Are these pedals all the same? The TubeScreamer Test
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- Опубліковано 23 січ 2024
- Can you hear a difference?
In this video, I've invited my friend Blake Miller to join us in taking the TubeScreamer Test. We want to find out if he can hear the differences between various Tube Screamers, including the TS9 and TS808, in a blind test. But equally important, we challenge you to test your own ears right alongside us.
Today, we're going deep into the world of Tube Screamers and clones to make an important point: not all pedals are created equal, and sometimes, the hype and marketing can lead you down the wrong path.
Join us for an exciting blind test where we put several Tube Screamer pedals head-to-head, and the question is, can you truly distinguish between them? Our intended audience includes guitar pedal enthusiasts and guitarists aged 30-50, particularly those who have a passion for classic rock, modern rock, and country music.
Our starting point is the iconic TS9, and from there, we'll compare it to a Maxon OD808, TS7, TS808, Joyo Vintage, and an old Full Drive II - all dialed in with identical settings to emphasize their similarities.
While we explore these pedals, we'll dive into the nuances that arise due to component tolerances and variations in parts. Is it all in your head, or can you genuinely hear these distinctions?
I firmly believe that the joy of playing music is a personal experience, and if a particular Tube Screamer pedal makes you happy and fuels your inspiration, that's what truly matters. Whether you're on a budget or treating yourself to a classic like the TS-808, your connection to your gear is the heart of your creativity.
Join the conversation, share your thoughts on which Tube Screamer you think nailed the 808 tone, or if you could even tell them apart! Is the TS-808 worth the investment, or are the other pedals close enough? Let us know in the comments below, and make sure to hit that subscribe button if you like this video and want to see more.
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Attention Guitar Gear lovers and DIY Pedal Fanatics!!
For years I’ve had many folks ask me to make dedicated courses on some of these topics that I dive into here on youtube, but have been wanting me to go into way more detail.
I’m proud to announce that we now have two guitar pedal courses available that are deep dive on all of those pedal questions you’ve been wondering, and we are ALSO taking pre-enrollments for a huge “How to design overdrive and distortion pedal circuits” course for beginners and intermediates who are wanting to learn all about the electronics side of guitar pedals.*
All of these courses are ABSOLUTELY RISK FREE - 100% money back guarantee within 30 days of your purchase. If you don’t love the courses, I’ll refund you, no questions asked.
If the thrill of building and tweaking your own equipment ignites your passion, you’ll love it. Swing by my other website, www.guitarpedalcourse.com
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Note: There's a fake account impersonating me. Common sense applies here... if it says anything about telegram, or a comment saying you won something that seems too good to be true, or even just look at the user name - it should be pretty easy to spot the fake account. Reporting it may help, but google has been less than receptive on doing anything about it.
Can you hear a difference?
In this video, I've invited my friend Blake Miller to join us in taking the TubeScreamer Test. We want to find out if he can hear the differences between various Tube Screamers, including the TS9 and TS808, in a blind test. But equally important, we challenge you to test your own ears right alongside us.
Today, we're going deep into the world of Tube Screamers and clones to make an important point: not all pedals are created equal, and sometimes, the hype and marketing can lead you down the wrong path.
Join us for an exciting blind test where we put several Tube Screamer pedals head-to-head, and the question is, can you truly distinguish between them? Our intended audience includes guitar pedal enthusiasts and guitarists aged 30-50, particularly those who have a passion for classic rock, modern rock, and country music.
Our starting point is the iconic TS9, and from there, we'll compare it to a Maxon OD808, TS7, TS808, Joyo Vintage, and an old Full Drive II - all dialed in with identical settings to emphasize their similarities.
While we explore these pedals, we'll dive into the nuances that arise due to component tolerances and variations in parts. Is it all in your head, or can you genuinely hear these distinctions?
I firmly believe that the joy of playing music is a personal experience, and if a particular Tube Screamer pedal makes you happy and fuels your inspiration, that's what truly matters. Whether you're on a budget or treating yourself to a classic like the TS-808, your connection to your gear is the heart of your creativity.
Join the conversation, share your thoughts on which Tube Screamer you think nailed the 808 tone, or if you could even tell them apart! Is the TS-808 worth the investment, or are the other pedals close enough? Let us know in the comments below, and make sure to hit that subscribe button if you like this video and want to see more.
