BBE Green Screamer

Level, Tone, Gain. Easy. The knobs are nice and fat (look and feel like Telecaster knobs). Has a bright blue LED that is visible from space. Er, I mean, outdoors in broad daylight.

The power jack is located on the top of the unit and accepts any Boss-style powersupply

My rig:

Epiphone Sheraton II >> MXR DynaComp >> Vox 847A Wah >> mXR 10-Band EQ >> BBE Green Screamer >> EH Big Muff Pi (Russian) >> MXR Phase 90 >> Boss TR-2 Tremolo >> EH Holy Grail Reverb >> MXR Carbon Copy Delay >> BBE Boosta Grande >> BBE Sonic Stomp

The GS is true bypass, no effect on sound in bypass mode that I can hear. No noticeable hum when engaged.

This unit is great for lightly distorted rhythm (some examples are Good Love is on The Way by John Mayer, The Revolution Starts Now by Steve Earle, Daylight Fading by Counting Crows, Mary Jane's Last Dance by Tom Petty, etc. etc.) and with a few adjustments for blues lead guitar. It really shines with a boost in front of it (I have used an EH LPD-1, MXR 10 band EQ, and Boosta Grande) for leads or if you want to effectively have to different gain settings for the pedal.

Like most ODs you lose some lows and gain some highs. I suppose if I need to use some adjectives to describe the sounds I get out of the GS I would go with "crisp" and maybe "jangly". In short--it's a classic, vintage-sounding overdrive.

I demo'd a new TS9 at the same time as the GS, and the TS9 couldn't even hope to keep up.

I had never heard of BBE until a couple of months ago (and I found out that's because they've only been in the pedal business for about 2 years), but they make some extremely high quality product in terms of construction and reliability. The switch is smooth and responsive, the knobs are not too loose or tight, the bright blue LED is great.

The battery cover on the back does look a little flimsy; I tend to forget about it because I power most of my pedals (including this one) with a 1Stop.

I did email their customer support once to ask a question about serial numbers (answer, by the way: there isn't one) and didn't get an answer...... but I think that might be because of spam filter on my email.

In any event I'm going to give them a free pass here because I know better than to email when there's an 800 number.

Great for blues or any light distortion sound, really shines with a boost. Also, using the GS before a distortion box can create some cool sounds.

In short I'm very happy with this purchase and I haven't found a better pedal for the same or price cost.

Level - Tone - Gain

Heavy knurled knobs like Telecaster knobs.

Smooth pots.

Solid project box.

It is very easy to match the overdrive volume to your dry volume and the tone and gain level are dialed to taste. Simple. Effective.

I play a Gibson Melody Maker and a Gibson SG and a Standard Tele and Strat and a Thinline Tele an a Gretsch Double Jet and an Eastwood P-90 guitar. The BBE GS loves all my guitars. I have had an old TS9, and I have a Boss SD-1 and a Digitech Bad Monkey right now. The BBE GS has the most organic tube sizzle of any of my OD pedals. I play through a Fender Blues Junior and a larger VOX amp and I have never been this excited about an Overdrive Pedal. The BBE GS does a great classic overdrive or you can use it as a boost. I can play the Blues Junior dirty and use the BBE GS as a boost and the sound is warm and harmonic and it has a great classic grind.

I am considering buying another BBE GS so that one can mount on my pedal board and the other can just sit in the family room near my amp for quick practice.

Solid project box.

Telecaster-like knurled knobs.

9 volt hook up just like a boss pedal.

This is not a crazy metal-head distortion pedal. It's a nice classic overdrive. I have a Fender Pro Junior that has amazing overdrive if I turn the single volume knob up to 6.....this is the type of tone that the BBE GS gives me and I love it. The boost quality is a bonus. You can utilize this pedal in a couple of ways, it's not just a distortion pedal.

It is very easy to get a good sound... it's based off the TS-808, and everyone who's played one of those knows that it was the pedal of SRV. There are only three knobs: level, tone, and gain.

I am using a custom Tele-type with Duncan Vintage Rhythm and Vintage '54 Lead PUs and a modified PA from the 60s (sounds like a Fender Tweed Pro).

I am using this as my basic overdrive. I have another distortion box that I use for heavier British-type grit (MI Audio Crunch Box v2) but this one is absolutely solid. You lose a bit of bass (as with the 808) but it remains very transparent throughout the rest of the frequency range. It retains all my playing nuances (unlike the Crunch Box, which just makes anyone sound like Slash) and adds a very smooth overdrive that is great for bluesy stuff, really pushes a good amp to make it cry. The dynamic response is amazing, so from light finger work to really digging in, this pedal totally responds. This also means good control with the volume knoc or a volume pedal (if it's before the green screamer the chain, of course).

