Maxon OD-808 Reissue

Very easy to use.

Sounds a lot warmer, natural, and a little more gritty than a TS9. Its not noisy, especially for an overdrive pedal. I use it with fender tube amps. I love this pedal. It has great sustain for lead and has enough clarity so the chords are articulate.

Ive had it for a long time and i take it out all the time and its been great.

I play most styles of music. I jam out a lot so I play whatever and love it all. If it were stolen, I'd have to buy another. There's nothing bad about this pedal. It sounds better than the ts9, ts808, ts9dx, fulltone fulldrive 2, boss sd1, boss od3, boss bd2, and many other ODs i've used.

3 Controls and a decent manual to boot, very easy.

Laney LH50R Jackson DKMGT with EMG81 and 85 set. No other effects. I tune to drop C, and set the amp to about 7 on the gain. Think Killswitsh Engage type tone, turn this bady on with the overdrive set to low and it just "heats up" the whole sound, WITHOUT destroying it, like most other pedal's I have tried.

Only just got the thing, its built to last though!

Only just got

OK we place alternative metal, failry technical here and there, lots of pinched harmonics palm muting, you get the picture. The fact this pedal can be uswed for so many things says alot. Yes I have tried it as a mild overdrive i.e. into my clean channel, and while not my usual "bag" it sounds VERY VERY NICE.

But I bought the thing to drive the hell out of my amp, and still be able to hear all the detail of the sound.

JOB DONE.

Very easy to use, but does not produce the best results right away. Requires a bit of tweaking.

This pedal is pretty good. It nails that peircing cut through the mix SRV blues tone. Yet, for me, it is a bit harsh. Played with a strat it seems to be scratcing at my face. Not pleasant. With a les paul this pedal sounds better. I would guess that this is due to the observation that over all this pedal is a bit thin sounding - not enough low end , as others have noted, and too much high end, which is particularly noticable with single coils. The resulting sound, even after tweaking the tone knob, can be harsh and unpleasant. Compared to my Ful Drive II, the Maxon is less rich, less full (less bassy) and harsher. However, it has an aggressive highend that makes the full tone sound somewhat timid by comparison. Essentialy, if you want a pedal that screams, is aggressive to the point of being a little harsh, but does indeed cut through a mix like a cleaver, then this could be a good choice. One of the cool tings about this pedal is that for chord work it produces a very musical and transparent crunch that cuts through nicely. When pared with humbuckers and used for rythym the pedal sounds great.

Compared with Boss and run of the mill pedals these Maxons are a cut above. Compared with the botique market they are on the lower end in terms of build quality, stability and internal wiring. However, overall these things are solid.

If this pedal is what your after in terms of sound (see sound section of review) it represents a reasonable value. There are a thousand overdrive pedals on the market, and the Maxons are cheaper, yet more limited and less versitile. Still, some people like a pedal that is easy to use and has one basic great sound. For the money these are a good deal.

this pedal couldn't be simpler to use; 3 knobs. the manual is helpful, but there really isn't much you need to know in order to use the pedal.

I'm using a very modified squire standard stratocaster or a schecter C-1 elite into a dunlop crybaby, the maxon, a digitech ditial delay, and finally into a Fender '65 twin reverb reissue. with the strat it can get a bit noisy if the gain is turned way up (mostly due to the single coil p'ups) but all in all this pedal is pretty darn quiet. the pedal itself sounds fantastic. it can go from slighty natural tube overdrive to pleasatnly transparent crunch. I do wish it had a little bit more of a bassy punch though...even with the bass at 10 on the amp, I feel like it's missy a little something when the pedal is on (that could just be me though). I've tried this pedal right alongside an ibanez ts-9 with the maxon behind the ts-9. that sounded great for leads and I would higly suggest trying that or even better, getting 2 808's. it gives a great SRV sound (esp. through a trat of course). Also, although I've heard that the digitech X-series pedals are trash, I've managed to conjure up a great sound from the number 1 setting on my X-series delay pedal that sounds great with the 808. It's a bit like a compression/slight reverb sound; it really brings everything to life.

the footswitch looks and feels a bit weak, but I've had the pedal for almost a year know and nothing has happened to it so far. I don't have the money for a backup, so I guess I don't have a choice but to use the one pedal, but it's not a problem because it's stayed strong through every gig i've used it with.

