Maxon OD-820

The OD 820 is very intuitive to use. the manual even give suggested settings.

I run the OD 820 into a Morley ABY unit which splits in a Pod 2.0 & '65 reissue Fender Twin(set flat) and or my rack which has, in order, a Valve FX pre amp, a TC electronics G-Major, then into a peavey classic 50/50 power amp (w/8 EL 84 tubes). With this set-up I can cop any sound I'm feeling which is typically Gary Moore, Stevie Ray or Carlos (Santana). I previously had a TS-9, too harsh, then the Guyatone OD-2 exellent unit(2nd choice). But the OD 820 is probably my last overdrive pedal. It sings, smooth and fat, but also does the sultry blues voicings. I use a Strat with gibson P-94's, PRS cust 22, '75 les paul custom, and a 3-pu Tele with Joe Barden pickups. Although it does generate some noise, it is quite minimal unless you dime the drive and the level, which is not necessary for my purposes.

Solid, well built, has some girth. Do not see a need for a back up

No problems.

Overall, the OD 820 works well with my set-up. I'm presently into melding blues/R&B/fusion. And, I'd been looking for such a unit to round out my voice and I thought that I had it with the OD-2. But this is by far a superior product I sold the OD-2 and the TS is no the block. It's very much like listening to a demo tape of your favorite artist and actually seeing the band live at their best. When my Joe Bardened Tele sang as never before, I knew this was a keeper.

The three knobs each have a very useable range and are large enough to see on the floor and adjust with your foot if you need to. Very nice!

Use a Clapton Strat w/Gold Lace Sensors through a Blackface Super Reverb. Very little noise. A very natural "woody" sound. Lots of gain and output. You probably know the manufacturing history of the Japanese Maxon company. This is a REALLY good sounding TS9/808 type pedal. I read one reviewer compare this pedal to the Klon Centaur, which I also use. You can't really compare them as I feel they are two different pedals with two different purposes. I use the Klon as an "amp enhancer" and to boost the sound of this pedal. You can use them together, but I would never compare one to the other. The OD820 DOES have, in my opinion, the more pleasing overdrive sound BUT it can't pull the sound out of my Super that the Klon can. At first I was amazed/disappointed at how much this pedal sounded like my Ibanez Soundtank TS5 which I paid $5 for. After I played for about two hours with the two pedals, the subtle (and important) attributes of the OD820 made themselves known: dynamics, transparency,
clarity, output. Very subtle features that only seasoned players are going to notice. I'm very happy with the $200 I spent on the unit. Later during a gig, it really excelled in the sustain and in-tune feedback department with my set up. Again, if you've got a great tube amp that sounds good by itself, you'll like this pedal a lot.

It's well built, looks good. I'd play without a spare.

No need to deal with them yet but they have a 3 year Warranty which is pretty bold these days.

I've been playing professionally for 25 years. It gave me what I was I was looking for: the ability to get re-excited about the sound of my amplified guitar and play new things because of that. I own (or have owned) the following pedals over the past 15 years: Chandler Tube Driver (B. K. Butler version), Boss BD-2, Vox Valvetone, Fulldrive FD-2, Danelectro Daddy-O, Everman Fuzzdrive, WayHuge Red Llama, others not worth mentioning. Special honors have to go to the TS5-great sound/low price. Ditto the Nobels OD-1! The 0D820 also came with a power supply AND a 9V battery. Nice touch! You can tell that the designers spent some time putting together a unit that would appeal to a certain type of player who is willing to pay the price for this kind of sound quality and truly made an effort to produce the best type of pedal of it's type. Would buy it again. It's large size and large knobs are a really practical feature for the gigging guitarist.
It's pricey, but when you compare it to the reissue TS9, for example, which costs around $100, it's easily twice the pedal in terms of performance and construction so it's a good value. If you are a true "tone searcher" you know who you are and this will be money well spent. Definitely a pro level product though: You really have to have been playing a long time and gone through enough overdrive pedals to appreciate what this offers. If you haven't, it will probabaly sound just like your reissue TS9 to your ears.

Bonehead simple to use.

I had a Klon before this. The Klon was good, but this is way, WAY better. The Klon would boost and slightly overdrive but the sound was always dry and sterile, no matter what amp. The Maxon is more transparent sounding but with juicy, wet overtones. With or without reverb, this thing makes any size tube amp sound like it's pushing hard, and that's a good thing. Not noisy and well built.

