If you are looking at this, you already know that SRV used the TS-808 for his trademark juicy Strat tone. And JB has an '81 in his million dollar rig to control the mid stack to accommodate ever-changing room acoustics. But of course, you also need to have the magic in your hands. This original pedal inspires the continual development of that sonic bliss.

No need to buy an authentic  original TS808 from an overseas source. What will the tariffs and import fees be? No one likes uncertainty.

Or one In questionable condition from American re-sellers. How many hands has it passed through? Laying around on garage floors or in damp basements for 45 years. Some of the other pedals look like they were used as door stops.

For you collectors, I don't think you will find one in better condition. This is the one you need.

This one came out of my time machine. I am the original owner. Compared to others, It is almost MINT, with the exception of a few ever-present edge chips. No repairs.  Never dropped. Never left my possession. Never lent out to anyone. And most importantly, no beer ever spilled on it.

No trademark R ? No power jack nut? .......Don't despair........... It doesn't matter.

From Analog Man: "Early TS-808's have the Ibanez (R) "trademark" logo which some people seek. There is really no difference, although some of these have a Malaysian Texas Instruments RC4558P chip instead of the normal Japanese JRC4558 chip"

Plastic battery cover.

No box or power supply.

You will need a pin to barrel converter power cable.

Serial Number: 163118 (In the sweet, sweet production spot) See AnalogMan data collected from their shop-repaired pedals.

I hesitate to open it up to verify what chip is in it, but from the AnalogMan repair listings below, with serial numbers, it most likely has the coveted RC4558D "killer tone" chip.

INFO From Analog Man

TS-808

The first Tube Screamer was the green TS-808 overdrive pro in the late '70s. It was preceded by the Orange "Overdrive" and green "Overdrive-II" which came in narrower boxes without the battery cover, and the reddish "Overdrive-II" which had a box very similar to the TS-808. The lighter green OD-855 Overdrive-II is also in the TS-808 style box and has a circuit which is similar to the 808 - the board part numbers only differ by one digit. The overdrive and OD-II had a different, much more distorted, fuzzy circuit close to a Big Muff.

The TS-808 and its generation have small square metal on/off touch-buttons. Almost all TS-808's sound great. There were some TS-808s made in the 1979 period, mostly for other than USA markets, that came in a narrower box. These have a bottom plate that unscrews to change the battery like an MXR pedal, no plastic battery cover. This narrow TS-808 had a different circuit. It uses two 1458 chips which are the 1st version of the low-tech dual op-amp. Also the LEVEL knob on these is labeled BALANCE and the external 9V power jack is on the side next to the input jack. It used the same case as the earlier OVERDRIVE and OVERDRIVE-II pedals which used stomp switches. These had a circuit board labeled OD-801. This board can also be found in some old Maxon OD-808 OVERDRIVE pedals which had a TS808 style switch and a power jack on the side (not to be confused with the 2000-era Maxon OD808). Ibanez reissued the narrow TS-808 as the "35th Anniversary TS-808" in 2014. It is a very accurate reissue except they used JRC4558D chips instead of the 1458 chips. We have a mod to make these the same as the originals.

Early TS-808's have the Ibanez (R) "trademark" logo which some people seek. There is really no difference, although some of these have a Malaysian Texas Instruments RC4558P chip instead of the normal Japanese JRC4558 chip. A rare chip used was the TL4558P chip, as used in some early 8-pin IC chip Boss OD-1 pedals. This is also Jim Weider's favorite chip in the King Of Tone pedal. Some of the early TS-808s also have a nut holding the power adaptor jack on, while later ones have no nut and a flush adaptor jack. It is not unusual for a TS-808 to have an undercoat of a different color (which can be seen in the ever-present corner chips).

Original TS-808 data

From AnalogMan

The following list are some of the serial numbers and features of TS-808 pedals I have had in the shop or friends' pedals. (R) means the trademark after Ibanez on the top of the pedal.

