Wampler Ratsbane Distortion Pedal Reviews

After months of trying different overdrive, distortion, and fuzz pedals- the ratsbane is the one for me! At first, I was unsure about how heavy this pedal can get but the wide range is unreal. Of course, it is unapologetically a distortion pedal, at the same time it lets you dial in the tone you'd like to hear. On my board, I have a MXR Duke of Tone as a transparent-like overdrive to deliver a nice breakup sound and the ratsbane does wonders when it comes to leads and a nice harmonically rich sound for chords. Metal is not my frequent genre to play although 80's big hair bands have a special place in my heart. The majority of the time I play on a worship team at church and this pedal is going to do wonders for the upbeat songs and crisp-sounding leads. Would recommend this pedal 100%! Oh, also this little guy is designed and made in the USA. AWESOME.

Wampler hit it out of the park with this one. The modern mode adds even more versatility to the rat.

Filter: 9 o' clock
Distortion: cranked up
Gain: middle
Voice: Right

If you like the proco rat, you will love this pedal!

I mean it's exactly a Rat and then a bit more. As long as you know what you are getting yourself into this is the classic Rat that you love but without the clunky housing than seems dated at this point (and I sure ask heck don't mean dated in that cool vintage way). The switches really don't really add value for me, I could do without them honestly, but that doesn't mean I don't love the Rat in this mini setup. It's still better that Rat's new mini too IMO.

What a fun pedal.
You can solo with it cranked out stupid.
Or turn the distortion down to barely cracking and have some fun on a tele.
I love playing this on my partscaster through the neck P90 into the Tumnus with the Tumnus everything at 10 except gain at 1-2 and the Ratsbane distortion at 1 and filter at 9. Just slow-strumming chords...it's like some kind of distant field of bagpipes.

The extra gain stage switch, the Wampler voicing (clean and open), the ability to roll op amps (chip socket) and compact size make this a great pedal.

Wow...just wow!
10 o'clock-volume
10 o'clock-filter
2:30 - distortion
Just stunning into a clean amp like my Bugera V55.
It's like being dragged down a gravel road.
Ouch...keep going!

Nice powerful addition to my simple pedalboard. Many options to choose from. Thanks Sweetwater!

I've owned and played many different OD/Distortion/Fuzz pedals and this has to be one of the top that I've used. There is SO much variety you can make from this little guy. It basically covers most rock/metal sounds from the 80s-2000's. Combined with whatever axe and amp you're using, there are a ton of tonal options.

I've been using this in place of my 2nd overdrive pedal in the effects chain for hard rock/metal/black metal styles. If I dial back the high ends, I can get a nice, smooth, fuzz too.

The footprint is very small as well, so it's a welcome and non-obstructive addition to my board. I swap it in/out with the 2nd OD pedal a lot, as my playing style spans a fairly broad spectrum. If I do more metal in the future, it will probably earn a permanent place there.

Brian and his merry mates at Wampler have created a rodent-like circuit that is very true to what we all love about the RAT. I think it is one of the best options currently available. I think Josh at JHS has also done a great job with the very economical 3 series distortion, but I was intrigued by those options added by Wampler. I do find that the additional voice that changes the eq has made this pedal a keeper for me. I could have just shaped mids with another pedal, but it is very cool that what I would have wanted just happens with a flip of that switch. I also appreciate the gain and mid shape when the gain switch is to the left. Very useful and very much in that muff territory when set right.

Also, always important to add that Evan is the best ever! Call him.

Would recommend. I like it.

I never really found a fuzz that I connected with and I felt like I needed something more than my overdrives provide at certain times and as my first venture into distortion i must say that I am very satisfied with this pedal it was very easy to dial in the sound I was looking for and I would certainly recommend giving this pedal a try!

Love this mini Ratsbane. Has several tonal options, all great. Just an all around great pedal. Highly recommend it. I'm enjoying it that's for sure. And I'm a huge pedal addict. Mainly distortion, overdrive, rat pedals and a few compressors.

I just got it on so many levels.

• I received the Ratsbane a couple of days ago - just got it!

• Now I "get" the Rat - my favorite distortion!

• Now I "get" Brian Wampler - he does the right thing!

• Now I "get" mini-pedals - they fit everywhere!

• Now I "get" the difference between 9v and 18v - no I don't!

Always liked the Rat, never owned one. I went with the Ratsbane for the optional, uh, options. It's not just a great price point but it also saved me from buying multiple pedals (or more accurately, saved me money so I could buy more pedals that aren't hard-clippers).

I wanted a boring uninteresting pedal with few options that takes a massive slot on my pedal board. Instead I got this convenient rat tone machine with an additional voicing option (tighter distortion), and 2 additional gain stages (full frequency and midhump). How disappointing...

Perfect addition to my pedal board love it . recommend to my friends

Others have covered the great core sound and features of this pedal already - so I will add something different. I decided to go opamp shopping and came across a vintage LM208J chip. I decided to try it since it was cheaper than an LM308 and is supposed to be nearly the same chip (with a wider temperature operating range). Having owned several vintage Rats and clones I am happy to report the LM208 absolutely nails the vintage Rat sound.