______
*Attention Guitar Gear lovers and DIY Pedal Fanatics!!*
For years I’ve had many folks ask me to make dedicated courses on some of these topics that I dive into here on youtube, but have been wanting me to go into way more detail.
I’m proud to announce that we now have two guitar pedal courses available that are deep dive on all of those pedal questions you’ve been wondering, and we are ALSO taking pre-enrollments for a huge “How to design overdrive and distortion pedal circuits” course for beginners and intermediates who are wanting to learn all about the electronics side of guitar pedals.*
All of these courses are ABSOLUTELY RISK FREE - 100% money back guarantee within 30 days of your purchase. If you don’t love the courses, I’ll refund you, no questions asked.
If the thrill of building and tweaking your own equipment ignites your passion, you’ll love it. Swing by my other website, www.guitarpedalcourse.com
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Results: 1- joyo, 2- ts9, 3-ts7, 4-maxon od808, 5-ts808, 6-fulldrive
_____
*Note: There's a fake account impersonating me. Common sense applies here... if it says anything about telegram, or a comment saying you won something that seems too good to be true, or even just look at the user name - it should be pretty easy to spot the fake account. Reporting it may help, but google has been less than receptive on doing anything about it.*
2 and 5 sounded a tad brighter to me. Negligible difference.
Edit: I use a Plumes, cuz I think it looks kool.
Nop
Do you think some pedals win in the tolerance lotto of part selection?
I know with computer processors, there is a binning process where the best chips are sold at a premium, and bad performers get made into cheaper products.
I thought there were a little "more" in the first one, I also liked 3 and 6. But especially no 1.
2 and 5 sounded less dynamic with less bass too
My 808 cost $20,000 but it was worth it because the seller told me it was haunted by SRVs actual ghost. I can totally hear it and you’ll never convince me otherwise. Really takes me Squier strat to the next level.
Feel the same about my Original Klon Pedal. Had to take out equity from the house to buy it but man…it just makes my squier sing through my Fender Frontman amp!
SRV’s ghost haunting a tube screamer is so fitting. Either that , a Strat, or a Lesly Cabinet
I love the fact that guys like you and Josh from JHS give a honest,unbiased opinion about equipment that is at a lower price point than yours. You are correct about inspiration over price. I used to work in a fishing tackle store and tell customers the same thing except it was about fishing. I’d tell them the fish could care less about what you paid for your tackle because it’s really about your experience and what feel comfortable spending for it. I couldn’t tell the difference by the way.😂
Josh Scott is the cult leader who porks your wife, gets her pregnant and claims its gods divinity. Brian is just the best.
I collect pedals and tackle. I can tell a repala from a knockoff and a musictronics mutron III from a knockoff.
@@FranktheCrankNY I agree about fishing tackle but as far as sound is concerned it’s really about how sensitive your ears are. Alan Holdsworth could tell the difference between a felt or metal dust cover on a speaker. My ears aren’t that sensitive but that’s why there are different manufacturers. I can tell the difference with acoustic instruments though.
@@user-wk9wq8yq5u I believe a good amp is as important as your guitar, both are an instrument with their own voicings. What is in between is important also. It helps achieve your own style. Everyone should have an acoustic to play without power. I would go as far as say every band should have the talent to play 100% unplugged. I play guitar every day and I fish every morning between April and October. The fishing referense got my attention my friend.
"we hear with our eyes"
A comment I made on a tik tok video where a guy blind-a/b'd a les paul w/an sg. 90% of the comments were wrong about which was which. Love it!
I made such a test myself a few years ago using a loop pedal. I was indeed surprised that I could not tell a difference between TS9, TS7, Bad Monkey, Joyo and a DIY Pedal.
I did it too a long time ago. I thought i just can't hear the difference but now I think it's just marketing bs.
Joyo is much noisy...in headphones ))
This was Fun. I would love to see a video using a tube screamer circuit, showing how much drift a design(or component) can handle before the sound is distinctly altered (good or bad).
Loved it! Thank you for sharing this with us! Its a great eye opener for sure!