never had to deal with them

I've been playing a lot of SRV and Hendrix of late. and this pedal absolutely nails their sounds (although having a good strat and tube amp does help a bit). I haven't been playing for too long, only about 4 or 5 years, but after purchasing this pedal I've been able to dial in great tones that I'm really pleased with and which encourage me to go out and play more and more. I've heard that the analogman modification makes this pedal even better (which is hard to believe) but I'm happy with it for now. I compared the pedal to other maxon overdrives and the ibanez ts-9 and od-9, but this one just appealed to me the most. It has a great transparent crunch sound that I can only achieve otherwise if I turn my amp to deafening volumes. I'm definetely not the best player out there...not even close, but the pedal makes so easy to dial in great tones in a flash, and works great with all my other gear. I'm just 16 now, but I have a feeling that in 10, 20, maybe even 30 years, I'll still be using this pedal or one similar to it. I just wish i had the money to buy another one.

so easy-3 knobs...

for some reason these types of pedals have become the standard-just about everyone into OD has some type of variation
on this theme on the floor(or has used one)...i like this Maxon 808 and right now am using it for a slightly overdriven sound near the same volume as the amp's clean. it does not need a 'sort of dirty' tube amp to sound decent-i have a deluxe reverb(usually with a tele) that is pretty clean under about 4 and this is a good combination.
my pedal is the american export version with the 4558d chip in there-the japan market one another fellow below was talking about supposedly has more of a mid hump than this...i would call it overall a very good sounding OD-an old ts9 i have been borrowing is not nearly as good as the maxon.

it is definitely a 'smooth' sounding pedal but not too much-a little light on the bass compared to another similar modded OD i have(but more bass than other TS pedals) ...sometimes the little drop in bass/slight mid boost thing can really work in your favor. there is one thing thats a pain: the tone knob is pretty close to the switch and it tends to not stay where you set it. i'd get another if lost...

Very easy. Three knobs. Each does what it says it does. Manual was OK, but suggested no settings.

I use various Stratocasters and they go through a BOSS Tuner > Crybaby DIME-Wah > Maxon OD-808 > Ibanez TS-9 > Danelectro Tunamelt Tremolo > Ibanez Analog Delay > Radial Tonebone Classic and finally in either a '65 RI Deluxe Reverb or a Hot Rod DeVille depending on the venue or my mood. I use the Maxon exclusively as a boost with the Distortion on 0. The Level around 7 and the Tone on 3, 4 or 5 depending my mood. As you may notice I also keep a TS-9 on my pedal board. I find the Maxon to be smoother, so I figured I would use the TS-9 for when I need a harsher more piercing boost. Needless to say I use the Maxon more often. It seems to affect the tone of my amp and Tonebone Classic the least. I love how it kicks my solos into higher gear and keeps the tone well-rounded and "brown".

I have been using it without a back-up for more than a year. I have no complaints.

I have not had to deal with them.

I play a brand of hard-edged blues and this pedal suits me perfectly. I have been playing guitar for 17 years and music for 25. If it were stolen I would get a new one. I like that it is simple and that it adds overdrive in an even and smooth manner. I own a lot of distortion pedals and I like this one.

The maxon has a variety of good sounds readily available. The three controls are very easy to use and have a good range of sound within them. 10 for ease of use.

Great sound quality. There are a decently wide variety of sounds at one's fingertips. And by "decently wide", i mean "awesome". My setup is a Fender strat>>maxon OD808>>line 6 modulation modeler (mostly used for tremelo)>>dunlop crybaby>>fender '59 bassman reissue. I originally used the maxon as an amp driver (low drive setting, high volume setting) to drive the front end of my bassman. It did that thing well, although I could use a bit more volume boost. Now I use it as a heavy overdrive, with the drive knob all the way up. It does this very well, too. Don't look to use it as a heavy metal distortion box, even with the gain all the way up, it still sounds like overdrive...like the TS 808. I'll dock a point here for not having quite as much clean boost as I'd like.

