Guitar Amp Settings by Song
Hand-curated amp settings, effects chains, and playing tips for 126+ iconic songs. Each tone researched from interviews, rig rundowns, and studio records.
Showing 126 of 126 songs
Back in Black
AC/DC
Classic Rock1970s Marshall 1959 Super Lead 100W
Thunderstruck
AC/DC
Classic RockMarshall 1959 Super Lead
Whole Lotta Love
Led Zeppelin
Classic RockVox Super Beatle head with Rickenbacker Transonic cabinets
Stairway to Heaven
Led Zeppelin
Classic RockSupro Coronado 1690T (likely)
Comfortably Numb
Pink Floyd
Classic RockHiwatt DR103 Custom 100 into WEM cabinets
Voodoo Child (Slight Return)
Jimi Hendrix
Classic RockMarshall 1959 Super Lead 100W Plexi
Sunshine of Your Love
Cream
Classic RockMarshall JTM45
Smoke on the Water
Deep Purple
Classic RockMarshall Major 200W into Marshall 4x12 cabs
Satisfaction
The Rolling Stones
Classic RockFender Twin Reverb (studio)
Sultans of Swing
Dire Straits
Classic RockFender Vibrolux Reverb
All Right Now
Free
Classic RockMarshall Plexi 50W into 4x12
More Than a Feeling
Boston
Classic RockCustom Scholz 'Power Soak' with Marshall and Fender amps
Enter Sandman
Metallica
Hard Rock & MetalMesa
Master of Puppets
Metallica
Hard Rock & MetalMesa
Iron Man
Black Sabbath
Hard Rock & MetalLaney Supergroup LA100BL into Laney 4x12
Eruption
Van Halen
Hard Rock & Metal1968 Marshall 1959 Super Lead 100W (Plexi)
Panama
Van Halen
Hard Rock & Metal1968 Marshall 1959 Super Lead with Variac
Sweet Child O' Mine
Guns N' Roses
Hard Rock & MetalMarshall JCM 2555 Silver Jubilee 25
Walk
Pantera
MetalRandall Century 200
The Trooper
Iron Maiden
Hard Rock & MetalMarshall JCM800 2203 (both guitarists)
Crazy Train
Ozzy Osbourne
Hard Rock & MetalMarshall JMP 1959 Super Lead 100W
Holy Wars...The Punishment Due
Megadeth
Hard Rock & MetalMarshall JCM800 2203 (modified)
Cowboys from Hell
Pantera
MetalRandall RG100ES (solid-state, 120 watts)
Pride and Joy
Stevie Ray Vaughan
BluesFender Vibroverb (x2) + Dumble Dumbleland 300 (Jackson Browne's studio amp)
Texas Flood
Stevie Ray Vaughan
BluesFender Vibroverb (x2)
The Thrill Is Gone
B.B. King
BluesFender Twin Reverb (studio)
Still Got the Blues
Gary Moore
BluesMarshall JCM800 2210
Gravity (Live in LA)
John Mayer
BluesDumble Overdrive Special
Slow Dancing in a Burning Room
John Mayer
BluesDumble Overdrive Special
Born Under a Bad Sign
Albert King
BluesFender Twin Reverb
Layla
Derek and the Dominos
BluesFender Champ (Clapton, cranked)
Albatross
Fleetwood Mac
BluesFender Twin Reverb
Smells Like Teen Spirit
Nirvana
Grunge & AlternativeMesa
Come as You Are
Nirvana
Grunge & AlternativeMesa
Black Hole Sun
Soundgarden
Grunge & AlternativeMesa
Rooster
Alice in Chains
Grunge & AlternativeBogner Ecstasy
Man in the Box
Alice in Chains
Grunge & AlternativeBogner Fish preamp
Cherub Rock
The Smashing Pumpkins
RockMarshall JCM800 2205 (modified with KT88 tubes)
Alive
Pearl Jam
Grunge & AlternativeMarshall JCM800 (McCready)
Killing in the Name
Rage Against the Machine
Grunge & AlternativeMarshall JCM800 2205 50W head into Peavey 4x12 cabinet
Schism
Tool
Grunge & AlternativeDiezel VH4
Paranoid
Black Sabbath
Hard Rock & MetalLaney Supergroup LA100BL
All Along the Watchtower
Jimi Hendrix
Classic RockMarshall 1959 Super Lead 100W Plexi
Welcome to the Jungle
Guns N' Roses
Hard Rock & MetalMarshall JCM 2555 Silver Jubilee
My Own Summer (Shove It)
Deftones
Grunge & AlternativeADA MP-1 tube MIDI preamp into Marshall 9200 Dual MonoBlock valve power amp
Change (In the House of Flies)
Deftones
Grunge & AlternativeMarshall JMP-1 MIDI tube preamp + ADA MP-1 tube preamp into Marshall 9200 power amp