Thank you for the Emeril Lagasse cookware shout-out, I've had a set for about 15 years and couldn't be happier. Also, i rock a TS mini, and it definitely scratches my TS itch
I've always wanted a TS9 that cleans up better but keeps the mid-range character to boost other pedals and my full drive 2 does that and I've never known that while owning this pedal for 10 years. Thanks Brian.
the point you make about the culmination of all the individual components having very slight differences making a 1:1 comparison a bit off is def something i only really understood after i started building pedals myself. i think the green ringer is always a great example of how different one can sound next to another! i’ve built a couple and i kinda like just throwing in the resistors without measuring to exact values like that circuit kinda relies on to see how it comes out. rollin those pedal dice
It's so good watching Mr. Wamplers videos from time to time. Entertaining and informative with your personal twist. Thank you Mr. Wampler.
Btw. I own a Bad Monkey, wich, we all know, can sound like any overdrive.
I never got along with TS pedals.
I think a point that also needs to be made along with the one about the cumulative tolerance drift of individual components is that while yes, that cumulative difference in component tolerance will make one pedal sound slightly different from another even if it’s the same model and circuit, it’s probably such a minute difference that it could effectively be negated by slight tweaks of the tone pot on one or the other and then they’ll sound the same. because a pot after all is a variable resistor. I love tone chasing as much as the next guy but if I’m being honest with myself I tend to just dial things in to sound a certain way that is pleasing to me and it’s mostly “the same” each time, more or less. My “ballpark” ideal tone if you will. If anything this proves that those late 90s early 2000s Ibanez tone lok pedals didn’t deserve nearly the amount of hate they got back then
As usual, great video. Thanks!
Another great video. We do suffer from ear fatigue after a few minutes on tests like this. That being said, they all sounded cool to me! Videos like this bring me joy because I’m a pedal nerd . The real question should have been which Tube Screamer green is the best.
I've always used my TS9 to boost my big muff but I've owned a full drive 2 for almost 10 years and never thought to use that instead of the TS9. I just compared A and B on my board it's pretty much identical in vintage mode you're so right thank you so much for this video. Now I use my full drive 2 instead of my TS9 and get a boost and other options the TS9 does not have while still having the TS9 character.
Voodoo labs sparkle drive mod is the way to go. The ability to blend the od signal and the clean gives it way more flexablity and tonal options
I always liked the sparkle drive.
I felt that #2 and #5 had slight tonal differences and clarities at mid and high frequencies that the others didn't have. I found these two extremely similar, with a slight preference for #2 out of them all. The others were somewhat muddy at the same frequencies. Just a slight bit more punchy, bright, and grainy.
That’s exactly what I heard!
Same opinion here!!!
Yup 2,5, then 4 for me
Thanks for reminding me I need to go and buy some distilled water. Completely slipped my mind
My cheap Amazon Basics Tube Screamer got me back into playing electric guitar when they first came out. I had put my guitar away for years and no no desire to really go there again. 4 years later and I have accumlated a whole host of pedals that range from $50 to $200 and I now know what sounds I am chasing. Future pedals will probably be better quality ones as I know what I need now for my style of playing. The cheaper pedlas have occasionally failed probaly due to quality control during production, but they at least got me to know what sounds are out there.
Really great video.
Perfect explanation.
I've owned 3 TS9 over the last 40 years . A couple of years back, I grabbed a Joyo Vintage just for fun and loved it .Just changed the yellow knobs to black. Yeah, was not keen on those yellow knobs .😂
Great video! I have the Joyo and also a TS10 and the EHX East River Drive. Tonally I can make them all sound identical to my ears. The only difference would be in the levels - e.g. gain set at noon on each pedal may produce slight variations from pedal to pedal.
I sensed that your friend could dig into a riff differently on a couple of those, but honestly found the differences smaller than he expected. Identifying which is which seems even harder. Great test.
Brian you are a LEGEND. This was a Joy to watch and Listen too, Now I need to go out and buy a Klon. 🤣😂
Brian can fix you up with a Wampler Tumnus mini or Tumnus deluxe. They’re great pedals that have that much desired sound.
There were differences but to me it feels like most of it was the playing. Anyway all the pedals sound so close I wouldn't care which one I'd play. It's great that this kind of comparisons exist. Good job! Thanks!
