Jump to content


Please note: You can easily log in to MPN using your Facebook account!

My TS10 Tube Screamer Classic


BiC

Recommended Posts

Seeing some videos on YT got me interested in blowing off the dust on my Ibanez TS10 Tube Screamer Classic. I bought it at a pawn shop in Fayetteville, NC (while stationed at Pope AFB) around 1989-1990. But it quickly got tossed aside after I purchased my Digitech GSP 21 Pro. Because of this, the pedal is in really great shape. It was MIJ, and has the coveted JRC4558D chip. Compared to those for sale on Reverb/eBay, it has a very low serial number @ 146130. The majority of those for sale online have 3 & 4 series serial numbers. To my surprise, they are selling anywhere from $400 to $1,000+. It seems they skyrocketed in price after folks found out that SRV used one. John Mayer as well. There is a "batch number" on my chip. It is 5069. I've read that the first digit represents the manufacturer year. But, from my understanding, the TS10 was first introduced in 1986. If this pedal was indeed manufactured in 1985, then introduced/sold in 1986, then it is indeed a very early pedal. The only "defect" (if you want to call it that) is that I had to splice in a new battery snap. I just may have to replace that with one that is properly installed/soldered. Here are some pics...

 

Click

 

Peace :thu:

"Treat your wife with honor, respect, and understanding as you live together so that you can pray effectively as husband and wife." 1 Peter 3:7

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites



  • Replies 17
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

@BiC - I dug out an old Ibanez "Power Series Pocket Manual" featuring the first run of -10 series pedals, and it has a copyright date of 1986 on the back, with a June '86 date next to it. I wouldn't be surprised if they were already preparing that line in '85, in order to have them available in the U.S. market by '86.

 

That one is in really nice shape, and should work just fine with a 1 Spot adapter, or even the older Boss PSA-120 (9.6v, 200mA) and Ibanez AC109 (9v, 200mA, regulated), if you get tired of feeding it batteries. FWIW, if you ever see one of the plastic TS5's, they supposedly have the same circuit as the original TS9's, and I don't think they've hit Vintage prices as yet.

"Monsters are real, and Ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win." Stephen King

 

http://www.novparolo.com

 

https://thewinstonpsmithproject.bandcamp.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you for the advice, and taking the time to dig out the manual. Interesting info! That was my initial thought... preparing the line to become available in 1986. I would think the earlier the pedal, the more valuable it is. But, I've yet to come across one as early (and in as good as shape) as mine for reference. Here are the most recent ones listed on Reverb:

 

CLICK

 

 

@BiC - I dug out an old Ibanez "Power Series Pocket Manual" featuring the first run of -10 series pedals, and it has a copyright date of 1986 on the back, with a June '86 date next to it. I wouldn't be surprised if they were already preparing that line in '85, in order to have them available in the U.S. market by '86.

 

That one is in really nice shape, and should work just fine with a 1 Spot adapter, or even the older Boss PSA-120 (9.6v, 200mA) and Ibanez AC109 (9v, 200mA, regulated), if you get tired of feeding it batteries. FWIW, if you ever see one of the plastic TS5's, they supposedly have the same circuit as the original TS9's, and I don't think they've hit Vintage prices as yet.

"Treat your wife with honor, respect, and understanding as you live together so that you can pray effectively as husband and wife." 1 Peter 3:7

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Further confirmation that my pedal's chip was constructed in 1985:

 

The JRC4558D chip is pictured and it is a 4-digit serial - 9A59 - the '9' indicates the year in the decade that the batch was produced on the 4 digit chips, which would point to this pedal being produced in 1989. Also the code on the Cap verify the same date as 1989.

 

CLICK

 

Compared with the prices currently on Reverb, I just might have a $1,000.00+ pedal, huh?

"Treat your wife with honor, respect, and understanding as you live together so that you can pray effectively as husband and wife." 1 Peter 3:7

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guys argue endlessly ... TS808 vs TS9 vs TS10. There really isn"t much difference other than the case. Biggest variances in sound comes from tolerances in the potentiometers. I"m terrible at selling stuff but if I had An original TS10 I"d sell it to a crazy guitar nerd and put one of the other many TS type pedals on my board.

"It doesn't have to be difficult to be cool" - Mitch Towne

 

"A great musician can bring tears to your eyes!!!

