Pat P.
Does what it says on the tin!
william w.
Not spent enough time with it. So brilliant for the outlay.
Joanne L.
Brought this for my son as a birthday present along with another pedal. They work great with his electric guitar and he is very happy with the purchase, a good price and fast delivery
Fraser Mcgeough
Absolutely top notch. I use it on bass and it gives me the crunch that fuzz just cannot. It's a great secondary pedal.
Daniel Hodges
Awesome pedal!! Great job Donner????Looking forward to using more of your pedals in the future.
Chris Anthony
Bought this to try out a pedal on my fender champion 20 amp. Donner seems to be making some good quality pedals at an affordable price. I can get some good heavy sounds out of this and the adjustments available are good as well.
richard slater
Compact, easy to use, good price.
cassie leon
Cool tones all through the pallet.
Kornel Anderson
Donner have become my go-to brand when looking for effects I use less frequently but still want a decent sound. I'm not a massive fan of nano bodies but the four I own are all built to the same high standard- solid weighty construction, smooth crackle free pots and a decent footswitch. I like the updated logo always felt the one with the note looked a bit lame. Sound wise it does what I wanted it for high gain distortion with the ability to filter the tone to get clarity in articulation. Was able to get close enough to Thom Yorke's jazzmaster tone on airbag with a telecaster to justify my purchase. Is it a decent rat clone? I can't say I've only used a rat kit and homemade clone before and it's definitely superior to both of them. I will say the only real variation is via the filter control, there is only a marginal sweep on the distortion range and no noticeable difference between the toggle switch positions other than maybe a 5dB boost. I've everything set to max and just tweak the filter to get the tone I want. I'd say it was a one trick pony type of pedal but that's what I was looking for so happy enough
Leeanne Mulhern
Fantastic Rat clone for the money! Small footprint and big sound makes it great for my practice board. I use it for lite gain but it can do pretty high gain too. Super awesome pedal.
Andreea-Daniela Necula
Fun little toy,powerful sound
Kathryn Poland
good value for what this can do.
Dale Heath
Got this for my son and he loves it. We've got a couple other Donner pedals and they are great quality
Moddy Moss
Great little pedal! If you’re looking for a great little dirt pedal that covers a good amount of ground this is a no brainer for the ￡40 or so delivered. It probably shouldn’t be at the price, but it’s a tonal benchmark for me now. If a pedal can’t deliver noticeably more for 2x+ the cost, I don’t want it.
Martin Harrigan
Great pedal for the money Sounds as good as The Rat pedal it is based on I have 3 of their mini pedals All of them well made, sound great and good value
STUART ROBERTS
Great pedal for the money. Has a good fuzz and distortion feature.
Ana Orsino
Great sound for the price. I'm very happy with it.
Eamon Wilson
I have long adhered to the ethos that one should run any and all sounds through distortion/fuzz/overdrive pedals for further sound sculpting and harmonic mangling. This pedal is an affordable remake of the Rat pedal, famous for the distinctive tone of countless guitarists. I mainly use this pedal for processing synthesizers and even drum machines, it does a fantastic job on analog drums/synths especially. The knobs are quite sensitive, even small adjustments lead to drastic changes in sound. This is faithful to the Rat pedal, and is a testament to the countless flavors this pedal can provide. At minimum settings it makes gives the signal a nice crunchy fuzziness, which progresses to a squashed square/triangle tone at full settings. A tone knob allows you to make a Hi-cut to frequencies, minimum tone setting is unaffected while max settings muffle the tone with a full low end. There is a classic and turbo mode, which I believe corresponds to different editions of the Rat pedal, classic is quieter and cleaner overall, while turbo has some major gain boost and seems more suitable for heavy playing styles. I am quite happy with this pedal based on it's affordable price compared to the Rat, and it's minipedal size is perfect for my setup which has limited space requirements.
Adrian Jeremiah
I own several mini pedals and wanted something that can get that 70's sound in a mini. The Dark Mouse does that well and it has a filter knob that allow you to dial in the tone you want at any given amount of distortion. It has two EQ's settings and I keep the switch in the classic position mostly. It's a nice pedal to add if you only own an overdrive for when you really want to tear it up.
Paul O鈥橞rien
I realized I needed a distortion pedal on my board that was different than my Boss SD-1 overdrive. I had joined a classic rock band and needed to cover some high-gain sonic territory. I did a lot of reviews and was really tempted to just get the Boss DS-1. I like Boss pedals. Then I saw some demos of the ProCo Rat, and really liked the quality of the distortion. Thick and meaty with a lot more gain than the overdrive. Research led me to the Donner Dark Mouse. I liked the reviews and demos I saw during my research, so I ordered it. I like the small footprint, and really dig the hard edge it gives my Les Paul. I use the Classic mode, and not the Hyper mode. Hyper mode is too over the top for me. One thing that surprised me was how well this pedal responds when I roll back the guitar volume. I wasn't expecting that. The level and filter knobs are tiny and I can't see the writing without putting my "old guy" glasses on. But I know what does what, and am very happy with my purchase. Pros: Small footprint. Good sound. Value Cons: Hyper mode is too much for me. It seemed to add a lot of noise. Keep in mind it requires a 9V power source. No battery. Five stars all the way. Great value and a nice addition to my pedalboard.
olubukola olamide
I’ve never owned an original ProCo RAT, the circuit this may or may not be based on. There’s a lot of tonal range for a simple pedal with a small enclosure. Adds a nice thickness to my telecaster.