I have the 808 and fulldrive. Didn't know they were the same circuit. I can hear a difference between them but not alot. However, they stack great. Thanks for the vid! I love this kind of stuff
The Fulldrive 2 Mosfet is a bit modded yes, different diodes for the clipping options and there are the flatter EQ options on the switch. But on vintage mode it's super close to an average TS, still different clipping diodes.
Super subtle. I thought I liked one of them, then the next one sounded almost identical. If one was a tiny bit brighter I thought I liked it. At the end of the day all of these would get you that classic mid humped tone. Put in front of a slightly gained amp and it wouldn’t matter at all. Just go with what you like the look of or what makes you feel good. Thanks Brian!
I have an 808 but it has been modded (don't remember the mod though). I does have a sweeter, more mellow, more glassy OD. I also a new mini 808 that sounds nice, but different than my vintage when compared side by side.
Honestly though, my favorite OD pedal is one I found on Ebay for about $15 brand new. It is a Biyang XD-01 with a germaniun chip. It comes with 2 but I don't remember what the other one is...😢
But I generally don't use the drive on an OD pedal. I use them more as a boost into the front of my Fender tube amps.
If I'm just playing on the couch, I'll use the drive from a screamer into a solid state amp.
In answer to your question though, the pedals in the video a extremely similar with very slight "flavor" variations. Most layman would never know...
Really enjoy getting to pick your brain through these videos! 😊😊😊
I listened on my desktop monitors. I heard 4&6 as well even with YT compression, I’d wager it was even more evident in room and certainly playing feel.
I have A/B’d various screamer pedals whilst using a looper pedal to get consistent playing attack and hearing repeated consistent phrases.
I still own an older Maxon OD808 with through hole components ( sounds better than newer smd pedal, I AB’d these same as well)
I also have a TS mini, I’d suggest adding one of those to the next shootout.
I’d love to see this same video in front of a 5150/ SLO for that modern metal/ metal core sound. Or all the HM2 sounds. Great videos as always.
Same here. I actually notice some small differences running 3 different tube screamers into the blue channel of a 5153. Mostly just how gained up they are diming the level. Always come back to a bad monkey for this for some reason. Never cared for using it any other way.
Luv the video.👍👍 I haven't watched the whole thing so my guess is honest. It sounds more like EQ differences more than anything else.🤔
So subtle. They all rock! 🤘
Excelent Post Mr Wampler
Negligible differences, any one would be just fine. No big surprise there. However, if I were to choose purely based on these examples, #4 had just a hair more of what I like in TS circuit, and now I really wanna know which one it was. Thanks for another great vid!
I have a bunch of TS type pedals and I agree they sound very similar. 🎸👍
Awesome video, in my room, at myamp they're sound all differnt, but in public, at the PA, it´s all the same overdrive... :)
Interesting video. Would like to have seen the TS5 Soundtank TubeScreamer included in this comparison.
1) I heard a difference. 2) I could not tell which was which. 3) Typically, though, over the years, i have preferred the 808 over a TS9, based on comparison clips by other testers/players. 4) I am coming to recognize that 'comparisons' meant to illustrate there are *no* differences-between pedals, body woods, etc.-tend to be done with Telecasters. Not sure if that's coincidence or not, but i tend to believe that there's something 'equalizing' about Telecasters and perhaps especially when coupled with this type of mid-gain overdrive sound. It homogenizes tone. 5) My use of a Tube Screamer would be with a Strat, in positions 4 and 5, with a Fender amp, and maybe that's where more variances are perceptible. 6) I've had a few TS pedals, from the Behringer T0800, which sounded 'exactly' like the Tamura Mod 40th Anniversary Maxon, to an Ibanez 808 (current), a Kingtone Duellist v2, and now a Wampler Moxie. I think the best were the Kingtone and the Moxie. But how much i liked them depended very much on which amp/amp profile with which i used them.