So can a auto Mechanic." - Stokes Hunt

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

BIC, I remember having an Ibanez tube screamer back somewhere in '79 - '83. I don't remember which model. It was the only pedal I ever owned that broke down on me. Even though I liked it, I did not replace it. I just wanted a boost for lead work in a country rock band I was playing in. I replaced it with a boost pedal by Electro Harmonix. After reading these posts, I thought about how good or bad my memory is on the time frame LOL! Here's a clip from an article that shows I'm not crazy LOL! :crazy:

 

"THE FIRST INTEGRATED CIRCUIT CHIP

The Tube Screamer first appeared in 1979 in the form of the now highly sought-after and collectible TS808 model. All other overdrives built prior to this model were built around transistors. The 808 was the first overdrive to use the JRC 4558D integrated circuit (IC) chip. It is the most important component to the Tube Screamer sound and is responsible for its thick, vocal-like, mid-range tone. [2]

 

The 808 was only in production for a couple of years before it was changed to the TS9 version in 1982. Because sales were poor in the beginning, that model was dropped by 1984. For a few years they changed the models and names frequently until the late 80s and early 90s when guitarists started to use them more frequently. By 1993, Ibanez settled on the TS9 due to its popular demand. The surge in demand had a lot to do with a guitar player from Texas" Original Fuzz

 

Not sure if this is helpful. If I had a pedal worth $1,000, I would sell it... :cool:

Take care, Larryz
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@CEB and Larry... Thank you for the input!

 

I'll either sell it or simply consider it a collectible and store it alongside my mint condition vintage Digitech Whammy WH-1. I'm not hard up for the cash. Haven't been since the late 80's, early 90's when I used to have my Strat in and out of pawn shops on $100 loans. :laugh: So, I might as well consider it a part of of my overall investment portfolio. Especially since I've yet to come across one with an earlier serial number. :2thu:

"Treat your wife with honor, respect, and understanding as you live together so that you can pray effectively as husband and wife." 1 Peter 3:7

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

BIC, I remember having an Ibanez tube screamer back somewhere in '79 - '83. I don't remember which model. It was the only pedal I ever owned that broke down on me. - - -

If I had a pedal worth $1,000, I would sell it... :cool:

 

@Larryz - First of all, forgive me for editing your comment, however, addressing your points in reverse order - If I had a TS10 that was worth even $500, I'd gladly sell it, knowing that I could buy a used RI TS9 for under $100, and still have money left over; kind of like having your cake and eating it, too.

 

I was faced with the same issue when I sold off all of my "vintage" pedals some time ago, but I had two things in my favor; the market values were just absurd, and I could also replace or replicate all of the sounds of those pedals, so I wasn't losing anything unique or essential. OTOH, I just recently saw that my MIKU Stomp is selling for anywhere from $400 up on Ebay and Reverb, while my old Digitech Space Station has been selling for crazy collector's prices for a while now. While I could cash in by selling them, there isn't anything that I could readily replace them with. I'd be more likely to let go of a recent model Synth, or a spare Amp, than to see something all but irreplaceable.

 

Regarding the TS9's breakdown - I think one of the changes between Ibanez' -9 series pedals and the -10 series was an upgrade to the switches. Those original Ibanez switches were notorious for failing, and one of the earliest mods for TS9's and other -9 series pedals was a replacement switch, very often one of the old-school round button switches like we still see on MXR pedals. I forget whether it was Keeley or Analog Man who first offered that option.

 

Another change was the placement of the AC adapter input. It may seem a small thing, but the TS9's and other -9 series Ibanez pedals would fit right into a mid-1980's Boss BCB-6 pedalboard, and they would run off of the Boss PSM-5 Power Supply & Master Switch, so you'd often see someone with a mix of Boss and Ibanez pedals in the same Boss pedalboard. Moving the AC adapter In jack meant you couldn't fit the -10 series pedals into a Boss board anymore. Might have been a counter-marketing move so they weren't inadvertently helping to sell Boss Pedalboards, but as Ibanez didn't have a pedalboard of their own to compete, I'm not sure what the benefit was?

"Monsters are real, and Ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win." Stephen King

 

http://www.novparolo.com

 

https://thewinstonpsmithproject.bandcamp.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@ BiC, I can see hanging on to vintage equipment because you like it and enjoy just having it on the shelf. Saving it because it has collector value is also cool. I thought about having a vintage guitar, but many of them do not get used even though they have great sound and feel. Just too expensive to take out of the house. Kind of like classic cars. I think I would just worry too much about them LOL! :thu:

 

@ Winston, I agree that if you have that special sound that would very hard to replace, you better hang on to that classic pedal. Maybe keep an eye out for another one. I think the 1st tube screamer had a stomp switch like the MXR and Keeley. Mine was the 2nd model with the square switch that broke on me. So I tossed it and bought the EHX. My favorite switch is still the Boss pedal switch. It's big and doesn't make pop in/out noise. Silent on/off . I pretty much stopped using pedals and I'm really only using my Boss Compressor CP-1x and my Digitech looper these days. +1 $500 or $1,000 for one classic, would buy a few new ones! :thu:

