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Hatsubai « Not your average Rat »
Published on 03/20/11 at 06:24Given how cheap Rat distortion pedals are out there, you'd wonder why BYOC decided to make a clone of the pedal. The biggest reason is how versatile of a circuit this is. Some don't know this, but the Rat circuit is cloned in many famous boutique pedals out there. By changing a few components, you can have an expensive pedal for way less than what they're offering.
UTILIZATION
As always, BYOC is the master at laying out clearly written instructions. Everything in the downloadable manual is laid out perfectly clear. It shows you step by step how to assemble every component, what to look out for, what to avoid, etc. If something does happen to go wrong, you can head on over to their forum, and they'll be more than happy to assist you in building your pedal.
SOUND QUALITY
The Rat is a pretty good distortion pedal on its own, but there are many ways you can improve upon its circuit. Most of the modifications are included right in the instructions that BYOC gives you, and there are other neat circuits built off of this that are available on the forum. The new models have a six position rotary switch that allows you to select from various clipping diodes. These range from the standard symmetrical/asymmetrical clipping signals, LEDs and even the coveted MOSFETs. On top of that, this new model includes the authentic LM308 chip that was in the original big box Rats.
OVERALL OPINION
If you're looking for a highly versatile distortion/overdrive, and you have some decent soldering skills, this is definitely worth checking out. Even if your soldering skills aren't that great, this pedal isn't too hard to build. There's not a whole lot going on in this pedal in terms of overall component counts, so if you're looking to improve your soldering, I recommend checking this pedal out. Given how versatile it is, I doubt it'll leave your pedalboard.
UTILIZATION
As always, BYOC is the master at laying out clearly written instructions. Everything in the downloadable manual is laid out perfectly clear. It shows you step by step how to assemble every component, what to look out for, what to avoid, etc. If something does happen to go wrong, you can head on over to their forum, and they'll be more than happy to assist you in building your pedal.
SOUND QUALITY
The Rat is a pretty good distortion pedal on its own, but there are many ways you can improve upon its circuit. Most of the modifications are included right in the instructions that BYOC gives you, and there are other neat circuits built off of this that are available on the forum. The new models have a six position rotary switch that allows you to select from various clipping diodes. These range from the standard symmetrical/asymmetrical clipping signals, LEDs and even the coveted MOSFETs. On top of that, this new model includes the authentic LM308 chip that was in the original big box Rats.
OVERALL OPINION
If you're looking for a highly versatile distortion/overdrive, and you have some decent soldering skills, this is definitely worth checking out. Even if your soldering skills aren't that great, this pedal isn't too hard to build. There's not a whole lot going on in this pedal in terms of overall component counts, so if you're looking to improve your soldering, I recommend checking this pedal out. Given how versatile it is, I doubt it'll leave your pedalboard.