Maxon OD-9

The Maxon OD-9 is a Japanese-made overdrive pedal built on the Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer circuit. Maxon describes it as delivering "the ultra-smooth, creamy, dynamic overdrive so sought after by Guitar" players, with improved circuitry featuring the JRC4558 IC¹². Externally, Guitar.com's reviewer Huw Price called it "a dead ringer for the Ibanez TS9"², and inside it is essentially the same circuit: Analog Man describes it as "a TS9 with the correct JRC4558D chip"³.

The OD-9 was released in the summer of 2002³. It sits in Maxon's 9 Series alongside the Maxon OD808 Overdrive, and corresponds to the Ibanez TS9 the way the OD808 corresponds to the Ibanez TS808⁴.

What it does: a TS9-style overdrive

The OD-9 is a Tube Screamer-style overdrive: a mid-focused, smooth clipping overdrive that players commonly use to push an amp into breakup or to add sustain and articulation to a clean signal. Maxon's own description covers the range: "From subtle boosts to outrageous roars, the Maxon OD-9 provides the artist with the widest range of usable, distinctly tube sounds available"¹.

Because it is an exact TS9 circuit, the OD-9 shares that pedal's character. MusicRadar's Jonathan Horsley described the OD-9 reissues as having "reanimated that '80s style Tube Screamer OD-9/TS-9 drive sound for the 21st century"⁷². Compared with the OD808, the OD-9's lack of a FET switching circuit gives it "some added output and a slightly more open sound than the OD808," suited to classic rock tones, according to the RockBoard PedalPedia entry⁵.

Guitar.com's Huw Price summed up the pedal's appeal for TS9 fans: "If you like the idea of a clearer and more refined take on this classic overdrive, with the potential added benefit of true bypass switching," the OD-9 is worth considering².

The controls

The control layout is the familiar three-knob Tube Screamer arrangement. Godlyke's product page describes it plainly: "Overdrive and Output Level controls adjust the intensity of overdrive and output volume"¹, with a Tone control shaping the high end, as on a TS9.

The same lineup carries across the whole OD-9 family: Guitar World notes "the familiar lineup of Drive, Tone and Level controls" on the Creamdrive¹⁰ and "the same lineup of Drive, Tone and Level controls" on the Blackdrive¹¹.

History and versions

The Maxon OD-9 was released in the summer of 2002³. Its lineage goes back further: Guitar World's history of the Maxon Overdrive and Ibanez Tube Screamer notes that the original Overdrive Pro was "repackaged as the Maxon OD-9 Overdrive and Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer" in 1982¹². The Ibanez OD-9 Overdrive of circa 1982 used the same PCB as the Maxon OD-801 and Ibanez OD-850 third editions¹³, a separate design from today's Tube Screamer-based OD-9.

The modern OD-9's own history has a notable switching change. Early OD-9s had a DPDT switch with "normal" bypass, and "in about 2004 they changed to an actual 4PDT true bypass switch"⁶³. Later OD-9s have a 4PDT switch for true bypass and LED switching³. Aion FX notes the pedal was also "revised to use a new op-amp and to have true-bypass switching via relays"¹⁴.

Analog Man also points to the OD-9's build quality as part of its long-term value: "These are hand-made with normal hand-wired parts (pots, jacks, etc) like the TS9 so we can keep them running forever"³.

Limited editions

• OD-9 Blackdrive (2021): A limited edition of the OD-9 in a semi-gloss black enclosure¹⁰⁵¹⁵. See the Maxon OD-9 Blackdrive page.
• OD-9 Creamdrive (2022): A limited edition of the OD-9 in a semi-gloss cream enclosure⁷¹⁶. See the Maxon OD-9 Creamdrive page.
• Fortin-Modded OD-9 (2020): A Maxon Custom Shop version of the OD-9¹⁷. All four batch variants are sold out¹⁸. See the Fortin-Modded Maxon OD-9 Overdrive page.

The OD-9 versus the Ibanez TS9

The two pedals are close cousins. Analog Man states flatly that the OD-9 "is a TS9 with the correct JRC4558D chip," differing originally in its DPDT switch replacing the TS9's FET switching³. TONEHOME goes as far as to say "the Maxon OD9 is just another Tube Screamer"¹⁹. Externally, the resemblance is complete: "Externally, the Maxon OD-9 is a dead ringer for the Ibanez TS9"².

The practical differences for a player:

• Bypass: Later OD-9s are true bypass via a 4PDT switch³⁶, where the TS9 uses buffered FET switching.
• Output and openness: Without the FET switching circuit, the OD-9 has added output and a slightly more open sound than the OD808⁵.
• Price: A 2025 Gearnews Tube Screamer shootout listed the OD-9 at $147.00⁹; Analog Man noted back in 2007 that a modded OD-9 ran $20 more than a TS9 with the same mods⁶.

Analog Man's buying advice for true-bypass seekers: "If you don't already have a tube screamer, and want true bypass, the Maxon OD9 is the obvious choice"³.

Mods and the OD-9

Because the OD-9 is an exact TS9 circuit, it takes the same modifications. Analog Man: "Since it is an exact TS9 circuit, we offer the same mods on the OD-9 as the TS9, either the CLASSIC or the SILVER mod, along with KWS option"³. The Fortin-Modded OD-9 from the Maxon Custom Shop, designed with Mike Fortin of Fortin Amplification, is a factory-modded version sold in four batch variants¹⁷¹⁸.

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