW, my Maxon OD 808 is a re-issue model that was released sometime around 2000-2001. Thanks for your input.

The Maxon OD-9 indeed has true bypass, but the OD808 (which the OP asked about) does not. Wether or not it is a must can be debated - and frequently is. Personally, I prefer it, as I already have the buffers I need. But if the pedal is your only one, having the buffer there can really be a bonus. The kind of bypass I really don't see the point of is the output switching only ("hardwire", as Dunlop calls it), as it is neither buffered nor true bypass - it's a bit like the worst of both worlds...

The maxon od808 is an excellent sounding tube screamer, actually, it's an excellent sounding overdrive and my favorite of the tube screamer type pedals. I am not a guru in any way, but I too believe that everyone can benefit from a tube screamer. I use the sparkle drive myself due to its blend knob feature. Otherwise, for straight up tube screamer sound, the maxon is hard to beat.

As others have said, maxon built pedals for ibanez, and not just tubescreamers. They also built chorus', flangers, and some other goodies. Supposedly, when they started building them for themselves, as someone from maxon had once told me, they made the OD-9 to be more like the ibanez ts808 and then made the od808 to be more more like the ibanez ts-9's. The differences between all of them are subtle, but I do prefer the Maxon od808 to all of them.

There is very little difference between the Ibanez and Maxon ODs. Some say the quality of the parts used is the main difference between the pedals. My advice to you is go out and demo the pedals with your setup. Just because I like the RI TS 808 doesn't mean you will. For your own knowledge, most ODs produced today are clones of the screamer design with only minor tweaks. Besides, if you have the cash, you can get a Keeley or an Analogman mod for most of these clones. The bottom line is, get what you like to hear and matches your setup, not what everyone else likes.

Im trying to set up old gear in the helix that I have (original ts808/1982 that was a birthday present...yep Im old)...I have mucked around with the hxedit/scream808 and its just missing something...I thought it was just dig realm at first...so I opened up old guitar rig 5 and did a side by side...and its a hell of a lot closer and feels right when you are playing it

So to get the helix more in line with the original...are there any tricks and tips you might be aware of or should I just give up and patch the pedal (but its an extra complexity I dont want and it defeats the point?)

I would recommend starting by pairing it up with an amp/cab/mic combination you like. The TS808 often sounds best when the amp is set just to the edge of breakup. Try a compressor in front of it. Set an EQ before or after it to bring out its best. It can be a great sounding block.

Before even starting the journey, it needs to be within scope of an AB comparison...it sounds nowhere near it atm. Just kind of lifeless and flat...and the harmonics sound kind of fizzy in comparison to the original and even guitar rig. Ive just downloaded a couple of others. What I mean is plugging it into a chain of variables is not an ideal way to get each stage right...like I said, this was a 17th birthday present...Im pretty familiar with how it should sound and it just doesnt... :-(

EDIT: Despite spending a lot of time trying to dial the L6 TS808, it really does sound muffled and flat with a boost in the low mids that is not there on the hardware nor guitar rig...prob halfway between GR and the brainworx imvho

If it's still not there for you, that's why EQ blocks exist, other distortion options, or you can try the legacy tube screamer in the Helix to see if it's more to your liking. I actually fell into this camp. While I feel the Helix model is more accurate, one day I tried the legacy Tubescreamer in the Helix and found I preferred it. I don't know why, I just do. I think it's great.

You can also hire a professional to do a blind A/B test with you to determine if your success rate calling out the real vs fake is significantly above 50%. If it's not at least then you'd know it's all in your head and can move on. If you do pass, and assuming they're actually good at the setup, then you could take comfort knowing you have superhuman ability. That always helped me feel better.

Unfortunately, that is not how working with an advanced modeler like a Helix tends to work. I know what you are trying to get at but if you set up a precondition such as you have with A/B comparisons needing to be "within scope" right off the bat you are setting yourself up for failure. Before you get everything configured properly for ANY block it can sound like they are worlds away from the device they were modeled on. Especially when it comes to a favorite pedal that has nostalgic value. It takes some time to get things dialed in the way you like them and get predictable results. You have your entire signal path to consider - beginning with how the guitar is hitting your Helix, through the design of your preset and critically important EQ, and ultimately the output from whatever you have chosen as a monitor. If it were me, I would use it in the loop if I simply couldn't get past the perceived difference between the original and the model. and would continue trying to get the Scream 808 block to a point where I was satisfied enough to roll without the original.

Btw, is your Helix a relatively new purchase? I don't want to make any assumptions, but your post sounds like it has an element of frustration that usually is accompanied by a touch of buyer's remorse. Not that uncommon when dealing with a steep learning curve on a new(er) device. If this is the case, I hope you hang in there long enough to get it dialed in well, reassured somewhat by all of the users who have achieved stellar results with the Helix and the 'Scream 808'. If not, there are plenty of alternatives out there, including resigning yourself to the fact that there may be a couple of devices you want to keep permanently in your FX loop.

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