Solo Tone

Seek & Destroy

Metallica

Guitarmetal1980s

Original Gear

GuitarGibson Flying V (1979, white, stock pickups, Kirk Hammett borrowing James Hetfield's guitar for solo)

AmpMarshall Super Lead (modded, James Hetfield's amp, hot-rodded by L.A. tech, used by Kirk Hammett for solo)

PickupsStock Gibson humbuckers (late 70s Flying V, likely T-Top humbuckers)

Amp Settings

gain7.5

bass5.5

mid3

treble7.5

reverb0

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1983, Kirk Hammett played the solo on James Hetfield's white Flying V through Hetfield's modded Marshall Super Lead. No evidence of pedals used for the solo in the studio. No evidence of effects loop or additional rack effects. All sources point to direct guitar-to-amp setup for the solo.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussivescooped midsaggressive high-gain saturationbright and cuttingsinging sustainarticulate single-note clarityminimal ambienceraw and punchyfast attackclassic early thrash metal lead sound

Difficulty

The solo requires advanced picking speed, clean legato technique, and precise articulation at a brisk tempo, making it challenging for intermediate players.

Sources

Metallica's James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett reveal ... - Guitar World Seek And Destroy Settings Help : r/guitarlessons - Reddit

This tone has been researched 3 times by the community

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