OVERDRIVE- ANIMALS PEDALS Tioga Road Cycling Distortion ...better Rat? ...Shootout?

ANIMALS PEDALS TIOGA ROAD CYCLING DISTORTION

$100.00 USD

This Japanese company started up with the idea that a few basic pedals could be made at a Pro standard yet kept at an entry level price. They indeed achieved just that. Most of their pedals not unlike other makers world wide are hot rodded classics. In this case it is a Rat pedal. Other pedals like the Major OD were designed by Skeddy who do indeed make the same pedal but as a handwired. They even got Wren & Cuff in to beep up their Rat design.

So as it goes the Tioga has the usual volume, gain and tone but also a switch to bring in a choice of diodes. 

Rat wires their tone backwards and calls it a filter. Keep in mind Rat were the first and neither name nor approach is wrong. It changes the tone in no way whatsoever. The Rat is the first ever OpAmp OD. Hundreds followed the Tube Screamer being the most famous.

The idea is you take an OpAmp which is a chip with a tiny amplifier in it then attach clipping diodes to it and out comes distortion. Although OpAmps are meant to just be very clean little amplifiers it is argued they all have a 'sound' They scientifically do indeed but 98% of the tone is all about how and what is used to clip the signal.

I have a faithfully produced clone of the original Rat which I will always keep. BUT I love the current and often despised Rat II. LOL  I bought it after already having the prized original clone.

CONCLUSION

The big deal is the Tioga has a very fat mid boost. There is nothing wrong with that.

It does not have balzy lows of the Rat II and it sells for $70.00 USD.  Both are very good. 

It is all about what you want the pedal to do. I have a sh@t load of OD's with fat mids so 

I wanted the Rat II for its very raw and gnarly scooped sound. You could even get both :-)

But compare ???