Riff Tone

Fury

Muse

Guitarrock2000s

Original Gear

GuitarManson MB-1 (custom, early 2000s, likely with built-in Fuzz Factory and sustainer, as used by Matt Bellamy on Absolution-era recordings)

AmpDiezel VH4 (studio, Absolution era, channel 3 high-gain)

PickupsManson custom bridge humbucker (Kent Armstrong or Bare Knuckle Nailbomb, era-dependent)

Amp Settings

gain8

bass5.5

mid6.5

treble7

reverb1.5

presence6.5

Effects & Signal Chain

fuzzZVEX ZVEX Fuzz Factory (built-in to guitar)

modulationUnknown Pitch shifter/octave pedal (model unknown, possibly Digitech Whammy)

Notes

Studio recording, 2003 (Absolution sessions). Guitar is Manson MB-1 with custom bridge humbucker, likely using built-in Fuzz Factory for riff. Diezel VH4 amp is confirmed for Absolution-era heavy tones. No evidence of live rig or alternate guitars for this section.

Tone Character(10)

saturated and compressedtight and percussivesynth-like sustainaggressive and bitingchunky palm-muted chugsoctave/pitch-shifted overtonesmodern high-gain voicingarticulate note separationmassive wall-of-sound distortiondistinctive Muse fuzz character

Difficulty

The riff requires tight palm muting, control of a saturated fuzz tone, and rhythmic precision, especially when using octave/pitch-shifting effects. The high gain and feedback make it technically demanding.