Ben Jamin Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 I borrowed my brother's ancient and battered RAT II to play Song 2 by Blur as requested at a wedding gig. I was told it should do the job. Oh my life. This pedal's so crazy it actually scares me a little. The distortion is ridiculously thick and nasty. So much fun. Try one out if you can That's all really, I was just compelled to post about it after experiencing it! Okay, I suppose a good topic would be: does anyone else own any guitar pedals then coincidentally sound awesome with bass? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 glad you like the rat II on bass, to me there was far too much bottom end loss. the rat II was better imho Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Jamin Posted July 20, 2012 Author Share Posted July 20, 2012 [quote name='ahpook' timestamp='1342825185' post='1741732'] glad you like the rat II on bass, to me there was far too much bottom end loss. the rat II was better imho [/quote] This Rat's one of the original Rat IIs - I think the current one has a slightly different circuit. Yeah there was a bit of a low-end loss but nothing a bit of EQ can't solve. If you shove a load of bass into it sounds ace imo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 [quote name='Ben Jamin' timestamp='1342826269' post='1741738'] This Rat's one of the original Rat IIs - I think the current one has a slightly different circuit. Yeah there was a bit of a low-end loss but nothing a bit of EQ can't solve. If you shove a load of bass into it sounds ace imo [/quote] if it sounds good, then it is good ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skidder652003 Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 I use an old 80s pedal by a Jap company called Phase. Its a flanger and its analogue heaven. Also have a BYOC analogue delay, also amazing (though dont really use it). Cant beat those old 70s / 80s pedals! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GarethFlatlands Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 [quote name='Ben Jamin' timestamp='1342824745' post='1741726'] I borrowed my brother's ancient and battered RAT II to play Song 2 by Blur as requested at a wedding gig. I was told it should do the job. Oh my life. This pedal's so crazy it actually scares me a little. The distortion is ridiculously thick and nasty. So much fun. Try one out if you can That's all really, I was just compelled to post about it after experiencing it! Okay, I suppose a good topic would be: does anyone else own any guitar pedals then coincidentally sound awesome with bass? [/quote] Looks like an old one, any idea what year it is? The quality has been slowly declining over the years but I love the old ones, possibly my favourite dirt pedal ever for guitar along with the Harmonic Percolator. Very different beasts though. I got a cheap one off E-bay and swapped out the chip for the classic one. And put in a superbright green LED but I don't think that effects the sound I lent mine to Finbar to try out on bass but he never ended up with one so I'm not sure he got on with it. I believe it's what the guy from Glassjaw used on the 1st album which is why he wanted to try it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 The bass player from The Haunted uses Rat pedals and I actually love his tone so much! Didn't get on with the Juggernaut (bass specific rat) though! Marshall Jackhammers are good too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mancunianfox Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Turbo Rat with the LED's for clipping is wicked on bass. Reuz mod helps with low end loss too. Built one a while ago and love it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Jamin Posted July 21, 2012 Author Share Posted July 21, 2012 [quote name='GarethFlatlands' timestamp='1342856819' post='1741860'] Looks like an old one, any idea what year it is? The quality has been slowly declining over the years but I love the old ones, possibly my favourite dirt pedal ever for guitar along with the Harmonic Percolator. Very different beasts though. I got a cheap one off E-bay and swapped out the chip for the classic one. And put in a superbright green LED but I don't think that effects the sound I lent mine to Finbar to try out on bass but he never ended up with one so I'm not sure he got on with it. I believe it's what the guy from Glassjaw used on the 1st album which is why he wanted to try it. [/quote] I don't know exactly what year it is, I just know that my brother bought it second-hand and well used about 17 years ago, so it's quite old! Going to have to check this Harmonic Percolator, it sounds very fun Super-bright? So now it's not only deafening but blinding? You live a dangerous life! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Jamin Posted July 21, 2012 Author Share Posted July 21, 2012 [quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1342863461' post='1741935'] The bass player from The Haunted uses Rat pedals and I actually love his tone so much! Didn't get on with the Juggernaut (bass specific rat) though! Marshall Jackhammers are good too [/quote] Cool, I'll have to check them out! I'd heard the Juggernaut wasn't so great but I haven't tried one - I think I'll just see how long I can, erm, 'borrow' my brothers Rat before he needs it back Marshall Jackhammer? If I'm not careful I'm going to get guitar pedal GAS on top of bass pedal GAS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 [quote name='Ben Jamin' timestamp='1342868514' post='1742048'] Cool, I'll have to check them out! I'd heard the Juggernaut wasn't so great but I haven't tried one - I think I'll just see how long I can, erm, 'borrow' my brothers Rat before he needs it back Marshall Jackhammer? If I'm not careful I'm going to get guitar pedal GAS on top of bass pedal GAS [/quote] The Juggernaut has been discontinued for ages, searched the net to get one a while ago and when it finally came I was pretty disappointed, sounded nothing like the guitar ones! Lots of people on here use Jackhammers now, they're nice and cheap (about 20 to 30 quid used), and the EQ is pretty versatile and can compensate for any low end loss you might encounter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Jamin Posted July 21, 2012 Author Share Posted July 21, 2012 (edited) [quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1342868748' post='1742053'] The Juggernaut has been discontinued for ages, searched the net to get one a while ago and when it finally came I was pretty disappointed, sounded nothing like the guitar ones! Lots of people on here use Jackhammers now, they're nice and cheap (about 20 to 30 quid used), and the EQ is pretty versatile and can compensate for any low end loss you might encounter [/quote] Jackhammers look really good! I found a thread where a bloke runs some pink noise through different pedals into a frequency analyser to get an idea of their EQ response with them set flat. Here's a Tech 21 BDDI: And here's a Jackhammer: Not half bad! Edited July 21, 2012 by Ben Jamin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Protium Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 I've modded a few Turbo RATs so they work better with bass, good little pedals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 [quote name='Ben Jamin' timestamp='1342877053' post='1742239'] Jackhammers look really good! I found a thread where a bloke runs some pink noise through different pedals into a frequency analyser to get an idea of their EQ response with them set flat. Here's a Tech 21 BDDI: And here's a Jackhammer: Not half bad! [/quote] The curve of the Jackhammer explains a lot! It doesnt even need a clean blend to sound great and sit in the mix well. I use it with a Sansamp for ultimate anger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 Had to check out some clips of the jackhammer after seeing that response curve. Wow, sounds great on bass! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sibob Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 Check out the Fuzzrocious Rat Tail pedals for Rat circuits designed with bass in mind Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LiamPodmore Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 One of my favourites like this is the Boss MT-2, it makes an absolutely LOVELY Fuzz. Liam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 I've found the jackhammer very hard to tame for bass. I did get a great sound, and it's such a versatile pedal, but it did take me about 10 minutes of sitting there tweaking - compared to the normal 1 minute for your standard dirt pedal. My favorite guitar pedal is the Ibanez SS10 which is chorus and distortion. It's even harsher than the Rat, although along the same lines. Blended it sounds amazing with bass. When i'm in the studio, I actually find more often than not that a blend doesn't sound as good as compensating EQ, so i'll record straight through the SS10 pedal, even though it gives a load of low end loss, I just EQ back what I want and it works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr M Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 [quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1342863461' post='1741935'] Marshall Jackhammers are good too [/quote] I bought a Jackhammer for use with guitar 7 or 8 years ago. Didn't really like it. After hearing it recommended as a bass pedal, I tried running my bass through it. Still couldn't get a sound I liked out of it. It may be that I've just got a duff one, but I start to get some really nasty (not in a good way) sounds out of any amp I put it through. I'd be interested to know what kinda settings other people are using. On the other hand, I also have a Marshall Shredmaster I picked up for a song. Now that is awesome. I'm also a fan of the Digitech Bad Monkey. Plenty of bottom end, and just adds a nice amount of grit to your tone. Really responsive to picking dynamics as well - nice and clean when you play gently, and crunchy when you dig in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 (edited) Borrowed an old RAT from a friend on the strength of this thread - I too suffered excessive low-end loss that my pre-amp could not cure... Anyone recommend a pedal to approximate the 'Commerford' Audioslave-era sound? Though I'm quite sure he used a plethora of FX. Someone did recommend a Marshall Guv'nor MkI. I've bid for a few on the bay, but keep getting pipped at the post! Edited July 24, 2012 by discreet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 IMO for a Timmy C sound you need a blended tube screamer type pedal and a bass with jazz pups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 [quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1343143002' post='1745978'] IMO for a Timmy C sound you need a blended tube screamer type pedal and a bass with jazz pups.[/quote] Cheers for this. I noticed he used a Jazz in Audioslave... not sure if I want to buy a jazz just for one number, though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 in that case an EQ is probaby more use than a dirt pedal! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 [quote name='Dr M' timestamp='1343142229' post='1745962'] I bought a Jackhammer for use with guitar 7 or 8 years ago. Didn't really like it. After hearing it recommended as a bass pedal, I tried running my bass through it. Still couldn't get a sound I liked out of it. It may be that I've just got a duff one, but I start to get some really nasty (not in a good way) sounds out of any amp I put it through. I'd be interested to know what kinda settings other people are using. [/quote] I didn't like it on guitar either. Takes a fair bit of tweaking to get the right sound but there are lots of sounds in there. IMO it sounds best when used in conjunction with a Sansamp. At the moment I have it on the OD setting, gain at 10 o clock, with the EQ flat, contour at 12 o clock and freq at 1 o clock. Adds a great edge to my sound and helps the actual drive to cut through the mix In an older band I used it on the OD setting, but with the gain and treble cranked and a bit of a low mid cut. Sounded amazing! Pure face-rip! Wouldn't dare use those settings in a band with TWO guiarists though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted July 24, 2012 Share Posted July 24, 2012 [quote name='LiamPodmore' timestamp='1343135849' post='1745825'] One of my favourites like this is the Boss MT-2, it makes an absolutely LOVELY Fuzz. Liam [/quote] I've just taken delivery of one today! I can see it being very useful blended with a clean tone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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