Riff Tone

Scene Four: Beyond This Life

Dream Theater

Guitarmetal1990s

Original Gear

GuitarErnie Ball Music Man John Petrucci JP6 (likely 6-string, as used on Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory)

AmpMesa/Boogie Triaxis preamp into Mesa/Boogie Simul-Class 2:Ninety power amp, Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ (used in studio for heavy rhythm tones on this album)

PickupsDiMarzio Steve's Special (bridge), DiMarzio Air Norton (neck) humbuckers

Amp Settings

gain8

bass6

mid5

treble7

reverb1

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1999. Petrucci used the JP6 with DiMarzio pickups and Mesa/Boogie Triaxis/Mark IIC+ for the heavy rhythm sections on Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory. Effects were minimal in the riff section; chorus and delay are not audible in the main riff. No evidence of live rig or later signature models for this recording.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussivehigh-gain saturationarticulate pick attackaggressive palm mutingfocused midrangecrisp high endcontrolled low endmodern progressive metal claritylow noise floorclear note separation

Difficulty

The riff section is extremely technical, requiring fast alternate picking, tight palm muting, and precise rhythm in odd meters, making it expert-level for most guitarists.

Sources

John Petrucci: The Ultimate Evolved Guitarist - Premier Guitar Lord of the Strings: Shred King John Petrucci Discusses Dream Theater's New Self-Titled Album | Guitar World

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