Foxpedal Wrath LM308 OpAmp Distortion

The Foxpedal Wrath LM308 OpAmp Distortion was a compact distortion pedal from Foxpedal, built around the LM308 op-amp chip, the same chip associated with Rat-style distortion circuits. The pedal is discontinued, and Foxpedal is no longer an active maker, so the Wrath LM308 now turns up only secondhand. Guitar Pedal X listed it at $199 in the United States and £150 in the United Kingdom before it was discontinued¹.

Controls and the Ruetz Mod

The Wrath LM308 carries five controls, which is more than the Level, Distortion and Filter layout of the Rat-style pedals it relates to¹:

The Ruetz Mod is the pedal's distinguishing feature. As Guitar Pedal X describes it, "The Ruetz Mod allows for more Low Frequencies in the input profile, at the expense of some gain"¹. In practice, that means switching the mod in gives a fuller, bass-heavy input response, while switching it out keeps the tighter, more aggressive gain structure players expect from an LM308 circuit. The Sweep control works alongside it for further tone shaping.

Context among LM308 distortion pedals

The LM308 op-amp is known for its slow slew rate, which contributes to a smoother-sounding distortion, as Guitar.com has noted in coverage of LM308-based pedals². That characteristic is why the chip shows up in a family of compact Rat-style distortions, including the PastFX Mischief LM308 Distortion and the Walrus Audio Iron Horse LM308, a distortion based around the LM308 chip as found in a Pro Co Rat³.

Foxpedal also made an earlier FoxPedal The Wrath and an updated Foxpedal Wrath V2, with the LM308 version being the op-amp-focused take in the family. With the company no longer active, the Wrath LM308 is a closed chapter: a five-knob, mod-switchable LM308 distortion that players now find only on the used market¹.