RAT 308 chip help..

I ordered the chip off ebay to replace my crappy sounding asian made rat chip. I have some minor Soldering skills.. Do i just Desolder the old chip and then solder the new one in?

Should i be careful about not getting the chip too hot or the board too hot? I have a cheaper menards pencil type iron.. not sure of the wattage but i think maybe 30-40?:confused:

you could solder an IC socket to the board first instead , so you dont have to worry too much about heat affecting the replacement 308 chip itself. Far less stress on you too.
If you are careful getting the old chip out, you could a/b the old and new chips afterwards - just for giggles.

you could solder an IC socket to the board first instead , so you dont have to worry too much about heat affecting the replacement 308 chip itself. Far less stress on you too.
If you are careful getting the old chip out, you could a/b the old and new chips afterwards - just for giggles.

+1

30-40 watt iron is about right. Mark the IC's location on the back of the circuitboard. Using de-soldering braid, remove the solder from the back of the board, one leg at a time, clipping off the used braid as you go. The chip should be about ready to fall out of the board when you're done.

Also, be sure to note the chip's orientation on the board and install the new one going in the same direction as the old. They will both have a mark on one end. It won't work if you install the new one backwards.

+1 on the socket.

I dont know what an IC socket is.. total NOOB..

you could solder an IC socket to the board first instead , so you dont have to worry too much about heat affecting the replacement 308 chip itself. Far less stress on you too.
If you are careful getting the old chip out, you could a/b the old and new chips afterwards - just for giggles.

So your saying to put like a two way toggle switch on top and use the new and old settings so id have 2 types of distortions?

So your saying to put like a two way toggle switch on top and use the new and old settings so id have 2 types of distortions?

That would be really cool but no, it's just a small metal socket that you solder to the board which the IC plugs into. The advantage is you can swap IC's (or chips as they're sometimes they're called) without soldering. A socket would also keep you from damaging the LM308 with too much heat.

That would be really cool but no, it's just a small metal socket that you solder to the board which the IC plugs into. The advantage is you can swap IC's (or chips as they're sometimes they're called) without soldering. A socket would also keep you from damaging the LM308 with too much heat.

Awesome news..

Like this? http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-AMP-2-382401-3-IC-SOCKET-DIP-8-NEW-/140734883819?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20c473e7eb

So the Chips just snap into this socket without having to solder the chips to the socket therefore being able to interchange the Chips easy?

or these probably more what im looking for..?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/10-x-8-pin-DIP-IC-Sockets-Adaptor-Solder-Type-/140698505950?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20c248d2de

Thats the one.

Just a general question: What do you mean by crappy sounding? I ask because the LM308 is one of the worst op amps out there, which is why they work so well in the Rat. I can't imagine another chip being "worse". However, like the 4558 in the TS808s, the better the op amps become, the less desirable the output for overdrive/distortion is. However, with a a little tweaking, it can be overcome.

What is the chip that is in your Rat pedal?

I have some minor Soldering skills.
.....
I dont know what an IC socket is.. total NOOB..

Sounds like you may want to pay someone else to do the work, then.

A socket is like a universal plug for the chip you want to swap

I'd use a solder-sucker instead of braid for de-soldering

Basically carefully de-solder the original chip using the sucker
pin by pin

then install the socket in place of the removed chip

install the new chip

There's also a chip removal tool as well, if you dont wanna bend the chip legs when removing the chip from the socket
Very handy if you intend to do a lot of swapping

I dont know what an IC socket is.. total NOOB..

or these probably more what im looking for..?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/10-x-8-pin-DIP-IC-Sockets-Adaptor-Solder-Type-/140698505950?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20c248d2de
THose are cheap, and wont take kindly to a lot of heat
THe plastic can melt very easily

EdItEd - you may just want to throw a GE7 after the Rat to sculpt what you want out of the ratt
They a re very versatile distortions
Been using them for YEARS

Im changing it because i heard they help sound and tone. I saw online though that the ones with serial numbers bigger than 300000 are more to mod if you send to keeley. Anybody know why this is? Am i wasting my time trying to mod it when it needs more tlc than most RATs?

While it is fun to mod, and improve , I'd also suggest not chasing your tail too hard on this one -

The 'off-shore' made RATs are apparently harder to mod, apparently because they are apparently not so well constructed.
I use the word apparently lot there - because it stuff I have read , rather than stuff that I have seen or heard for myself.

I have also read that there is more to the great RAT sound than just the LM308.
IOW - The '308 is maybe the icing on the cake.

The USA made RAT 2's with the '308 also had a slightly different circuit - or at least they had different grade components.
Swapping the chip on yours may still not get you all the way there.

All told, rather than spend money on your current RAT, sell it and look for an used, Made in USA RAT2 - with the '308 in good , non-abused, un-modded condition.
It is do-able.
The MIA RAT2 is not rare, and (while desired) is not especially 'collectable'.
Plenty come up on ebaY - even in the UK - and I have seen some go for (equiv of) $60 or often less.

For what I suspect you want for your desires - then selling the one you have now - while in one piece! and buying a 'proper' used USA RAT will be your easiest, and least expensive route to happiness. Just IMO.