Maxon Choice - OD808 or OD9

[Thunar]

Heya,

I run a couple of different guitars - Steinberger (EMGs) and a Soundworks Custom (SDs) into a Mesa Dual Rec head with Soldano 4x12 v30 cabinet. I am looking to tighten up the bottom end and smooth out some of the grain in the mids and have heard good things about the OD808. However, I need true bypass as I wont want it running all the time and need a clean signal for other sounds that dont use the pedal.

The OD9 has true bypass but the OD808 does not. Therefore I am leaning towards the OD9 however most mention that I see here is of the OD808. Is that simply because it is cheaper and therefore more popular or is there something better in the OD808 tone than the OD9? The Maxon website states the tonal difference is very small between the two.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

Sorry - I have posted this in the wrong area and am trying to work out how to delete/move it...

Thanks,

Steve.

 

[Nebulous]

Steve Turner on UM? Is this the work of Ermin?

Good question btw.

 

[Thunar]

UM?

Yes I am Steve Turner and you probably have hit the right one if you know Ermin because he is tracking a lot of my project for me. He does a good job!

If you need confirmation check out my website listed below

Steve.

 

[Nebulous]

UM?

Ultimate Metal hehe.
I'm very well aware of Ermin's awsomeness haha, we "studied" audio together.
Good to see things are going well for him.

Anyway, back on topic.....Maxon!

 

[Thunar]

Ultimate Metal hehe.
I'm very well aware of Ermin's awsomeness haha, we "studied" audio together.
Good to see things are going well for him.

Anyway, back on topic.....Maxon!

Heheheh yeah I just want to make sure I order the right one. If they sound almost identical I would go the OD9 due to the bypass factor. Plus it looks cooler (which really is the least of my worries).

Steve.

 

[Tachy]

I have the od9, and I like it a lot, but with my framus cobra I don't need it, I use it when I play some rock stuff, and the sound is really good.

 

[Loren Littlejohn]

I am pretty sure the 808 could be modded to true bypass.

 

[Ermz]

Hey Steve,

The pedal I suggested was the Maxon OD820. That's the only one I've heard so far... and it was amazing. I believe the OD9 is a newer design from Maxon, and one I have yet to hear.

The OD808 and OD820 are the tried and true favourites though. Can't go wrong with either, although I would still recommend the OD820 just to be safe (it appears to have been designed after the OD808, as an improvement).

 

[Ice Man]

Having just recently tested both the OD808 and the OD9 on my Marshall JMP, I can say I personally perfer the OD9, but you really can't go wrong with both. A friend and I heard a slight difference between the two as the OD9 seemed a slight bit more aggressive. Possibly a tad more "raw." I've used the OD808 on a two channel Triple Rectifier with good result. Although the only thing I didn't like about it was that overall it didn't sound as good as my boosted marshall.

 

[JBroll]

Modding the 808 to true-bypass is trivial - I'd say that it's actually easier to just put another box 'around' the 808 with a DPDT so that you have a separate dedicated effects loop. However, I wouldn't recommend doing this as the only part of the circuit that will remain on will be a simple buffer that does nothing more than allow you to run longer cables with less loss. Unless you really prefer the way a 200' cable sounds compared to a 20', you don't need true-bypass. I swear this has to be the fifth time this week I've said something to this effect, but since the search function is apparently requiring virgin sacrifices, here goes - go for the cheaper one, and if you decide that you want the other all you have to do is switch out two (2) resistors in the output stage and you're done. Hell, if you need it that badly you could put a switch in the box to go back and forth between the two.

Moonlapse, the 808 and 9 are nearly the same age, and do just about the same thing (one is a little brighter 'theoretically' but thanks to high part tolerances I've seen them go both ways) - I don't know about the 820, though, so if someone feels like uploading an *accurate* schematic that would be helpful.

If you go for one and feel like having the other, send me a PM - I'll either walk you through the switch or you can mail it to me and I'll mod it for shipping costs and $1 for the two resistors and the five minutes it'll take me.

Jeff

 

[Thunar]

Thanks very much guys!

I did apologise for the mis-placement of the thread and I did do a number of searches etc with varying results. Noob errors - huh? Thanks for being gentle

I am also looking at analogman.com and considering the silver mod on an OD9 as a possible way to go.

Ermz - I am going to Luthor's house tonight with my Mesa to try it out. He does indeed have the 820. Oh yeah, Ermz, check out the unmixed Tsunamian demo on my site in the player. It will show you how the leads sounded prior to reamping (on the Tonelab).

Steve.

 

[JBroll]

The Silver mod sounds good on its own, but you want to be getting rid of flabby bass and harsh highs if you're slamming the amp - and the Silver mod is a step in the wrong direction for that.

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/equipment/305704-why-tubescreamer.html

Jeff

 

[Thunar]

Ahhhhh i SEE.

Well, that makes sense now and also means less $$$ to spend.



Steve.

 

[Brett - K A L I S I A]

Welcome on the forum Steve Please make sure to post in the Equipment section though when you create a thread about... err, well, equipment Cheers

Brett

 

[Thunar]

Welcome on the forum Steve Please make sure to post in the Equipment section though when you create a thread about... err, well, equipment Cheers

Brett

LOL yeah i did note the error in my edited first post.

 

[Ermz]

So, did you end up going to Dean's house and trying out the OD820, Steve? How was it?

I listened to tsunamian... certainly different to what I recall hearing in the studio, hehe.

 

[jesus69lol]

On a slightly related note, does anyone here have any experience with keeley pedals? Specifically: http://www.robertkeeley.com/product.php?id=5
How do these compare in quality to the maxon pedals? I've noticed they're about the same in price but definitely wouldn't mind spending the extra if it was worth it

 

[JBroll]

Keeley is a badass. His mods sound amazing and his customer service is second to none - but I wouldn't recommend that mod for a couple of reasons.

First thing to note - nobody should pay for the TS9-TS808 mod, ever, period, because it's free to find it, the parts cost a quarter, and the only excuse for not looking it up and doing it yourself would be laziness. Second thing to note - you don't want something that's going to remove the 'mid hump', add bass, add treble, et cetera, because this will lessen the benefit of using a TS before the amp. I would recommend just getting a stock TS and maybe considering modding it if it's missing something - the Maxon pedals are good, but pricey, and if you're on a budget the Ibanez TS-7 is the same circuit as the TS-9 but priced around $40-$50 USD.

If you're wondering how to go from TS9 to TS808, or vice versa, send me a PM and I'll explain anything you need.

Jeff

 

[Colonel Sanders]

its good that u want the maxons and not the TS's not like everyone else, the 808 is warmer od-9 has a bit more gain but if ur boosting ur gains on 0 anyways, but even on 0 u'll here some grit (if u keep it on when u go on clean) id try the 808 and turn the pedal off and see if the non true bypass from the 808 is really tone colouring or w.e, if its nothing much, go with it

 

[JBroll]

Erm, the Maxons ARE Tube Screamers; one just has a higher price tag for the sake of making people who don't know better think they're getting more.

The gain difference between the OD-808 and the OD-9 are minimal (the circuits are practically identical before the very last bit of the circuit) and the real difference is in output impedance.

The buffer that remains on when the pedal is disengaged is beneficial for long cable runs and has practically no noticeable effect on the sound after all of the distortion and other processing.

Finally, this thread went over a year and your entire post was atrocious. Please learn to communicate like an actual person, and take more care to notice context and previous discussions.

Jeff