The Maxon OD-9 Creamdrive is a limited-edition version of Maxon's OD-9 overdrive, the company's Tube Screamer-style pedal, dressed in a cream enclosure instead of the familiar green. Announced in April 2022, it was a European exclusive, and its circuit is identical to the one in the standard OD-9: the only real difference is the housing12.
Guitar World described it as "a limited-edition, new-look version of the Tube Screamer clone," carrying "all the charms and functionality of the green 'drive machine, in a cream enclosure"1. MusicRadar's Jonathan Horsley framed the OD-9 itself as a pedal that "reanimated that '80s style Tube Screamer OD-9/TS-9 drive sound for the 21st century"3.
An OD-9 Tube Screamer circuit in a cream enclosure
The Creamdrive is the OD-9 in different clothes. Gearnews put it plainly: "The circuit of the Creamdrive is identical to that in the OD-9, the difference here is in the housing"2. That circuit is the TS-9-style Tube Screamer design, built around the JRC4558 IC chip, which Guitar World called "the JRC4558 IC chip that gives the pedal its trademark snarl"1. MusicRadar described the Creamdrive as having "the same all-analogue JRC4558D op-amp driven circuit as Maxon's OD-9 reissues"3.
Within Maxon's lineup, the OD-9 sits a step up from the OD808: Guitar World noted the OD-9 "is designed to produce a touch more gain, bite and output than its sibling in the Maxon lineup, the OD808"1. Reviewing the standard OD-9 for Guitar.com, Huw Price found that "Compared to the original TS9, the OD-9 generates higher output and a tad more gain. It's also noticeably sweeter and less fizzy for overdrive, with a refinement that gives it a slight edge on the oldie"4.
One point of history worth knowing: the modern Maxon OD-9 should not be confused with the original 1984 Ibanez OD-9, which, as Analog Man explains, "was not a tube screamer circuit (and very rare)"5. The current pedal is a TS-9-style design, not a reissue of that 1984 unit.
The controls
The control layout is the familiar three-knob Tube Screamer arrangement. Guitar World lists "the familiar lineup of Drive, Tone and Level controls"1; Gearnews describes the same knobs as Gain, Tone and Volume, plus an on/off foot switch2.
| Control | What it does |
|---|---|
| Drive (Gain) | Sets the intensity of the overdrive16 |
| Tone | Shapes the high-frequency content1 |
| Level (Volume) | Sets the output volume16 |
On the standard OD-9, Godlyke's product page describes the Overdrive and Output Level controls as adjusting "the intensity of overdrive and output volume"6. There is no separate mid boost or mode switch on the Creamdrive; players who want switchable voicing and 9/18-volt operation on a related pedal can look at the Maxon Overdrive Pro Plus (OD-9 Pro+).
Power: 9 to 18V
Guitar World reports the Creamdrive "runs on 9 - 18 V power or a 9V battery"1. That is a wider range than the standard OD-9, which MusicRadar and Guitar.com list as a 9V DC power supply or 9V battery34. The related OD-9 Pro+ shows what the extra headroom is for: in its 18-volt setting, Pedal of the Day found it offers "beefier lows, tighter saturation, improved dynamics and a chunky, aggressive pick attack" compared with the 9-volt setting, which "sounds and functions like the standard OD-9"27.
The Creamdrive's 9 to 18 V range comes from Guitar World's launch coverage1; MusicRadar's report from the day before lists only a 9V DC power supply3.
History: a European limited edition after the Blackdrive
The Creamdrive followed another Europe-only limited edition of the OD-9. In October 2021 Maxon announced the OD-9 Blackdrive, a limited edition for the European market8. It was, as Guitar World noted, "The company's first offering since [it split from longtime partners Godlyke Distributing Inc.]"8, a split that happened earlier in 2021.
The Blackdrive sold well enough to prompt a follow-up. Guitar World reported that "The offering proved to be so popular that the firm has now introduced another limited-edition" version, the Creamdrive1. RockBoard's PedalPedia entry for the Blackdrive confirms the family relationship: "this is THE original OD-9 (TS-9) circuit, yet with the addition of true bypass switching," with the current production OD-9 using the NJM (JRC) 4558D op amp9.
At launch in April 2022 the Creamdrive was available exclusively in Europe, priced at £129 in the UK, €149 at Thomann, roughly $140 at the time132. Gearnews' reviewer, noting the pedal is built in Japan, wrote: "Made in Japan pedals are normally pretty high quality units, so I would expect his one to be built well"2.
True bypass and the OD-9's switching
The Creamdrive carries true bypass switching1, as the current OD-9 does. That was not always the case: Analog Man notes the early OD-9 "had a DPDT switch with 'normal' bypass" and that "In about 2004 they changed to an actual 4PDT true bypass switch"5. Later OD-9s, per Analog Man's history of the Tube Screamer, use a 4PDT switch for true bypass and LED switching.
Videos
MusicGearz
News
Sources (9)
- Maxon's OD-9 Creamdrive gives the Tube Screamer a limited-edition makeover, Guitar World, 2022-04-06
- Maxon OD-9 Creamdrive limited European run now available, gearnews.com, 2022-04-05
- Maxon puts high-calorie Tube Screamer overdrive back on the menu with limited edition OD-9 Creamdrive, MusicRadar, 2022-04-05
- Maxon OD808 & OD-9 vs Ibanez TS-9 Tube Screamer Shootout, Guitar.com, 2017-07-27
- Ibanez TS9 and TS808 Tube Screamers, Maxon OD9 and similar effects pedals and mods, Analog Man (analogman.com), 2022
- OVERDRIVE (OD-9), Godlyke Distributing, Inc.
- Maxon Overdrive Pro Plus (OD-9 Pro+), Pedal of the Day, 2023-09-30
- Maxon unveils limited-edition OD-9 Blackdrive pedal, Guitar World, 2021-10-26
- OD-9 Blackdrive by Maxon, RockBoard PedalPedia, 2026