I have owned it for less than a year, and have played half a dozen gigs with it. It seems remarkably solid, although it is fairly lightweight. The case is pretty narrow, so that makes for good structural support. I could imagine that the knobs could get a bit messed up after a few years of stomping, as they are not structurally protected (as boss and some other pedals are). But that's not worth taking any points away. 10 out of 10.

I have never dealt with Maxon.

Overall, I'll give it a 10. If the maxon got stolen, I'd either get it again or try one of Analogman's TS9 modded pedals--i've heard those are good. I definately adore the TS 808 sound, though. I play jazz, mostly, but am making ventures into rock and blues. The maxon is excellent for both those styles. I wouldn't call myself a distortion or overdrive expert. The only other distortions i've used are: overdrive channel on Fender Hotrods, the overdrive from cranking my Bassman up above 7, the overdrive on a marshall 30W Solid state combo (the amp of my junior high years), and a boss super overdrive. I personally prefer the maxon to all of the above. Well, i've also played my friend's original TS 808 which he got from his dad, who is an LA studio guitar player for porn soundtracks (Ha!). I couldn't tell the difference between the maxon and the TS 808. Overall, 10 out of 10.

3 knobs. if you think the ease of use for this is less than 10, you're a moron.

this is actually a follow-up review. I still use my Les Paul, but it go straight into this then into a Fender Blues Jr or a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. I play jazz and blues and i fuse it with rock (not nu-rock, but more like english 90s rock). It cuts through the mix with ease. Its wonderful. its versatile cos it reacts well to how hard your attack is. i dont require much gain. it can be smooth for my blues or jazz lead playing, or very cut-through for rock.

with my fender blues jr already overdriven, it produces a killer sound. its just the perfect live sound, IMO. sustain, clarity, yet there's crunch. flip to the neck pup and its smooth as butter. i've gone through two different dist pedals since i got this (and about 20 before) and this is the only one i'm keeping. in fact i want a Maxon D&SII since its supposed to be a hopped up OD808. I could use a lil more gain for some of the covers i do. but for what i bought this thing for, its awesome.

for those who says it doesnt have enough balls... you need to step in front of a truck or something. of course not, ITS AN OVERDRIVE PEDAL, NOT A DISTORTION PEDAL. if you want to play your crappy Nickelback garbage, get a worthless Boss Mega Distortion. If you want a smooth, transparent overdrive with clarity and versatility. get this. my only complaint is the lack of true bypass and it should have easier battery accessibility. oh well.

Very simple to use. Three knobs do the trick: Balance, Overdrive and Tone. You do need a screwdriver, however, to access the battery.

Over the years I've used an Ibanez TS9, a Boss Blues Driver, and a Boss OD-3, and a Digitech Tone Driver. The Maxon OD808 is my favorite overdrive pedal. It gives you a mild warm and grainy sounding distortion that's perfect for classic rock and blues.

It hasn't failed me yet!

For blues and classic rock tones this pedal is perfect. I've been playing guitar for 15 years, and I'm always searching for equipment to compliment my tone. I have owned this pedal for a year now and am especially pleased with the results. After shows I've had guitar hounds come up and check out my pedal board to see what all I'm using. People have all been very complimentary on the sound I get from this pedal. I turn my Fender tube amp up just to the point where it's getting a little dirty (on the clean channel) and kick this pedal on. The gain dial is set all the way up, and the little tone dial is set around 10 o'clock. My guitar is an American Strat loaded with "Texas Special" pickups. This combination is perfect for the styles of music I play. If you play a strat style guitar through a fender tube amp, you'll love this overdrive. Don't think you're automatically going to sound like Stevie Ray Vaughan though!

super easy. three knobs.

yuck. i ran it through a '71 twin with a sg, epi dot with rio grande p90's and a fender jazzmaster reissue with craptastic results. no balls or bottom end anywhere to be seen. even with humbuckers the tone was too thin. i wont even get into what the jazzmaster sounded like. yes, i realize these twins are notoriously bright but this overdrive was "almost" close with the tone turned all the way down. i ran an original maestro fuzztone next to it and the lack of a true bypass affected the tone of that as well. this pedal came highly recommended and im still trying to figure out why.

did not have it more than a week but this thing is chintzy as hell. i thought it was going to be in a mxr style box. it looked like an mxr box but it weighed in at about 4oz... i could have smashed this thing with my foot if i wanted to. no where near mxr, ts9, or fulldrive construction. the switch was super loose and did not look very well made either.

never used it.

no bueno for this one. perhaps with a beefier sounding amp this would be different but whats the point in that? i love a fender twin tone and a good overdrive should be able to boost the volume and give it a more transparent overdrive. in my experience here it did not do the job. i sold this pedal and bought a reissue ts9 for less $$$ and sent it to the analogman. for 60.00 extra $$$ my overdrive problems are solved. what a world of difference.

