Riff Tone

Moth Into Flame (Live)

Metallica & San Francisco Symphony

Guitarmetal2010s+

Original Gear

GuitarESP LTD Iron Cross James Hetfield (EMG JH Set pickups)

AmpMesa Boogie Mark IIC+ Reissue (live, likely blended with Diezel VH4 and Marshall JCM800 2203, but Mark IIC+ is primary for Hetfield's live rhythm tone in S&M2 era)

PickupsEMG JH Set (active humbuckers)

Amp Settings

gain8

bass6

mid3.5

treble7.5

reverb1

presence6.5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Live performance with San Francisco Symphony, S&M2 (2019). Rhythm/riff section. James Hetfield's main S&M2 live rig confirmed as ESP LTD Iron Cross with EMG JH pickups into Mesa Boogie Mark IIC+ Reissue, sometimes blended with Diezel VH4 and Marshall JCM800. No evidence of additional effects or pedals for the riff section; tone is dry, tight, and high-gain. No chorus, delay, or wah audible or cited for riff.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussivescooped midsaggressive palm mutinghigh-gain saturationarticulate pick attackchunky low enddry, focused soundminimal ambiencemodern metal claritycontrolled low noise

Difficulty

The riff requires fast, consistent alternate picking with aggressive palm muting and precise synchronization between both hands, typical of advanced metal rhythm playing.

Sources

Metallica Guitar Tone — Settings for Every Signature Song | ToneMirror How James Hetfield Gets The Modern Metallica Guitar Tone! [Part 2 of 3]See Metallica Rock Out in Symphony for ‘Moth Into Flame’ From ‘S&M2’

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