Rat Alternatives

Gear Aquisition Syndrome is a serious disorder.... FX etc

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Pastasauce
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Re: Rat Alternatives

Post by Pastasauce »

TmcB wrote:I have been ratted out HOHO!

So with Voxen, run it with gain below 12 and as much vol as you dare - best is to try and set the gain low enough that the bass response is juuuust kicking in and loads of vol to pummel the preamp - don't bother using it for brootz.

Avoid a new bog standard Rat 2, You Dirty Rat or Turbo are better quality and mods are easy.

The ENO Rat was placed side by side with an '80s Rat 2 and there is no difference (good for budget)

Big Box RI Rat is worth a punt if you see one - if it has an LM308 on the left side of the board, you're a winner!

Mudhoney's are lightly tweaked rats with a low gain option (they labelled it boost but it's actually the opposite) and I really like what they did.

Out of my Silverpistol range, the Bronson with the diodes in hard clipping is in the ballpark but much more refined - I'm looking to add my Rat version to the line up soon.

TL;DR

Cheap = ENO Rat
Legit = tweaked You Dirty Rat (swap out diodes, chip, and a cap)
Boutique = Mudhoney
Plug for Silverpistol = Bronson
This is interesting, thanks.

With what you're suggesting (low gain, high volume) it seems like the Rat would fill a similar role to what I already use a Timmy for. Hitting "more" on the amp.

What would be the go to pedal for more gainz? Not broots, as such, but more like high-gain Radiohead "Just" type sounds? I had thought that was what a Rat would be best for when paired with the Vox, since it's a common pairing.

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Re: Rat Alternatives

Post by godgrinder »

A Rat adds lots of SS grit even at low gain settings, which is quite different than a transparent OD (or even usual OD pedals).
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Re: Rat Alternatives

Post by Kris »

what about an OCD-a-like? eno trouble is my go to for boost/med gainz

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Re: Rat Alternatives

Post by Polar Bear »

You really need to try a Silverpistol Bronson.
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Re: Rat Alternatives

Post by jeremyb »

T-Rex Mudhoney II is two turbo rat 2s in a box basically, sounds killer!
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Re: Rat Alternatives

Post by TmcB »

Pastasauce wrote:
This is interesting, thanks.

With what you're suggesting (low gain, high volume) it seems like the Rat would fill a similar role to what I already use a Timmy for. Hitting "more" on the amp.

What would be the go to pedal for more gainz? Not broots, as such, but more like high-gain Radiohead "Just" type sounds? I had thought that was what a Rat would be best for when paired with the Vox, since it's a common pairing.


With Vox amps you're trying to take care of their flabby bass whilst trying to get more compression and sustain happening - you don't necessarily need gain.

The Rat works because at lower gain settings it removes bass - as you turn up the gain, the bass increases. Vox amps also have low headroom and a lot of compression so a good slab of midrange makes them get excellent singing sustain and compression - this is where the Rat will shine compared to the Timmy. You'll get more Marshallesque crunch and punch out of it.
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Re: Rat Alternatives

Post by Pastasauce »

Ok, makes sense, cheers!

Would be keen to hear more about the Bronson - any youtube demos?

And that Catalinbread pedal has me interested too. My OD's would go Timmy -> Hotcake -> THIS pedal, so have something in that spot that could do both gainer sounds and fuzz would be ideal (I only have a pedaltrain nano, and don't really want to go bigger). I've heard that tonebenders work better with Vox's than muffs too.

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Re: Rat Alternatives

Post by TmcB »

Pastasauce wrote:Ok, makes sense, cheers!

Would be keen to hear more about the Bronson - any youtube demos?

And that Catalinbread pedal has me interested too. My OD's would go Timmy -> Hotcake -> THIS pedal, so have something in that spot that could do both gainer sounds and fuzz would be ideal (I only have a pedaltrain nano, and don't really want to go bigger). I've heard that tonebenders work better with Vox's than muffs too.
Here's SimpleSi's demo of the Bronson - this version of the Bronson didn't have the hard clipping in it but you'll get the gist
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-O-BPW6FheM?t=1m30s[/youtube]

Got you covered with the epic tonebender thing too, with the Orion :thumbup:
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Re: Rat Alternatives

Post by niceguyollie »

Pastasauce wrote:
TmcB wrote:I have been ratted out HOHO!

So with Voxen, run it with gain below 12 and as much vol as you dare - best is to try and set the gain low enough that the bass response is juuuust kicking in and loads of vol to pummel the preamp - don't bother using it for brootz.

Avoid a new bog standard Rat 2, You Dirty Rat or Turbo are better quality and mods are easy.

The ENO Rat was placed side by side with an '80s Rat 2 and there is no difference (good for budget)

Big Box RI Rat is worth a punt if you see one - if it has an LM308 on the left side of the board, you're a winner!

Mudhoney's are lightly tweaked rats with a low gain option (they labelled it boost but it's actually the opposite) and I really like what they did.

Out of my Silverpistol range, the Bronson with the diodes in hard clipping is in the ballpark but much more refined - I'm looking to add my Rat version to the line up soon.

TL;DR

Cheap = ENO Rat
Legit = tweaked You Dirty Rat (swap out diodes, chip, and a cap)
Boutique = Mudhoney
Plug for Silverpistol = Bronson
This is interesting, thanks.

With what you're suggesting (low gain, high volume) it seems like the Rat would fill a similar role to what I already use a Timmy for. Hitting "more" on the amp.

What would be the go to pedal for more gainz? Not broots, as such, but more like high-gain Radiohead "Just" type sounds? I had thought that was what a Rat would be best for when paired with the Vox, since it's a common pairing.
The Rat is that sound. Thom's drive tone during this period was a Turbo Rat through a Twin. Jonny was a Shredmaster through a Fender Eighty Five.

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