You can't really go wrong with either of these pedals. The TS808 is a certifiable classic but the Soul Food, barely on the scene, has already taken the market by storm (i.e., the hype is strong with this one).
The Tube Screamer (TS9 or TS808) is an "overdrive" pedal with a lot of mid-range honk whereas the Soul Food (a near clone of a famous but unaffordable Klon pedal) is characterized by a wider-palette "boost" that will also take you into overdrive by cranking up the "drive" control. In front of a small tweed tube amp the SF will definitely satisfy your craving for molten midrange leads. I cranked the SF in front of a Swart AST Pro (playing a Suhr Modern) and you'd swear you were playing a tiny NMV Marshall.
As a boost, the SF is really fantastic. So good in fact that it knocked an EP Booster off my pedalboard. The SF is way better than the EP in my opinion, though I do like the Xotic unit in front of a faux tape delay where its fizzy characteristics can help add authenticity to the tape effect. But the EP has just one function and fails to provide that big, wide sound of the SF with the drive down and the volume up.
If I was forced to choose only one due to space or monetary reasons, I'd probably go with the Soul Food but I think going with both, if you can, is a good idea and will not represent a waste of money via tonal or functional overlap.
The Tube Screamer (TS9 or TS808) is an "overdrive" pedal with a lot of mid-range honk whereas the Soul Food (a near clone of a famous but unaffordable Klon pedal) is characterized by a wider-palette "boost" that will also take you into overdrive by cranking up the "drive" control. In front of a small tweed tube amp the SF will definitely satisfy your craving for molten midrange leads. I cranked the SF in front of a Swart AST Pro (playing a Suhr Modern) and you'd swear you were playing a tiny NMV Marshall.
As a boost, the SF is really fantastic. So good in fact that it knocked an EP Booster off my pedalboard. The SF is way better than the EP in my opinion, though I do like the Xotic unit in front of a faux tape delay where its fizzy characteristics can help add authenticity to the tape effect. But the EP has just one function and fails to provide that big, wide sound of the SF with the drive down and the volume up.
If I was forced to choose only one due to space or monetary reasons, I'd probably go with the Soul Food but I think going with both, if you can, is a good idea and will not represent a waste of money via tonal or functional overlap.