Seems pretty tough to me; hell, I dropped it and it never missed a lick.

If you want to hear the real tone of your guitar and amp, then I recommend this over all the other stuff out there. Forget the marketing and just try one wherever you can find it. There are more expensive pedals (I had one); this one won't get you into heavy distortion (it's not designed to do that); but if you want juicy real tone--the sound of strings and tubes and wood, try this.

I generally dislike or hate most overdrive/distortion pedals cause they lack dynamics, and have some sterility factor that i just cant get past. my 40 years of playin is all about tone, feel, and having worked in a guitar store for 25 years, i have tried everything from klons, fulldrives, boss, rats, blah blah...the maxon 820 is the first ever overdrive that reacts and sounds like an awesome tube amp.this thing is fuckin amazing

As stated, the sound is F....n amazing...no obnoxious mid hump,detailed, just the right bit of everything...the guy with the SG either got a defective one, or can't get a full sound with his hands anyway..

Fine

the company is great to deal with...hip guys from New Jersey...they know tone....

it is awesome////in a completely different league than anything else on the market///boutique or cheap....it is really like a variable lead channel extension of my amp....the better the tube amp., the better the 820 sounds. check one out with a Fuchs /Top Hat/Bad Cat type amp class A or AB.....really scary...probably sounds good with a peavey amp

Ease of use? Three knobs and the truth. Shouldn't be a problem for anyone but the most technophobic. Manual is comprehensive and includes several examples of suggested settings.

Sound quality is A-1. Maxon engineers reportedly spent one year developing this circuit and their dedication is plainly evident. Rather than throwing together yet another tired variation of the Tube Screamer (which they invented in the '70s anyway), they've come up with something rather new, most notably in the use of a voltage-doubling circuit for the overdrive section. This is accomplished in part by the use of TWO mystical-mojo JRC4558D chips.

This pedal is used primarily with either one of my Killer KG-Primes or my Seymour Duncan SSL-5L-loaded Mexican '60s reissue Fender Stratocaster. Amplification is usually a late-'60s Fender Champ, a '69 Marshall 100-watter or a '78 Marshall 2203 with the Lee Jackson Metaltronix mod. The OD820 works well with all of 'em. (Ever notice that some pedals just will not "work and play well" with some amps?)

Interestingly enough, it also sounds just great with the solid-state Crate amp that is in my teaching studio at the music store. That was a pleasant surprise.

The sound is smooth, but with just the right amount of definition. That's important to me as some of the boutique overdrives have a little too much compression for my taste. I'd attribute the added definition in part to the output buffer circuit which is 1k/100k ala the Boss SD-1. The tone is very supple and responsive and the overdrive is detailed and airy. It's quite a subtle thing and guitarists that've got the chops and experience will be able to appreciate it. The subtler aspects of its sound might be missed by the less-experienced players. This is a pedal for guys that KNOW good tone when they hear it! Also has the true-bypass footswitch the tone cognoscenti demand.

Noise? Not really any to speak of. In fact, the pedal actually seems to quiet down the sound a bit, something I'd attribute to the expanding that's going on in the voltage-doubling circuit. That's an added bonus.

I use the pedal for either a slight boost for shred lead playing or for a moderate overdrive for Southern Rock/Country guitar playing. Works well with either.

One of the reviewers hear complained that it was too trebly. Hmmm... That's strange 'cause I don't have any idea how someone would think the OD820 is too trebly. I usually keep the tone knob around 9 or 10:00, which rolls of a bit of the high end to smooth things out.

Tone is not quite as midrange-y as most have come to expect from the TS9, but there is a bit of added warmness that works well with the Stratocaster. Rather than the pronounced mid-hump we've come to expect from the Tube Screamers, the OD820 seems to have a much more subtle and wider mid boost. The harsh high-end of the Toshiba 75558-equipped tube screamers is also nowhere to be found.

Also, the OD820 has a wider range of overdrive than the Ibanez TS9 or the Maxon OD808; the OD820 has more gain on tap than either.

Haven't had the pedal long enough to comment on its reliability other than to say that the DPDT switch certainly seems sturdy enough and the die-cast metal enclosure is far more solid and thicker than that from the Bud Case-style Maxon reissue series.

Customer support's been great. Some time ago, I had some questions for Maxon, emailed them and promplty received a nice reply. I haven't had to contact Godlyke, so I can't comment about them.

