My JAM Pedals Rattler 2 has landed and indeed further extends that celebrated legacy into entirely new areas
Many thanks to Ilias for helping to arrange this! I’ve been a huge fan of the Rattler over the years, and have always considered it one of the very finest Rats in terms of its rich texture and beautifully balanced output.
For this MK2 edition - as I mentioned in my original feature - there are 3 key updates :
- New Asymmetrical / Symmetrical Clipping Option Toggle-switch
- New Mid Boost 2nd Footswitch
- New Propriety Custom OpAmp
The two visible surface changes give you 2 more gears to ramp up your output further. I’ve always preferred a fuller, more richly textured output - so the Asymmetrical clipping is where I live. And the new Mid Boost is excellent for giving you a little more punch and sustain. Some of the dynamics of that boost are similar to applying 2 Red LEDs (Turbo Rat) - which is always a favourite of mine. The Mid Boost is not exactly the same as that but the combination of sustain and punch has a similar impact for sure.
As for the new JAM Pedals proprietary custom OpAmp - I do wonder exactly what it was tuned to. For me it renders relatively smoothly up to the noon mark of the gain control - after which the compression kicks in and ramps up the texture pretty rapidly.
The left hemisphere of the gain dial is somewhat representative of the smoother output of the 1981 Inventions DRV - so if you like that pedal - then this variant of the Rattler can deliver those kinds of tones. While for me it’s all about the rich breakup texture. Where the new opamp seems to my ears to be overall a touch more refined and less raspy. It does sound pretty gorgeous in the Right hemisphere of the Gain dial and then you have the Mid Boost Footswitch to kick things up further.
I’ve kind of settled on Level @ 3 o’c, Gain @ 3 o’c, and Tone @ 2 o’c. And of course the Clipping switch permanently set up for more texture. With the Clipping Switch Down (S) you make the output somewhat smoother - where I really prefer the more textured side of the pedal.
My core settings really work for me - and I can then kick in the Mid Boost for a solo boost or similar - or when I want to further accentuate the output.
I’ve marked up most of the obvious features and functions on my visual - including the Fat Boost Dip-Switch - which is default set on - and you can therefore cut that back if you feel the need - and you also have a Trimmer for the Mid Boost Level which is default set somewhat in the middle - I’ve not yet felt the need to adjust either one - but I may raise up the Mid Boost level a touch - still to make my mind up on that.
Finally we have some power-up options - which allow you to independently set the startup state - on/off of each pedal, you need to hold down the footswitch on power-up to cycle one forward for the different Footswitch options - which have the following sequence :
- Rattler Off, Boost Off
- Rattler On, Boost On
- Rattler Off, Boost On
- Rattler On, Boost Off
I've not yet felt the need to adjust that either.
I currently have 2 Rats new on my board this month - this Rattler 2, and the PastFX Mischief - both are at the top of the tree for that genre. There are some differences in output texture - while both are incredibly expansive and wholly sound superb - there's never a question of one or the other - if you're serious about the Rat format - you need both.
Evidently quite a few of these Rattlers have gone out into the world - as mine is referenced #0459. I of course expect these to do really well - they totally live up to the legacy of this pedal - which has long been considered one of the very best Rat types out there. In some ways it's more of the same, but also a little bit different - possibly a more refined and grown up version of that circuit.
As with every effect pedal genre no two varieties of a Rat sound exactly the same - and some brands lean more into the smoother side of things, while others go for that full rough and ready punk sensibility that defined the early ProCo Rats - which is classic territory for sure. I have 38 Rats in my collection to date - and I love each and everyone of them - they each though sound somewhat distinct. Also those deploy a number of different OpAmp chips - above and beyond the usual LM308 and OP07 varieties. As I've said before - I would love to see a frequency response chart of the new Rattler 2 compared to typical LM308 and OP07 variants!
This Rattler 2 sits somewhere between my original Rattler and Custom Shop Rattler+ - where the latter tin-can opamp version is a touch smoother with its output.
All in all a great job - and wholly lives up to its normal Full Flavour JAM Pedals billing - as I mentioned a somewhat grown-up take on the Rat circuit.
These are €239 / $249 / £205 from the JAM Pedals Webstore - and have landed at all the International Dealers too now. I've seen some comment that it's a little pricey at the $249 mark - while you mustn't forget that these are entirely hand-made and finished - including the attractive paint-job - where you can see that the diagonal strokes on the facia are all different from one pedal to another - like a sort of fingerprint!
I will soon be doing a 32 Favourite Compact Rats roundup which will of course feature this Rattler 2. As Mentioned - I have 38 Rats to date - but with still a few more to acquire - that feature in my Favourite 32 - or around 8 of those! Not all will be landed before the article goes live, but would be cool if I had a few more of them covered off.
Thanks once more to my good friend Ilias for arranging this!
Demos
12 Degrees of Saturation 2023 Compact Edition