1.     104322?(R) JRC4558D 1980, 80/15th week caps, nut on power jack

2.     104501 (R) JRC4558P 1980, 80/20th week caps, nut on power jack

3.     107140 (R) JRC4558D from 1980, 1980/24th week on caps, nut on power jack

4.     111179 (R) jRC4558D 1980, from SRV/Cesar Diaz, nut on power jack

5.     111642 (R) JRC4558D 1980 nut on power jack

6.     112198 (R) JRC4558D 1980, nut on power jack 2SK121 FETS

7.     112862 (R) RC4558P Malaysia 1980/31st week, nut on power jack

8.     116118 (R) RC4558P Malaysia, nut on power jack

9.     116198 (R) RC4558P Malay '80/31, nut on dc jack, SK121 FETS, Meaty tone, Phil Caivano's

10. 120229 (R)

11. 120274 (R) RC4558P 1980/35th week, power jack nut

12. 120407 (R)

13. 122540 9r) JRC4558D 0378, power jack nut

14. 122858 (R)

15. 126469 (R) RC4558P

16. 126648 (R)

17. 126893 (R) RC4558P chip J044 on chip, late 1980? no nut on power jack

18. 127460 (R) JRC4558D 1980 chip

19. 131544 (R) RC4558P Malaysia 1980/40th week, no power jack nut

20. 131542 (?) no power jack nut, 2SK44

21. 131630 (R) RC4558P Malaysia chip 1980/35th week, 2SK44

22. 131661 (R)

23. 139080 (R) no nut on the power jack 4558D JRC 1150

24. 139290 (R) no nut on power jack, JRC4558D 0727 chip made in 1980

25. 139329 (R)

26. 139659 no nut on jack, Texas inst Malaysia chip

27. 139767 TI RC4558P

28. 144650 TL4558P 1981?

29. 144990 no (R)

30. 145??? (R) "NEC C4558C P0918E" chip, uncommon chip

31. 145570 (R) TL4558P chip by Texas Instruments, 1981

32. 145868 (R) no nut on power jack, "NEC C4558C P0918E" chip, 1980/52nd week

33. 146264 (R) is OD-855 in TS808 shell

34. 151095 (R) no nut on power jack, TL4558P chip, 1980/52nd week

35. 151853 (R) JRC4558D no nut on power jack.

36. 151870 (R) (orig#?) 1981 JRC4558D

37. 152048 (R)

38. 153125 no (R)

39. 154114 no (R) JRC4558D

40. 157788 no (R)

41. 158135 (R)'81 JRC4558D

42. 162972 JRC4558D killer tone

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THIS PEDAL: Serial No. 163118

****************************

43. 163311 no (R) JRC4558D, 1981 chip

44. 164337 no (R) JRC4558D, no power jack nut, 1981 chip and caps

45. 170002 no (R) '81 JRC4558D chip, no power jack nut

46. 175729 no (R) JRC4558D chip, no power jack nut

47. 177390 no (R) '81 JRC4558D, no power jack nut

48. 178490 no (R)

49. 181298 no (R) or nut, 1981 JRC4558D 1444 2SK44 FETS

50. 149111 - late 1981 TS9, with JRC2043DD chip.

51. 197833 - Early TS9 from 1981.

As you can see, the JRC chip was used throughout the life of the TS-808 and the TL4558P was used sometimes. In AB tests, there is VERY little difference between the three chips, although the JRC gives the strongest CLASSIC tube screamer sound- the sweet vocal midrange. The Malaysian RC4558P chip was probably used to save some money as they were cheaper than a Japanese made JRC chip. We would be glad to use the RC chip in your mod if you would like. They have a little bit more grit which some people might like. The early TS808 used a circuit board marked MP-D01201A, then in late 1980 or so they changed to the MP-D01201B board.

SRV used the TS-808 for his trademark juicy strat tone. When he used smaller Fender amps that had natural overdrive, he used the TS set clean (low drive setting) with the level up high to push the amp for more distortion (see my CLEAN BOOST info below). When he played through big clean amps he turned the drive up more, about 1/2 way, with tone on about 3 and level about 7 to get the distortion from the TS

Notes From Mountain Air Music

The Pinnacle of Tone

I hate to give this one up, but I am slowly sending my collection on to other players. Now... lets hear some Texas Flood.

NOTES:

1. If funds used for this purchase originate from foreign sources, or if the ship-to address is outside the continental United States, please contact me for additional imposed fees before purchase. Otherwise, the purchase for the listed price may be declined.

2. This item is advertised for sale locally and on other platforms and therefore may not be available for purchase. I will attempt to promptly update or remove this listing accordingly.