No More Tears
Ozzy Osbourne
Hard Rock & MetalMarshall JCM800 2203 100W head
Everlong
Foo Fighters
Grunge & AlternativeFender (Zinky) Custom Shop ToneMaster 2x12 100W
The Pretender
Foo Fighters
Grunge & AlternativeMesa
Basket Case
Green Day
Grunge & AlternativeMarshall 1959 SLP Plexi 100W Super Lead 'Pete' with Dookie Mod (Cascading Gain Mod by Martin Golub of Custom Audio Electronics
American Idiot
Green Day
Grunge & AlternativeMarshall 'Idiot Amp' (Plexi variant with extra gain stage)
Hotel California
Eagles
Classic RockDon Felder: Fender Narrow-Panel Tweed Deluxe 5E3 (~1955-56, 12W)
Nothing Else Matters
Metallica
Hard Rock & MetalRoland JC-120 Jazz Chorus (clean) + direct signal to board through MXR DynaComp
Hallelujah
Jeff Buckley
BluesFender Vibroverb '63 Reissue (Brownface, 1x15, 40W, 6L6 tubes)
Grace
Jeff Buckley
BluesFender Vibroverb '63 Reissue (clean) + Mesa
Stillborn
Black Label Society (Zakk Wylde)
Heavy MetalMarshall JCM800 2203 100W head(s)
Forty Six & 2
Tool (Adam Jones)
Progressive Metal / Alternative Metal1976 Marshall Super Bass Model 1992 JMP 100W (primary) — converted to Super Lead specs by Dave Friedman. Channels jumpered together. JJ EL34 power tubes. Likely blended with Mesa
Do I Wanna Know?
Arctic Monkeys
Alternative Rock / Indie RockVintage Selmer Zodiac Twin 30 combo (primary) + Magnatone Custom 410 (blended simultaneously)
Seven Nation Army
The White Stripes (Jack White)
Alternative Rock / Garage RockSears Silvertone 1485 'Six Ten' (~120W tube, mid-1960s, by Danelectro) + Fender Twin Reverb (1970s)
No One Knows
Queens of the Stone Age (Josh Homme)
Stoner Rock / Alternative Rock3-amp blend: (1) Ampeg VT-40 tube combo (primary), (2) Peavey solid-state 'Musician' series, (3) Tube Works RT-2100 MosValve hybrid
Duality
Slipknot (Mick Thomson / Jim Root)
Nu Metal / Alternative MetalMick: VHT Pitbull Ultra Lead + Carvin 4x12. Jim: Custom one-off modified Bogner Uberschall (~70% of record) + Bogner Uberschall 'purple mod' blended with Mesa Boogie Mark IIC (~30% of record)
Blind
Korn (Munky / Head)
Nu MetalDebated — most likely Marshall JCM 900 (Munky) + Hughes & Kettner Attax (Head), through Marshall and H&K 4x12 cabinets. NOT Mesa Boogie Rectifiers (those were strictly live rigs).
Bat Country
Avenged Sevenfold (Synyster Gates / Zacky Vengeance)
Heavy Metal / Hard RockBogner Uberschall 120W tube head (primary) — early revision made by Reinhold Bogner himself. Mesa
Dammit
Blink-182 (Tom DeLonge)
Pop PunkMarshall JCM900 4100 (100W, 2-channel) + Mesa
Love Will Tear Us Apart
Joy Division
Post PunkVox AC30-style amp approximating JMI Vox UL730 character
Surfing with the Alien
Joe Satriani
Instrumental RockMarshall Model 1959 Super Lead 100W head into 4x12 with Celestion G12T‑75 speakers
La Grange
ZZ Top
Blues Rock1968 Marshall Super Lead 100W (often approximated with JTM45
Welcome to the Black Parade
My Chemical Romance
Alternative RockMarshall JCM800 2203
Misery Business
Paramore
Pop PunkMesa
Plug In Baby
Muse
Alternative RockDiezel VH4
The Boys Are Back in Town
Thin Lizzy
Classic RockMarshall Plexi 2203
The Spirit of Radio
Rush
Progressive RockHiwatt Custom 100
Pull Me Under
Dream Theater
Prog MetalMesa
Rock You Like a Hurricane
Scorpions
Hard RockMarshall JCM800
Ace of Spades
Motörhead
Heavy MetalMarshall JCM800
Where Is My Mind?
Pixies
Alternative RockPeavey Bandit 65
Only Shallow
My Bloody Valentine
ShoegazeFender Sidekick 65 + Fender Dual Showman + additional Burman and Fender Showman in special tremolo setup
Feel the Pain
Dinosaur Jr.
