Riff Tone

All Apologies

Nirvana

Guitarrock1990s

Original Gear

GuitarFender Jaguar (early 1960s, modified with DiMarzio PAF in bridge and stock single coil in neck)

AmpFender Twin Reverb (likely Blackface, 1982 reissue or vintage)

PickupsFender Jaguar single coil (neck), DiMarzio PAF humbucker (bridge)

Amp Settings

gain0

bass6

mid6.5

treble6.5

reverb4.5

presence5

Effects & Signal Chain

chorusElectro-Harmonix Electro-Harmonix Small Clone Chorus

Notes

Studio recording for 'In Utero' (1993). Clean riff section uses Jaguar neck pickup into Fender Twin Reverb. No evidence of pedals in clean section. Chorus effect is clearly audible, likely from Electro-Harmonix Small Clone, but only on certain overdubs. Main clean riff is direct Jaguar to Twin Reverb with amp reverb.

Tone Character(10)

warm and smoothrounded attackclear and bell-likelush amp reverbslightly scooped midsarticulate string separationsubtle chorus shimmer (on overdubs)dynamic and touch-sensitivestudio-clean, not compressedmellow, not harsh

Difficulty

The riff requires precise picking and string skipping to maintain clarity and articulation, but does not involve advanced techniques or fast tempo, making it accessible to intermediate players.

Sources

Nirvana – MTV Unplugged In New York - Gear & Equipment Used ...Nirvana – Live at Reading - Gear & Equipment Used on the Album Anyone know what pickups nirvana and other similar bands used ...

This tone has been researched 3 times by the community

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