Fantastic as usual...I do prefer the Apex, since as you said, sounds more natural. TS-9 has that gummy pedal sound, although to be quite honest, BECAUSE of that it does seems smoother or more composed at times. I prefer the Apex. At 6:50, do you have that grey pedal plugged in and running as well? Thanks--needles to say: your tunes are always great, and sound fantastic. Your playing is spot-on and awesome as usual. Is that Strat at 8:00 stock? Just checked the price: $300....wow....
Pete has cost me thousands due to he making every pedal he plays sound amazing! Then I buy it going yay, I’m going to sound like Pete now, I’ve come to realize it’s in the hands, heart, and soul of Mr Pete Thorn that makes these beautiful tones! Now back to practicing 🤪🤘🏼!
Pete Thank You for doing this video . I've been using tube screamers for years . The Ibanez overdrive products I've used over the years UE 400 ,808 ,Tube Screamer , and reissue T.S and the TS808 hand-wired . But this one sounds like I may have purchase another 808. Again Thank You for doing the ground work. Look forward to Sundays . Stay well and Rock On .
Cannot believe you wrote that, I was thinking the exact same thing no BS ! His style of playing is actually similar the way Brian hammer ons and the note bends. Very Impressive. I'm a fan of Brian May as I liked them back on Day at the Races and Night at the Opera. I had their 1st 5-6 albums, and then they went one way, and I went the other. I had an Older Brother in a pretty good L.A. Punk band and I just went Bananas with the Junk Rock thing, but my roots are Mick Ronson, Ritchie Blackmore, Brian May, & Tony Iommi. Hell It goes back further to Blue Cheer, The Groundhogs(Phenomenal Band-Tony McPhee- Guitar), Marc Bolan T-Rex, Slade lol Hell Yeah. Pete Thorn, I'm telling you, Modern Day Messiah ! lol. Great Stuff ! Love that Green Hat Kevin ! So Fly, it's "Super Fly". Seriously though, shades of Brian May on this Demo. I noticed that BM Guitar in the background Thorny.
Yea I been waiting on this pedal....cant think of a better person to demo it than pete....great review....and I like the pedal,thanks pete. I own a maxon ts9 ....I was floored by the vid you done with range master treble boost tho..... now that's my kinda tone.
I’ve had just about every variation of the tube screamer, it’s my favorite drive to say the least. The one that has stood out to my ears the most is the hardwire CM-2 tube overdrive. I know that sounds like something out of left field. I’m a bit of a gear snob myself but the only thing that has matched it is my early 80’s 808. The hardwire one ups it in the fact that I don’t have to worry about fucking it up or it getting stolen at a gig because I can pick up another one on reverb for $60. Every time I see a new version of the ts I have to remind myself that the hardwire is probably better and to spend my money elsewhere.
Nice, sounds great. It would have been nice to compare against a regular Maxon OD808 as well and mention that the Apex is a limited edition and that’s why it’s so expensive. People don’t seem to realize these won’t last forever. Great playing/writing as always.
yep.....the reg maxon OD808 right now on amazon for $148.....the Apex 808 on another website $399......if you're a pro like Pete you can probably tell the difference, and might be worth it....for the rest of us mere mortals, I highly doubt that over double the cost is justified.
Pete every time I come across a pedal or an Amp etc... that I want to know more about, I always go to your channel to see if you've done a review. Even if I'm not particularly interested in buying the item I love your review videos. I was fired up when I saw that you did a video on this 808 and I wasn't disappointed in the least.
I have been meaning to get a real tube screamer although I have been faking it alright with my Boss OD-1. This one says Tamura on the top. That's good enough for me I think.
Hi Pete. I would love to see a video showing as many ways there are to get the Brian May dual delay. Weather it be through one amp, two or three! So far I haven't seen no pedals that do a perfect double delay with no more repeats.
Great video as always Pete. Thanks so much for what you do for the guitar playing world. Sharing your knowledge and amazing gift. Very much appreciated Brother.
Great playing as always, Pete! The pedal sounds very good. But, I sure love my JAM Pedals Tube Dreamer! It’s the best TS pedal I’ve used, and I’ve owned many TS variants.
It sounds pretty good/My TS-9 is great for boosting the front end & driving my amp's distortion but I feel limited when i'm using it as just a stand alone overdrive/lil too harsh gotta look into 808...
