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Fireguy8402 « Decent Tubescreamer but not worth the money. »
Published on 12/23/11 at 08:15The Ibanez TS808 Vintage Reissue is a very basic pedal optionwise. One tone knob to adjust the EQ of the pedal, one knob for overall volume, and one knob for the amount of gain, and that’s all you get. If you are a big pedal tweaker this isn’t for you. It’s the tried and true seasick green color, and supposedly uses the same factory, components and housing as that of the original 808 Tubescreame, including the famous JRC4558 chip. The pedal can be powered by 9 volt batter or external AC adapter. Dimensions of the pedal are 4.9" x 2.8" x 2" and it weighs a little over a pound.
UTILIZATION
The pedal is built very sturdy, with a square switch exactly like the original 808 series from Ibanez. I have never heard any issues with quality control on these pedals like I have the cheaper 7 series that uses a “new” switch design. I wouldn’t worry about this one breaking on you. It’s a very straightforward layout and the knobs seem sturdy and hold your settings well. The housing and jacks are metal and seem like they would hold up to a good amount of abuse.
SOUND QUALITY
I compared this pedal against a stock Ibanez 9 Series Tubescreamer, and it won the contest, but only slightly. It is one of the most copied pedals out there, if not THE most copied pedal and honestly some of the clones I’ve picked up does the sound much better. This pedal has a decent sound to it, but I don’t hear a major difference between the two models. It does sound ever so slightly warmer, but it’s not a night and day difference. Like all other tubescreamers, you are going to have that heavy mid hump in the eq section, so if that’s not for you steer clear of this pedal. The tone knob doesn’t let you dial that out. I would not use it for a straight up overdrive with a tele or strat unless I was going after those SRV blues tones, it does that well. It surely cuts through the mix, but it’s a little heavy on the mids for my tastes.
OVERALL OPINION
Similar to the TS9, this pedal is built very well and should stand the test of time in the durability department. Unless you like a very midrange heavy overdrive or have an amp that is equalized to handle the pedal, I would only suggest using this pedal as a solo boost into an already overdriven tube amp or for blues rock or other genres or amps where a mid heavy overdrive is useful. I feel this pedal is overpriced and Ibanez is banking on the Vintage Reissue name a little too much. I feel that there are several copies of this pedal that do it’s thing just as well or better for far less money. If a Tubescreamer was the tone I was looking for and Ibanez was my only option, I’d just stick with the TS9. I did not feel there was enough difference in tone to pay the extra for the reissue.
UTILIZATION
The pedal is built very sturdy, with a square switch exactly like the original 808 series from Ibanez. I have never heard any issues with quality control on these pedals like I have the cheaper 7 series that uses a “new” switch design. I wouldn’t worry about this one breaking on you. It’s a very straightforward layout and the knobs seem sturdy and hold your settings well. The housing and jacks are metal and seem like they would hold up to a good amount of abuse.
SOUND QUALITY
I compared this pedal against a stock Ibanez 9 Series Tubescreamer, and it won the contest, but only slightly. It is one of the most copied pedals out there, if not THE most copied pedal and honestly some of the clones I’ve picked up does the sound much better. This pedal has a decent sound to it, but I don’t hear a major difference between the two models. It does sound ever so slightly warmer, but it’s not a night and day difference. Like all other tubescreamers, you are going to have that heavy mid hump in the eq section, so if that’s not for you steer clear of this pedal. The tone knob doesn’t let you dial that out. I would not use it for a straight up overdrive with a tele or strat unless I was going after those SRV blues tones, it does that well. It surely cuts through the mix, but it’s a little heavy on the mids for my tastes.
OVERALL OPINION
Similar to the TS9, this pedal is built very well and should stand the test of time in the durability department. Unless you like a very midrange heavy overdrive or have an amp that is equalized to handle the pedal, I would only suggest using this pedal as a solo boost into an already overdriven tube amp or for blues rock or other genres or amps where a mid heavy overdrive is useful. I feel this pedal is overpriced and Ibanez is banking on the Vintage Reissue name a little too much. I feel that there are several copies of this pedal that do it’s thing just as well or better for far less money. If a Tubescreamer was the tone I was looking for and Ibanez was my only option, I’d just stick with the TS9. I did not feel there was enough difference in tone to pay the extra for the reissue.