Pro Co RAT ...................................................
Like a RAT out of hell, it’ll be on when distortion comes
The Pro Co RAT remains one of the most popular distortion pedals ever to grace guitarists’ ’boards. After years spent repairing and modifying existing stompboxes, Pro Co’s engineering director Scott Burnham drew up the template for the RAT circuit in 1978, and put it into production in 1979. The RAT’s trademark hard clipping comes from a pair of silicon diodes, which yield an aggressive yet smooth distortion. A second version of the RAT was released in 1988, including an on/off LED, and is still available.
The RAT’s signature tone has been used by guitarists as diverse as Dave Grohl, Thom Yorke and James Hetfield, and spawned numerous offspring, including the gained-up Turbo RAT, twinchannel Deucetone RAT and the germanium clipping-fuelled You Dirty RAT. Most players agree that mid-80s RATs best capture the tone, inspiring Pro Co to unveil the ’85 Whiteface RAT Reissue in 2010, with the original’s LM308 op amp; the Fat RAT, released this year, offers MOSFET and original circuits, proving there’s life in the old rodent yet. [MB] 1979 Pro Co introduces the first RAT, based on Scott Burnham’s circuit template 1988 The RAT 2 is released, incorporating an on/off LED 2010 Pro Co recreates the classic RAT sound with the ’85 Whiteface RAT Reissue 2014 The Fat RAT is unveiled, offering a choice of MOSFET and original circuits