But I already own a Maxon OD808! ;-) The OD pedal on my main pedalboard for gigging (remember that?) is a Tone Monk Seed of Life which is the best OD pedal I've ever used during my long career in the ultra minor leagues of professional music. But I use the OD808 for home studio recordings on my secondary pedalboard. Should I upgrade? Maybe!
The Maxon is very close. But the Ibanez, IMO was a wee bit tighter in breakup, which is my preference. 👍😃 Always great info, insights & playing by a professional/touring musician, PT. Priceless...❤👌
I've gotten many iterations of the Tube Screamer through the years and always end up selling them 'cause none have ever sounded as good as I've expected them to. That being said this is probably my next attempt hahaha.
@@znmcg No i haven't tried that one. The closest to that one I've been is the TS808HW but it wasn't mine, so it wasn't very in depth, but it wasn't very impressive either.
You have the most musical demos and it helps that you play things as they would normally be used (if we could play like that). I cast my vote for a comparison between this pedal to the JHS Bonzai. To be the best you have to beat all the contenders, not just one. :)
Great pedal. I just can’t justify $300 for a pedal that sounds slightly better. Great review and playing as always Pete. Keep up the great work. Cheers
@@JimSlimjimCassi Fair enough everyone has to determine their own value or "bang-to-buck" comfort level, however for added context it wouldn't be a $300 difference, it would be a +$200 difference from the normal $99 TS9 reissue, a +$121 difference from the TS808 reissue at $180, and actually -$80 cheaper than the TS808HW reissue.
@@uzefulidiot I have the original 808 from the early 80's if i remember, it costs me $70, Not saying this pedal is not worth the $, if you never owned a TS***, but to drop the money on something i already have .. sort of, is not worth it.
Great video, as usual. :-) Do you think it might be interesting to compare the Apex 808 to Ibanez's fancy handwired 808? Thanks for this and all your great videos. Always informative and your playing is always fun to listen to by itself. :-)
Excellent, Pete! Have you ever put hands on the Sweet Honey by Mad Professor? Dude, I got one and wow, loved the pedal. I'd like to hear your opinion on it. Take care!
Dang it Pete, I was literally JUST about to rip Maxon in the comments section and right at 1:28, you answered my exact query. Even so, if I spent $300 on an OD pedal, it better come with a 1-on-1 guitar lesson from you. Hahaha
I heard the same thing you did. Almost sounds like a little LP filtering on the clean blend. The TS9 sounds a little more splattery as well. Of course, @$300, it SHOULD be the best screamer of all-time... God. LOL.
I'll be honest, I was going back and forth between that first comparison part and I couldn't tell a difference. Maybe it's more audible in the room or maybe it's the youtube compression. It's a tube screamer that sounds like a tube screamer.
Not a bad sounding pedal at all. The TS 808's were better sounding to my ears than the TS9, but they were so inconsistent. This would explain why that is.
Holy grail.
I figure it’s never too early to like a Pete Thorn video. Especially with gear.
Exactly
Pete is somewhat responsible for many pieces of gear in my arsenal. He’s so persuasive! 😅😅
Got one and it’s incredible.
Does anyone ever get tired of these? Me neither.
Absolutely complete demo !!! I think it`s the best screamer i have ever heard !!!
I like the transparency, no massive EQ difference. It sounds like you just turned up the gain knob on the amp!
Came here for the demo. Kept coming back to listen to Petes fantastic playing.
Thanks!!! :)
Proud owner of signed #0005
I cannot get over the talent you have and mixing with all those well deserved Suhr instruments. Lol
Hey thanks Robert!
@@PeteThorn Well deserved my friend.
Fantastic as usual...I do prefer the Apex, since as you said, sounds more natural. TS-9 has that gummy pedal sound, although to be quite honest, BECAUSE of that it does seems smoother or more composed at times. I prefer the Apex. At 6:50, do you have that grey pedal plugged in and running as well? Thanks--needles to say: your tunes are always great, and sound fantastic. Your playing is spot-on and awesome as usual. Is that Strat at 8:00 stock? Just checked the price: $300....wow....
Agreed bro..the best tone ever for TS type of pedal. Malaysia chip maybe😁
Pete has cost me thousands due to he making every pedal he plays sound amazing! Then I buy it going yay, I’m going to sound like Pete now, I’ve come to realize it’s in the hands, heart, and soul of Mr Pete Thorn that makes these beautiful tones! Now back to practicing 🤪🤘🏼!
