Rebirth of a Classic
Perhaps the resurrection of the TS9 was
inevitable, but Lomas contributed to its
legacy first by insisting on the 1992 reissue
of the TS9, and then by developing
the TS9DX Turbo Tube Screamer. He says
when he took over product development in
1990, he immediately started pushing for a
TS9 reissue. Used TS9s were selling in stores
for well over $250, when Ibanez itself was
selling used units to dealers for five bucks.
Lomas says management was wary. Nisshin
wanted to move toward digital technology
and had no interest in going “backward” to
the old analog products—which is somewhat
ironic, Lomas notes, considering that
Nisshin is producing many of the older analog
effects now. “At the time,” he says, “they
thought we were crazy.”
But money often talks when words
fall short. After prolonged browbeating,
Nisshin started to see the dollar signs that
had convinced Lomas, and they authorized
the reissue. Lomas recalls how he and his
colleagues spent weeks buying every original
TS9 they could get their hands on in
order to ensure that the pending reissue
was an exact replica. As they cracked open
and examined the pedals, they found that
almost every one had a Toshiba TA75558
IC chip rather than the JRC chip commonly
found in TS808s. “Since 90, 95 percent
of TS9s had that chip,” says Lomas, “that’s
what we decided to put back in it.” He
recalls with a hint of nostalgia the way the
company boasted about the reissue when it
finally came out—about how it was made
in the same factory as the original. “It was
even built by the same middle-aged ladies.
It was a dead, nuts-on copy,” he says. Even
the manual was identical—dated 1981, for
authenticity. More than 5,000 sold within
weeks of the release, and Ibanez estimates it
has sold 10,000–12,000 TS9 reissues each
year over the last decade.
 |
|
1992-Present
Model: TS9 Reissue
Series: 9 Series
Knob Configuration: Overdrive, Tone, Level
Notes: Faithful reproduction of the original TS9
Country of Origin: Japan |
1998-Present
Model: TS9DX
Series: 9 Series
Knob Configuration: Overdrive, Tone, Level, Mode
Notes: Offers traditional Tube Screamer tones, as well as three additional modes with increasing amounts of volume and bass response.
Country of Origin: Japan |
With the success of the TS9 reissue, the
TS9DX seemed like a no-brainer. According
to Lomas, the company watched, a glint of
envy in its eye, as Dunlop multi-load wah
pedals flew off the shelves. Hoshino felt it
needed a Tube Screamer with different modes
for output and distortion, and it seemed the
only thing to do was to get in on the action.
So, in 1998, Lomas designed the DX for
players who craved more volume, distortion,
and low end. In addition to the
Drive, Tone, and Level knobs that had
already become Tube Screamer staples,
he added a fourth knob with four mode
positions: TS9, +, Hot, and Turbo, each
one adding low end and increasing volume
to some degree. The circuit is exactly the
same as that of the original TS9, but the
mode switch changes certain components’
parameters via clipping diodes and tone
capacitors. The + mode is grittier than the
original TS9, whereas Hot yields a crunchier
tone with boosted mids, and Turbo, the
most powerful of the four modes, projects
a thicker, more modern sound.
“I wanted to come up with something
that would be as true to the Tube
Screamer tonality as possible, so that at
least in one position it would be a classic
Tube Screamer,” says Lomas. “That’s where
I came up with the concept of varying the
clippers. I didn’t want any digital simulation
because, in my mind, it just wouldn’t
be a Tube Screamer then.”