Riff Tone

Aurora

Foo Fighters

Guitarrock1990s

Original Gear

GuitarFender Chris Shiflett Cleaver Telecaster Deluxe

AmpVox AC30 (head, likely with 4x12 cab, Celestion Gold speakers)

PickupsFender P-90 style single coils

Amp Settings

gain5

bass6

mid7

treble7

reverb2.5

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

delayBoss Boss DD-3 Digital Delay

chorusBoss Boss CE-2W Chorus

compressionMXR MXR Dyna Comp Compressor

Notes

Studio recording, 1999 (There Is Nothing Left to Lose). Chris Shiflett has stated he used the Cleaver Telecaster Deluxe through a Vox AC30 set just on the edge of breakup for 'Aurora' riff sections. Dave Grohl also used Vox AC30s for clean tones, but Shiflett's part is most prominent in the main riff.

Tone Character(10)

chimey and glassyedge-of-breakup clarityambient and spaciouswarm with slight gritlush delay repeatssubtle chorus shimmerarticulate note separationopen and airydynamic response to pickingslightly compressed

Difficulty

The riff requires intermediate-level picking accuracy, careful timing to match the delay repeats, and dynamic control to maintain clarity and chime on an edge-of-breakup amp setting.

Sources

“There’s three of us playing guitar in Foo Fighters… A lot of tone details can get lost, which is what drew me to the Cleaver – that P-90 cut”: Chris Shiflett on how he found his weapon of choice with his Fender Cleaver Telecaster Deluxe | MusicRadar Rig Rundown: Foo Fighters' Chris Shiflett - Premier Guitar Foo Fighters Chris Shiflett, Dave Grohl and Pat Smear touring pedalboards revealed | MusicRadar How do i get that static sound on my guitar like in Aurora? - Reddit

This tone has been researched 2 times by the community

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