Tube Screamers

I still own a original TS-9

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I bought a TS9 right after I bought my 1981 LPC new in 82 (I think). Late 90’s when all these DSP floorboard super duper pedals start showing up and I bought a Digitech RP-12 and thought I’d never need my single use pedals again. Sold the original TS9 and an original Big Muff. Hindsight is 20/20. I have since bought the TS9 reissue and another Big Muff.
 
This was a great review to read. I am really encouraged by what you wrote. See, I'm in a real tone quandary now as the band adds more and more mixed genre songs.

I'm already playing "clean" on Tom Petty's "You Wreck Me," and i personally feel like my tone is too "dirty" for some of our newer songs.

Next, I'm hitting the 'Lead 2' channel on my amp with my TS-9, so i need to switch channels and kill the TS-9 to make the transition.

I been listening to our other guitarist, who plays with a P90 Les Paul through a stock DSL40C, and he's exclusively on the "Green" channel and getting a great tone, but the lack of broad spectrum EQ on the green channel leaves me wanting.

Ugh....

I'm not sure if this Blues Driver is better than my Angry Driver. BD is its own thing sonically, and the Angry Charlie side of the AD is a Marshall-in-a-box/JCM-800 thing. It's really a toss up, they both sound incredible. The BD is very, very tight and that's something I really like. AC is a bit looser but has a bit more complex midrange. BD responds to guitar volume better (cleans up remarkably well) and AC backs off into a really usable, purring kind of mid-gain sound. Where the Angry Driver wind hands down is that it has two full separate OD's in one box and the options for using them separately or combined make it the most versatile OD I have used. At the moment I have the on two separate pedal boards but probably going to put them on the same one to A/B, more out of curiosity than anything else.
 
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I'm not sure if this Blues Driver is better than my Angry Driver. BD is its own thing sonically, and the Angry Charlie side of the AD is a Marshall-in-a-box/JCM-800 thing. It's really a toss up, they both sound incredible. The BD is very, very tight and that's something I really like. AC is a bit looser but has a bit more complex midrange. BD responds to guitar volume better (cleans up remarkably well) and AC backs off into a really usable, purring kind of mid-gain sound. At the moment I have the on two separate pedal boards but probably going to put them on the same one to A/B, more out of curiosity than anything else.

I need to experiment more i suppose. My rug has really been pulled out from under me, sonically speaking, as we have added all these "fun songs" to the set list.

Now, i am finding it necessary to change my tone based on the song, which is a total deviation from my work in the Judas Priest Tribute Band. Songs like "Love Shack" by the B-52's requires a cleaner, less doomy tone.

I have to say this has been very unsettling for me. Its not a comfortable place at all.
 
I have to say this has been very unsettling for me. Its not a comfortable place at all.

Haha, I get what you are saying. A while back I did an old bass-playing brother a favor when he was hooked up with an original act that had just released their first album. Struck me as really odd at first because this cat was someone I knew from the trenches of the Metal club circuit in the '80's and would have never thought he'd get involved in this type of project: it was a power pop thing fronted by a female singer/songwriter type - more Alanis Morrissette than Alice In Chains if you know what I mean. Anyway, the record was out and it was time to play a bunch of support gigs, but they only had one guitar player and couldn't pull off the material, as studio guys had done a lot of overdubs and all the solos, so he asked me to step in as a favor for the gigs. Man, what an eye opener. Learning a full set of that style of music challenged me in a way that in the end was a great experience which taught me a lot and gave me a better appreciation for what people in these other genres are up to. Challening musically? Hell no. But challenging as an exercise in learning and growth, for sure. But, to fill out the sets we also worked in a bunch of covers and I found that part really distasteful - god I hate playing covers.
 
Haha, I get what you are saying. A while back I did an old bass-playing brother a favor when he was hooked up with an original act that had just released their first album. Struck me as really odd at first because this cat was someone I knew from the trenches of the Metal club circuit in the '80's and would have never thought he'd get involved in this type of project: it was a power pop thing fronted by a female singer/songwriter type - more Alanis Morrissette than Alice In Chains if you know what I mean. Anyway, the record was out and it was time to play a bunch of support gigs, but they only had one guitar player and couldn't pull off the material, as studio guys had done a lot of overdubs and all the solos, so he asked me to step in as a favor for the gigs. Man, what an eye opener. Learning a full set of that style of music challenged me in a way that in the end was a great experience which taught me a lot and gave me a better appreciation for what people in these other genres are up to. Challening musically? Hell no. But challenging as an exercise in learning and growth, for sure. But, to fill out the sets we also worked in a bunch of covers and I found that part really distasteful - god I hate playing covers.

Totally relate!!!!!

I was shocked how much work is involved in playing songs like "Dead Man's Party" and "The Warrior" by Scandal. My tone is totally wrong for those.

I keep thinking, every time i listen to Black Label Society, that maybe i need to write songs that would allow me to use my tone, rather than adapt my tone to different songs.

Trouble is, i don't like what i write....
 
I started out playing and singing in a shitty, wood plank floored honky tonk at 15. Back then i could play and sing effortlessly.

Then, i spent the next 10 years working in a studio under nearly ideal conditions. Now, i am struggling to play and sing simultaneously, although i feel like its getting better day by day...albeit slowly.

Fortunately, with three guitarists, i can just sing and not worry about playing. I tend to jump in during the solos and play the backing ryhthms on the songs that i sing.

But, on some songs, its really a struggle for me.
 
Totally relate!!!!!

I was shocked how much work is involved in playing songs like "Dead Man's Party" and "The Warrior" by Scandal. My tone is totally wrong for those.

I keep thinking, every time i listen to Black Label Society, that maybe i need to write songs that would allow me to use my tone, rather than adapt my tone to different songs.

Trouble is, i don't like what i write....

Toughest part for me was scaling back my rig and sound for it. At the time my giggin amp was a Laney AOR-50 with a 4x12 Fane-loaded cab, which was not exactly a great match for what they were doing - it was just too overpowering for the setup since the Laney didn't start to really breath until it was loud enough to decapitate, but it had been perfect for what I was doing prior. I ended up using a borrowed Peavey CLassic 50 4x10 combo (killer amp BTW) with just a flanger and a drive pedal (I believe if memory servers that at the time I was using my rat with the dist dialed way, way back on it). Played my Strat 90% of the time with them, only broke out the Les Paul for a couple of songs that the other guitar player was playing keys on so I could fill up the missing sonic space.
 
i got this HBE germanium treble boost....ended up kicking the Super Reverb into a zone never experienced before, excellent boost for leads
but a few nights ago..i hit paydirt by mistake on the JMP50 .. was using my fender board earlier & plugged it into the marshal the Rimrock MO was on & as a bump..fantastic just more of push. It thickened up that lil bit for the leads. Going to use it tonite for leads on next song. This time 5150 got the Rythym & the JMP is going n top

Its messed up..last 3 weeks on the Marshall's & Peavey 5150 & plugging strait in..no pedals like in the Fenders
 
i got this HBE germanium treble boost....ended up kicking the Super Reverb into a zone never experienced before, excellent boost for leads
but a few nights ago..i hit paydirt by mistake on the JMP50 .. was using my fender board earlier & plugged it into the marshal the Rimrock MO was on & as a bump..fantastic just more of push. It thickened up that lil bit for the leads. Going to use it tonite for leads on next song. This time 5150 got the Rythym & the JMP is going n top

Its messed up..last 3 weeks on the Marshall's & Peavey 5150 & plugging strait in..no pedals like in the Fenders

For live work, i use a second Boss GE-7 for a lead EQ and boost...
 
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