Tube Screamer vs Klon
These two pedals are not competitors. They do different things to your signal, and one of them is not really a drive pedal at low gain.
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We have not played this gear. Every pick below is chosen from published manufacturer specifications and the arithmetic set out in how we research, which you can re-run yourself.
A Tube Screamer clips symmetrically inside the op-amp's feedback loop and cuts bass while boosting mids, which narrows the signal before it reaches the amp. A Klon-style circuit mixes an unclipped clean path back in alongside the clipped one, so the amp's own low end survives. Buy the TS to push an amp that is already breaking up; buy the Klon type to add gain to an amp you want to keep sounding like itself.
These get compared constantly and the comparison is usually about price and mystique. The circuits differ in one structural way, and everything people describe — 'the TS is mid-humped', 'the Klon is transparent', 'the TS is compressed' — follows from it.
The two circuits, and what to actually buy
| # | Product | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | No photo Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer Symmetrical clipping and a mid hump — a narrower, more focused signal into the amp. | Pushing a valve amp into more of its own breakup | |
| 02 | No photo Wampler Tumnus A parallel clean path mixed with the clipped one, so the amp's low end survives. | Adding gain without changing the amp's character |
Rows link to the full write-up further down this page. Prices come from the live price layer only — where there is no live figure the button reads “Check price” rather than showing a remembered number.
02The structural difference in one paragraph
In a Tube Screamer, all of your signal goes through the clipping stage. The diodes are inside the op-amp's feedback loop, which produces soft symmetrical clipping and, because the loop's gain is frequency-dependent, a tone stack that cuts bass and lifts mids. There is no path around it.
In a Klon-style circuit, the signal splits. One copy goes through a clipping stage; the other stays clean. The Gain control changes how much of each you hear. At low gain the clean path dominates and the pedal is essentially a treble-forward boost. That is why the same pedal can be described as a boost by one player and a drive by another — they are using different parts of the same knob.
03What that means in practice
| Question | Tube Screamer | Klon type |
|---|---|---|
| Bass response | Cut, deliberately and substantially | Largely preserved via the clean path |
| Mids | Pronounced hump | Flatter, with a treble lift instead |
| Compression | Noticeable — symmetrical soft clipping | Less, especially at low gain |
| At low gain settings | A quieter version of the same voice | Effectively a clean boost |
| Into a clean amp | Thin and mid-forward — the pedal is the sound | Louder and brighter, still recognisably your amp |
| Into a cranked amp | The classic tightening push | More of the same amp, harder |
| Published draw | 8 mA (Ibanez) | 20 mA (Wampler Tumnus) |
Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer
Pushing a valve amp into more of its own breakup
The number8 mA at 9 V, published by Ibanez.
The TS9 removes bass, boosts mids, and compresses the signal by clipping symmetrically inside the op-amp's feedback loop. All three of those are the same design decision seen from different angles: make the signal narrower and more consistent before it hits the amp.
Buy this if your amp already distorts and you want it to distort more, tighter, and with the low end under control. It is the standard solution to a loose, flubby overdriven amp.
Do not buy it as your only drive if your amp stays clean. Alone, the mid hump and the bass cut are the whole sound, and it is a specific one.
| Controls | Drive, Tone, Level |
|---|---|
| Current draw | 8 mA at 9 V |
| Power | One 9 V battery (006P) or a 9 V DC center-negative adapter |
| Jack layout | Input on the right side, output on the left |
| Impedance | Not published by Ibanez |
| What it does not do | No power supply in the box, no true bypass (the TS9 is buffered), and no bass control — the tone stack is a single treble-tilt knob over a fixed mid hump. |
Specs from Ibanez TS9 product page. We have not used this unit.
Wampler Tumnus
Adding gain without changing the amp's character
The number20 mA at 9 V, buffered bypass, no battery connection.
A Klon-style circuit runs the clean signal alongside the clipped signal and mixes them with the Gain control. At low gain settings you are mostly hearing a clean boost with a treble lift; wind the gain up and the clipped path takes over.
That is why it works on both a clean amp and a dirty one, and why it is the more forgiving purchase if you are not sure which case you are in.
It is buffered, has no battery option, and its Treble control is a single tilt rather than an EQ — it lifts the top end and cannot cut a specific frequency.
| Controls | Level, Gain, Treble |
|---|---|
| Current draw | 20 mA at 9 V |
| Power | 9 V DC jack only — no battery connection |
| Bypass | 3PDT buffered bypass |
| Size | 1.5 x 3.5 x 1.5 in (38.1 x 88.9 x 38.1 mm), excluding knobs |
| What it does not do | One tone control, not a full EQ, and no battery option. It cannot make a dark amp bright on its own — it lifts treble and mids around what is already there. |
Specs from Wampler Tumnus product page. We have not used this unit.
04Who each one is wrong for
The Tube Screamer is wrong for you if your amp stays clean at your playing volume and you were expecting the pedal to supply a full-range distorted tone. It will sound thin, and turning the Tone control up will make it worse, not better. It is also wrong if you play in a register where the bass cut removes the part you wanted — on a baritone or a down-tuned guitar it can hollow the note out.
A Klon-style pedal is wrong for you if you specifically want the mid hump. Transparency is the opposite of what a solo boost needs — if the goal is to jump forward in a mix, you want a pedal that changes the EQ, and the TS does exactly that.
05The honest answer about the original Klon
The original Klon Centaur is a collector item at collector prices. Buying one as a working pedal is not a defensible purchase on any grounds we can support with a spec sheet, and we are not going to pretend otherwise. The circuit is what matters and it is available at a fraction of the money — Klon clones covers the versions and what differs between them.
We have not played either pedal, and this comparison is not built on that. It is built on what the manufacturers publish and on what the topologies necessarily do to a signal. If you want the reasoning behind that approach, how we research sets it out.
06If you own one and are considering the other
They stack, and one direction is better. A Klon-style pedal into a Tube Screamer puts some of the low end back before the TS removes it, which is a genuinely useful combination for a lead sound. The reverse — TS into Klon — mostly compounds the mid hump.
Frequently asked questions
+ Is a Klon just an expensive Tube Screamer?
+ Which is better for a clean amp?
+ Why are Klon Centaurs so expensive?
+ Can I use both together?
Sources
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