Either way, i think the premise/thesis of this test was _invalid_ in a way. Asking whether "the average person" could tell the difference is irrelevant.re we talking about average *player* or *listener/audience?* People who obsess about TS variants probably wouldn't consider themselves to have average ears or levels of discernment. And the "golden ears" disparagement typically sounds like insecurity. Why wouldn't we expect that different people have different levels of acuity with hearing? We see people with eyeglasses, we know people have different tasting sensitivities, different preferences and sensitivities to smell.... And even when many musicians spend so much time in front of loud amps, they all want to believe they have the same ears. As well, people are sensitive to different things. I, for example, tend to get amp modeler vs real amp comparisons right. I discern between OD pedals well. But, i have almost zero reconciliation of matters like compression. *We. Are. All. Different.*
What I can say I noticed to me is the 9 series either Ibanez or Maxon is it has a little more top end sizzle than an 808 when the drive is maxed out but both sound good and both have their place with certain amps and certain sounds a person is trying to achieve.. Tone is subjective because it’s all about creativity .. I’ve seen some odd pairings with setups and you wouldn’t think they would sound good but end up sounding incredible
I'm loving how UA-camrs like you, Jim Lill, Glenn Fricker at Spectre Sound, etc are destroying these long standing myths around guitars! I def could not hear any significant differences, andI bet any sonic variances that do exist between the pedals you compared would disappear in a mix. Cheers!
Had a ts808 and sold it, it made my sound seem boxier, I've been using a fulldrive 2 for a few years now and couldn't be happier with it...guess I got one with a magic circuit!
Not really,
But I didn’t have my headphones on either.
I’m so glad you did this blind test. Several pedals are disappointing unless you run them through EQ anyway.
Enjoyed the video, keeping it real. 👍🏻
If it`s the same circuit I guess then what matters would be the parts quality and construction quality of the product. same sound ? but maybe lasting longer with more consistency with higher quality components,? what you say Brian. Love the nerdy stuff. Thanx a lot.your ino has been priceless over the years and when learning about pedals,circuits and sound quality, you have always been a go to for me.thanx again.
They're distortion boxes so maintaining signal integrity really isn't a design goal with these devices. To that end the jankier they are the better.
The last pedal I bought for my main board was a Ibanez Tubescreamer mini to drive my Alchemy Audio modded Big Muff pedal and my Rat pedal. I found the magic of using the Tubescreamer to goose those pedals and to be honest I did not want to by a Boutique Tubescreamer clone (the Rat and Muff already are modded and that is more than enough). I could have cheaped out and got a budget pedal but I have everything from Standard pedals, to Elevated pedals (production pedals with more bells and whistles than a Standard), tontye Alchemy Audio modded pedals, to a few Boutique pedals. I do like the Budget pedals but for my Budget boards and not my main board. I am definitely happy wity how it all turned out. I am also happy that it did not have a huge milliamp draw where two of my pedals needed wall warts because the milliamp draw was more than the power bricks I have under the board. So good times.
They are all super close. My first pedal in 1982 was aTS-9. Still using that circuit now. Most ODs sound similar to a TS-9. At least the ones I like do.
Obrigado pelo vídeo!
Muito interessante.
I can definitely tell there's a difference but I'm biased because I'm looking for it, they're all very close
I can't tell which is which tho, just that they're different
The cooking example is perfect. If you're using the same type of pan, the end result is probably very similar but the cooking experience might be different and that's a valid reason to have different pans of the same type
4 and 6 I thought sounded a bit brighter, but otherwise I couldn’t tell much. When I use my TS mini, I’m always running it into another gain stage to boost and shape the 2nd pedal. Great video as always!
thats what i felt like i heard too
I wholehearitdly love tubescreamers, but they're the most interchangeable pedals out there. As in: it doesn't matter if you get an original 808 or take a Joyo or whatever. They really, really do sound exactly the same. Imo what a lot of people perceive as a difference between multiple TS-clones is really just variances in the pots.
Haha I thought 2 and 5 sounded brighter.
It’s all about seeing which pedal is preferable due to minor preference in a recording mix. The unmixed raw sound has little to no major factor and can be based on ones preference of the feel of a certain feedback from the pedal.
But for metal, TS808 circuits or similar all the way.
I just saw a freakish vision of the future - a Gen A video... it's a relief to get back to the safe world of effects pedals. I thought the fourth one was a little spongy like my TS9. 2 and 3 were identical and the rest were just the same.
I used to have a similar green pedal to the Joyo. On some settings it was exactly like the TS9, on others not so much. I think we have to remember that non-musician will have roughly the discernment "cool" and "heavy" or "too noisy" - we get too obsessive about these things.
