What JHS’s Muffuletta did for Muff-style fuzzes and what the Bonsai did for Screamer-style overdrives, the new PackRat does for rodent-style distortion pedals, arming you with nine re-created vintage stompbox circuits. JHS describes the PackRat as “the ultimate tribute to 40-plus years of rodent evolution.” Indeed, whatever iteration of the famous big-mouse-themed distortion/fuzz/overdrive pedal you’re coveting, the PackRat has you covered. The iconic gritty guitar tones wielded by Nirvana, John Scofield, Pink Floyd, Metallica, R.E.M., Eagles, Jeff Beck, Radiohead, and more are all lurking inside the PackRat’s pedalboard-friendly enclosure.
A Real-deal Rodent Infestation
Like JHS’s other multimode stompboxes, the PackRat’s nine modes employ authentic analog circuitry — they’re not digital emulations. Rather, when you plug your axe into the PackRat, you’re plugging into the same circuitry as the original guitar pedals. JHS founder Josh Scott distilled 45 vintage rodent-style circuits down to the PackRat’s nine modes. He examined the original circuits meticulously, accounting for drift and other signs of aging. He then enlisted a proprietary digital runway system to direct the paths of 261 components through 40 individual switches. Thus, if you’ve ever wished you could own one of these vintage distortion pedals — but in brand-new condition — then the PackRat will deliver the goods.
Familiar 3-knob Control Layout
If you’re well acquainted with the original rodent-inspired stompbox, then you’ll have no trouble navigating the PackRat — it boasts the same 3-knob control set. Volume adjusts your overall output level, enabling you to punish the front end of your amplifier. Distortion raises or lowers the amount of gain that the pedal produces. Filter enables you to brighten or darken your sound — it’s essentially a reverse tone control. If you can dial in the original stomp, then you’ll have no problem coaxing your favorite ratty distortion tones out of the PackRat.
Replicates Nine Popular — and Hard-to-find — Pedals
The PackRat’s nine modes run the full gamut of Rattus norvegicus–style sonic textures. The pedal includes the uber-rare first production “Big Box” model — the OG — and the famous White Face version as well as other top-selling variations such as Turbo, BRAT, and Dirty. You also get lesser-known third-party and boutique derivatives, including the LA, Landgraff, and Caroline. Changing modes is as easy as turning the mode knob, which rewires the pedal’s analog circuitry for each selection, deploying different resistor values, capacitors, diodes, and op-amps to achieve a wide range of furry-mammal-like tones.
Get Your Hands on All the Rodents
The JHS PackRat is priced at $249 — a great deal when you consider that you get nine completely different rodent-style tones in a single convenient enclosure. If you were to purchase all nine vintage pedals separately on the used market, you’d be hard-pressed to keep your cost below $4,000!
To get your hands on all these coveted distortion sounds, give your Sales Engineer a call at (800) 222-4700.
