Is the 1N4002 diode in the Rat just for voltage polarity or is there a sound function? I haven't seen too many of these used in other pedals. Why was this diode chosen for this pedal? I can't tell if mine is working or not.
RP protection IMHO. Its between +V and gnd, no signal path.
That's what I thought. My Rat sounds too bassy not loud (not unity) and just plain sounds wierd. I retraced the circuit a hundred times and resoldered all the joints. Double checked component values but I just can't make it sound right. It sounds kind of unique with a heavy bass distortion which in a way sounds very different from my other dist boxes but I'd rather know it's right. Are there sound clips anywhere? Or maybe it is right and I just don't know it. Oh never mind found it on the Tonefrenzy website. I'm still not sure if it's right. If he's adjusting his tone control on his amp then maybe mine is working right.
I finally figured out where I went wrong with my Rat build. The plus voltage to pin 7 to the IC was coming right from the battery instead of after the 47 ohm resistor. This makes all the difference in the world with this pedal. The Tonepad site was not clear on this. When I looked at schems I found elsewhere on the net they show this more obviously. I wasn't sure this would make any change but figured (what did I have to lose). Then "BAM!!!" my Rat came alive. I can hear the high notes more clearly and now I have to turn the volume knob down to match unity.