Hahahaha…. Brian “poker face” Wampler. Brilliant slight of hand😂
I did hear some diffensence in the midrange and saturation but all sounded great.
If you like Tubescreamers, the JHS Bonsai is a steal. I like it a lot, but the J Rockett Dude does what I want out of an overdrive pedal.
I think also that when you take into account all the small differences from pedal to Pedal to guitar cable to amplifiers to guitar to guitar strings it adds up to something bigger in the end.
And this is why i have joyo vintage drive, an Ibanez TS mini, a joy0 maximum drive (fulltone clone), a jeckyl and Hyde visual sound (aka truetone), and a GFS greenie... but literally they can all get the job done!
nevermind the tubescreamer in the Line 6 M5
i Can hear a difference but thay are so close its pretty amazing(I almost thought it was the same pedal in every experiment),i did this test blind test myself and i chose the full drive 2 fm mode which was noticeably different and thanks to it its much easier for me to reach the John Mayer sounds I was looking for😁
I only disagree with one part sir. Spring water is tasty, and distilled water is flavorless.
Keep making this awesome content.
You have pure springs in the US? I thought everything is poisonous due to fracking 😂
yeah distilled water is water with all the minerals and stuff boiled out and left in the bottom of the pot...
It is the minerals that make the flavor.
Distilled water is great for car cooling systems.. not so much for taste
@@TedSchoenling You should not be drinking distilled water......
@@MatzeMaulwurf it all depends on the water source, and its location compared to the fracking.
You guys know each other!? I love Blake he is the coolest and a beast of a player
40+ years of guitar playing/giging I went to buy “new tube screamers”. I bought an 808, sounded great, added a TS9 to the chain, sounds great, I find no difference between them🤷🏻. I like what you say Brian - if it gives you the warm and fuzzy, use it!
I have the JoYo it sounds great to me! So I’m sticking with it until it craps out 👏🏼
After listening back numerous times-Iliked #1,#4,#6 the best,with #6 sounding 'clearer' to me
Pedal 1 was the sound I like the most. Not sure what it was, but that one specially hit the perfect frequency range to my ears and added a nice characteristic to it. Curious which one that wa
It's on Brian's comment on the top.
Nice video. I have 4 of your pedals. Top quality. You can do more with your pedals than the ones you emulate. For example, the Belle has more tweakability than the nobles. Same with Rathbone and the rat. I have also done an a/b with your mini tumnus and a KTR. Sounded exact. It is good how you educate players.
I’m reminded of George Costanza in the car dealership. “THEY’RE ALL TWIX!”
This point will be obvious to many, but when you hear a new pedal being demo'd on YT and it's "based on such-and-such a circuit" and it sounds GREAT, it's not just the pedal you're hearing, it's the amp (& guitar). So when you hear a Klone that sounds much better than YOUR Klone, it's probably not the pedal making the difference but other things in the signal chain. Get that new Klone home and it will sound rather like the one you already own.
Here are my guesses:
1. TS7
2. Full Drive II
3. TS808
4. TS9
5. Maxon OD808
6. Joyo Vintage
*I swap TS9 with TS808 in this list because I guess it wrong at the early TS9 Vs TS808 comparation.
You're awesome. All the sounds are in the same Tube Screamer Family.
Doesn't shock if TS9 will be huge after this just because of this video. My mind totally changed about TS9 forever.
Results are in the pinned comment 😊
There were 2 that sounded a bit different initially however, the difference could very well have been caused by a more aggressive pick attack. And even though I felt those 2 initially sounded different it was not a huge difference. Not to mention when you went back to number 6 (which was one of the two I felt had a noticeable, yet minor difference, it didn't seem different from pedal 4. Again the difference I heard could be explained by him using a different amount of pick attack. This is why a looper is better for side by side comparisons like this as you play the riff once and then let the looper repeat it the same way with each pedal. The analogy of cookware is interesting in that the omelette isn't going to be magically different if you use the more expensive cookware but, more expensive stuff can last longer not because it is more expensive but because more expensive versions of any item typically has better quality components. Though some folks would say "it's cheap enough you can just buy it again!" But, over enough time you may pay more replacing the cheaper version than just buying the more expensive version in the first place. I know these aspects are not really the point of the video. You're saying it's not going to sound radically different or better or whatever just because you buy the more expensive option. I get that and I agree. I'm just saying while they may be virtually the same as far as the circuit and how they sound there are other things that can make them radically different.