This overdrive is very easy to use and get a good sound out of it. You have tone, the amount of overdrive, and the volume level to play with. Either wanting extra boost, or extra overdrive as well, it's pretty easy to get.

I owned a Boss OD-1 for years and wished it didn't alter my amps tone, mainly it's bass loss. When I plugged in the Maxon, my amp's tone stays the same and so does the bass response! I always loved to do a lead scale from low E to high E and emphasize the low to high in the scale and now the Maxon can do it for me!

I use it with a Dr. Z Max 38 2-12 combo and an Acoustic G60T. On both amps it adds the extra overdrive I desire and keeps the tone the same. I only use the overdrive on lead's and prefer the amp's natural tone for rythm. For the tone knob, I keep it cranked all the way at 5pm to emphasize the high strings.

For higher gain, I crank the overdrive all the way up. Usually, I'll keep the overdrive knob at 2pm or so. It just depends whether the song is rocking out or not.

I bought it over the holidays, so I can't give an accurate answer. However, it's all metal encased and looks as solidly built and my MXR distortion+ that I've had for 22 years.

There's a 1 year warranty on the pedal. They require you pay postage though which would be lame should the pedal crap out on me. I'll assume that the stuff I read about it is true and that it'll serve me flawlessly.

I've been playing for 22 years and now love to play blues and classic rock type of stuff. If I want to rock out, this pedal provides plenty of balls to my lead's. I love that this pedal doesn't jeopardize my amps tone. I'd buy another one should it get stolen or lost because in most of my blues jam situations, I'm up on stage with another guitarist and their amp, so the extra overdrive or boost helps me during my lead's. Especially when I play my Strat!

Try out this pedal because I think it's a good deal. By the way, I in no way started sounding like SRV. This pedal provides great overdrive tone to YOUR playing. It be like saying you'll sound like Jimmy Page if you buy his signature Les Paul model.

Bottom line, it provides me the overdrive and tone characteristics that I like.

Pretty much as easy as it gets. Overdrive, Tone, and Balance (Level) knobs and a footswitch.

Here is where it gets wierd: I bought the pedal on eBay and I was pretty excited to try it. Like I do with all new pedals, I stuck all the knobs at the 12 o'clock position so I could tweak from there. As I rolled counter-clockwise from center on the tone knob, an extra "tick" of noise kicked from my amp. I thought to myself, "damn, I got a bad unit." I kept tweaking and tweaking, and I realized that the first half of the space on the tone knob had a little bit of extra gain and extra upper-mids and highs to it, and even a little noisy. The latter half of the space on the tone knob seemed to be the "regular" space and had that warm, smooth kick to it that everybody talks about with these units.

Is this a two-stage tone knob? Is there such a thing? Seller claims it isn't modded, so maybe it's a lucky flaw? I just don't know.

Anyway, it is almost like having two pedals in one: 1 thru 5 on the tone knob being very akin to my Boss SD-1 Overdrive, and 6 thru 10 being like an original 808.

Strange? Yes! Am I happy with it? Yes!

Thought I got ripped off at first but now I feel like I got double for my money!

If anyone knows anything about a possible mod like this, let me know.

I've only had it for about 8 hours as of this writing, so I don't know how reliable it is. And being the piss-poor musician/working stiff that I am, I've ALWAYS gigged without back-ups. Now that I have this baby, I'm kicking my SD-1 to back-up status and this is now my main OD.

Don't know much about this category either. I just got the unit!

I like everything from AC/DC, SDRE, Foo Fighters, SRV, The Clash, Wilco, Blur, Teenage Fanclub, and Sloan. It's a great match for the mish-mash of music I like. I'd definitely buy another if it was stolen or lost. Tone is great, and my unit seems to be unique, which is a kick.