Alexandra Penson
It is pretty strong....and dirty for an inexpensive pedal.
Heather Lewis
It’s a fun pedal!! No issues with quality or sound. I just play at home so no idea if it’s gig worthy but makes good noise.
James Ludford
Its a distortion pedal. It also works so that is a plus! Its a pretty good quality pedal and has a pretty good amount of fuzz to it. The filter is alos pretty decent however I am still messing with this one to see if I like it. For the price, do not hesitate.
aimee harrison
It's a Rat. It has classic Rat and turbo Rat modes...I generally use turbo. It sounds like what it is meant to, is well built and solid feeling. It must be charged via standard 9v center negative power supply, it can't use batteries.
Kami Hu
I've been hearing the name Dinner for a bit now, so I decided to try some of their products. This distortion pedal kicks it into high metal gear. With different settings, you can get some very nice distortion from it. I would recommend it to any guitar player that wants a bit of a different sound.
philip morris
Just picked up this Donner Dark Mouse and it sounds great. It is a good clone of the "Rat" pedal. It has a nice mid boost that can really cut through a mix well. As always the construction of the pedal is great,very sturdy. The sound doesn't get too fuzzy which I like. It has a punchy distortion, and can also get relatively clean. I have many Distortion pedals, and this ( I think ) may be my new favorite one. Thanks Donner for another fine product.
Henry Alston
new to guitar. So far, it does what it's supposed to do.
David Bowie
Not a bad rat clone. A bit noisy but was able get close to some food fighters sounds with it.
stephen lofthouse
Not bad. Fun to play with. I'm not a serious musician
Mark Bugden
Pretty much a 1:1 rat clone. Pretty awesome
Victor Rivera Mansilla
Small but packs a punch
Emily Parish
Sounds pretty good, especially for the price. Good way to dip your toe in.
Elizabeth Coogan
The Donner Dark Mouse does a very credible job of The ProCo Rat sound though I don't have a Rat to directly compare it to. It certainly reminds of the sounds I used to get out of a Rat. It's heavy for its size and seems well constructed, though, If I were planning on relying on it for gigging, I'd probably buy an actual ProCo Rat or Rat 2 or perhaps one of the multitudes of higher end clones. Bottom line is I like it and it's good enough for the occasions when I need that sound.
Daniel Watson
The most important thing, of course, is that it sounds like a Rat/Turbo Rat. To my ears it does that very well and having two modes available makes it very versatile. This will go all the way from a mild (but still thick) overdrive to an all out messy fuzz if you want it to. I love that knob labels mimic the classic Rat design. Donner pedals seem to be built well and this is no exception. The only thing I don't like about it, enough to deduct a star, is the tiny knobs. They made the Distortion knob the big one but the other two are where you need to do more fine tuning. The level knob in particular can be frustrating to adjust on the fly, especially on the louder Hyper/Turbo mode. It should include a set of tweezers.
Laurent Nicolas RITZ-GAUTHIER
This is a dirty little RATT, with a turbo switch. The fuzzy overdrive we all know. Sounds good, sturdy build. Donner does it again
Rick Wilde
This is a great inexpensive budget friendly pedal. Super compact and sounds great. It's not complicated and does what it's supposed to do.
Xilong Wang
This pedal gives a nice rich distortion tone and is built to the solid quality you expect from Donner. It is a great addition to a pedal board. I use it on with an electro acoustic to give some depth of sound and it is fantastic.
Kat Yang
This pedal is a solution to your RAT problem. Can't believe the sounds that comes out of such a small pedal. It's a great buy!
Christine Baxter
This pedal is awesome, brilliant for a grunge sound
Anthony Callaghan
This thing sounds just like a rat and I’m happy with it
Luke Faulkner
Very versatile, good quality, happy I went with this brand, would absolutely purchase this again.
Nina Hul
Wasn't expecting it to sound this good actually at that price. Great for those very heavy uber-overdrive sounds especially good with humbuckers.
Daniel Wearn
Wish low end was more fine grained.
Dave R.
Great little pedal and excellent value for money.
Graham B.
Easy and simple to use and does exactly waht is says on the tin!
jon h.
There it is on the left of my board. Surprisingly this is a pretty versatile pedal. I expected it to really just be for metal type playing but you can get some other great sounds from it, from classic rock to blues. Really happy with it (although this picture has made me realise i really need to dust my board and pedals)
Gabriele F.
