Riff Tone

Empty Words

Death

Guitarmetal1990s

Original Gear

GuitarJackson Soloist (likely SL1 or custom shop, as used by Chuck Schuldiner on Symbolic)

AmpMarshall Valvestate 8100 (used on Symbolic album recording)

PickupsSeymour Duncan SH-4 JB (bridge humbucker, as per Symbolic-era interviews and photos)

Amp Settings

gain8.5

bass6

mid4.5

treble7

reverb0

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1994-1995 (Symbolic album). Gear based on Symbolic-era interviews, photos, and consensus from gear forums. No evidence of pedals or effects other than amp distortion for riff section.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussiveaggressive palm mutingscooped midshigh-gain saturationarticulate note separationcrisp attackfocused low endrazor-sharp pick attackminimal ambiencedry, studio rhythm sound

Difficulty

The riff requires fast, accurate picking and tight palm muting, but is considered one of Death's more accessible songs due to its straightforward rhythm and lack of advanced techniques.

Sources

List of every Death song with Clean/Acoustic Guitars - Reddit easy death riffs/solos to play on guitar? : r/DeathBand - Reddit Death - Empty Words : r/progmetal - Reddit

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