I A/B'd this unit to my Boss SD-1 and its smoothness and clarity where apparent right away. Definitely going to be playing with this one for a while.

Very simple to use. It has three controls: Overdrive, Tone, and Balance (output). There's a manual but... you don't really need to use it. Its pretty self explanatory. Unless you're a beginner, the manual is practically useless.

I'm using a Gibson Les Paul---->Maxon OD808---->Boss Tremolo---->Vox wah---->Fender Blues Junior. This thing is not noisey at all. It couldnt be even if your amp was up all the way and the drive on the pedal was maxed out as well while you stood directly in front of your amp. Its VERY quiet.

I got this because I wanted a boost for leads and i wanted a very transparent overdrive sound. Something that'd be very natural sounding and light for blues, something that'd add a little spice to arpeggios and something that'd just give me that ol' cranked tube amp sound without the headache! I just sold my old distortion pedal and wanted to upgrade. I decided I need an overdrive pedal (such as this) and a medium gain distortion pedal. I've only gotten the overdrive pedal and this thing is about as perfect as i had dreamt. Its sooo smoothe and natural sounding. In the store I had tried an Ibanez ts9, Ibanez ts9dx, and voodoo labs sparkle drive as well as the maxon. the maxon was MUCH better sounding than any of the other three. I used to own a Boss Super Overdrive pedal and that thing BLOWS compared to this.

Don't get this expecting a Metallica tone or even an ACDC crunch. Get it to boost your already overdriven amp or get it to color your sound to get something similar to SRV. Personally, I like to push the tubes on my Fender so they distort then turn this thing on to give it an extra KICK!

dont really know. i've not had a band in awhile. i doubt this thing is gonna die here at my house. the on/off switch seems kinda questionable though...

never dealt with them.

I play blues, jazz, and 90s rock. I've been playing for four years so i kinda know my stuff, but at the same time i'm still learnin. I also have a marshall halfstack but i don't really use that now since i'm not in the band so i didnt include it in the "sound quality" section. if it were stolen i'd definitely replace it. Or get the maxon od9. I've not checked it out yet, the local store didn't have one. Its supposed to be a modded version of this pedal. but its also about $30 or so more expensive so i may just get htis again. i love the sound of this thing, its perfect IMO. I hate the on/off switch. It feels like its gonna break on me! This pedal seems to me that it will be in my rig for years and years to come.

Easy to use. I'm reviewing this because unlike most of the other reviewers and readers out there, I have a very good original TS808 with which to compare it.

Here goes. The original TS808 was made for Ibanez by Maxon between 1979 and 1983. It sold for about $49. Now beat ones go for $350 and pristine ones go for $500 to $650. There are numerous 808-style clones out there.

I have a TS808 that I got for nothing, but comparing it to two other originals it is the best sounding. These had some variation in sound, all the way from basic TS9 to great. Mine's great.

So in brutal A/B testing, I compared my TS to the OD. There is no difference. The tone, gain and output are identical. The one made in 2003 is a clone of the one made in the early 80s. You can't tell the difference playing by yourself, and you won't be able to with your band.

I give it a 9 only because the Fulldrive--best of all overdrive pedals, ever--gets a perfect 10. The FD just has a bit less mid and a tad creamer tone. For all purposes, the Maxon OD9 IS a good TS808.

This pedal is built better than the original 808 and better than the reissue Ibanez and Maxon 9 series. It's cast aluminum, not zinc. Switch is beefier, too. I'd expect it to last a long time.

Don't know.

Here's the point: For about $150 out the door you can get something that's brand new, sounds identical to a great old TS808, and is in production. It's light and small, and won't take up much space in a guitar case or on a pedal board. Do not buy a TS9 and have it modded to 808 specs, get this brand new in the box for the same or less instead.

Do NOT spend any money on the original TS808. Get one of these instead and save big bucks. For the price, it's a steal, and blows away almost all the boutique overdrive pedals.

For about $30 more, you can get the Keely modded Maxon OD9, modded to 808 specs, brand new. This is true bypass and has exactly the same tone as a TS808, but a little more gain. Another awesome overdrive pedal.


