Are you hardcore guitar fan?
Then you are probably looking for the best tube screamer to give your guitar sound that hard and gritty edge.
What if i told you that getting that sound does not need to be confusing or even expensive?
There is no need to bang your head on the wall looking for how the pros do it… or even to go out and spend stupid sums of money trying to buy one over hyped equipment that will change the way your guitar sounds.
You can get that sound simply by using a tube screamer when next you play your guitar.
But the truth is that there a lot of models out there that making a choice might be confusing.
Let me calm you down a bit.
In this article, we will be looking at the top 5 best tube screamer in the market today, things to consider before you make a purchase and our editors best choice.
Things to consider before you make a choice
To ensure that you get a quality tube screamer for your guitar, there are some things you need to consider.
1. Sound and Performance
This is probably one of the most important factors you need to consider before you make a purchase.
You want to make sure that you get something that gives you a clean and distorted sound.
While the sound you go for may be based on personal preference and choice, you basically want to get something that sounds nice and not too muddy.
As for the performance, you want something that will work with the other components in your rig.
The trick is to get something that works very well with other parts of your rig and does not cause any kind of imbalance.
2. What is the size?
The next thing you want to consider is the size of the tube screamer pedal.
Why?
This is especially important if you are considering going with other effects pedal.
Basically you want something that is not too bulky and will fit perfectly within your guitar rig.
If you are not too sure, you can easily view the dimensions and the size of the pedal on the box before making a purchase.
3. What are the features and effects?
Also you want to make sure that the one you get has some basic effects.
So for example, you want to make sure that it has knobs that will help you adjust the volume and the gain, tone and level.
These are basic features that all pedals should have.
So if you are really serious about getting some tube screamer pedals, then you should make sure that they come with these features.
4. What is the price?
Finally you want to make sure that you drop some good cash to be able to get quality pedals.
Among the pedals we review, some of them are not so expensive, while some maybe out of your price range.
What you need to consider here is that to get something that is of high quality and will last for a long time, you should be ready to spend some cash.
Our Top 5 Best Tube Screamer Pedals
1. Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer
This is probably the most common and popular tube screamer in the market today.
This is one piece of equipment that brings distortion and overdrive effects to your guitar rig.
It has classic tone, drive and level controls which makes switching and adjusting the volume so much easier.
This is one tube screamer that easily allows you produce a fantastic tone and dial in the right amount of overdrive without going overboard.
It also helps you to quickly and easily adjust the tone of your guitar making you produce the right sound everytime.
2. Boss BD-2 Blues Driver Guitar Effects Pedal
The Boss BD-2 Guitar Effects pedal is a classic blues guitar tones that comes with it’s own unique tube amp simulation.
It has warm distortion and overdrive that gives your guitar sounds that hard edge and gritty flavour.
One thing about this pedal is that it easily responds to nuances and volume changes making it so much easier to handle and control.
It can be powered using an AC adaptor (which is not included) or 9V battery which is included.
It has a 5 year warranty making it an ideal choice for you to start with.
3. Behringer Vintage Tube Overdrive
This is one of the cheapest tube screamers in the market today.
With this pedal you can easily get vintage overdrive, smooth sustain or a screaming fat tone without too much fuss.
It has a dedicated drive, tone and level controls that gives you this unique and awesome sound and also makes your sound shaping so much easier.
It easily captures every detail of your playing sound from the smooth overdrive to the screaming tube sounds making your sounds so much enjoyable and awesome.
It can be powered using 9V battery or a DC power supply that is included.
4. MI Audio Blues Overdrive Guitar Effects Pedal
This is one amazing plug and play pedal that is very easy to setup and use.
It has a volume, gain and tone control that helps you easily adjust the sounds to your preference.
It has an improved bass response that helps to reduce bass loss which commonly occurs with most pedals.
It has a unique toggle switch that helps you switch on the subtle fuzz mode. What this does is that it gives you sounds a warmer and rich feel making it sound pleasing to the ear.
It has character control settings that helps you easily customize the overdrive to fit your style.
This is one expensive tube screamer, but you can be sure that it delivers and sounds very good.
5. Maxon OD808 Overdrive
This is one very popular and common tube screamer that has been used by celebrities and musicians.
It delivers a smooth and natural overdrive much like a full tube amplifier
It responds easily to playing details and does not muddy you mix allowing your instruments to shine through.
This is one tube screamer that delivers a natural, mild overdrive and does not make your guitars sound less.
It is made from cast aluminium which makes it very light and rugged
It designed in such a way that it easily fits into any pedal rig and does not fall out when being used.
What is a tube screamer used for?
While a tube screamer is an essential parts of most guitarist rig, there are so many uses for it.
- It is used to adjust the gain, the treble and the overall output of the sound.
- It is used to mimic the sound of a vintage tube amplifier
- It helps to keep your sound from getting lost in the overall mix of the band.
Conclusion
A tube screamer is very important to most guitarists.
It helps them easily apply distortion and overdrive to their sounds
