The TS is of course one of the classic overdrive pedals - and there are now many companies that now make their own versions...

On the basis that the circuitry / design is fairly basic and well-known I've been looking at some of the clones.

The Digitech CM-2 is apparently one that also has true by-pass. (does that make a big difference?)

Then I found these ones by Biyang:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330362632511& ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#ht_2753wt_906

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=390132577992& ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#ht_1971wt_906

Before I take the plunge, does anyone have experience with these pedals? Are they any good?

Regards
Jay

I honestly would recommend Digitech much as they cut quite a few corners.

Try Voodolabs Sparkle Drive - that's my fave clone w/ clean boost added.

If in a bind I'd go with the Boss overdrive or the DOD YJM pedal. Not quite the same but they work pretty good.

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www.descentintomadness.com

Check out the Danelectro Daddy-o, prehaps not a dead ringer for the TS but a fantastic fairly versatile OD pedal.

Also if you local shop stocks them try one of the cheapie Ibanez tube screamers, (TS7 "Toneloc" i think) I was very impressed with the sound of them but they dont look very robust. Still worth an audition though.

Dan

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Two interesting facts about me: 1)My Knob is the length of two Argos pens 2)I'm banned from Argos

The Daddy-O is nothing like a Tube Screamer but is a great pedal in it self (if a little on the large side) if you've got to fit it on a crowded pedalboard.

The Digitech Bad Monkey is a good sounding variation on the TS with treble and bass controls and can be picked up for £20-£25 on eBay. Gary Moore used one for quite a while.

True bypass is only really useful if the basic pedal has a detrimental effect on your tone. Some pedals do affect the tone a lot, but most are pretty transparent (unless you are very particular and can't stand any slight change in sound whatsoever). True bypass can be detrimental if all your pedals have it and the total cable length then starts to dull your guitar sound too much.

I have both an original snot green TS9, and a Daddy-o

when set up right.... the Danelectro can do much the same job as the TS9.,... and does so with less noise, and far more flexible tonal possibilities... thanks to the more flexible EQ.


the whole point of the tubescreamer, was to drive a valve front end , harder, and intensify the resulting distortion somewhat.., taking your sound from "crunchy" to "screaming" hence the name... it was never about being the whole tone... but about being the switch that took your tone to 11.5.....


I used to use the Daddyo on the front end of my old Laney LC30 , effectively making the combination a 4 "channel" amp....


Clean (no daddyo) , Gritty (clean channel + daddyo) Crunchy (lead channel on it's own) and Screaming solo (Lead channel + daddyo)


more or less what i used to do back in the 80's with my TS9 and whatever amp i was using at the time....


but it ONLY works "nicely" on a proper valve front end.... and that needs to be carefully set up ....

and it takes a little fiddling around to get the best balance between amp and pedal....

but when you get it right.... it really is very very good indeed..



I still have one..... just in case.... it's a great pedal....


(although i sold the LC30 ten years ago..... moving to an amp rig which really had 4 channels, and required less footwork to switch between them)


the TS9 i keep entirely for sentimental reasons.... i'd always pick the daddyo first for the job.... unless the job demanded reproducing the noise as well as the sound..... TS9 in comparison is a noisy beast....










Edited by Off duty BBQ lighter AKA Idris (22/07/11 10:08 AM)

I have both an original snot green TS-808, and a Daddy-o.

Maybe I've never tried to get a TS type sound from the Daddy-o but it is capable of a much harder overdrive sound to my ears, verging on distortion. As you say, the tone controls on the Daddy-o make it a lot more versatile than the TS, which is why, coupled with the far wider range of overdrive available, I said it was a very different pedal. The TS is pretty much a one-trick pony tone wise.

And I still use my TS but not my Daddy-o!

Turn the gain right down somewhere between 8 and 10 oclock, turn the level up. to maybe 2-3 oclock


stick it in the front of an amp set to "Rock" or "break up plenty, but not insanely, when really digging in, and still clean up mostly, when you back off the volume control" and then stomp on the daddyo


tweak the tone controls as needed ,


it gives it that "push" that the TS does....


but doesn't add loads of hiss.

and allows more choice in tonal colour...





the fact that , if necessary, you can bring up the gain and actually use it more as a distortion pedal, rather than truly overdriving the front end of the amp, is a bonus on a day when you need it, but IMHO is not the major strength of the thing....

...and which would be the closest Boss pedal to the tube screamer?

hmmm tricky one that..... one of the reasons the tubsescreamer achieved legendary status was because none of the boss pedals really did what it did at the time.....

i haven't actually bought a boss pedal in a VERY long time... nothing "wrong" with them as such.... indeed some of them are the best at what they do.... but the only Boss device in my regular signal chain is the NS50

(and i went quite a long way down other routes to avoid having to constantly tap dance when changing sounds... which i used to do a LOT.... )

I believe the Blues Driver is their TS derived pedal.

No, the BD-2 is a very different beast, it's a discrete amplifier with clipping to ground. The SD-1 is very close indeed, many DIY places will sell you a pcb that you can use to build a TS-9 or SD-1.

They all work very similarly though, a combination of boosting the level hitting the amp and adding some flavour of distortion of their own.

My TS-9 rarely comes out of the stomp box drawer since I got my Xotic BB preamp. Highly recommended, and is a great companion to an already singing amp, just like the TS's main method of use.

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"It's not pretty, also you can't dance to it." - Frank Zappa
www.bluelizardstudio.com

http://cusackmusic.com/wp/?page_id=9

job done..

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Producer etc

Quote AllyB:

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http://cusackmusic.com/wp/?page_id=9

job done..

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For that price one could have the current offering from ibanez or a touch more even get an original. I can see the lure of the ones that Jay linked to in his 1st post but would like to try it out 1st.... Things like this are soooooo subjective!

Dan

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Two interesting facts about me: 1)My Knob is the length of two Argos pens 2)I'm banned from Argos

I'd say either build or buy a pre-built one of these:
http://www.guitarpcb.com/apps/webstore/products/show/1299244
with all the mods. if its well made you'd have a much better, more versatile pedal that most clones. But I'm partial to this kind of stuff
Bottom line, find something ya like and go with it!

I did the Monte Alum mods to my Daddio and it's fantastic now.

I'd like to have a play with one of these though
VHT V-Drive
There amps are designed for moding, and their cab I bought is great quality for the cash. It has most of the features I added to the Daddio, just wonder what quality of components they use and if they are surface mount or tweekable?

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Wild Hope FB

RObert Keeley does an amazinclone of the tube screamer , true bypass and amazing tone, i barley play or record a note without it in line
steve

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no animal ever called me honey

That V-Drive looks very interesting indeed.

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www.descentintomadness.com