Ibanez tube screamer as a treble boost?

Flores_68

New member
Hello everyone,
I 'd like to share my experience and I'd also like to know if somebody has tried anything similar. Anyways, the Ibanez ts9 is famous for its mid hump, so I dialed the tone knob to 3 o'clock and, stacking it before my Wampler Tumnus, I've been getting a Brian May treble boost tone, which I've really been enjoying. Has anyone tried turning up the tone knob on the ts9 to get a similar effect? Any thoughts?
 
They are both great but I see them a bit different. I generated use the TS with the tone quite open and I love using it to boost other pedals, a Muff in particular.

The TB is more aggressive and with more overtones IME. depending on the amp it may make a big difference or not.
 
They are both great but I see them a bit different. I generated use the TS with the tone quite open and I love using it to boost other pedals, a Muff in particular.

The TB is more aggressive and with more overtones IME. depending on the amp it may make a big difference or not.

Any suggestions on a good treble booster?
 
Re: your original thought on the using the TS as a "treble booster," I've liked the tones I've gotten when I've used a TS the way you're describing into an already dirty amp. I've actually done it with the tone at 100%, and running at 12v (which makes it sound a little brighter). However, while very beautiful sounding, it doesn't sound like a traditional treble booster (and thats ok!)

(NOTE: from what I've read and my own experience, 12v is ok for an ibanez TS, but 18v is not always. I can't confirm this, but what I've read is that the parts are rated such that 18v SHOULD be ok, but given their tolerances, it would be safest to only say it can handle 16v safely)

Catalinbread Naga Viper

Another great great pedal that does a few different things (treble boost being one of them) is the DryBell Unit 67. It makes everything sound better. It can do the Queen thing and much more. Awesome pedal.

I disagree with this. I love treble boosters, but I was actually pretty disappointed with the Naga. It's just my opinion and all that, but I didn't think it did a good job of doing the upper harmonic "thickening" that you hear with classic treble boosters, and surprisingly noisy despite being a more modern design. On that note, though, the fact that it wasn't designed in the middle of last century does mean its more versatile than some other treble boosters on the market.

I'd recommend the Fulltone Ranger - more on that in a sec

My favorite treble booster is still the Analogman Beano Boost. It just "does the thing" so incredibly well - its just the right amount of fat and cut, just the right combo of smooth yet raunchy.

That said, I still recommend the Fulltone Ranger if you're just starting to use treble boosters. The reason is simply that its rotary switch and internal trip pot allow you to dial it in for your rig much more than a lot of other treble boosters on the market, and its overall excellent. Tonewise, the Analogman is perfect to my ears, but the Fulltone is 95% of the way there AND has A LOT of added flexibility.

Not sure if you've started looking yet, but one thing about treble boosters is that they're generally expensive. However, that also means that buying from a boutique builder like Analogman doesn't actually cost much more, if any, than a lot of the other offerings out there.



Just my 2 cents. Sorry to naysay you, Bogner
 
No worries. Everybody has an opinion. I could have listed many other pedals but bang for the buck the Naga is tough to beat. Noise isn't an issue (or shouldn't be now a days) with so many quality gate type pedals out there.
 
Re: your original thought on the using the TS as a "treble booster," I've liked the tones I've gotten when I've used a TS the way you're describing into an already dirty amp. I've actually done it with the tone at 100%, and running at 12v (which makes it sound a little brighter). However, while very beautiful sounding, it doesn't sound like a traditional treble booster (and thats ok!)

(NOTE: from what I've read and my own experience, 12v is ok for an ibanez TS, but 18v is not always. I can't confirm this, but what I've read is that the parts are rated such that 18v SHOULD be ok, but given their tolerances, it would be safest to only say it can handle 16v safely)



I disagree with this. I love treble boosters, but I was actually pretty disappointed with the Naga. It's just my opinion and all that, but I didn't think it did a good job of doing the upper harmonic "thickening" that you hear with classic treble boosters, and surprisingly noisy despite being a more modern design. On that note, though, the fact that it wasn't designed in the middle of last century does mean its more versatile than some other treble boosters on the market.

I'd recommend the Fulltone Ranger - more on that in a sec

My favorite treble booster is still the Analogman Beano Boost. It just "does the thing" so incredibly well - its just the right amount of fat and cut, just the right combo of smooth yet raunchy.

That said, I still recommend the Fulltone Ranger if you're just starting to use treble boosters. The reason is simply that its rotary switch and internal trip pot allow you to dial it in for your rig much more than a lot of other treble boosters on the market, and its overall excellent. Tonewise, the Analogman is perfect to my ears, but the Fulltone is 95% of the way there AND has A LOT of added flexibility.

Not sure if you've started looking yet, but one thing about treble boosters is that they're generally expensive. However, that also means that buying from a boutique builder like Analogman doesn't actually cost much more, if any, than a lot of the other offerings out there.



Just my 2 cents. Sorry to naysay you, Bogner

Any thoughts on the Catalinbread Galileo? I'm living in Brazil and the Fulltone is much more expensive here...
 
Any suggestions on a good treble booster?

I have a ton of different boosts. This is sonically very close to the original Rangemaster.

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Catalinbread Naga Viper

I'll second this recommendation. Have it and use it for Iommi-toned vibe.

Someone else suggested the Fulltone Ranger. That's killer too and comes in two flavors, regular or the NOS Mullard chip ("OC-something").
 
The whole "treblebooster" thing is kind of a misnomer and peeps get confused about it.

What it actually does is trim the low end mud; like a high-pass filter. Thus leaving the midrange and treble intact.
This functionality depends on the stomp you're getting as some are adjustable with the high-pass filter (Naga for one) cutoff freq.

And of course depending on the chip it will impart it's own tonality; typically a slight "honk" in the midrange maybe 600-800Hz.
 
Any thoughts on the Catalinbread Galileo? I'm living in Brazil and the Fulltone is much more expensive here...

The Galileo is an amp in a box. It’s not just a treble booster. It is meant to sound like a TB into a Vox. I have not tried it because it’s not my kind of sound but their AIAB are generally excellent.

Any suggestions on a good treble booster?

I would defer to the others, I just tried a couple and determined it’s not my thing.
 
Take a very strong look at the DryBell Unit 67. It could be a key pedal not only for the treble boost dynamic but others as well that are lacking on your pedalboard. You can kill a couple birds with that stone.
 
a rangemaster usually isnt a subtle pedal. i have a copy my friend made for me in an old fire alarm case and its awesome but quite noticeable even when set low. the beano boost is the gold standard from my experience, it does everything you want an old school treble boost to do gloriously. a ts is a great pedal but even with the tone full up, its quite different than a rangemaster.
 
i dont think ive played that pedal, but if its subtle then its not a rangemaster. i bet it sounds great though. the original rangemaster is kinda unforgiving and cuts a TON of bottom. the more modern versions have options as to how much bottom gets cut, and i almost never use the brightest setting. to me, a treble booster sounds best into a dirty amp to push it further into saturation. more output and a little grit from the germanium transistor but cutting some low frequencies that tightens things up a bit
 
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