Pete Thank You for doing this video . I've been using tube screamers for years . The Ibanez overdrive products I've used over the years UE 400 ,808 ,Tube Screamer , and reissue T.S and the TS808 hand-wired . But this one sounds like I may have purchase another 808. Again Thank You for doing the ground work. Look forward to Sundays . Stay well and Rock On .
I hear so many players complain about that parallel clean/dirt thing that a Tubescreamer does...
I love it. Amazing with single coils.
Drives me nuts
Maxon all the way
I like you said Tamura-san.
Maxon made the first tube screamer. My favorite is the OD 820. But each his own. That sounds freaking great though.
All Maxon pedals are killer !!!
Wow!!! Fantastic tone!!! I wonder how it would sound going into my Strymon Iridium? Love that thing!
Thanks again Pete!!!
Pete - " Thanks for watching" No dude thank YOU as usual !! That sounds thick and tasty on them strat tone's !
i have the maxy and it pares very well with me tele into me 5f-1 champ clone !
Love that double tracked tone at :35, it’s so Brian May, your tone is stunning lately
Kev!😀😀😂😀
Cannot believe you wrote that, I was thinking the exact same thing no BS ! His style of playing is actually similar the way Brian hammer ons and the note bends. Very Impressive. I'm a fan of Brian May as I liked them back on Day at the Races and Night at the Opera. I had their 1st 5-6 albums, and then they went one way, and I went the other. I had an Older Brother in a pretty good L.A. Punk band and I just went Bananas with the Junk Rock thing, but my roots are Mick Ronson, Ritchie Blackmore, Brian May, & Tony Iommi. Hell It goes back further to Blue Cheer, The Groundhogs(Phenomenal Band-Tony McPhee- Guitar), Marc Bolan T-Rex, Slade lol Hell Yeah. Pete Thorn, I'm telling you, Modern Day Messiah ! lol. Great Stuff ! Love that Green Hat Kevin ! So Fly, it's "Super Fly". Seriously though, shades of Brian May on this Demo. I noticed that BM Guitar in the background Thorny.
Wow, Pete. The solo and guitar tone at 0:34 is one of the best you’ve ever posted. Beautiful.
Thanks Bruce!
Pete, your playing is sublime.great demo, nobody does it better than you
Thanks Doug!
At 8:10 + is a tone I've chased for a long time. Loved it.
Yea I been waiting on this pedal....cant think of a better person to demo it than pete....great review....and I like the pedal,thanks pete.
I own a maxon ts9 ....I was floored by the vid you done with range master treble boost tho..... now that's my kinda tone.
Nice pedal and I'll probably get one, but the Suhr Classic S...NEED IT!
I’ve had just about every variation of the tube screamer, it’s my favorite drive to say the least. The one that has stood out to my ears the most is the hardwire CM-2 tube overdrive. I know that sounds like something out of left field. I’m a bit of a gear snob myself but the only thing that has matched it is my early 80’s 808. The hardwire one ups it in the fact that I don’t have to worry about fucking it up or it getting stolen at a gig because I can pick up another one on reverb for $60. Every time I see a new version of the ts I have to remind myself that the hardwire is probably better and to spend my money elsewhere.
Your white Shur strat has some nice rosewood in the fret board.
Pete is the wine connoisseur of pedals 🍷
I love that song! Bravo !
The Stratiest Pete demo ever! I can clearly hear the fizz of the TS-9, compared to the nice, open, natural sound of the new Apex.
Pete you are a great musician and I appreciate your expertise.
Thank u, thanks for being here!
Nice, sounds great. It would have been nice to compare against a regular Maxon OD808 as well and mention that the Apex is a limited edition and that’s why it’s so expensive. People don’t seem to realize these won’t last forever. Great playing/writing as always.
yep.....the reg maxon OD808 right now on amazon for $148.....the Apex 808 on another website $399......if you're a pro like Pete you can probably tell the difference, and might be worth it....for the rest of us mere mortals, I highly doubt that over double the cost is justified.
Pete... inspirational playing as usual.. and that pedal definitely kicks things up a notch.. it sounds amazing.
Sick playing in the intro, dude! Sounded great!
Thanks!
Would love to hear a shootout between this... a TS9 HW, an Analogman Silver mod TS9 or OD9, and the Vemuram TS9.
and the Eternity from Lovepedal... and the Soloist from KingTone. That would be the best of the best Maverick!
