The Tube Screamer is an overdrive circuit designed by Japanese electronics engineer Susumu Tamura in 1979, first released by Ibanez as the TS-808123. Tamura, working for Nisshin Onpa, the company behind the Maxon brand, was seeking to create a circuit to compete with the Boss OD-1, and in the process built what would become one of the most copied, cloned and modified guitar effects of all time34. An Ibanez Tube Screamer is an overdrive/distortion pedal that is mild compared to many, with a mid-focused overdrive heard on countless records from Stevie Ray Vaughan onward56.
What makes the circuit matter to players is a combination of three things: a soft-clipping stage that preserves some of the input signal, a frequency response that emphasizes the midrange, and a simple three-knob control set of Drive, Tone and Level. JHS Pedals calls it "probably the most produced and sold pedal in the history of guitar pedals!"4
Where the Tube Screamer came from: Susumu Tamura and the TS-808
In 1979, Susumu Tamura designed the Ibanez TS808 Tube Screamer to compete with the Boss OD-117. Tamura was a Japanese engineer working for Nisshin Onpa/Maxon, an original equipment manufacturer, and the circuit was designed in the 1979 to 1980 period3. Maxon was responsible for the design and manufacture of the legendary TS808 and many other products for Ibanez up until early 20028.
The TS-808 was made famous by the late Stevie Ray Vaughan, who used it for his trademark juicy Strat tone5. Due to the pedal's success, several versions and reissues were released over the years with small circuit variations, and the first design is considered the most attractive3.
How the circuit works: soft clipping, clean blend and the mid hump
The Tube Screamer circuit can be broken down into simpler blocks: JFET bypass switching, a power supply, an input buffer, a clipper amplifier, a tone/volume control and an output buffer3.
Soft clipping
The Tube Screamer is a soft-clip overdrive circuit1. Bogac Topaktas's technical analysis highlights how the Tube Screamer's clipped output signal contains part of the input signal, preserving the original dynamics of the guitar and improving the clarity and responsiveness of the distortion3. This is the property that makes the pedal useful both as a light overdrive on a clean amp and as a tightener in front of a high-gain amp.
The same soft-clipping approach appears across the wider overdrive world. Pettyjohn's PreDrive3 uses a germanium based soft clipping circuit voiced for a wide, smooth transition from clean to edge of breakup, and Superlunar's SR-01 blends a selection of silicon diodes that produce soft clipping910. Aclam's Cinnamon Drive Dreamer Edition takes a different route, with a first-stage custom soft clipping circuit and a second stage that stacks a hard-clipping circuit11.
The mid hump
The famous midrange emphasis comes from two filters working together. A passive first order low pass filter formed by C5 and R7 attenuates frequencies over 723 Hz, and the clipping stage includes a high pass filter below 720 Hz3. The result is a frequency response tailored to emphasize the mid frequencies:
"The frequency response is tailored to emphasize the mid frequencies, creating a hump that helps to keep the guitar sound over the general mix of the band."
Some later builds deliberately flatten that hump. The ODin808 mod offers less clean tone blended in with the Drive and a flattened mid-hump, bringing the 808 lineage into distortion territory12.
Clean blend
The stock Tube Screamer does not have a clean blend knob, but the idea of blending clean signal with the drive has been added by builders working from the circuit. Warm Audio's Tube Squealer includes a mix knob allowing for clean signal blending13.
The versions, from TS-808 to TS9 and TS10
The Tube Screamer as we know it today started in the late 70's with the TS-808 model5. JHS Pedals, which offers its own Tube Screamer-style pedal, the Bonsai, lists the family's timeline4:
| Version | Year |
|---|---|
| OD-1 | 1977 |
| TS-808 | 1979 |
| TS-9 | 1982 |
| MSL/Power/L Series | 1985 |
| TS-10 | 1986 |
| EXAR OD-1 | 1989 |
| TS-7 | 1999 |
| Keeley Mod Plus | 2002 |
| JHS Strong Mod | 2008 |
The TS-9 is almost the same as the TS-808 internally. The main change in the TS-9 circuit is in the output section, which caused the Tube Screamer to be a bit brighter and less smooth5. The JRC4558 or RC4558 chip was used throughout the life of the TS-8085.
Warm Audio's Tube Squealer, a modern build, is based on the venerable original 808, TS9, and TS10 versions of the circuit13, and Mosky's Green Screamer is based on the Ibanez Tube Screamer TS9 and TS808 circuit14.
Maxon's 808 and the Ibanez connection
The Maxon OD808 was rebranded for Ibanez as the TS808 Tubescreamer, and it is identical to the original TS808 circuit, featuring the JRC4558 IC chip515. Maxon's own 40th anniversary material describes the OD808 as the most copied, cloned and modified guitar effect of all time15.
One point of confusion worth noting: the Maxon OD-9 should not be confused with the original 1984 Ibanez OD-9, which was not a Tube Screamer circuit and is very rare16. Maxon was responsible for the design and manufacture of the TS808 and many other Ibanez products up until early 20028.
