Riff Tone

Hard Lines, Sunken Cheeks

Pantera

Guitarmetal1990s

Original Gear

GuitarDean ML (likely 1994-1995, custom shop, Bill Lawrence L-500XL bridge pickup)

AmpRandall RG100ES solid-state head

PickupsBill Lawrence L-500XL (bridge, humbucker)

Amp Settings

gain8.5

bass6

mid4

treble7.5

reverb0

presence7

Effects & Signal Chain

eqMXR MXR 6-Band EQ

noise_gateRocktron Rocktron Hush

Notes

Studio recording, 1994 (Far Beyond Driven album). Dimebag Darrell's signature rhythm tone. No evidence of live rig or alternate gear for this section. No confirmed pedal use for the riff section; Dimebag's main rhythm tone was amp distortion with EQ and noise gate in studio.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussivescooped midrangeaggressive palm mutingrazor-sharp pick attackchunky low enddry, minimal ambiencehigh-gain saturationarticulate and clearsolid-state amp punchfast, precise rhythm

Difficulty

The riff requires advanced palm muting, precise alternate picking, and tight rhythm control at high gain, making it challenging for most players.

Sources

When Dimebag Darrell answered readers' questions - Guitar World How do I get the Dimebag tuning from Far Beyond Driven : r/Pantera

This tone has been researched 4 times by the community

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