In the world of overdrive pedals, Ibanez
has been considered a king for decades.
Since the introduction of the overdrive
pedal that changed the world—the Tube
Screamer TS808—the company has
enjoyed a devoted following of professional
and amateur musicians from all walks of
music. Recently, Ibanez shared the love
with bassists by debuting the TS9B, a variation
of the famed TS9 that’s revoiced for
more low-end growl and modified for even
more tonal control.
The Bass Tube Screamer’s control layout
is about as simple as it gets: The TS9’s
single Tone knob has been divided into
two separate EQ controls, and a Mix knob
has been thrown in to give the TS9B a
grand total of five knobs—Level, Gain,
Bass, Treble, and Mix. The pedal sits on a
thick rubber pad, where there’s also access
to the 9V battery door. Inside the pedal,
you can see a neat, all-analog circuit with
well-soldered connections.
Screaming for Vengeance
One of the things Tube Screamers are
known for, especially TS9s and vintage
TS808s, is touch sensitivity. And the good
news is that the TS9B bears the same
sonic traits as its forebears in this
regard—it really shows off its muscle
when you dig into the strings. To
test it, I used a Fender American
Special Jazz bass through a Genz
Benz ShuttleMAX 12.0 driving Genz
Benz 1x12 and 1x15 cabinets. While
fingerpicking a groove on the low
strings, the TS9B delivered just a
tiny amount of grit with the Mix and
Gain knobs maxed. It wasn’t until
I hit the strings hard with a pick
or slap technique that the pedal
thundered like an ominous storm,
and there was a tinge of fuzz-like
distortion on the high end.
Backing off the Gain a bit and
experimenting with the Mix control,
I realized how heavily these
controls interact. Because I tend to
use aggressive picking-hand attack
when playing rock bass lines, I
didn’t need to max the Gain to get
heavier grooves. Being an overdrive
rather than a distortion, the TS9B
naturally doesn’t dish out gain levels
suitable for extreme metal, but it
provides more than enough to create
well-defined and multi-dimensional
bass lines. The tone is quite wooly in the
midrange, with a vicious amount of low
end accessible from the Bass control. And
with the pedal’s incredible sensitivity, I
could control the amount of grit simply by
adjusting my picking style.
When I wanted to put down a fat foundation
for blues-oriented material, I found
the Gain and Mix controls among the most
useful for changing music styles. Upping
the Bass knob, lowering the Treble knob
considerably, and setting the Mix control a
hair shy of high noon was one of my favorite
settings for this style. With a moderate
Gain setting, the TS9B served up a subtle
low-end boost—and there was plenty more
to add by increasing the Mix setting. This
is a great way to tailor the bass tone for a
suitably girthy foundation, upper-end bite,
and volume in the overall mix, while still
having complete control over the tone from
the bass’s pickup controls.
The Verdict
For bassists looking to put a little more
attitude in their arsenal, the Bass Tube
Screamer TS9B is an excellent choice. It
won’t do all the work for you, but for those
who know how to get a lot of dynamics
out of their hands, it’ll reward in spades.
There’s ample gain available, but not
enough to compress the tone into sterility.
For big, rock bass tones with plenty
of dynamic range, the TS9B is definitely
worth checking out.
Buy if...
you need fat, dynamic overdrive with a natural, uncompressed feel.
Skip if...
you need raging, molten distortion.
Rating...