Alternative RockMarshall Super Bass
Cliffs of Dover
Eric Johnson
100W Marshall half‑stack for lead tones, approximated here with Fender Twin Reverb-style settings
Chop Suey!
System of a Down
Marshall 1959 Plexi
Reptilia
The Strokes
Fender Hot Rod
Live Forever
Oasis
Marshall half‑stack (JCM‑type) blended with other amps
Laid to Rest
Lamb of God
Peavey 6505+ (5150-style) high-gain head
For the Love of God
Steve Vai
Carvin Legacy (Steve Vai signature) or Carvin Legacy 3
Raining Blood
Slayer
Marshall JCM800 2203
Say It Ain’t So
Weezer
Alternative RockMesa
Creep
Radiohead
Alternative RockVox AC30
Breaking the Law
Judas Priest
MetalMarshall JCM800
Just Like Heaven
The Cure
Alternative RockRoland JC-120
Afterlife
Avenged Sevenfold
MetalBogner Uberschall
Hail to the King
Avenged Sevenfold
MetalSchecter Hellwin USA 100W
BFG Division
Mick Gordon
MetalFractal Audio Axe-FX II (amp modeler)
Rip & Tear
Mick Gordon
MetalFractal Audio Axe-FX II
Left Hand Path
Entombed
MetalPeavey Studio Pro 40 (small combo amp)
Wolverine Blues
Entombed
MetalLikely Peavey combo with HM-2, possibly upgraded to Marshall for live
Painkiller
Judas Priest
MetalMarshall JCM800 (primary), with rack preamps (Rocktron Piranha, Mesa Boogie TriAxis)
Cemetery Gates
Pantera
MetalRoland JC-120 (clean sections), Randall RG100ES (heavy sections)
1979
The Smashing Pumpkins
RockMarshall JCM800 (KT88 mod) for overdubs; Marshall JMP-1 Rack Preamp + Mesa Boogie Strategy 500 Power Amp for primary rhythm
Today
The Smashing Pumpkins
RockMarshall JCM800 2205 (KT88 mod)
Blue Lagoon
Masayoshi Takanaka
Jazz FusionNot documented for the 1979 studio recording
Ready to Fly
Masayoshi Takanaka
Jazz FusionNot documented
Seek & Destroy
Metallica
Thrash MetalMarshall head (Hetfield’s hot-rodded Marshall used for tracking; exact model not specified)
Floods (Guitar Solo)
Pantera
Groove MetalRandall RG-100 head (carpeted RG-100 cited for Trendkill-era tracking approach)
Floods (Guitar Riff)
Pantera
Groove MetalRandall RG-100 head (carpeted RG-100 cited in Trendkill-era interview context)
Nutshell
Alice In Chains
Acoustic Rock1960s Fender Twin Reverb
Purple Rain
Prince & The Revolution
RockMesa
Nothing Else Matters (Riff)
Metallica
Heavy MetalRoland JC-120 Jazz Chorus
Time
Pink Floyd
Progressive RockHiwatt AP100
Unholy Confessions
Avenged Sevenfold
MetalcoreBogner Uberschall
Fade to Black
Metallica
Thrash MetalMarshall amps (Ride the Lightning tracking described as Marshall-based)
Symphony of Destruction
Megadeth
Thrash MetalCustom Audio Electronics (CAE) 3+ preamp
Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
Van Halen
Hard RockLate 1960s Marshall 1959 Super Lead 100W (Plexi)
Thank You for the Venom
My Chemical Romance
Alternative RockMarshall JVM410H
Highway to Hell
AC/DC
Classic Rock1970s Marshall 1959 100W Super Lead (Plexi)
Money for Nothing
Dire Straits
RockLaney Combo (2×12 speakers)
Creeping Death
Metallica
Thrash MetalMarshall amps (Ride the Lightning tracking described as Marshall-based)
Burden
Opeth
Progressive MetalMarshall JVM 410H
Bohemian Rhapsody
Queen
Classic RockVox AC30 (vintage 1960s, 2×12 Celestions)
The Stage
Avenged Sevenfold
Progressive MetalSchecter Hellwin Stage 100 (EL34, 100W, 3 channels)
Sad But True
Metallica
Heavy MetalMesa
To Build a Mountain
Crowbar
Sludge MetalRandall RG100ES (120W solid-state)
Köprüaltı
Duman
RockMarshall JCM 2000 DSL (Kaan, confirmed from 2003)
L.A.
Elliott Smith
Indie RockFender Vibrolux Reverb (silverface)
Ride the Lightning
Metallica
Thrash MetalMarshall stacks (multiple auditioned after stolen modified Marshall; album tracking described as Marshall-based)
Harvester of Sorrow
Metallica
Thrash MetalMesa
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Metallica
Thrash MetalMarshall amps (Ride the Lightning tracking described as Marshall-based)
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