The Tru-Fi R*T Pack is a distortion overdrive guitar pedal built as a tribute to the RAT Big Box classic pedal, the design the maker says "started this whole journey." It is not a mass-produced pedal: Tru-Fi builds each one to order, and the maker's product page invites players to order directly, saying "Order NOW....I will pridefully build you on !"1
It sits alongside the related Tru-Fi The Rat Pack, another homage to the 1979 RAT in the maker's range, and belongs to the wider family of distortion pedals and overdrive pedals1.
An early Big Box RAT, built to order
The R*T Pack is aimed at players who want what the early Big Box RATs did. Tru-Fi says the original was made in 1979 and that the first 100 were hand painted, and the R*T Pack follows that spirit with what the maker calls "All the expected tone in a super rugged vintage-style casing."1
The circuit is where the tribute lives. According to the maker, "the rest of the components are set JUST LIKE A EARLY BIG BOX !!!", meaning the parts are laid out the same way as an early Big Box RAT. To back that up, the maker compared the pedal against an original: "I still have my original - ABed them for 3 hours - EXACT !"1
Modern upgrades and controls
Alongside the vintage-style circuit, Tru-Fi lists a few modern upgrades the early units did not have1:
- Tru-Bypass switching, so the pedal is true bypass1
- A gain mod so that when you turn the gain all the way down, the pedal does not turn off like the old ones did1
The tone control is also faithful to the original in a way that can catch players out. The maker wired the Tone knob backwards, like the early ones, and labeled it TONE rather than Filter. If your R*T Pack seems to work in reverse compared with other pedals, that is by design.1
The Tone knob is deliberately wired backwards, matching the early Big Box RATs, and is labeled TONE rather than Filter.1
The Frank preset
The R*T Pack carries a preset named Frank, an LED diode voicing. Tru-Fi explains that Frank is the LED diode setup used in the Turbo version of the RAT that appeared in the late 80s, and describes it as more aggressive, with more grit and bite. Players who find the standard voicing too polite can switch to Frank for a harder-edged distortion.1
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Questions
Is the Tru-Fi R*T Pack a RAT clone?
Tru-Fi describes the R*T Pack as a tribute to the RAT Big Box classic pedal rather than a straight clone. The maker says the rest of the components are set just like an early Big Box RAT, and that the pedal was A/B'd against the maker's own original for three hours with an exact result. It also adds modern upgrades the early units did not have, including Tru-Bypass and a gain mod.
What does the Frank preset do on the Tru-Fi R*T Pack?
Frank is an LED diode voicing, the kind used in the Turbo version of the RAT that appeared in the late 80s. The maker describes it as more aggressive, with more grit and bite than the other setting.
Is the Tru-Fi R*T Pack true bypass?
Yes. Tru-Fi lists Tru-Bypass among the pedal's modern upgrades, alongside the gain mod that keeps the pedal from turning off when the gain is rolled all the way down.
Why is the tone knob wired backwards on the R*T Pack?
Because the early Big Box RATs were wired that way. The maker wired the Tone knob backwards like the early ones and labeled it TONE rather than Filter, as part of the tribute to the original.
Does the R*T Pack turn off when the gain is all the way down?
No. The original pedal could cut out with the gain fully down, so Tru-Fi added a gain mod so that when you turn the gain all the way down the pedal does not turn off like the old ones did.
Sources (1)
- R*T Pack Distortion Overdrive Guitar Pedal, tru-fi.com