At first I thought this video would be less of a Tubescreamer test and more like a comparision between pedals which are schematicly a "Tubescreamer" but sound different. Like a Tubescreamer and SD-1 thing and I was very interested to learn about the other pedals that share "the tubescreamer" schematic not just the SD-1. Would be cool to see a video like that!
I have a j Mascis signature big muff. I paid a little more for the paint job (it’s the same circuit as the reissue rams head), but I am 100% ok with that. I’m a Mascis fan, and I think it’s cool.
You're trying to make a point to guitar cowboys 🤠
Good luck and make 'em eat beans like yesterday...😅
Hi Brian, Is the Maxon OD808 closer to TS10? I thought maybe I read from Analogman’s site that the Maxon OD808 was not a really 808 copy, but based on the TS10. I’ve read contradictory things on this! Many thanks and hoping to read your thoughts on this.
I own the Maxon OD9 which I think is really a TS9 circuit.
Great test by the way!
Points were made, lessons learned. Blake was a great sport. He really did look like a fly caught in a spider's web.
All extremely similar. It's kind of like the argument that big pedals sound better than the mini versions of the same pedal. I'm sure there are cases that the circuits were changed between versions and they sound different but mostly not. I'm just as happy with the Tumnus mini as I would be with a Centaur. Happier actually because I didn't empty my bank account to buy it!
I got the 808 myeh :P
Lil crispier.
The 6 all squooshed together though. Full Drive had a little bit softer of an attack to my ears. Without knowing much about circuitry, I’m gonna buy and try and if it does something I don’t like, I’ll read up and try to get whatever doesn’t do that on the next one.
They all sounded pretty much the same to me. Assuming the circuits are generally similar, I'd be really interested to hear differences in background noise, hiss, raised noise floor etc. So a comparison in which the guitar wasn't being played, but the pedals' noise levels at different gain settings were recorded would appeal to me.
Several years ago I bought a TS808 and A/B’d it against my TS9. They sounded exactly the same. At first I was disappointed, but then I realized how much money I was saving by returning the TS808. No regrets! 😎
Cool all saints t-shirt, pure shores is a great pop song
Any difference I heard was probably pot taper tolerance on the tone control (the flakiest of all tolerances). Even if they sound slightly brighter or darker, you could move that knob a hair and get the same tone as any of the other ones. Add an EQ pedal and you could make it sound like almost any other normal overdrive topology.
5:49 great editing 👌
I got one of those joyo pedals a few years ago, sounds great and has held up well. The TS5 tubescreamer sounded great too, fun to mod but was not durable at all.
I used a TS5 Soundtank TubeScreamer for years. Great sounding overdrive (distorts a litte more than a TS9, I think) but I had to leave it on all the time because the switch was absolute crap. Eventually the input jack fell apart and I replaced it with a Lovepedal Eternity.
They all sound very close to me. Good thing to keep n mind.
I was given a Demonfx Tubescreamer (Green) TS808/TS9 Overdrive/Distortion Pedal and to be honest, it has been on my board over my original TS808. It's really good. Was shocked. Still shocked.
My present favourite is a $50 screamer pedal from eBay with a toggle switch between ts8 and ts9 , joyo vintage is good but a little noisy in conjunction with other pedals
my first pedal was a Behringer TO800, and big shocker, it does the TubeScreamer thing...for $17
When you open an overdrive up there's really not a lot of parts in them. The biggest ticket items are going to be the box itself and the switch. Still $17 assembled is a great deal.
OK here’s a guy that has never owned a Tube Screamer, and played thru one no more than a couple hours. Yep your right, distortion is distortion and equalization is the key to all distortions. Built one back in the early 80’s, and it worked just fine. A band member in the 80’s had a TS, with a Vox amp with selectable 4 ohm speaker. Sounded distorted for sure, but not usable for gigs. So, agree and play and use what your ear tells you is the real key. Rock On regardless. Always move forward.
I have a Bad Monkey and love it. How would you class an original (1980's) Boss HM 2 pedal, or a Marshall Governor I wonder?
