Alternative1991Blood Sugar Sex Magik

Under the Bridge Amp Settings

by Red Hot Chili Peppers

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Original Recording Settings

EstimatedResearched tone data for "Under the Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Original Gear

Guitar: Late-1950s Fender Stratocaster (primary BSSM-era guitar) / 1966 Fender Jaguar (claimed for the intro by some sources; not universally agreed)
Pickups: Stock-style Fender single-coils (exact model/year-correct set not documented in sources consulted) (neck+middle)
Amplifier: Marshall tube head into 4x12 cabinet (inferred clean platform for BSSM-era Frusciante; exact amp/cab for this specific clean part not documented in sources consulted)
Channel: Clean-ish input; low preamp gain (edge-of-clean with pedals/processing doing most of the work)
Tuning: standard with capo on 2nd fret (common voicing approach for the part; not explicitly documented for the studio take in sources consulted)
Pickup Selector: neck+middle
Strings: Unknown

Recorded at The Mansion (Los Angeles) during Blood Sugar Sex Magik sessions.

Amp Settings

Gain

3.0

Bass

4.0

Mid

6.0

Treble

6.0

Presence

5.0

Master Volume

4.0

Volume

4.0

No session sheet/knob-photo documentation found for this track’s clean amp settings. Values are chosen to keep headroom for a bright single-coil guitar with audible compression and modulation.

Effects Chain

→

MXR Dyna Comp (inferred)

compressor

→

Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble (inferred)

chorus

→

Studio reverb (console/plate) (inferred)

reverb

→

1.MXR Dyna Comp (inferred) — Used here as an informed inference to achieve the very even, sustained clean dynamic typical of Frusciante-style arpeggiated parts; not confirmed by a session document for this specific track.

2.Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble (inferred) — Clean intro/verse has audible modulation; CE-1 is a long-term Frusciante staple but the exact chorus unit used on the BSSM recording is not explicitly confirmed in sources consulted.

3.Studio reverb (console/plate) (inferred) — Reverb ambience is consistent with studio processing; exact unit and send level not documented in sources consulted.

Playing Technique

Light-to-medium pick attack; tight, even arpeggiation with consistent dynamics and deliberate ringing of open strings in the chord voicings. Keep fretting pressure clean to avoid pitch warble under compression. Prioritize clarity of chord extensions and smooth chord changes over percussive funk attack.

Sources+

Mixdown Magazine (2023-10-17), "Gear Rundown: Red Hot Chili Peppers' Blood Sugar Sex Magik" (era gear overview)
Guitar World (2022-06-08), "John Frusciante's 10 best Red Hot Chili Peppers guitar moments" (discusses "Under the Bridge" and mentions a Jaguar being chosen for the intro versus the main BSSM Strat)
Wikipedia, "Under the Bridge" (recording year/studio location metadata)
Guitar World (2023-01-23), "John Frusciante's gigantic new Red Hot Chili Peppers pedalboard..." (documents CE-1 and Dyna Comp as long-term staples; used only as inference here)