ProCo Turbo RAT Settings Guide
The ProCo Turbo RAT modifies the original RAT2 circuit with LM308 op-amp alternatives that produce a softer, more open clipping character — more harmonic complexity and less hard-clipping compression than the standard RAT2. Covers blues crunch through heavy rock distortion with the RAT's characteristic filter control. Particularly effective for alternative rock, grunge, and heavy blues-rock.
The best ProCo Turbo RAT settings start with: Distortion at 6/10, Filter at 4/10, Volume at 6/10. Adjust from there based on your amp, guitar, and room volume. For Grunge: Distortion 8/10, Filter 3/10, Volume 7/10.
⚡ Start Here — Recommended Settings
| Control | Starting Position | Range |
|---|---|---|
| Distortion | 6/10 | Crunch → Saturate |
| Filter | 4/10 | Bright → Dark |
| Volume | 6/10 | Unity → Loud |
These are universal starting points. Adjust based on your amp, guitar, and room. Scroll down for genre-specific settings and artist-documented positions.
What Each Control Does
Recommended Starting Settings
Safe starting positions for any style. Adjust from here based on your amp and room.
All values on a 0–10 scale. These are starting points — fine-tune by ear.
Settings by Genre
High Distortion, Filter relatively bright (3) — the Turbo RAT at high Distortion with the Filter open produces the saturated, buzzy grunge character. Compared to the standard RAT2, the Turbo RAT's softer clipping adds more harmonic complexity to the high-gain setting, producing a less compressed and more 'alive' grunge tone.
Moderate Distortion, Filter at 4 for balanced brightness — the Turbo RAT at Distortion 5 produces a warm, harmonically rich overdrive/distortion hybrid. The softer clipping of the Turbo circuit means moderate Gain settings respond to pick attack more dynamically than the standard RAT2.
High Distortion, balanced Filter — the Turbo RAT for heavy rock rhythm. At Distortion 7 it produces thick, sustained distortion with enough note definition for rhythm playing. Filter at 4 keeps enough brightness to cut through a band mix without becoming harsh.
The RAT family circuit that this pedal derives from is closely associated with the alt-rock and grunge era generally — a more moderate Distortion setting than the full Grunge preset keeps note definition for rhythm-forward alternative rock playing.
Filter turned well clockwise darkens the distortion significantly, producing a thick, low-fi character suited to down-tuned doom and stoner riffing rather than the brighter grunge or blues-rock voicings.
Tips & Common Mistakes
- The Filter control is inverted relative to most tone controls — fully counterclockwise is the brightest setting, fully clockwise is the darkest. Start at 9 o clock (bright) and work clockwise to find the point where harshness disappears without losing presence. Most players settle between 9 and 12 o clock depending on guitar and amp.
- This Turbo variant uses different clipping components than the standard RAT2, producing a softer, more harmonically complex character — worth comparing directly against a standard RAT if chasing a specific well-known RAT-family recording, since the two are not tonally identical.
- Distortion on this circuit affects frequency response as well as gain amount, unlike most distortion pedals where those are separate controls — expect the tone to shift, not just the saturation amount, as Distortion is adjusted.
- Volume often needs to be set well above unity to compensate for the compression of the gain stage — do not assume a low Volume setting means low output relative to the bypassed signal.
- This circuit family is closely associated with the alternative rock and grunge era generally, prized for a rawer, less polished character than more refined boutique distortion pedals — lean into that rawness rather than trying to smooth it out entirely.
FAQ
ProCo Turbo RAT — Common Questions
Best starting settings for ProCo Turbo RAT: Distortion at 6/10, Filter at 4/10, Volume at 6/10. Adjust from there based on your guitar, room, and playing style.
For Grunge: Distortion 8/10, Filter 3/10, Volume 7/10. High Distortion, Filter relatively bright (3) — the Turbo RAT at high Distortion with the Filter open produces the saturated, buzzy grunge character. Compared to the standard RAT2, the Turbo RAT's softer clipping adds more harmonic complexity to the high-gain setting, producing a less compressed and more 'alive' grunge tone.
For Blues-Rock: Distortion 5/10, Filter 4/10, Volume 7/10. Moderate Distortion, Filter at 4 for balanced brightness — the Turbo RAT at Distortion 5 produces a warm, harmonically rich overdrive/distortion hybrid. The softer clipping of the Turbo circuit means moderate Gain settings respond to pick attack more dynamically than the standard RAT2.
Distortion: Gain and clipping amount — unlike most distortion pedals, increasing Distortion also affects frequency response. (Crunch to Saturate). Filter: Low-pass filter — clockwise cuts treble. Counterclockwise produces a bright, buzzy character; clockwise produces a dark, thick distortion. (Bright to Dark). Volume: Output level — RAT pedals often need Volume above unity to compensate for the compression of the gain stage. (Unity to Loud)
The Filter control is inverted relative to most tone controls — fully counterclockwise is the brightest setting, fully clockwise is the darkest. Start at 9 o clock (bright) and work clockwise to find the point where harshness disappears without losing presence. Most players settle between 9 and 12 o clock depending on guitar and amp. This Turbo variant uses different clipping components than the standard RAT2, producing a softer, more harmonically complex character — worth comparing directly against a standard RAT if chasing a specific well-known RAT-family recording, since the two are not tonally identical. Distortion on this circuit affects frequency response as well as gain amount, unlike most distortion pedals where those are separate controls — expect the tone to shift, not just the saturation amount, as Distortion is adjusted. Volume often needs to be set well above unity to compensate for the compression of the gain stage — do not assume a low Volume setting means low output relative to the bypassed signal. This circuit family is closely associated with the alternative rock and grunge era generally, prized for a rawer, less polished character than more refined boutique distortion pedals — lean into that rawness rather than trying to smooth it out entirely.
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