I have the 808 and the TS9. I prefer the TS9 only because I like the switch better.
that's a totally valid reason.
I have several pedals with magic inductors or transistors or whatever. I have always assumed that just turning the knobs makes the most difference, but haven't troubled to test any of them.
yet.
Speakers, otoh... I have spent thousands on various transducers, and hope to buy many more.
In the end the speaker is the only component you really hear. Well, it's the only one you should hear. If you hear any other snaps, crackles and pops you'd better unplug your gear and reach for a fire extinguisher.
Pedal #3 was the most distinctive at full setting. Some are noticeably more or less "nasal" (mid bump). The winner is the most customizable. Let's not forget price and durability. Mixed in with a band, in a live performance setting, tweaking is always necessary at sound check. Any go-to pedal needs a backup.
I made this test myself one day. I got about 8 different TS. My conclusion is that most of them have very smalls EQ differences, but by tweaking your amp settings or tone pot of the TS you can get the exact same sound. BUT I could hear a Big différence in the feel of my playing with the Maxon. It feels that it does not compress exactly the same than the other ones. It feels the attack of the compression is a little longer and it results in the sensation of preserving the "kick" of the mediator hitting the string, in the low mid range. But it's very a small différence.
I noticed also that the ts10 sounds kinda different and that the Elektron mid drive mode (in their analog drive pédal) sounds exactly the same of the ts10, couldn't tell the différence.
I so enjoy everything you do! I’ll be Amanda doesn’t say that to you. If so you are the man!
Brian, I never seemed to like the Tube Screamer, could you do a video on the MXR distortion pedal differences??? Thanks for the videos and the Tumnus...
I have an MXR distortion + It's a disappointing effect. There's only a single op amp in it that's overdriven. Apparently the best MXR pedals have the very oldest poorest spec ICs in them. So good luck finding them today. The slow slew rate of the early ICs contributes to the tone. I have some ancient 741 ICs in my chip collection. Still, the circuit topography leaves much to be desired.
Interesting video.. I have a confession, I’ve never played a tube screamer circuit lol.. I thought they all sounded the same and if there were any differences they were so small to where i don’t think it matters. When it comes to different pedals and circuits, having the “thing” isn’t that important to me. If it has the sound then I’m good. I will say though, aesthetics are more important to me and also build quality.. so for me, it’s the sound, then aesthetics, then build quality are the only factors that are important to me.
Noticeable difference on the top end on a few of them. The joyo vintage overdrive is really muddy. It goes from mud to ice pick with nowhere in between.
When I was working music retail I put together a board with a TS9, an 808, a Maxxon, a used Bad Monkey and a mxr gt-od. I had customers AND employees sit facing the other wal and I switched between the pedals. Not that they sounded identical, but nobody could tell me which was which.
Overdrive and clipped distortion is all pretty much the same thing. There's only so much you can do with any of that. But the Klon Centaur is a different circuit.
@@1pcfred for a klon clone, I'll take a $65 used ehx soul food. It's maybe not the best one, but works well for me.
@@mikelundquist4596 I certainly cannot justify what an original Klon costs just to use one. They've transcended merely being guitar effects at this point. It was a well executed passion project. Just from a creative electronics standpoint I have to respect it.
Off topic.
Hi Brian. We all know how much "marshallous" is the Superplextortion. Have you ever thought about doubled the SuperPlextortion? The Dual SuperPlextortion. It would be one of the best pedals around.
I always thought a tube screamer was a tube screamer when I owned the Joyo for many years. When I purchased my first TS9, I heard and felt a complete difference immediately. To my ears the TS9 sounded more natural and the Joyo sounded more cheap electronics. I think the feel of how the guitar and the pedal interact together with the amp is important for the whole sound, and mine interacted better with the TS9 than the Joyo. I also agree with playing what inspires you, that will for sure cause you to make better music
There was only one pedal that sounded clear enough different to me. I think it was whatever pedal 2 was through the full lineup? Just that one to me sounded like more noticeable gain. Maybe it was turned up a little more. Tone wise, gain structure wise, all for the most part, identical. I've played live for 30 years in my area for reference to my experience hearing it.
I can hear some differences, but so far (I’m just shy of halfway through) it’s pretty subtle.