For $50 more, you can get a Fulldrive 2. This overdrive pedal sounds a tad better than any 808 or clone, is true bypass, has a boost (higher gain) channel, is made of heavy sheet steel, and is made in America. I personally think the Fulldrive is the best of all in sound, features and construction.

These are probably the best overdrive pedals out there now. Pick your price and go for it.

Pretty darn simple. Input, Output, Gain, Level and Tone. There is a good manual that gives you some sample settings to start with.

I was never a member of the Tube Screamer bandwagon. I used to require a ton of gain for the stuff I played, but I have since changed many things about my taste and playing, and I needed a good overdrive pedal. This pedal does a great job of providing moderate overdrive that is very transparent and touch sensative. I compared this with Maxons TS9, which looks exactly like the Ibanez Tube Screamer, and while the tones were very similar, I thought the 808 was more transparent and dynamic. I tried the Fulltone FD2 (old and new versions) and I just can't make the FD work for me. I have other Fulltone effects and love them dearly, but the FD2 just doesn't do it for me. The Maxon OD808 sits in my pedalboard, which goes into a Fender Super Reverb. I have a Tech21 Double Drive for the over-the top gain stuff and a Sparkle Drive for the very slight, hair-around-the-edges semi clean tone. My 808 gives me everything in between...and it works nicely in front of the DoubleDrive to give me that over-the-top gain (like an OD into a Marshall) when I want it. If I had to say one negative thing about it, this pedal can at times sound a little bit harsh - especially with higher gain pickups, like a humbucker, so I need to back off the guitar volume a little to compensate. It really shines with my Strat's Texas Special single coils. R&B tones are just killer, and if you are into the SRV thing, this combination is as close as I have heard/felt.

I have a Maxon Chorus of similar construction, and that has been very relaible. I'm willing to judge this one based on my expreience with their other products. Its not built like a Fulltone, but is is still very well built.

No experience.

Overall, this pedal is fantastic. For me, this gives me exactly what I need in an overdrive (though what I really want is the overdirve that oozes from a Two-Rock amp...but that's another $4000 conversation). Very transparent and touche sensative - especially for a Solid State pedal. I really enjoy playing through this.

Very easy to use. Nothing fancy here. Just a straight forward overdrive good for pushing a tube amp.

I'm a big fan of Maxon pedals because they do their job without excessively coloring the guitar tone. My setup is a 1982 Ibanez AR-300 and 1996 Les Paul Studio through a Vox AC-15 (tube) and Fender Deluxe 90 (solid state). I use the OD-808 for light overdrive, a Boss SD-1 for heavier overdrive and a Marshall Shredmaster for big distortion. The OD-808 never leaves my rig.

The little metal button on top of the footswitch post popped off (it is glued on). Other than that, pretty rugged. No other problems.

Never needed to contact support.

One of my favorite pedals. Nearly identical to the Ibanez TS-9. Great for blues. Also great for any music where you want just a hint of overdrive. You will not get a heavy metal sound from this thing even if the overdrive is full on. Also great for classic rock.

very easy to use, tweek the knobs to your particular sound you desire.

american strat, noiseless pickups, into ge7 - maxon> vintage rat> boss chorus> dano echo> traynor 40 combo> marshall 212 cab ext. no noise at all. big lows, very versatile grind.

gigging 2 years, stomping on it all weekend .no problems .

no need to deal with the company.

i play all manner of electric other than metal,this pedal covers all the bases. if lost or stolen i would repurchase another. abit pricey but generally speaking you get what you pay fer. its dead quiet, tranparent, very versatile grind, excellent build quality, way more authentic sounding than most other pedals, and after playing 30 years i should know, but hey, sound and tone is subjective, youll buy what you want to hear. go take it fer atest drive , and cave as i did.

Like any other OD, but no numbers or markings whatsoever. In my opinion, that's silly.

Love it. I use it in front of my Mesa Heartbreaker head (modified by Voodoo Amps), along with an Ibanez TS-9 Reissue. The TS-9 is very good too, bu the 808 is smoother. I love tube screamers. A little noisy with single coils though, maybe noisier than my TS-9.

Don't know.

Never dealt with them.

