The BBE Green Screamer is an overdrive pedal built around the Ibanez Tube Screamer circuit, one of the most copied overdrive designs in existence. BBE launched it as part of a six-pedal stompbox range in 2007, alongside the Crusher, Freq Boost, Free Fuzz, Orange Squash and Boosta Grande1. Where a stock Tube Screamer leans on the midrange, BBE's version aimed to provide improved dynamic response over the traditional TS, and the v2 redesign of 2022 pushed that further with a smaller enclosure, a Deep switch and a buffer option2.
Josh Scott of JHS Pedals puts the family relationship plainly:
"It's a Tube Screamer."
What it does to your sound
Guitar World's 2007 review described the original Green Screamer's character in direct terms: the sound is tight, compressed and smooth, making it a good fit for blues, country and classic rock1. Like the BBE Crusher reviewed alongside it, it can also be used as a clean-ish boost, and the reviewer found that riding the treble with the gain backed off added some kick to a tube amp1.
Guitar World reports that BBE calls the v2 "completely redesigned and built from the ground up" for greater transparency and versatility over the 2004 original, which itself aimed to provide improved dynamic response over the traditional TS2.
The controls: level, tone and gain
The original Green Screamer keeps to the classic Tube Screamer layout:
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Level | Sets the output volume |
| Tone | Rolls the treble up or down |
| Gain | Sets the amount of overdrive |
Guitar World called these "the classic trio of level, tone and gain"1. The v2 keeps this arrangement and adds the Deep switch on top2.
Green Screamer v2: a redesign with a Deep switch
The Green Screamer v2, announced on 23 December 2022 alongside the Sonic Stomp Pro, is the latest incarnation of BBE's modified take on the Tube Screamer, now in a downsized enclosure2. Its headline additions:
- A three-position Deep switch to enhance the low end that can be lacking in Tube Screamer-style circuits2
- A switchable input buffer, so the player can choose between a buffered and an unbuffered input2
- True bypass switching2
- Top-mounted jacks for tighter pedalboards2
- The 4558 op amp found in many classic TS-derived designs2
The v2 launched at $149 in the US and was available immediately2.
The switchable input buffer is worth knowing about if you run long cable runs or a large board: a buffer at the input preserves high end, while true bypass leaves the signal untouched when the pedal is off. The v2 lets you choose, where most pedals force one or the other2.
How reviewers compared it with the Tube Screamer
Two published reviewers have put the Green Screamer head to head with a Tube Screamer, and both found it differs in ways a player can hear13.
Guitar World's 2007 review A/B'd it against the reviewer's own TS9:
"The Green Screamer is a little brighter and delivers a more tubelike \"spit\" than my old TS9 (yes, I A/B'd them), though with a little less overall gain."
Josh Scott of JHS Pedals reached a similar conclusion from the other direction3:
"I think it has a little more gain to it and the tone control is way more usable."
So the two reviews disagree on which pedal has more gain, but they agree that the Green Screamer's tone control is the more workable of the two. A 2025 gearnews.com shootout of Tube Screamer-style pedals found that most TS pedals sound very comparable to each other, which makes the Green Screamer's reported brightness and tone-control range the points where it stands apart42.
How it differs from the alternatives
The Green Screamer sits in a crowded field of Tube Screamer-derived pedals. Compared with the Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer, the original BBE pedal offered true bypass where the TS9 is buffered4, and the v2 goes further with its switchable buffer, so the player is never locked into either approach2. Other green TS-style options include the Mosky Green Screamer, a budget take based on the TS9 and TS808 circuit, and the One Control Persian Green Screamer, which adds Vintage and Modern modes on a side switch and can be turned into a pure booster by setting drive to minimum and level to maximum. BBE also built Tube Screamer-derived signature pedals, including the BBE G Screamer developed with Gus G.
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Questions
Is the BBE Green Screamer a Tube Screamer clone?
It is a Tube Screamer-derived design rather than a straight copy. Josh Scott of JHS Pedals describes it simply as a Tube Screamer, and Guitar World calls the v2 BBE's modified take on the Tube Screamer circuit, built for greater transparency and versatility than a stock TS.
Does the BBE Green Screamer v2 have true bypass?
Yes. Guitar World reports that the Green Screamer v2 has true bypass switching, along with a switchable input buffer and top-mounted jacks. The original 2007-era BBE pedals were also true bypass, unlike the Ibanez TS9, which is buffered.
How much did the BBE Green Screamer v2 cost at launch?
The Green Screamer v2 launched at $149 in the US, announced alongside the Sonic Stomp Pro at $159, and both were available immediately at those prices when Guitar World covered the launch on 23 December 2022.
What does the Deep switch do on the Green Screamer v2?
The v2 adds a three-position Deep switch that enhances the low end, addressing the bass thinness that Tube Screamer-style circuits can have. It gives the player a way to dial in more body than a stock TS circuit typically delivers.
Which op amp does the Green Screamer v2 use?
The Green Screamer v2 uses the 4558 op amp, the same dual op amp found in many classic Tube Screamer-derived designs. The original Green Screamer was also a dual op-amp overdrive pedal.
Sources (4)
- BBE: Crusher, Green Screamer and Frequency Boost pedals, Guitar World, 2007-05-16
- BBE launches the Sonic Stomp Pro and Green Screamer v2 Overdrive, updating two of its most popular pedals, Guitar World, 2022-12-23
- WHY BBE PEDALS ARE AMAZING, JHS Pedals
- Guest Reviewer Fridays: Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer, Pedal of the Day, 2016-06-17
Gus G
