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Riff Tone

For Whom the Bell Tolls

Metallica

Guitarmetal1980s

Original Gear

GuitarESP MX220 'Eet Fuk' (likely Gibson Explorer copy, 1984 era)
AmpMesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ (studio, 1984 Ride the Lightning sessions)
PickupsEMG 81 (bridge), EMG 60 (neck) active humbuckers (studio may have used stock passive pickups, but EMG 81/60 is most associated with Hetfield's clean tones from late 80s onward; for 1984, likely stock passive humbuckers)

Amp Settings

gain0
bass6
mid4
treble7
reverb1
presence5.5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1984. Clean sections likely used the neck pickup and clean channel of the Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+. No evidence of pedals or effects for clean section; all distortion comes from amp for heavy parts. No chorus, delay, or modulation audible in clean riff. No evidence of reverb pedal; any ambience is likely from studio room or mixing.

Tone Character(10)
bell-like claritytight and articulateslightly compressedwarm neck pickup toneno audible breakuppercussive attackstudio ambience onlyno modulation or time-based effectsclear, uncolored clean soundmedium sustain

Difficulty

The clean riff requires accurate picking and muting to maintain clarity and articulation, but does not involve advanced techniques or fast passages.

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For Whom the Bell Tolls by Metallica — Riff Tone Settings | ToneAdapt