The pedal is pricey; it's around $200.00 and that might put it out of budget range for some folks. Still, one should consider that adjusting for inflation, the old TS808s were probably in the same price range way back when. I really think this thing is a sleeper. Like I mentioned in my OD808 review, Maxon might not yet have the same cachet to its name as some of those more expensive basement-made boutique glamor pedals. But if you're looking for a piece of quality gear and are listening with your ears rather than your eyes, don't overlook this one. Sometimes I wonder what will be the sought-after vintage gear of the future? What will be the next TS808 or Tychobrahe Octavia? This might very well be one of them.

Very easy to use...You can good sounds easy--its just too bright for me! It might sound better with a different guitar/amp set up. The manual is good, but Im not a manual person if you know what I mean.

I have a newer Gibson SG with the 498 pickups. I plug into mostly Marshall amps. Im using a 50 watt Plexi reissue right now. It suprized me that The pedal was so bright, considering the Plexi is rather bassy. It just doesnt seem worth the price I paid for it. I wouldnt pay $200 for this pedal. But thats just me. The pedal did have a good amount of level and gain to it though...

Dont know, I sent it back the day after I got it.

Dont ask me....

I play rocknroll. I dislike gay Mesa Boogie type sounds. Lots of newer bands use this sound. Stay away!!! Ive been playing 10 years, and would never use this pedal. Its cheap Japanese junk. Thanx

Three simple knobs.

I use a PRS swamp ash into the od820 into a digitech rp2000 into a '69 fender twin reverb. the pedal is amazing. i upgraded from a ts9 reissue and the difference is night and day. the od820 is totally transparent and liquidy. so musical it's scary. Great range of overdrives--slightly boosted to singing sustain. This is NOT a distortion pedal though!! Very quiet and true bypass. The reason why you might opt for this over the od808 is that you get tons and tons greater headroom. I use the level knob set at about 9 o'clock to match the ts9 at 12 o'clock. So this thing is great as a boost as well. All around awesome tones in every setting. This is the first effect I have ever owned that blew me away. You get what you pay for.

Dunno yet. has a warranty. i don't expect any problems.

Also, dunno. Things may be tricky since this is a smaller Japanesse company. who knows though.

This pedal will out perform any other overdrive on the market guaranteed! Huge tones. I would replace it if it were lost because I'm spoiled now.

There is one small complaint. I wish it was a little heavier. My old tubescreamer was smaller, but heavier and it stuck to the ground better while playing. The od820 comes with a rubber adhesive bottom pad designed to give it some traction, but if you pull on your cord at all, it drags the whole pedal around. (you'd think that since I have to drag around a '69 twin reverb I would rejoice at the prospect of lightweight equipment.)

I compared this to a bunch of your standard overdrives out there: ts9, od808, guyatone od-2(my second choice...great value), sparkle drive, fulldrive, blah blah blah. Literally no contest.

However, this is not a cheap addition to your rig. If you need an outstanding overdrive, nothing comes close. But, if you only need a damn good overdrive, get the guyatone OD-2 for $60 and pocket the difference. The 9 rating is because it's so expensive. But you do get what you pay for.

Three knobs and the truth. Drive tone level. Your basic ts9 set up.

This is a really cool pedal. It is kinda like a grown up TS-9 (808).
The pedal has a bit more gain and bottom than the standard tube screamer but never looses the bell like tones across the highs. It is very transparent and works great for rock rhythm and lead tones, blues jazz etc..... I am using the pedal with a strat (w/fralin blues), PRS CU22, McCarty soapbar into a super lead. Really cool tones with out changing the sound of my guitar and amp. I have an analog man modded TS9 and a turbo Ts9 and this pedal spanks both of them way more musical. I prefer this pedal over the Fulldrive (although it really sounds great when I use my fatboost to kick it up a notch) and all of the other boo-teek and not so boo-teek overdrives that I have used over the years. I think that it was worth the 200.00 I have into it.

???????

Check with me in a few years

Bought mine at mesa hollywood, great bunch of guys.

Best OD yet. If you like the klon or the Tube Screamer I would recommend this pedal highly to you. I am thinking about another one to replace the ts9 that is currently sharing space next to this pig on my board.

ODs that I have been through that I like less than this pedal. red snapper, blue collar, king of brittons, Howie, fulldrive, Rat, OD-2, drive-o-matic, GTO, vtwin, tone pump, guv'nor, real tube, hot cake, hep cat...........to be continued