I play rock and blues. I've been playing for 30 years, with a 10 year hiatus in the middle. Some people love tube screamers, others hate them. I guess some don't care one way or the other. If you like 'em, this is the one. The correct 808 chip. I AB's against an MJM Blues Devil for hours. That pedal costs $30 more and there's really no difference. When I could hear a difference, I preferred the Maxon. So I returned the MJM. This is a great tube screamer.

Cmon folks it has three knobs.

Maxon is the shit! Anyone who says their crappy cold-solder joint Menatone pedals are better than this is an idiot. Theres no noise, just clear gain that sounds like a tube amp thats been turned up full. Very convincing tube tone. The drive knob has a good range and a very smooth tapered response.

Built small butt tuff.

Excellent.

Throw away your cheesy Menatone pedals because Maxon is the shit. I play Strats and Pauls into tube amps.

Very easy to use --- tone, output level, and drive controls.

I tried this pedal thru my 90's strat w/Kinman Avn-56's and an Avn-59 in the bridge -- straight into a Carvin BelAir or a '69 Super Reverb (w/fixed-bias circuit). Didn't care much for the clean boost (thin sounding, and I couldn't dial in enough bass w/out losing definition), slight overdrive was better, but still sounded thin. Moderate-strong overdrive settings (2-3 o'clock) bring out the best in this pedal, although I thought the overdrive/distortion sounded a little too "linear" - I like it to throb, swirl, and swell a bit (ala Joe Walsh's tone on the original James Gang's Funk#49).

I didn't own it long enough to really opine, but it was magnitudes lighter than comparable BOSS and Ibanez products --- just didn't appear to be very sturdy in that regard.

N/A

This pedal has a couple of really nice sweet spots on it, particularly if you're into the southern-fried blues-rock sound. The sustain gets a nice harmonic-like squeal going, and it works equally well on chords or single notes. But overall it lacked that natural, musical sounding swirl that I associate with pro-level overdriven tones. I compared it to a Budda Phatman, a Roland GP-8 (the OD and Dist modules), Keeley-modded TS-9 (std mod), and an Analogman-modded BOSS DS-1 (pro mod). I kept the TS-9 and DS-1 in my chain, am keeping the Budda for unique situations (but it primarily rests in its box), and kept the GP-8 in the chain for its chorus and delay only. I sold the OD808 on E-bay. I've been playing for 20+ years.

This is super easy to use. Just turn the knobs until you get something you like. No manual needed. Also, really no review needed (I'm bored) as everybody and their brother has used one of these (i.e. Ibanez, which Maxon made. No secret there)over the last 20 years or so. If you've never seen one (if could happen) here's the layout of it...

1. Overdrive (volume)
2. Balance (gain)
3. Tone
4. Footswitch
5. Red LED
6. 9 volt jack

That's pretty much it, save for the in and out 1/4 in jacks.

This is what it is. An overdrive. I use it a few different ways, to kick an already cookin' amp in the ass, as a clean boost of sorts, and to add some grit to the clean channel, or as a lead boost. As long as you understand it's a OVERDRIVE and not a Metalzone or whatever, you'll be fine. Just don't plan on a wall of distortion with this into your clean channel.

Right now I'm pretty much using it with a VHT Pittbull 45 2-10 combo, or a old 1966 Gibson 4-10 Ranger. The Ranger is basicly a copy of a Fender Super, with more bottom end, and a slightly darker tone. The OD808 works really good with it, for that 'classic' 70s rock tone. This is really true when you turn it up a bit.

It also works really good with the VHT. I use it a number of different ways with that amp. It will make a noisy amp noisier (as will any pedal with gain) but it's really not bad as it's so mild.

For the most part, I play Gibson Les Pauls with buckers, and I don't have a problem with it getting muddy, UNLESS it's dimed. Even then it's still more transparent then my other OD/Distortion boxes.

I STILL like it better then my Boss SD-1. The SD-1 isn't a bad pedal, and has more gain, but the Maxon just seems to be more transparent to me. And it works better with the 2 amps above. The SD-1 does sound better with a tranny amp though, the OD808 just don't seem to work well with any of my tranny amps, but tube amps, it shines.

I expect no problems with it, and havn't had any. I've got several really (20 years plus) old Maxon built Ibanez pedals that are still going strong. I have no reason to expect any with the new Maxon stuff.

