Maxon Reissue Series OD808 Overdrive

Product Information

Bernie had completely forgotten he had this. He said, ‘Oh, I looked in one of my old storage spaces today and I found another four guitars’”: Up close and personal with some of late guitar hero Bernie Marsden’s rarest vintage instruments One of the most versatile takes on a TS808 design. It sports 2 channels, with a B option for channel 1. Bandwidth acts as a mode selector, ranging from thinner, lower gain sounds to fatter, higher-gain ones. Voice selects between clipping diode modes. A selectable buffer and normal/bright modes round out the tonal options. To those who were “in the know”, Maxon’s OD808 was identical to the famous Ibanez TS-808 Tube Screamer in nearly all but name when it was initially put on the market in the late ‘70s and early ’80s. In fact, Maxon was the OEM (original equipment manufacturer) for Ibanez and actually made both the Ibanez pedals as well as its own under the Maxon name.

Maxon developed the OD808 circuit more than 40 years ago, and since then it’s become the most used, most imitated and most lauded overdrive circuit of all time. While the 808-style overdrive circuit is commonplace nowadays, in 1979 it was a unique design and an industry first. For over 40 years Maxon’s legendary "808" overdrive circuit has been an essential ingredient to achieving great guitar tone. Whether it’s used as a booster to drive an amp, as a Dirt box for crunch and extra sustain or as an EQ to shape the tone of a high-gain amp, the 808 in its many incarnations has shown up in more rigs and on more recordings than anyone would care to count. The lists in this article were last updated on June 5th, 2023 The Best Selling Overdrive of All Time Even though this modestly proportioned and rather plain box commits the apparently cardinal sin of not having a full-bypass switch, the sound is just sweeter and warmer than all the others. When originally constructing my pedal board, I went to great lengths to maintain an unbuffered signal path because I did not like the super-metallic brightness that buffered pedals introduced. Particularly bad with Overdrive pedals. The Maxon 0D808 is often compared to the slightly higher priced Ibanez TS808, as they are quite similar to each other in many aspects. I found the Maxon was less harsh on the mid-range and featured more tonal control. Furthermore, thereis a general consensus online that the Maxon is the superior overdrive pedal overall, which I am inclined to agree with.The build quality is impeccable. The pedal has a nice weight to it, and I predict it will still be working perfectly long after I'm gone! difference between them is easily summed up as "not an awful lot". in physical terms you're talking a couple of output resistors (forget the chip mojo, the chip has nothing to do with clipping in the circuit). Find out more about how we make our recommendations and how we testeach of the products in our buyer's guides. Related buying guides It's a subtle difference but I think the OD9 is slightly smoother and darker than the Pro+. The Pro+ is probably a better pedal and more versatile but I like the OD9 the way it is. It's definitely better than the Ibanez pedals. Don't get it modded because it will screw it up. I know where this snake oil comes from. If you have ever done a course in selling you would know that anxiety sells products. People who sell products needle away at your anxieties regarding your playing, sound, whatever. Your feeling that maybe you just don't sound 'great' enough. Then these anxieties circulate via 'tech talk', including on forums like this one.

The OD808 Reissue offers up all the warm, creamy, organic overdrive as the original and then some. Never one to rest on their laurels, Maxon has tweaked the current version ever so slightly to reduce noise level while retaining the legendary “808” tone (see Tech Talk below). Can a pedal be considered a clone if it’s made by the company that made the original?!? Maxon designed the original OD808 overdrive circuit in the late 1970’s – they then rebranded this pedal for Ibanez as the TS808 Tubescreamer, and the rest is history... If you want something in between an SD9 and a OD9, the OD9 Pro+ is that pedal. It has more gain and sounds a little more aggressive than the OD9, but not over-the-top Marshall EQ like the SD9. If you want more gain than the OD9 but a very Marshall sound the SD9 is the way to go.Personally I swear by the Klon(e) build by our Juansolo, just like many here do. It also is an overdrive, but one without that mid character. It takes the signal, makes it louder, adds treble and gain, all to taste, without touching the rest. Very tranparent pedal, great sounds and almost all settings are great. It is THE more pedal. Gives you more of all the good stuff. It really has that mojo to me. The brand might also play a part in your decision to buy a clone over an original. Us guitarists can be an odd bunch, and one of our many quirks is that we form strong and strict loyalties to certain brands that we like. If you want to spend a load of your hard-earned cash on an TS-style overdrive pedal, but don't really like the Ibanez brand, then a clone is the perfect option. a “Swiss Knife” angle to the format, with two gains and a three-band EQ and three toggle switch to color the sound in different ways. A hand-made 3-knob TS808-inspired overdrive running at 18v with a host of tweaking options, mostly affecting the lower end. also, if you get an 808 or TS9 etc etc from whoever some are relay switched, some are TB, whole myriad. for the relay switched ones, this little item to convert them to TB without drilling holes is supposed to be good.

For lovers of the 808 sound that don’t want to deal with modification hassles, Maxon under its own name has reissued its own OD808 pedal based on the same circuit of its more-famous Ibanez TS-808 cousin. The “808” sound overall is famous for its bluesy transparency, touch-sensitivity, and smooth overdrive tone. As tone-lovers, we were anxious to take the OD808 for test spin. For the money, we’re thoroughly impressed with the Plumes. Through a mid-scooped amp it really comes into its own, and if you’re in the market for a TS clone that can do a little more then this should be on your shortlist. A few years ago we tried to figure out which were the best-selling overdrive pedals on the market by looking at several online music stores’ listings organized by “most popular.” The answer we got from the data was unequivocal: the Ibanez Tube Screamer TS9 and its mini sibling won first and second place. In all likelihood, those two pedals are still topping that list to date, and it’s very likely that the Tube Screamer also tops the list of the best-selling pedals of all time. Why should you buy a clone over the real thing? The Ibanez Tube Screamer is an iconic pedal, and the sound it produces is better than any imitation, right? It's a good question, and one where the answer is different for everyone.I never have to think about strumming patterns – it’s all taken care of because the motor is always going”: Cory Wong is the modern king of funk guitar – he shares his tips for tightening up your rhythm playing