Welp, I've finally got some processed audio. I like this example, it's Marina and the Kats "Dirty" from a mix contest. It's a good one for me to test things like the TS508 because the song is awesome, hasa great groove and elements (thumpy bass that typically farts out any wide band saturators, a vintage voice that seems a bit too buried, a high end that is crisp but needs some sheen).
So I looked to deemphaszie the bass so it didn't fart out, emphasize the vocals to bring them forward, and also emphasize the high end for some sparkle to offset the thumpy bass.
"Original" is the original reference mix provided for that contest (Lewitt). The "RSE TS508" is that same 2 track mix they provided, that has been processed through RSE's device.
Settings are shown in the pic below. I think the MP3 is sufficient to tell the difference but if anyone wants the WAV files just let me know and I can upload them to soundcloud (size limits prevent uploading here).
In terms of comparison to the TubeDrve, I love mine as well and it's not going anywhere... I'm keeping it. Primarily for one reason (other than the fact that is sounds awesome): It's dual mono so I can do mid/side processing. The TS508 is stereo so I can't really do M/S processing with it in the way you can with a dual mono device.
Other than that, the feature sets of the TS508 and TubeDrve are very similar. Both have an input to drive the saturation (although TubeDrve also has a Boost function that really increases gain for extra distortion). Both have output and dry wet knobs, but I think the TubeDrve output and dry/wet are structure differently (I think the TubeDrve Dry/Wet is before the Output which makes it tricky to dial in), although I could be wrong on this. Both have pentode and triode and bias for both tube stages, but the TubeDrve is either-or and the TS508 allows blending of the triode and pentode. The TS508 of coursew then has it's features of VU meter, de/reemphasis, ability to switch in and out the two separate EQ stages.
I would highly recommend the TS508! It's a unique device that is quite special and sounds incredible!
In the example here, I felt the TS508 lifted the track up, made the vocals more present, added sheen to the top end and added a bit of roundness to the bass without farting out so that the bass was tamed slightly.
Edit: listening here online my only comment would be that it sounds to me like I overdid the high-end saturation a bit. That cymbal wash, the claps and the background vocals on the sides get pretty intense :-) But, if I was actually using it for real purposes and not trying to demo the effect of the device I probably reduce the emphasis on the high end and take the dry wet down to about 2 o'clock.
