Tube Screamer FAQ Version 1

[Incognito Man]

i just saw a "vintage" 808 go on ebay for close to $600. people are nuts. i went yesterday and got a ts9 and it is great. i ab'd the 808 re-issue to the ts9 and the ts9ds and i couldnt tell the difference between them.

$600 for a vintage 808 is just silly.

 

[JBroll]

I feel like updating this (with more on 'vintage stuff' and other things), what other questions would be appropriate for the main posts in the thread?

Jeff

 

[djembutz]

Hey Jeff.
It's cool read your thread. Make me laught aloud
I already make TS808 from generalguitargadgets schem with keeley mods.
I like it but it's not sound i looking for. I just want it's more metal sound.
Could give me a sugestion or though will welcome.
Thanks... this is good thread

 

[JBroll]

Don't expect much along those lines - the Keeley mod really just turns the pedal into another generic noise box, so for the purposes described here it's not very useful. If you want to build a new distortion pedal there are better pedals on that site... search for the 'Smash Box' and see what you can base on that.

Jeff

 

[Dennis Shaw]

I'm using an old beat-up stock SD-1 with my Rectoverb for live performances and I LOVE it. I actually like it better than my buddy's TS-9. Just my preference though.

Jeff, thanks for taking the time with this very informative thread.

-Dennis

 

[fade_2_black]

Jeff - that first post (and second for that matter) are amazing! Took me a long time to read

Thanks a lot!

 

[fade_2_black]

Oh.. One other thing - is the 808 mod really worth it? just deciding whether I want to spend the extra $60 to buy a modded one.

Or should I just do it myself?

 

[JBroll]

Do it yourself, if it even matters that much... I don't think it really does, to be honest. It's less than a dollar's worth of resistors (precisely *two* of them) and less than a minute's worth of soldering. If you want a good mod that'll really make a difference and help you appreciate different parts, get a few op-amps (OPA2134, NE5532, and whatever else I mentioned in the first two posts) go for it, but most of that whole mess is just fidgety bitch guitarists looking to have that much more to jerk off to. Figure out what you want to be different, and then figure it out from there... don't fidget for the sake of fidgeting unless you want to learn a lot (not a bad thing, but don't start with pissy details like that or you'll lose interest) or be able to tell people about how you mod your own pedals.

Jeff

 

[Copper_head]

Thanks for the awesome info in this thread. (I read the first couple pages) I recently replaced a Maxon 808 with a Krankshaft, just an awesome difference to my ear.
Umm.. so if they are all basically the same, what is Krank doing different, or am I not hearing things correctly?
Thanks
Jeff

 

[JBroll]

I honestly don't know about the Krankenshaft specifically, since I haven't been able to take one apart (any sponsors?...), but there is something that should be mentioned again.

Even between two pedals of the exact same make coming from the same assembly line right after each other, there *will* be differences. The manufacturers of these pedals simply *have* to allow fairly wide variations in their components because manufacturing electronic devices isn't cheap or absolutely precise... don't be surprised at all if you pull a resistor that was supposed to be rated at 100K, take a measurement, and get a reading at (or above!) 120K. This is a big part of why so many twits say they can hear a difference and insist that everything is exactly as they say: if you take *one* TS9 and *one* TS808 you'll be able to hear a difference, but that difference is almost certainly NOT REPRESENTATIVE of the differences in the circuits... any more than dating a crazy French girl and one of the three sane Russian girls that have ever lived would be grounds for saying that all French girls are bonkers and Russian women are perfect.

I'd like to take one apart and see what's in it, but I'm afraid to find yet another fucking mangled former Tube Screamer that just had *everything* useful (mainly the bass cut) removed because some fuckheads can't comprehend that taking bass out of the signal before the preamp makes it impossible to get a heavy tone ever again.

Jeff

 

[Copper_head]

Thanks very much for the reply.
Would you be intrested in good high res photos?

 

[Saculus]

 

[GuitarHack]

Not sure if this has been referenced and not going to check 10 pages to find out

http://www.geofex.com/Article_Folders/TStech/tsxfram.htm

Talks about the differences between the models, descriptions, mods............

 

[Hotstuff]

Hi there JBroll,

Thanks for the information on this thread!

I found a Ibanez TS5 at my friends house that his dad used to use.
Its all plastic and the pots feel shitty.
Whats your take on this pedal, anything like the 7 or 9, or can it be upgraded (modded) to sound like them.

Thanks

 

[JBroll]

I don't know about modding those, as they're not the kind of thing tough enough to face my not-so-delicate soldering. I don't believe they're exactly the TS9 circuit, although they may be close - if you're looking for the proper TS9 sound, open it up and see what the op-amp is labeled.

Jeff

 

[Metaltastic]

Just buy a TS7 for $40, you'll live

 

[Hotstuff]

Thanks man,

I´ll do that and report back.

 

[Hotstuff]

I just recieved my TS7 and will try it tonight recording some guitars.
The TS5 is not to bad, we managed to get a good tone out of the guitars and it made me understand the use of the tube screamer, you know the sound is compact, tight and up front.
Using a Dual rectifier here on this record, will report back after using the TS7.

Hotstuff

 

[AudioGeekZine]

One more stupid question on this.
would you do the TS before the DI for software amps?

 

[JBroll]

The two main purposes of a DI, as far as I'm concerned:

Impedance matching: TS has an insanely promiscuous input stage (so you might as well throw your ultra-high-impedance gizmos before it) and an output impedance below 1K. You can further lower this with a little tinkering. If I remember correctly, the impedance lowering stays in effect even if you bypass the pedal through its own switch... this is why a bunch of wankers spend $50 to ruin their pedal with a stupidly big switch sticking out the top unnaturally and jerk off to the phrase "true bypass", but that's not at all necessary - or even recommended. Long story short, your impedance is already well handled by the pedal as soon as you plug it in - whether you activate it or not - so if all you need is impedance matching, you might not need a DI.

Balancing output: TS has an unbalanced output. If you used a DI, placing it before the TS would get rid of that perk immediately.

From this, I'd put the TS before the DI, if anywhere. If your interface's input is fine with an impedance of ~1K and the balancing act doesn't concern you, don't worry about it at all.

Jeff