The online shop is really bad.
I'm waiting to get my money back for items paid 5 months ago and never arrived, although they are still in the catalog.
This pedal, which is one of those that arrived, has a lot of background noise.
Experience not to be repeated.
SHAUN S.
Versitile distortion, thick and chunky or light and crisp depending on your needs. Yet again Donner Music have shamed the bigger brands showing quality doesn't always come with a big price tag!
Karn B.
4 stars is really a harsh review. It does exactly what you can expect in terms of sounding like a well known classic distortion pedal with the addition of a ‘hyper’ mode. It only looses a star to the level of ’like it’ as that’s what I feel about the original pedal as it turns out! (Think a bit bigger than a mouse and in capitals if you aren’t aware of which pedal I mean). I use it when I want something more messy than my other drive pedals (TS9 and Guv’nor both modded). Value? Unbelievable frankly. Don’t bother buying more expensive direct equivalents believing you will get a better result. You really won’t.
Scott M.
Superb pedal that really stands up against the boutique pedals I have. The dark mouse is an absolute pleasure, thick sounding, plenty gain and options to shape the tone!
Colin T.
Great rat clone. Love the price.
Ronaldo T.
Dark Mouse is a fuzz-like high gain pedal, especially for heavy metal players! It is suitable for heavy rock! Great!
Jason W.
This pedal arrived the very next day after I ordered it! Loved the tones portrayed on a YouTube demo, and it works really well with my pedal chain. This pedal is great for anyone wanting to play hard Rock!
Stephen W.
The dark mouse is an awesome pedal! It sounds close enough to the rat for me and it has more tonal range. I also own the Donner dumble drive and the sophgate and I'm very impressed with the quality of their effects pedals for the cost.
GARY B.
I love Donner pedals, and I especially love the Dark Mouse. Classic, raw, paint peeling distortion. Just the right amount of fuzz, great tones, and singing sustain. These pedals are built well and sound pro. For the price, you can’t go wrong.
Ian B.
Nice and loud. Lots of good options for the distortion, loving the Hyper mode the most so far.
Works great with my two basses, one fretted and one fretless.
Brennan D.
I bought the Donner Dark Mouse on a whim instead of a rat. I'm really glad I did. I like this pedal more than I thought I would. It can go high distortion and get on the edge of fuzz territory but I really use it with lower distortion and it adds a little bite to my tone. It really jazzes up a solid state amp giving it more of a tube like vibe. Earned a place on my board among higher priced pedals. It also feeds directly into my Yellow Fall delay pedal.
Luke C.
Love these pedals. Solid and so far reliable. Great tone.
Ramon G.
The Donner Dark Mouse sounds amazing!! I have already used it on a few recordings. I own several Donner pedals and this is definitely one of my new favorites.
Michael T.
Verified purchase
I love this pedal. The range of distortion on the Dark Mouse is impressive! From a lightly overdriven tone to a full-on distortion assault, you have it all here! Very true to its inspiration, I really like the filter control and the micro switch to select between classic and hyper. It delivers loads of tonal choices for any style. Great pedal at any price, but a stellar bargain from Donner! I highly recommend it.
bc
I wanted a distortion pedal that could deliver heavy distortion, and boy am I happy. From the light overdrive of its lowest setting, to buzzy fuzz, and everything in between, this pedal delivers. The tone knob can make it Slayer bright, or Sabbath dark. I could not be happier with my choice!
Steve M
Great pedal for the money
Sounds as good as The Rat pedal it is based on
I have 3 of their mini pedals
All of them well made, sound great and good value
Alex T
I have a couple of Donner effects and they are great for your budget dollarwize and on your pedal board.
The D-mouse packs a lot of versatility into a mini pedal. The filter control (as opposed to a tone control on some pedals) made me really like this pedal. You can use the filter to take the output from a Muff style to an aggressive edgy sound. The filter seems to have a varying level of effect on the two settings of Classic and Hyper that you can change with the toggle switch so depending on your own style preferences you will want to spend some time dialing it in with whichever setting you choose. Tweaking the distortion level and the Filter together can really fine tune the sound. On top of that there is a nice level of transparency to the effect that does not muddy up the guitar sound. Gibson style pickups work well with this pedal.
Matt P
For the price, this is a great pedal and you can really get some great tones out of it. I was looking for more of a rhythm distortion, but I've been using this a little more for leads on the "hyper" mode. It plays great through a fender hot rod amp, and for this price, you really cant go wrong with it. The pedal itself feels really sturdy and solid, as well as all of the controls and power jack. The classic setting is like it says, its a more fuzz-type distortion, while the hyper mode is a stronger, brighter type distortion. This pedal really gives a great sound just starting out with everything at the 12 o'clock setting on all controls, but you can easily dial in your tone with its range. Highly recommend this pedal to anyone looking for a very functional distortion pedal, regardless of price.
Jon L.
good fun, compact and functional, it also seems robust adding a new dynamic to the ukulele
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