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Riff Tone
Master of Puppets
Metallica
Guitarmetal1980s
Original Gear
Guitar1984 Gibson Explorer
AmpMesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ head into Marshall 4x12 cabinet
Amp Settings
gain7.5
bass5.5
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Notes
Studio recording, 1985-1986. Rhythm guitar for riff section. No pedals used for distortion; all gain from amp. Quad-tracked guitars. No evidence of additional effects or pedals in the riff section.
Tone Character(10)
tight and percussivescooped midsaggressive palm mutinghigh-gain saturationcrunchy and articulatefast attackminimal ambiencequadtracked thicknessfocused low endclear note separation
Difficulty
The riff section is renowned for its relentless downpicking at high speed, requiring advanced right-hand stamina, tight palm muting, and precise synchronization, making it one of the most challenging rhythm parts in metal.
This tone has been researched 361 times by the community
Create an account to adapt this tone to your gear
Create Free AccountGuitarmetal1980s
Original Gear
Guitar1984 Gibson Explorer
AmpMesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ head into Marshall 4x12 cabinet
Amp Settings
gain7.5
bass5.5
Create an account to see all tone details
Create Free AccountEffects & Signal Chain
This tone has been researched 361 times by the community
Notes
Studio recording, 1985-1986. Rhythm guitar for riff section. No pedals used for distortion; all gain from amp. Quad-tracked guitars. No evidence of additional effects or pedals in the riff section.
Tone Character(10)
tight and percussivescooped midsaggressive palm mutinghigh-gain saturationcrunchy and articulatefast attackminimal ambiencequadtracked thicknessfocused low endclear note separation
Difficulty
The riff section is renowned for its relentless downpicking at high speed, requiring advanced right-hand stamina, tight palm muting, and precise synchronization, making it one of the most challenging rhythm parts in metal.