Tube Wailer Vs TS9 and TS9DX Test results

[ahimmel]

I just ran a few tests comparing the Tube wailer with the TS9 Tube Screamer modified by Robert Keely and the TS9DX Turbo Tube Screamer. You can listen to the audio files at:

http://soundmachin.com/tubescreamertests/

Equipment used: Fender Stratocaster 56 custom Shop 2008 handmade, Ibanez Tube Screamer TS9 Robert Keely modified and Turbo Tube Screamer TS9DX.

We recorded the Guitar using the instrument input of a 737sp Avalon preamp. The settings of examples # 1 and #2 had all the pots in center position. For example #3 we had the drive fully turned to the right and the tone fully to the left. For example #4 we switched the settings with the Drive fully turned left and the tone fully turned right.

The diode on the plugin was set to "ge" when compared to the TS9 and to "si" when compared to the TS9DX and I had to add aprox 10db of trim to the plugin channel to have them sound more or less at the same level.

Over all I was quite impressed with the realism. To my ears when comparing the Tube Wailer to the TS9 the pedal cuts a bit of the attack but has a bit more low end. But compared to the TS9DX it is the opposite. The distortion on some of the examples is heavier under the plugin and in some other cases heavier on the pedal even though I had the same settings. If you play around with the plugin and use some eq to level out the differences I am quite sure that you can come up with a sound that even a true Tube Screamer connoisseur will believe it is the real pedal.

Does anyone have some of the other pedals to compare the plugin to? Would love to hear if they are as accurate as the Tube Wailer.

P.S. (the guitar player was drunk during the recording. I am not joking!!)