Riff Tone

I Was Wrong

Social Distortion

Guitarpunk1990s

Original Gear

Guitar1976 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe Goldtop

AmpFender Bassman (vintage, likely blackface or silverface, modded for higher gain)

PickupsStock mini-humbuckers (replaced with P-90s for Mike Ness signature, but original Deluxe likely used for 1996 recording)

Amp Settings

gain6

bass6

mid7

treble6.5

reverb2

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1996. Mike Ness is known for using a 1976 Les Paul Deluxe with P-90s and a vintage Fender Bassman head into Marshall 4x12 cabinets for Social Distortion's classic tones. No evidence of pedal use for the main riff; tone is amp-driven. No evidence of effects loop or additional rack gear for this section.

Tone Character(10)

thick, mid-forward crunchwarm, shimmering midsclear, articulate highstight, percussive attackpunchy and aggressivetouch-sensitive breakupBritish crunch characterno flubby lowsclassic punk/rock rhythmedge-of-breakup amp drive

Difficulty

The riff requires tight palm muting and aggressive rhythm playing at a moderate tempo, but uses straightforward power chords and does not involve complex techniques.

Sources

HELP - I need a tone! : r/GuitarAmps - Reddit Good Lord. Social Distortion has great tones. - The Gear Page Good Lord. Social Distortion has great tones. | Page 3 [GEAR] A happy story of how I moved on from my tone marriage to ...

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