Never contacted Maxon, Ibanez is another story...

I've been using Tube Screamers forever, and this is the best one I've had so far. I plan on buying several more Maxon pedals to replace some of my Ibanez stuff that has gotten valueable over the years. It only gets an 8 as I feel Maxon is pretty expensive for basicly imported mass produced pedals. The do what they do well though. No complaints there.

It's an overdrive pedal, it's very easy to understand

I worked in a Hollywood Vintage Guitar store for a few months. I had hours everyday to try everything in the store. This is the best Tubescreamer. It sounds slightly more transparent/hollow than the original or reissue SD9's. ( I am aware that it's a slightly modded re-issue of an 808)

It's well built. I have no issues with its construction.

I have not had cause to contact Maxon

I play rock'n'roll. I like The Stooges, Hendrix, mainly '60's and '70's. I am lucky to own and play lots of classic tube amps, several British half and full stacks, and a nice old Super Reverb. This pedal suits some situations and not others. I don't think that you ever get versatile AND great in the same musical product. This is a great Tubescreamer. The best that I've found.

Easy to use if you know how to really play the guitar, and not just bang on the thing.

This pedal made history. It sounds like a tube amp- you lose a little bass response, but your ear adjusts, and the tone is very convincing, very wet sounding, with just the right amount of compression and sustain- sounds like a classic 1970's rock/southern rock pedal. Maxon is the shit!

Built small and tuff.

Excellent support here in the U.S.

I wail on guitar. Im damn good and not afraid to let you know that. Been playing 25 years and counting, own three guitars that are quite expensive mind you, and too many effects pedals to list, so I wont bore you any further but will say this- Maxon is the shit! Gotta go now. Dig the Banzai Cold Fusion too.

Easy to get good sound from...of course this depends on what you're using this pedal for...see below - sound quality.

This is an overdrive pedal, not a disto-metal-thrash-fuzz pedal. If you're looking for OTT gain, look elsewhere.
If you're looking for warm sounding, tube-like break up of signal, this is your pedal.
Am not a connoisseur of tone but I know what I like.
A/B'ed this with the ibanez TS9 and could dialled them up so that the two sounded just about identical but the OD 808 still edged slightly ahead in terms of smoothness.

Looks sturdy enough but unscrewing the base of the change batteries can be a pain if you don't have a screw driver handy.

No dealings.

This is a great pedal to stick in front of your set up to give it an extra boost. Unfortunately, this pedal will only really shine if you use it with a tube amp. The response to the dynamics of your playing will be enhanced. You can use a solid state amp, but then you'll wonder what the fuss is about with this pedal.

Very easy - cannot be easier ! 3 knobs :-)

The positive reviewers below are all correct:
this is THE tubescreamer legendary 808 circuit w less noise !

I have all the other very best pedals in the world: Klon Centaur,
Fulltone Fulldrive II, Ibanez TC-9, H & K Tubefactor, Baby Blue ...
and I tested them all through my Prosonic and my fabulous
brand new light (35lbs) Ashdown Peacemaker 40 all
tube sweet class A 30W, 3 channel 112 combo (see the review
as this is the best light all tube 3 channel combo <$700)
and what can I say about this pedal is simple :

I always use Maxon OD-808 in my band's live gigs
and helps me with SRV overdrive or singing Santana tone ...

Actually a mariage of Maxon OD808 with class A tube amp as
in Peacemaker (designer Mark Gooday from Ashdown is a 21st century genious - new Ranal Smith from UK this time )
is mariage in heaven ... but it works great also with fender Blues
Junior or Laney LC15R all tube class AB amps ...

I play all my gigs with it and never had a problem ...

Never need them

I play since 1960 (remember Duan Eddy instrumentals ?)
and I buy all the very best gear on the Planet:

Great LP or Strat through the VHT Valvulator 1 power-supply
and then into Maxon OD808 and finally through the
Ayron technologies' S & Slim pedal into the Ashdown
Peacemaker 40 is THE VERY BEST combination
that your money can buy (and you can carry those as
these are the lightest top units in the business).

OD808 is truly THE original, yet improved tubescreamer
so if you care about your tone and want to improve
the breaking of your tube sound - just buy one !