Those are all TS-9's, the Maxon Apex 808 is the predecessor the 808 chip, they're not exactly the same, though close.
@@FretLevelMidnight Precisely, all GOOD screamers tho. No junk like the bad monkey.
Uh huh, put the Wilkinson saddles on the 6 screw. Good call. Did that to mine and it brought new life to the instrument for stability.
Pete every time I come across a pedal or an Amp etc... that I want to know more about, I always go to your channel to see if you've done a review. Even if I'm not particularly interested in buying the item I love your review videos. I was fired up when I saw that you did a video on this 808 and I wasn't disappointed in the least.
Thanks!
finally got a Nobels ODR-1 (my backlog of overdrives is huge - need to buy more, fast!!!)
Awwww C'mon Pete - you're killing me. I just bought a New Overdrive. Now, I need " This-One " - I knew if I watched this Demo . . . you'd get me.
I have been meaning to get a real tube screamer although I have been faking it alright with my Boss OD-1.
This one says Tamura on the top. That's good enough for me I think.
Hi Pete. I would love to see a video showing as many ways there are to get the Brian May dual delay. Weather it be through one amp, two or three! So far I haven't seen no pedals that do a perfect double delay with no more repeats.
hi Pete everytime you play I always admire your tasty licks and solos!! thumbs Up!
Great video as always Pete. Thanks so much for what you do for the guitar playing world. Sharing your knowledge and amazing gift. Very much appreciated Brother.
Thank you David!
Very Nice !
Agreed. I've always found tube screamers have the "plastic" like top-end. The new one doesn't have that. It's clearer and have better presence.
Great playing as always, Pete! The pedal sounds very good. But, I sure love my JAM Pedals Tube Dreamer! It’s the best TS pedal I’ve used, and I’ve owned many TS variants.
Thank you. Groovy demo. Next, compare two titans of 808s: Maxon Apex 808 vs Ibanez/Venuram TSV808, if you can find one :-)
Sounds good, but I’ll stick with my old V7 OCD with it’s germanium chip. Love it.
Dig the jam✌🏻
Such a great track! Brilliant as always Pete! I heard a bit of Brian May in there at times didn't I?
Thank u! I wish!
Very nice...the separation of clean and dirty on TS's never worked for me either...I may have to try this one,thanks
It sounds pretty good/My TS-9 is great for boosting the front end & driving my amp's distortion but I feel limited when i'm using it as just a stand alone overdrive/lil too harsh gotta look into 808...
Cool track!
Very informative, Pete. Thanks!
I still can't get away from an old SD-9 with the gain rolled all the way down and the volume all the way up for all my TS needs
But I already own a Maxon OD808! ;-) The OD pedal on my main pedalboard for gigging (remember that?) is a Tone Monk Seed of Life which is the best OD pedal I've ever used during my long career in the ultra minor leagues of professional music. But I use the OD808 for home studio recordings on my secondary pedalboard. Should I upgrade? Maybe!
The Maxon is very close. But the Ibanez, IMO was a wee bit tighter in breakup, which is my preference. 👍😃 Always great info, insights & playing by a professional/touring musician, PT. Priceless...❤👌
Love your lead playing at 7:45-7:55.
Thank you Paul-!
Sounds great but the JHS Bonsai has this tone... And bunch of others. Awesome video.
I bought one awhile back at $300. Love it. Looks like it is now $400
One that may be overlooked, Zoom PD-1, the OD variant of their 4 analog dirt pedals
Sounds great. I would like to hear it up against the Fultone Fulldrive fd1.
Pete you're great! That's all i can say
Thanks for watching, Nico!
superb playing, as always! :P
i thought someone photoshopped tom cruise in the thumbnail! your playing has feeling bro
Ha.. thank u :)
I can never make it more than 45s before hitting the like on your vids. Great playing as always....
Thank u!
I've gotten many iterations of the Tube Screamer through the years and always end up selling them 'cause none have ever sounded as good as I've expected them to. That being said this is probably my next attempt hahaha.
Have you tried tsv808?
@@znmcg No i haven't tried that one. The closest to that one I've been is the TS808HW but it wasn't mine, so it wasn't very in depth, but it wasn't very impressive either.
haha....isnt that always the way? we chase after that magical tone that we can never attain, thinking that the next stomp box will do it for us.
The rarest of all TS type pedals is the Pedalman 818 Pro! Only 59 made and in my opinion the ultimate unicorn of a TS type.