The circuit's reach extends into modeling platforms too. Kemper's Green Scream distortion effect is based on the Ibanez Tube Screamer TS-808 and Overdrive OD-80817, and Strymon cites the Ibanez Tube Screamer, starting with the original TS-808, as the classic example of its "texas" circuit type in the Sunset overdrive18.
Tamura-Mod and Fortin-modded Tube Screamers
Susumu Tamura has continued to modify his own design. The Tamura-Mod TS808 Tube Screamer is built on the Ibanez TS808, matched to its original vintage archetype via specific component substitutions7. Several key resistor and capacitor changes fine-tune the Tamura-mod's tone7.
The Tamura-Mod v2 TS808 Tube Screamer is a new modification by Tube Screamer inventor Susumu Tamura, made by Ibanez, with increased output level19. There is also a Level Boost version built on the TS808 Tube Screamer20. Using the Ibanez TS-9 as its foundation, the Tamura-Mod Level Boost TS9 offers a slightly different tonal palette2.
Fortin takes the circuit in a heavier direction. The Fortin-Modded Ibanez TS808 Tube Screamer delivers an extreme output level 2.5+ times louder than stock, to push any amp to its limits21. The Fortin Mod Mini Tube Screamer is built into an ultra-compact mini chassis and is designed for metal guitarists who demand precision from high-gain rigs22.
These are modified Ibanez pedals, not stock Tube Screamers. The Tamura-Mod and Fortin-modded versions change components and output level, so they behave differently from a standard TS808 or TS9.
Pedals built on the Tube Screamer circuit
The list of pedals openly built on the circuit is long. A few examples from the makers' own descriptions:
- Jeds Pedals Super Screamer: "Its based on a good old Tubescreamer, and we all love that dont we."23
- VFE The Scream: based on the TS808 tubescreamer24
- Warm Audio Tube Squealer: based on the 808, TS9 and TS10 versions of the circuit, with a mix knob for clean signal blending13
- Mosky Green Screamer: based on the Ibanez Tube Screamer TS9 and TS808 circuit14
- Mosky Mini Screamer: based on the Tube Screamer25
- GuitarPCB Tube Screaming Ultra: a DIY board with a Classic Ibanez TS808 Style Drive variant, plus an On/Off/On clipping switch selecting LED clipping, stock diode clipping or pure op-amp clipping6
The Apex808 was developed after meticulous analysis of over 100 vintage and current production Tubescreamer/808 variants over three years26. JHS also offers TS-9 mods: the Strong Mod installs a socketed JRC4558P chip as well as making vital changes in caps, resistors and more, which JHS describes as giving more transparent, smoother tones, twice the available gain, a cleaner boost, and a rich and focused low end that cleans up like a tube amp when the guitar volume is rolled off272.
The Tube Reamer and other DIY builds
The Tube Screamer is a popular DIY project. General Guitar Gadgets offers a Tube Screamer project describing the mid-focused overdrive heard on countless records from Stevie Ray Vaughan onward, and notes that there is nothing magical about the sound of the original 2SC1815 transistors, which are very "ordinary" transistors28. GuitarPCB's Tube Screaming Ultra board lets a builder choose between LED clipping, stock diode clipping or pure op-amp clipping while retaining the stock options6.
For players who want a ready-built low-cost option, the DemonFx Tube Screamer runs on 9V DC, center negative, drawing 100mA29. That current figure applies to the DemonFx pedal specifically; no figure for the original Ibanez units is given here.
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News
Questions
What op-amp chip is in a Tube Screamer?
The original Ibanez TS-808 used a JRC4558 or RC4558 chip throughout its production life, and the Maxon OD808, which is identical to the original TS808 circuit, also features the JRC4558. The chip became so associated with the pedal's sound that later mods, like JHS's Strong Mod, install a socketed JRC4558P so it can be swapped.
Why does a Tube Screamer have a mid hump?
Two filters in the circuit create it. A passive low pass filter formed by C5 and R7 attenuates frequencies above 723 Hz, while the clipping stage includes a high pass filter below 720 Hz. Together they cut lows and highs, so the frequency response emphasizes the midrange, a hump that helps the guitar stay audible over the mix of the band.
How much current does a Tube Screamer draw?
A current figure is documented only for a modern Tube Screamer-style build: the DemonFx Tube Screamer draws 100mA at 9V DC, center negative. No figure for the original Ibanez units is documented here, so treat 100mA as applying to that specific pedal rather than to every Tube Screamer circuit.
Why do metal players use a Tube Screamer in front of a high-gain amp?
The Tube Screamer's clipped output signal still contains part of the input signal, which preserves the original dynamics of the guitar and improves the clarity and responsiveness of the distortion. Its mid hump and rolled-off lows also tighten up a high-gain amp's low end. Fortin's modded Tube Screamers are aimed squarely at metal guitarists who demand precision from high-gain rigs.
Sources (29)
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