Riff Tone

Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!

Megadeth

Guitarmetal1980s

Original Gear

GuitarBC Rich Bich (early 1980s, stock pickups, used by Dave Mustaine on KIMB studio recording)

AmpMarshall JCM800 2203 head into Marshall 4x12 cabinet (likely G12-65 or G12T-75 speakers)

PickupsDiMarzio Super Distortion humbucker (bridge position, stock for BC Rich Bich at the time)

Amp Settings

gain7

bass5

mid4.5

treble7

reverb0

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1984-1985. No evidence of pedals or effects used on riff section; amp distortion only. Settings estimated from forum and era-typical usage. No chorus or time-based effects on rhythm/riff. Pickup selector set to bridge for main riff. No evidence of live rig or alternate guitars for this section.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussiveaggressive palm mutingdry, unprocessed soundarticulate note separationslightly scooped midscrisp high endfast attackminimal sustainraw and punchyno audible reverb or delay

Difficulty

The riff requires fast, consistent alternate picking and tight palm muting at high speed, demanding advanced right-hand technique and stamina.

Sources

megadeth settings - forum topic | Ultimate Guitar Dave Mustaine Reflects on Megadeth's 'Killing Is My Business… and Business Is Good!' | Guitar World Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine and David Ellefson - Premier Guitar

This tone has been researched 5 times by the community

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