Riff Tone

Sea of Lies

SYMPHONY X

Guitarmetal1990s

Original Gear

GuitarESP M-II Deluxe (white, early 90s model)

AmpLine 6 Vetta HD (used as preamp/amp), Mesa/Boogie cabinet

PickupsSeymour Duncan TB-4 JB (bridge humbucker), Seymour Duncan SH-2n Jazz (neck humbucker)

Amp Settings

gain8.5

bass6

mid5

treble7

reverb1

presence6.5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1996-1997. Michael Romeo used the ESP M-II Deluxe into a Line 6 Vetta HD head and a Mesa/Boogie cab for the heavy rhythm guitar on 'Sea of Lies' riff section. No evidence of additional pedals or rack effects for rhythm; all distortion from amp. Pickup and amp details confirmed by forum posts referencing the album era.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussivesaturated high-gainarticulate note separationaggressive palm mutingmodern metal clarityslightly scooped midschunky power chordsclear pick attackfast responsecontrolled low end

Difficulty

The riff requires advanced right-hand technique for fast alternate picking and palm muting, combined with complex rhythm changes and tight synchronization, making it very challenging for most players.

Sources

[GEAR] Michael Romeo's guitar tone Symphony X – The Divine Wings of Tragedy (Special Edition)

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