Maxon Reissue Series OD808 Overdrive

Product Information

I also have a preference for the older-style stompbox switches as used in the OD808 as they seem to hold up well to long-term abuse and are easy to replace if they do go down. For over 40 years Maxon’s legendary "808" overdrive circuit has been an essential ingredient to achieving great guitar tone. Just listen to any recording by Grammy-award winning Producer/Killswitch Engage founder Adam Dutkiewicz to hear how the OD808 has become the voice of a whole new generation of metal guitarists.

Of course, the one thing that Tube Screamers almost universally have in common is their 'mid bump' and soft-clipping diodes. You might assume that an Ibanez model would be the most authentic, but there are many different units. Rather than just allow you to select the version of Tube Screamer you want to use, EQD has split down the constituent blocks of the tone. With the OD808 Reissue you get all of the same warm, creamy, organic overdrive tones as the original, but the circuitry has now been improved to slightly reduce noise level without compromising any of that vintage rock and blues sound. The ‘mode’ toggle switch is the Plumes’ main point of interest, however – and the difference each mode makes to your tone is spectacular.There's a voice control, which essentially changes the clipping diodes, as well as a bandwidth control, which controls the gain and tone.

It's a Dumble-inspired overdrive based on a Tubescreamer topology, offering more dirt and flexibility. I would suggest staying with what you've got and maybe invest in an MXR 10-band EQ or something like that if you don't already have one. 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. If vintage-voicing is where you're at, then having a go on the EHX East River Drive should be on your agenda.a Unique TS variant with four push buttons that allow you to mix and match LED, MOSFET, Silicon and Germanium diodes, and then alter the resulting overdrive through 5 controls, including two unusual "Bright" and "Dirty" switches placed on the back of the case. Identical to the original circuit and featuring the JRC4558 IC chip, the Maxon OD808 reissue offers the smooth, natural and incredibly dynamic overdrive of a full-up tube amplifier in a compact pedal. Mode 3 is the more ‘screamer’ option; an asymmetrical silicon diode arrangement but with a little more clarity for that ‘transparent’ drive tone we all talk about.

The pedal is a fantastic tool for tightening the low end of a driven amplifier and adding top-end presence without excessively coloring the tone. Again overall, we’re talking about subtle differences and both are excellent units in their own right.they don't use "premium" or "hand selected" components, they use the same bog standard stuff out of the same parts bins as the other pedals.

If you’re not so accurate with your feet however, you may find yourself nudging this dial when engaging or disengaging the footswitch. Back in the late '70s when the Tube Screamer first came out, the pedals were being made by Ibanez's parent company, Nisshin. 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. It takes the signal, makes it louder, adds treble and gain, all to taste, without touching the rest.We found that when engaging the Smalls Green Rhino – especially mid-song – it was quite easy to knock the dials on the pedal and accidentally mess with our tone.