Pete! When are you going to team up with a lyricist and singer to transform these killer tracks into killer songs?!
I got Eagles vibe from the brilliant intro jam.
The Maxon sounds great..but dude you are an incredibly talented guitarist🤟 rock on brother🎸
Thanks so much!
Sounds really good. Smooth. I believe it would be better to compare it to an ts808 instead of a ts9 though. Great playing as always.
Holy intro licks batman. TASTY!
You have the most musical demos and it helps that you play things as they would normally be used (if we could play like that). I cast my vote for a comparison between this pedal to the JHS Bonzai. To be the best you have to beat all the contenders, not just one. :)
U sound better than ever Petezilla
Great pedal. I just can’t justify $300 for a pedal that sounds slightly better. Great review and playing as always Pete. Keep up the great work. Cheers
No shit, when i saw the price, it's not a $300 improvement.
@@JimSlimjimCassi Fair enough everyone has to determine their own value or "bang-to-buck" comfort level, however for added context it wouldn't be a $300 difference, it would be a +$200 difference from the normal $99 TS9 reissue, a +$121 difference from the TS808 reissue at $180, and actually -$80 cheaper than the TS808HW reissue.
@@uzefulidiot I have the original 808 from the early 80's if i remember, it costs me $70, Not saying this pedal is not worth the $, if you never owned a TS***, but to drop the money on something i already have .. sort of, is not worth it.
Great video, as usual. :-) Do you think it might be interesting to compare the Apex 808 to Ibanez's fancy handwired 808? Thanks for this and all your great videos. Always informative and your playing is always fun to listen to by itself. :-)
Excellent, Pete! Have you ever put hands on the Sweet Honey by Mad Professor? Dude, I got one and wow, loved the pedal. I'd like to hear your opinion on it. Take care!
Dang it Pete, I was literally JUST about to rip Maxon in the comments section and right at 1:28, you answered my exact query.
Even so, if I spent $300 on an OD pedal, it better come with a 1-on-1 guitar lesson from you. Hahaha
Btw, I'm a "Don't like it? Don't buy it kinda guy"
Has ‘air’ to let the ‘hair’ of it breathe. More articulate. Sometimes 15% percent is a lot. Thanks for the demo. 🤘
I'd like to hear the Maxon 808 compared to the Ibanez 808 reissue rather than the TS-9. But, cool demo.
The Apex seems to have a wider, more complex midrange to my ears.
So Im curious do you have an 808? I personally have always preferred the 808 0ver the TS9
Great Video Pete !
Which UNiversal Audio are you using here . Model , Duo or Quad ?
X8p
@@PeteThorn thanks
Riff was so smooth I forgot what was the video about...
Thanks!
It really is the “one”. Someone has to be able to identify which model it is!
I heard the same thing you did. Almost sounds like a little LP filtering on the clean blend. The TS9 sounds a little more splattery as well. Of course, @$300, it SHOULD be the best screamer of all-time... God. LOL.
Have you tried DOD looking glass already?
I'll be honest, I was going back and forth between that first comparison part and I couldn't tell a difference. Maybe it's more audible in the room or maybe it's the youtube compression. It's a tube screamer that sounds like a tube screamer.
It's the apex...of snake oil
Great vid as always. What pedal are you running in front of the Apex? That silver two knob job.
Hush noise reduction. I have a lot of EMI in my studio unfortunately
@@PeteThorn Same in my 1965 built home. Light dimmers don't help.
Hey Pete, what do you use to lay down great drum tracks? Btw, I’ve bought pedals based off your RUclips reviews. Great insights.
Are use a few different programs, superior drummer, Steven Slate drums etc. thank you!
300$ .... Is it better than the Ibanez NuTubeScreamer (NTS) ?
And was it really so expensive to buy those OpAmp chipsets ?
Compare with the vemuram/Ibanez tsv808
Not a bad sounding pedal at all. The TS 808's were better sounding to my ears than the TS9, but they were so inconsistent. This would explain why that is.
Hey Pete. Are still using IR's for your demo's or are you miking cab? Remember seeing a clip where you were building a little iso room....
This is a cab in this particular vid
@Pete Thorn is there a good clone of the BOSS SD-1 or SD-1w . with True bypass???
I think it would be best to compare the apex to a ts 808
Didn't have one. But this was as close as I had and valid still I think
How does this compare to the Vemuram 808?