I've been posting a lot of different threads lately so that I can pass on some of my knowledge to those that may need it. I own about 20 overdrive pedals, the majority of them tube screamers/variants/clones, so I figured I'd make a thread for anyone curious about these kinds of pedals.
I find the Tube Screamers fascinating, which is why I collect them and clones of them. I mostly use them as a clean boost (Level at 10, Gain at 0, Tone to taste [3-4 for me]) into a distorted high gain amp to push the preamp a little harder and tighten it up. The tube screamer and it's clones have their own EQ curve to them, which is normally why people like them. They tend to tame low end frequencies, and bump up the mid range frequencies. The mid range bump is usually nice because the guitar is a mid range instrument, so it makes it pop out a little more and appear louder. The taming of the low end is especially nice on an amp like the Peavey 5150 due to it's boomy low end. A tube screamer into a 5150 or 5150 type amp is an extremely famous staple in recording metal guitars that started in the 90's and bands still use it to this day.
A more classic use of the tube screamer/overdrive pedal is to turn up your amp to the point where it's about to start getting distorted, and then using the tube screamer to push it over the edge into some nice crunch. People will also use this when they go to play leads, as it can add sustain and the mid range will make it cut through the mix. Another way I sometimes like to use it is using a high gain amp and turning down the gain a bit on the amp, and adding the gain back with the pedal.
The top 5 tube screamer pedals that I own are (in no order):
Horizon Devices Precision Drive
Ibanez TS808HW
KHDK Pedals Ghoul Screamer (I should mention, I am endorsed by this company but that has no bearing on it being in my top 5)
Maxon Apex 808
Maxon OD9
I'll give the Way Huge Green Rhino an honorable mention as well
There are subtle differences between tube screamer type pedals. Some will have slight different sonic variances to them, but largely they are similar. A lot of times, it just comes down to extra features on the pedal. A normal cheap tube screamer will get you a similar sound to a more expensive one.
For any beginners on this forum or anyone looking to get into these, I recommend a few very budget friendly pedals. First is the Behringer TO800. It costs $25 and it sounds spot on to the Ibanez TS808. Josh from JHS Pedals compared the two pedals and has concluded they sound identical. The only drawback is has a plastic housing, which isn't very tour or gig friendly. Another option is any of the cheap chinese made tube screamer clones on Amazon. You can usually get one for around $25, and they have metal casings. Recently, Amazon released their own line of guitar pedals from Amazon Basics and they have a tube screamer clone, which is just a rebranded Kokko pedal (another chinese option on Amazon).
Please let me know if you have any questions about Tube Screamer/Overdrive pedals.
I find the Tube Screamers fascinating, which is why I collect them and clones of them. I mostly use them as a clean boost (Level at 10, Gain at 0, Tone to taste [3-4 for me]) into a distorted high gain amp to push the preamp a little harder and tighten it up. The tube screamer and it's clones have their own EQ curve to them, which is normally why people like them. They tend to tame low end frequencies, and bump up the mid range frequencies. The mid range bump is usually nice because the guitar is a mid range instrument, so it makes it pop out a little more and appear louder. The taming of the low end is especially nice on an amp like the Peavey 5150 due to it's boomy low end. A tube screamer into a 5150 or 5150 type amp is an extremely famous staple in recording metal guitars that started in the 90's and bands still use it to this day.
A more classic use of the tube screamer/overdrive pedal is to turn up your amp to the point where it's about to start getting distorted, and then using the tube screamer to push it over the edge into some nice crunch. People will also use this when they go to play leads, as it can add sustain and the mid range will make it cut through the mix. Another way I sometimes like to use it is using a high gain amp and turning down the gain a bit on the amp, and adding the gain back with the pedal.
The top 5 tube screamer pedals that I own are (in no order):
Horizon Devices Precision Drive
Ibanez TS808HW
KHDK Pedals Ghoul Screamer (I should mention, I am endorsed by this company but that has no bearing on it being in my top 5)
Maxon Apex 808
Maxon OD9
I'll give the Way Huge Green Rhino an honorable mention as well
There are subtle differences between tube screamer type pedals. Some will have slight different sonic variances to them, but largely they are similar. A lot of times, it just comes down to extra features on the pedal. A normal cheap tube screamer will get you a similar sound to a more expensive one.
For any beginners on this forum or anyone looking to get into these, I recommend a few very budget friendly pedals. First is the Behringer TO800. It costs $25 and it sounds spot on to the Ibanez TS808. Josh from JHS Pedals compared the two pedals and has concluded they sound identical. The only drawback is has a plastic housing, which isn't very tour or gig friendly. Another option is any of the cheap chinese made tube screamer clones on Amazon. You can usually get one for around $25, and they have metal casings. Recently, Amazon released their own line of guitar pedals from Amazon Basics and they have a tube screamer clone, which is just a rebranded Kokko pedal (another chinese option on Amazon).
Please let me know if you have any questions about Tube Screamer/Overdrive pedals.
