Guitar Pedals · owner-verdict comparison

Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer vs TC Electronic Hall of Fame 2: what real owners say

Real owners lean toward the Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer: 73% of 52 owners recommend it, vs 53% of 30 for the TC Electronic Hall of Fame 2.

Verdicts aggregated from Reddit, enthusiast forums, and YouTube owner comments — affiliate reviews excluded. Sample sizes differ; judge accordingly. How we score

Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer

73%of 52 owners recommend
73% recommend · 14% neutral · 13% don't
Owners praise
  • Classic, great-sounding overdrive tone
  • Excellent boost to overdrive a tube amp
  • Popular, reputable industry-standard pedal
Owners complain about
  • Mid-heavy voicing that cuts low-end and suits some styles more than others
Full owner report →

TC Electronic Hall of Fame 2

53%of 30 owners recommend
53% recommend · 20% neutral · 27% don't
Owners praise
  • Excellent value for the price
  • Very versatile reverb options
  • Deep, flexible TonePrint editor
Owners complain about
  • Stock sounds can feel generic or digital
  • Falls short of high-end reverbs
  • Build quality issues with knobs and switch
Full owner report →

What Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer owners say

“I love my TS9 that I've had since the 90s, but I have an EQ pedal after it, which has made all the difference.”
— @DonaldMerand on YouTube
“This really is the greatest distortion pedal I’ve ever owned.”
— @TheDCGuitar13 on YouTube
“Only thing I’d change is the TS for a DS1 or a Boss Super Distortion or an MXR distortion. I was never a fan of the Tube Screamer.”
— _1JackMove on Reddit

What TC Electronic Hall of Fame 2 owners say

“It's a really nice sounding pedal with nice features for someone who don't require the sound quality of more expensive reverb pedals such as the Strymon stuff etc.”
— @Nghilifa on YouTube
“the sounds of the hof2 inspired and moved me. That didn't happen with the other reverbs in your videos. So I bought one.”
— @leonardo.rafael on YouTube
“TC is muddy and blurry.”
— @OrkhanJulfa on YouTube