It is not noisy at all, and it has hardwire bypass.

This is not for heavy distortion... don't expect it to do that, but do expect it to take you to from mild to thick and sustaining overdrive. Not meant as your one an only lead pedal, but does all the rest.

It's built very solidly... has a well-made battery compartment and the housing is metal. I would gig this thing without a backup. Have been using it for months, and it has never let me down.

Never dealt with them...

I do post-rock and ambient rock stuff, and some indie stuff. I'm really into Explosions in the Sky, Sigur Ros, Mono, and this pedal really does the trick for a very dynamic, very transparent, and natural sounding overdrive.

Because I paid $99 (what everyone sells it for), I don't think I got the best deal in the world. It's nice to feel like you got a better deal, just 'cause...

very easy to get a good sound.Pretty self explanatory level tone gain turn the groovy knobs and it makes your sound better.Glanced at the manual but it's just an overdrive pedal you don't have to be a rocket scientist to work it.

This thing does just what it advertises makes your sound better.I pretty much pair this with my small clone chorus pedal and bam sweet sounds.I play through a vintage club30 tube amp and custom thinline tele copy and a casio pg 380 which is basically a fat strat configuration.

It's part of my pedalboard I use it every day basically.I've had it a month know and not a problem.This thing is running whenever I'm playing.It's an important cog in my sound definitely gig worthy.

never dealt withem

play jamband music.playin 15 years too much stuff to list.If this was stolen would definitely replace it.Used to have boss blues driver.almost bought a used ts 9 but glad I didn't upon this pedal being compared to the ts 808 reissue not to say thats not a good pedal but this one is cheaper and does what it advertises improves your tone.To a musician sound is the most important thing and this thing makes your sound better.

Only three knobs, but, depending on what tone you're shooting for, it might take you a while to dial in the right sound. The manual is simple and straight ahead -- no sample settings.

I tried the Green Screamer with my two amps: a Fender '65 Deluxe Reverb (reissue) and an Orange AD30TC. Both are highly rated tube amps, with the former being old-school clean and the latter producing medium gain Vox-meets-old-Marshall tones (only darker and more manly!).

With the Orange, the Green Screamer sounded best when applied to Channel 1, the cleaner of the two channels, with the gain on the amp at a pretty low setting. Essentially, the Screamer took what was there and worked like a classic overdrive, pushing the sound, although coloring it as well. The color adds high end while perhaps removing a tad of low end. If that's what you're looking for, excellent. Me, I ended up dialing the tone knob back a bit. It definitely "screamed," although not as well as the distortion full up on either channel. With my Orange, I think I prefer a simple boost pedal, like my Seymour Duncan pickup booster, which is technically for boosting single-coil pickups but also works as a straight boost (think MXR Micro Amp).

With the Fender, I couldn't get a tone I liked, especially with just the Green Screamer. I had to layer it with another distortion pedal. But I don't have another distortion pedal. So I layered it with a Big Muff Pi, with the Green Screamer first in the signal chain. The sound was interesting, a little raunchy. I had the Screamer all the way up and the Muff's sustain as low as it would go. Alone with my clean Fender amp, the Screamer sounds thin, transparent (in a bad way), and gutless.

I've only had it a couple weeks, but the thing is built like a tank. Solid metal housing. Nice lines. Well constructed, other than the paint, which already has a few scratches in it (can't take it back now...).

I had a question for BBE (couldn't find the serial number), called the 1-800 number, and got immediate, helpful assistance. Question answered (there isn't one...).

I play indie rock and love my Orange. My main guitars are a Gibson Les Paul Studio and a Gretsch hollow body (the formica green one!). I also have a Fender Tele HH, which I love to play, despite its too-bright tone, and a Ricky (with "crestwave" body and Gumby headstock), which sounds nice but is tough to play (small frets).

I bought the Green Screamer to go with my new Fender amp (the 65 Deluxe Reverb mentioned above), which I bought for rehearsal and possibly live gigs (it's much LIGHTER than the 82-pound Orange). But what I need is a true distortion pedal. The Green Screamer is a classic overdrive, much like the tube screamer, etc. It's not a stand alone distortion pedal, and it does tweak your tone a bit (adds highs, sucks lows). True bypass, though, and well made, as I said above.

I can see the value of layering pedals to get a tone, but in a live situation, I'd like to find a stand-alone distortion pedal that can emulate that great Orange crunch. Then I can save my Orange for the studio and lug the lightweight Fender around.

Will keep looking...

3 knobs. Start with everything at 12 o'clock and go from there. So simple, and lots of variation in tone is available.

