From Modest Mike’s Mods   BBB Member A+ Rating 8 Years Running
Check out the video, and please use your headphones. This is Mike Nix, guitarist for rocnfnrol with a demo of our pedal. Give a listen to them on YouTube.
 
Did you know? Many of the expensive "boutique" overdrives are actually modified Tube Screamers in a different casing.

We do a mean TS808 mod that can make any Tube Screamer sound as good or better than the original TS808. Some musicians pay over $500 for an original TS808 to get that sound!

We do an even meaner TS808 Plus mod for those about to rock. Folks who have heard it believe it is the best no frills, bells, or whistles Tube Screamer mod you can get today. You can still get it right here on Reverb.

*Recently we came up with our meanest sounding TS-9 ever. This one is partially inspired by talk…comments I heard from folks who said the Tube Screamer just isn’t as mean as a Boss pedal with its asymmetrical clipping. Someone said I should give it a name. They said "Call it Modest Mike’s Mean Ass Mod." I will probably have to change that name, but it will do for now. Feel free to email me your ideas for a name for this mod (be nice).

When you first step on this TS9, you are going to hear the best sounding TS-9, period. It’s got our best TS808 Plus mod. We replace capacitors and resistors with high quality metal film resistors and Panasonic caps… some with different values to improve the tone and eliminate noise. This TS9 now has better tone, less noise, twice the gain, and also cleans up better. The op amp is replaced with the JRC4558D.
And of course, we put in a nice, bright, clear-to-blue LED. 

There is a lot of talk about the "mid-range hump" from Tube Screamers. Some folks like it, others don't, and this seems to become a big factor when deciding to buy or not to buy a Tube Screamer. When these pedals were first made back in the days I used to play (yep, I'm getting old), most amps did not have good mid-range capabilities. So the Tube Screamer was made to concentrate on the mid-range frequency. The mids are not actually boosted, there are just less highs and lows. Our mods work to add more well-defined bass and clear highs.

But the fun has just begun! There are a couple of more options:
There is one toggle switch for an optional bass boost.  
There is another boost toggle switch. But you don’t need that one…unless you want to rock! This switch alters the clipping section to give you an asymmetrical option. You still can use the bass boost switch in this mode also, which means these 2 switches can give you a variety of sounds.

Check out the video by Mike Nix of roknfnrol. And if you want to hear him playing this pedal in a live situation with his band, just Google "Modest Mike's Mods Ibanez TS9." It's the first video on the page :)

Here are a few comments from some of our customers who have bought a Modest Mike's Mean Ass TS9, or had the mod done to their pedal:
“Good work! Really like the mods. I particularly like the gain/clipping switch. The extra volume output from the pedal is really NICE! Haven't opened it up yet to see what you did, but good work here man!”
Tom

"Hi Mike!
Your pedal just earned a spot on my pedal board. I didn't know a Tube Screamer could sound like that!"
Isaak
 
"I opened. Holy cow! I'm impressed. Very nice overdrive! This thing screams! I played around with the two extra switches you put on there and they bring the big guns out lol. I don't see myself having to use them too much but it's nice to know I have them. Ok I'm back to jamming. Excellent work!"
Vincent

“First....OMG!!!
I expected the Rat to sound better (and it DOES!!!), but I wasn't ready for the difference your Mod made to the TS-9!! I received them in the mail yesterday and took them to the jam night I host every week. I didn't want to stop playing all night!! Fantastic sounds coming out of those pedals!! I'll be sending my Boss chorus, flanger and delay to you shortly!!
Mike, ya done good!!
Cy"

We got this email from Arnaldo who lives in Puerto Rico:
“Tremendo trabajo, mega brutal este pedal y tremendo tecnico Like:)”
My Spanish is not so great, but I believe this translates to “Tremendous work. This pedal is mega brutal and tremendously technical. I like it!
 
"Mike, it is hard to believe that you could improve to the degree you were able to do on a perfectly good, brand new TS-808 Reissue stomp box. The 808 is such a good sounding pedal and now with the Gain Boost and also a Bass Boost I am very impressed. I just can’t get over the difference your MOD makes. WOW…. I think if more people knew what a difference it makes with just a flip of a switch you would be swamped doing nothing but 808’s.
Thanks, Steven"
 
We sell worldwide, but we seem to sell a lot of pedals to Australia, Canada, and the UK. Geoff recently bought one of our modified Tube Screamers. See if you can guess where he is from:
“What an awesome pedal man ...it's mad it's crazy and it's hot ..Ibanez Prestige Herman Li Signature using Di Marzio Breeds ..your pedal makes it a lot better than a Steve Vaie Ibanez with evolutions ....not as harsh as evos but sounds a lot more real ....
Thank you mate ..awesome pedal!”
 
From Kyle:
“Played the modded TS-9 today at church. I could not be happier with the sound I was getting. It is a huge upgrade to my tone I had before. Thanks again for everything!”   

“Wow! My tube screamer is vastly improved. I highly recommend this mod.”

"Mike,
My TS9 sounds awesome! Your mod has really brought out its inner beast.
Thanks!"
-Pablo-

"We make your sounds… sound good!"

Thanks for looking, and keep rockin!
Mike
Check out all of our pedals here on Reverb and at our website!