Riff Tone

At Wit's End

Dream Theater

Guitarmetal2010s+

Original Gear

GuitarErnie Ball Music Man John Petrucci Majesty 7

AmpMesa/Boogie JP-2C

PickupsDiMarzio Rainmaker (neck) and Dreamcatcher (bridge) humbuckers

Amp Settings

gain8

bass6

mid5.5

treble6.5

reverb1.5

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 2018/2019 era. Gear inferred from Petrucci's official rig for Dream Theater's 'Distance Over Time' album sessions, which includes 'At Wit's End'. No evidence of alternate guitars or amps for the riff section. Live gear is similar but may include Axe-Fx for effects routing.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussivesaturated modern metalarticulate low endaggressive palm mutingclear note separation under gainfocused midrangehigh-output humbucker claritycontrolled low-end for 7-string riffsminimal ambiencepunchy attack

Difficulty

The riff section requires advanced metal rhythm technique, including fast alternate picking, palm muting, and precise timing on a 7-string guitar, making it challenging even for experienced players.

Sources

Dream Theater 2019 Gear: Petrucci & Myung's Setup - Premier Guitar

This tone has been researched 2 times by the community

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