 

ps. Winston, this site slowed on responding so I didn't finish my post last night. I wanted to say that back in my pedal days I used the One Spot with the daisy chain and could reach all of my pedals easily without worrying about where the power input was located (on top or on the side, etc.). Back when I used a cry baby pedal which had an internal battery and no jack for a power supply, I really appreciated the 9 volt battery adapter that came with the one spot. I never had a dedicated pedal board with a dedicated power supply for the brand, and I think you made some great comments. You are the Go To Guy on the forum for any ??'s I might have and I'm so glad that your are back in town! :thu:

Take care, Larryz
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I pretty much stopped using pedals and I'm really only using my Boss Compressor CP-1x and my Digitech looper these days. +1 $500 or $1,000 for one classic, would buy a few new ones! :thu:

 

Although I am unaware of such a trend currently, I bet one day there will be a "purist" trend within the guitar world to return to all analog when it comes to effects. Although I do not belong to any such groups, "purist" groups must certainly exist within our community and social media.

"Treat your wife with honor, respect, and understanding as you live together so that you can pray effectively as husband and wife." 1 Peter 3:7

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Although I am unaware of such a trend currently, I bet one day there will be a "purist" trend within the guitar world to return to all analog when it comes to effects. Although I do not belong to any such groups, "purist" groups must certainly exist within our community and social media.

 

I think that has been the case for a while. Nels Cline was doing a session in my studio maybe a decade ago & we were discussing effects. For repeatability & access to a large number of very complex patches I had an all digital rack system. Nels was saying precisely the opposite, to be non-repeatable & make the process more spontaneous he uses only analog floor boxes, (with the exception of a Korg Kaoss pad, because it was so tactile & immediate.) Nels has one of the most developed and original ears for tone of any player I've heard. He is very dedicated to the notion of getting there using only analog pedals, and has been for a long time, and I suspect there are a lot of others like him.

Scott Fraser
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@ BiC and Scott, I think both analog and digital guitar pedals have some really good attributes. +1 on preferring analog. Back in my keyboard days, I really appreciated my analog Juno 60 synth for warm strings, great brass and great organ sound over the newer digital synths. I had to write my own analog acoustic/baby grand piano patches for the Juno. My digital Kurzweil worked much better for acoustic/baby grand piano both in sound and feel with weighted keys and 10 note polyphonic one for each finger LOL! I still have it in storage and wish I had never sold the Juno even though it was 6 note poly (IIRC). So with my very limited experience, I'm in the analog camp... :cool:
Take care, Larryz
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Scott Fraser- Haahh! Do ya feel tha Like in tha room... ? Note "9 members like this: Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite"- There was some sort of malfunction when I "Liked" your post, and when it eventually righted itself, that was the result... Like they say, "Don't count 'em, enjoy 'em... " :D

 

BiC, my old friend- that's cool that you still have that pedal, in such great condition, a veritable 'closet classic'; your story, as well as that of the TS line and that very pedal that you have, is classic and so signal of the times and trends that we've all come up through.

 

I'm sure you and many here know very well the way most players use those either as a sort of a 'clean-boost', or 'clean-ish boost', Drive low, Level high, to overdrive a tube-amp (especially 'blackface' Fender types) with a sort of a mid-boost what with its roll-off of lows and highs, or with the Drive high to add more of the pedals own overdrive character.

 

For a while now, more and more players- a lot of them Metal/Stoner/Doom/etc. types- have been stacking these into other overdrive/distortion pedals, and/or higher-gain amps, to effectively tighten-up the tone and reduce low-end mud and flub, usually with the Drive low and the Level high or the like. This works similarly to the way vintage-type Treble Booster pedals do, passing mids and highs while cutting off a lot of lows and low-mids. Some like to place a TS stylee after another pedal for similar reasons- often following a Big Muff type pedal, for example, which tend to be quite mid-scooped, getting a bump-up in mids from the TS.

 

Be sure to experiment and try this with your Digitech GSP 21 Pro and any other overdrive and distortion pedals- you might find a new use for it!

Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do?

 

~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~

_ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Scott Fraser- Haahh! Do ya feel tha Like in tha room... ? Note "9 members like this: Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite"- There was some sort of malfunction when I "Liked" your post, and when it eventually righted itself, that was the result... Like they say, "Don't count 'em, enjoy 'em... " :D

 

One can never be overly liked.

Scott Fraser
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Although I am unaware of such a trend currently, I bet one day there will be a "purist" trend within the guitar world to return to all analog when it comes to effects. Although I do not belong to any such groups, "purist" groups must certainly exist within our community and social media.