Holy crap. I just walked into the music store, not even looking to buy anything. I asked about overdrive pedals, and the monkey behind the counter hands me the Green Screamer. I plug it into a Fender DeVille, and grab a Strat off the wall. Did I say holy crap? Heads were turning... in a good way. Is that SRV I hear? No... it's EJ! No... it's John Mayer... No, it's practically all of those tones, and smooth as a baby's butt. It didn't alter my fundamental tone, in fact, I heard stuff I had never paid attention to before. I had to have that pedal right then and there.

It has a 21st century appeal to it. It feels pretty substantial, though I'd worry a little about the plastic battery cover, it feels a little flimsy.

Never had to deal with BBE, but they are an American company. Go USA.

For $60 US new, I love this pedal. True bypass, and smooth switching is a plus. The blue LED is cool too. Very simple, very smooth, and lots of sustain. This is what an overdrive pedal is all about. Great value.

It's a tubescreamer!

I did an A/B with my favorite pedal
the Analogman Beano Boost.
This pedal holds its own.
Better than any TS-9 or OD808 I've heard.
Still has the tight blooming mids & doesn't lose low-end.

Who knows!

??

For Hard Rock, Garage Rock, Country what ever, this pedal can be used.
It kind of reminds me of my old Reverend Drivetrain, but better.
With P90's it rules. This will be my live pedal so I don't trash my Beano. Thru my JTM 45 it really makes it happen.

Three knobs: Volume, Tone, and Gain, input/output jacks, footswitch, battery door and power supply socket. plug in, flip switch, and turn knobs. Pretty easy.
One thing I really liked was that it came with it's own AC power supply which most pedals definitely don't.

I use this pedal with a 90's Strat plus with texas specials, a 74 LP custom, and a Reverend Hellhound combo amp. I have played a few different tube screamers from Ibanez and I liked this pedal more. I was skeptical at first but I dyno'd it at the store with a 70's strat and a 50w orange amp and I liked it.
I brought it home and I really love it now with the strat and reverend. It is very versatile and you can get a pretty wide range of sounds with it. From clean boost to smooth, bluesy tube over drive, to a pretty hairy tube od with Humbuckers and the LP.

It's not the best sounding OD pedal I've heard but it's a great deal for the money and I'll keep it even though I plan on getting a Fulltone OCD. This pedal has it's own sound, it is similar to an Ibanez Tube Screamer but I A/B'd it with an Ibanez and I did like this one better.

So far, very dependable. Seems sturdy enough, all metal construction, Large Knurled metal knobs which can be adjusted with your foot. Switch seems heavy duty and the jacks seem sturdy. It seems to be high quality and is definitely constructed better than some other pedals I have seen.

N/A. Bought it from a local music store, no problems yet.

I think it's a great pedal for the money for someone that wants a really nice, tube screamer'ish sound and doesn't want to spend a couple hundred dollars.

There's only 3 knobs, level, tone, and gain so its pretty quick and easy to get the sound you're looking for.

An awesome overdrive pedal with excellent sound quality and a true bypass for passing through the pure signal when not in use. Its not a distortion pedal so if you're looking for heavy distortion then look elsewhere but this is an amazing pedal for people looking for that classic rock or bluesy overdrive. Putting this in front of an already overdriven amp is just incredible!

Very solidly built so it should be pretty dependable, however I've only had it a couple of weeks and haven't gigged with it.

Haven't had to deal with them so I don't know.

Great sound in a solid package and I couldn't be happier with it. Excellent for classic rock and blues especially.

a monkey could get a good sound out of this thing. I mean really, 3 knobs, I cant dial in a bad sound.

I use marshall amps and I own 2 stratocasters one usa one mij, I love this pedal in every situation. the signal could have a liitle more output for my taste but you cant complain for the price.I use this pedal for classic rock, blues and some modern stuff as well. you can get an excellent mildly distorted blues tone to a pretty mean grunge/fuzz tone. this pedal is very transparent which means it accentuates your amp and axe's tone, which is why I have to highly reccomend this pedal.

I have used it about everyother day for the last 3 months and I have had no problems. seems to be built very well.

I have owned a ts-9 for the last 3 years once I a/b'd it to the green screamer I was convinced. The green screamer not only sounded better it also made my tone better when the effect was off (true bypass) I didn't realize how much tone my ts-9 was sucking up until I exchanged it in the loop for the green screamer. I use marshall amps and I own 2 stratocasters one usa one mij, I love this pedal in every situation. the signal could have a liitle more output for my taste but you cant complain for the price. I also own a digitech bad monkey which is one hell of a pedal in it's own right, the tones that the bbe gs get are very similar to the bad monkey but the digitech seems to color your tone while the bbe gs lets your tone shine through.