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Proco RAT modifications!

rratajski

Commercial User
Jul 1, 2008
6,121
2,671
Mount Laurel, NJ
www.fuzzrociouspedals.com
Disclosures
Builder for FUZZROCIOUS PEDALS
So, I used to have a Fender Jazz Mexi fiver. My Vintage Reissue RAT sounded amazing with it (BTW, no LM chip). I added an LED to it w/ the help of TB.

When I got my Rickenbacker, the RAT was T-E-R-R-I-B-L-E...It had a week on here to be sold...It went to eBay...no takers...

I decided, "Meh, why not keep it for my son when he gets older (a lot older)?!" Theeeeeeeen, I decided, "Why not mod the hell out of it?!"

So, after hours of searching, I decided to use the Beavis mod in which one replaces two of the resistors w/ 1K Linear pots allowing one to dial in less signal running through certain capacitors...It is now able to be used on the Rick...In fact, it sounds great! Not as incredible as the GGG-tuned muff w/ two germanium diodes, but great in a different way.

So, here's some pics of the remodeling paint job and a pic of where I drilled for the two new pots. If anyone has done something similar/different/better/worse to their RAT, please add it to the thread!

RATmod1.jpg

ratmod3.jpg


I had to split the videos up due to space purposes...
Not the most graceful bass playing...but hey, it's a RAT!
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Reactions: eric_kiser
for my one i replaced the opamp for one with a higher slew rate so you get more attack and less fuzz added an input buffer to get the impedence perfect whatever you put in front of it and used j201s for the input and output buffers, changed the feedback cliping for a smoother distortion on the low end and high end, changed the clipping to 2X germ one side and 1X silicon on the other so it didn't clip as early and clipped in a asymetrical pleasing fashion, also made the output cap alot larger to increase the gain coming out of the pedal!

great grammar ;<
 
for my one i replaced the opamp for one with a higher slew rate so you get more attack and less fuzz added an input buffer to get the impedence perfect whatever you put in front of it and used j201s for the input and output buffers, changed the feedback cliping for a smoother distortion on the low end and high end, changed the clipping to 2X germ one side and 1X silicon on the other so it didn't clip as early and clipped in a asymetrical pleasing fashion, also made the output cap alot larger to increase the gain coming out of the pedal!

great grammar ;<

Ah, the run-on sentence. hahaha

I've been looking into heavily-modified Rats as an alternative to the over-used and often-abused bass+Muff combination. How difficult would it be to throw a clean blend into a Rat? I'm looking into the Beavis mods, too, and the fantasy of a Rat with more switches and knobs than a vintage synth makes me drool.:bassist:

There's definitely room in the big box rat like I have to add a blend circuit. Those boxes are bigger than they need to be. I actually am favoring the muff over the RAT. Even w/ all the mods I did, I still want more bass. I don't want to throw a blend in mine at this point...Too much $ invested in a dirty pedal anway...
 
try increasing the size of the feedback caps to around 4.7uf and 47uf and increasing the resistor in series with the larger one up to maybe as much a 2.2k for a much cleaner low end. Rats can have some seriously brutal low end. I much prefer them to muffs and muffs are far to compressed etc for my liking