So how does it compare to the stock chip? The overall tone is a touch darker, perhaps warmer too. The biggest difference is feel - the LM208 doesn't track as well as the TL071 and feels fuzzier and more lazy, more "vintage". You might say it has a "chewier" feel and gets into quasi-fuzz territory more easily. I actually like the stock chip, and there's nothing wrong with the stock sound. However, if you don't mind disassembling the pedal and experimenting you can get more "vintage" tones with a simple opamp swap. The LM208 works like a charm and you should check it out if you can't find or afford an authentic LM308. Regardless, this is a great pedal. Rock on!!

Copious gain.

Great tone in a small foot print , tons of gain or a sweet push with every thing in between ! Highly recommended !

So Brian Wampler unleashes his version of the classic Rat tone, which literally translated is "Rat Poison"! I like several of the various Rat iterations, but I especially love this pedal because of the versatility. I'm able to get several different Rat tones and more! And, it's easy to find a tone you love very quickly. If you're a Rat fan, you need this poison! Talk to your Sweetwater rep... always great service!

Cool pedal and a great take on the famous Rat. Lots of sounds on this one and very dynamic. Definitely worth picking up if you're a Rat fan!

Wampler has done it again with a great "Rat" sounding pedal, the small footprint makes it easy to add to any pedal-board, the additional voice options are all great, the only criticism I have and it is due to the small form factor is it takes a little effort to get to the two toggle switches, but this pedal rocks in every other way that counts!

The tones and functionality of this pedal are phenomenal. On the normal gain and voice options, it's a highly impressive Rat-style circuit. It not only does the distortion-to-fuzz tones you would expect with the gain range on this circuit, but it also can serve as a slightly colored dirty boost as well. I compared it head-to-head with my Mosky Back Rat and there was no setting where the Ratsbane did not outperform it. The Ratsbane has a wider gain range but also manages to stay quieter at every setting. At higher, more-fuzzy levels of distortion, it still maintained a note definition that the Mosky did not.

Where it excels, of course, is the in-your-face distortion. The filter knob is incredibly sensitive and powerful. I've tried it through a Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb and a Marshall DSL20 with great results. In both cases, I played with a Seymour Duncan Distortion in a Les Paul. The volume knob also has a wide range. I found myself only needing to be at about 10 o'clock when I had the distortion anywhere near half, give or take, for unity gain.

The options of the alternate gain and voice options are what really sets it apart though. The voice to the right offers a wider, more open distortion. Even when the gain mode is in the center, this clipping option offers a more modern sound. To my ear, the two other gain modes also seem to give a very slight mid-scoop option while offering more gain on tap.

The clipping/voicing and gain options are what really sets this pedal apart: with the combinations, it's like having 6 pedals in one! You can get anything from the classic Rat sound to more of a DS-1 sound, but more amp-like and without the hiss. It's so good sounding that I had to write a review for it. I've never done that before. Buy this. Enjoy it. Enjoy music. Enjoy life! Cheers.

Sounds like a RAT if you want a RAT, but has so many great tones in it. Smooth leads, fat tight rhythm with lots of gain, and saturated goodness. It can get a bit of fuzz if you boost it. This sounds really good into a clean amp for smooth leads with lots of sustain and gain. Worth the small price tag, lots of high quality tons in here, and way more sweet and tweaklable than a standard or vintage RAT pedal. I like it more than the Plexi Drive mini. This thing sounds super good with a Tumnus before it.

Brian has done it again. This pedal offers a lot of tonal variations and the small size is perfect for my board. Very easy to dial in a good tone that cuts thru. If you have been wanting a Rat style pedal give this one a look.

Brian and Wampler deliver a killer Rat pedal. Awesome range of gain and tonal options to cover a lot of ground. I also like the position of the mini switches as I don't see any accidentals occurring with this tidy setup. A pick helps! I can definitely see this as another mainstay on my pedalboard and will be having fun with it for some time to come. Thanks Wampler and SW!!

I haven't had this pedal for long, but I can tell it's a keeper. All of those classic Rat tones are available if you need them, but the gain and voice switches add excellent variety, and I prefer the second voicing of this pedal to the first, as it is less compressed, had more low end, and cleans up better with the volume pot on my guitar. Everything you need in a dirt pedal at a fraction of the size. Highly highly recommend.

Thick, down and dirty distortion to fuzz. Bask in 70's heavy rock. Put some rats in the cellar.

I didn't care for this pedal. I remember my original RAT being more musical and not as processed. There is something weird about the compression in this pedal - you can hear it pumping, breathing, especially while playing the lower strings. You can hear it a bit on higher strings as well. This is simply a buzz box, not a musical instrument like the originals were. Return.

I recently bought mine and it is the worst pedal I have purchased in the last decade. I loved my Rat II back in the day and also have a Deaucetone. My Ratsbane seems to be one steaming piece of defective garbage. It clearly has a bad foot switch that causes static and hissing when using it. Then when it is on, which I used it it on the lower gain sided of it, so I am not using the switches to max gain, it has and audible clicking of sorts after bassier notes. So it is unusable for recording. It's removed from my board. So I did temporarily go back to my Rat II, which easily out performed it. However, I do dislike the chassis of the ProCo Rat products. I ended up buying a Flatiron by Electro Harmonix and it outperforms the Rat II and easily outperforms the Ratsbane. The Ratsbane has really rattled me about Wampler products. I was such a brand advocate from the Tumnus Mini but this one takes me straight off the bandwagon to other manufacturers going forward.