Riff Tone

Countdown's Begun

Ozzy Osbourne

Guitarmetal2000s

Original Gear

GuitarGibson Les Paul Custom (likely Zakk Wylde signature or similar, with EMG pickups)

AmpMarshall JCM800 2203 100-watt head

PickupsEMG 81 (bridge) active humbucker

Amp Settings

gain7

bass5.5

mid5.5

treble6.5

reverb2.5

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

overdriveBoss Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive

chorusBoss Boss CH-1 Super Chorus

Notes

Studio recording, 2007 (Black Rain album). Gear inferred from Zakk Wylde's documented studio rig for this era; no direct source for 'Countdown's Begun' but matches Black Rain sessions. No evidence of alternate guitars or amps for this riff section.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussiveaggressive palm mutinghigh-gain saturationarticulate pick attackcompressed low endslightly scooped midsmodern metal claritysubtle chorus shimmercontrolled feedbackfocused, punchy rhythm

Difficulty

The riff requires tight palm muting, precise picking, and control of string noise in a high-gain, low-tuned metal context, making it moderately challenging for intermediate players.

Sources

Amp Settings for No More Tears by Ozzy Osbourne (gear and tone tips) - Guitar Chalk Zakk Wylde's guitar tone on Ozzy Osbourne's No More Tears: how he got his sound | Guitar World Playing in Drop A Tuning : r/metalguitar - Reddit

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