Riff Tone

Metal Militia

Metallica

Guitarmetal1980s

Original Gear

Guitar1981 Gibson Flying V

AmpMarshall JCM800 2203 (likely modded, as used on Kill 'Em All)

PickupsStock Gibson humbuckers

Amp Settings

gain9

bass6

mid3

treble7.5

reverb1

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1983. James Hetfield played rhythm guitars on 'Metal Militia' using his white 1981 Gibson Flying V into a Marshall JCM800 2203 head, likely with a Marshall 4x12 cab. No evidence of pedals or effects used for the riff section. Settings estimated from era, genre, and forum sources.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussivescooped midsaggressive palm mutinghigh-gain saturationcrisp treble bitechunky low endarticulate pick attackminimal ambiencedry, in-your-face soundfast attack

Difficulty

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

Sources

What are the Amp settings for a Metallica sound : r/Guitar - Reddit [QUESTION] Metal Militia tone? : r/Guitar - Reddit I want that Metallicuh tone : r/Metallica - Reddit

This tone has been researched 3 times by the community

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