Riff Tone

Bad Seed

Metallica

Guitarmetal1990s

Original Gear

GuitarESP MX-250 (James Hetfield's main guitar during Reload era, likely used for 'Bad Seed' riff)

AmpMesa/Boogie Triple Rectifier (studio recording amp for Reload era rhythm tones)

PickupsEMG 81 (bridge), EMG 60 (neck) active humbuckers

Amp Settings

gain7.5

bass6

mid4

treble7

reverb0

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1997 Reload sessions. Guitar and amp confirmed for Reload era rhythm tracks, not live. C# standard tuning specific to 'Bad Seed'.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussivescooped midsaggressive palm mutingchunky low endarticulate pick attackdry, focused distortionmodern metal claritycompressed and controlledno audible reverbsaturated rhythm crunch

Difficulty

The riff requires intermediate-level control of palm muting and picking accuracy at a moderate tempo, but does not involve advanced techniques or extreme speed.

Sources

IN WHAT TUNING I HAVE TO PLAY GUITAR METALLICA ...Given the way Load/Reload is panned, I have... several ...

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