 

I think that has been the case for a while. Nels Cline was doing a session in my studio maybe a decade ago & we were discussing effects. For repeatability & access to a large number of very complex patches I had an all digital rack system. Nels was saying precisely the opposite, to be non-repeatable & make the process more spontaneous he uses only analog floor boxes, (with the exception of a Korg Kaoss pad, because it was so tactile & immediate.) Nels has one of the most developed and original ears for tone of any player I've heard. He is very dedicated to the notion of getting there using only analog pedals, and has been for a long time, and I suspect there are a lot of others like him.

 

There are definitely Analog "purists", just as there are Tube Amp purists, believe it. While I can appreciate that approach, especially when done with deliberation, as Nels Cline has done, one doesn't have to go all Analog to embrace the Chaos.

 

I'd been using Digital MFX for years, because it was much easier to have one AC adapter, one set of connector cables, and no Amp to deal with. There's also the dependability factor; every time I would dial up a favorite patch, I knew that it would sound exactly the way it did last time I dialed it up, without fail. Being able to back up all my sounds as SysEx is a nice fail-safe, as well. The only time something sounds different is if something is wrong.

 

Still, I set about assembling my 21st Century Pedalboard because I missed the element of Chaos - perhaps more properly, Randomization - that enters into a pedalboard, with all those different circuits, and physical connections. While some of my favorite individual pedals are Digital, they're also some of the least predictable. You want predictability, get a new RI TS9; you want "Don't-Touch-That-Dial!" craziness, get a new Bicycle Delay or a Charlie Foxtrot.

 

BTW, I've one of the original red-and-black Mini-KP Kaoss Pads since they first came out; it's too much fun!

"Monsters are real, and Ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win." Stephen King

 

http://www.novparolo.com

 

https://thewinstonpsmithproject.bandcamp.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Scott Fraser- Haahh! Do ya feel tha Like in tha room... ? Note "9 members like this: Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite, Caevan O'Shite"- There was some sort of malfunction when I "Liked" your post, and when it eventually righted itself, that was the result... Like they say, "Don't count 'em, enjoy 'em... " :D

 

One can never be overly liked.

[font:Comic Sans MS]"Number Nine... Number Nine... Number Nine... Number Nine... " :D [/font]

 

Although I am unaware of such a trend currently, I bet one day there will be a "purist" trend within the guitar world to return to all analog when it comes to effects. Although I do not belong to any such groups, "purist" groups must certainly exist within our community and social media.

 

I think that has been the case for a while. Nels Cline was doing a session in my studio maybe a decade ago & we were discussing effects. For repeatability & access to a large number of very complex patches I had an all digital rack system. Nels was saying precisely the opposite, to be non-repeatable & make the process more spontaneous he uses only analog floor boxes, (with the exception of a Korg Kaoss pad, because it was so tactile & immediate.) Nels has one of the most developed and original ears for tone of any player I've heard. He is very dedicated to the notion of getting there using only analog pedals, and has been for a long time, and I suspect there are a lot of others like him.

 

There are definitely Analog "purists", just as there are Tube Amp purists, believe it.

 

I used to be one- for good reason. Then, when things improved overall with guitar-centric digital processors and pedals, I abandoned that camp for the most part, and go with a mix and match of analog, digital, tube and Solid State gear, each tool chosen very judiciously. Definitely a Win-Win-WIN scenario.

Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do?

 

~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~

_ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _

Link to comment
Share on other sites

All my pedals are analog, really by accident, I didn't know the difference. I have a tube and modeling amp. I have an older Vox Valvetronix VT40, now I'm looking at the new VT100x, 11 amps modeled and 13 effects.

We also have purists in the surf world, hand shaped vs cnc. I have both, the piece of wood or foam doesn't know the difference and I can't tell the difference.

Jenny S.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@ Caevan and Surfer Girl, +1, I agree that there is great equipment in both the digital and analog gear and one should pick up whatever works for your ear and your budget. I liked the older analog when it comes to keyboards but admitted digital has some great attributes too. I still like my Fender Floor multi which is digital and gets some great sounds. But, now that I have my Fender Tone Master SS amp, I won't be using the Fender Floor to get my Fender Deluxe amp sound anymore. With regard to tube vs Solid State amps, I have always been a tuber until now. I like the lightweight Fender SS amp better than my two Fender tube amps.

 

When it comes to surf boards, I wouldn't know the difference between CNC vs hand shaped either LOL! They didn't have CNC shaping back in '64 when I bought my foam board. I'm pretty sure it was hand shaped at the O'neill surf shop in Santa Cruz, CA. Kind of like the Plek fret machines they use now days and CNC machines for guitars, that were not very well known back in the day...

 

If you can duplicate the sound of the TS10 Tube Screamer Classic digitally, I say go for it! :2thu:

Take care, Larryz
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...