Riff Tone

Shake a Leg

AC/DC

Guitarrock1980s

Original Gear

GuitarGibson SG Standard (late 1960s/early 1970s, likely 1970-1971, Angus Young's main studio guitar for Back In Black)

AmpMarshall Super Lead 1959 100-watt (non-master volume, late 60s/early 70s, used in Back In Black sessions)

PickupsGibson humbuckers (likely original T-Top or early patent sticker humbuckers)

Amp Settings

gain5.5

bass6

mid7

treble7

reverb0

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1980. No evidence of pedals or additional effects for the riff section. Angus Young's rig for Back In Black was extremely stripped down: guitar straight into Marshall Super Lead, no pedals, no amp reverb. Settings estimated based on era, genre, and amp model. All sources agree the AC/DC rhythm tone is dry and direct.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussiveclassic British crunchbright and articulatepunchy midsraw and uncompresseddynamic responsefocused low endslight natural amp breakupno reverb or delayaggressive pick attack

Difficulty

The riff requires fast, accurate picking and tight muting to achieve the punchy, percussive AC/DC feel. While not technically advanced in terms of note choice, the speed, rhythmic precision, and dynamic control make it challenging for intermediate players.

Sources

AC/DC – Back In Black - Gear & Equipment Used on the Album Need some help with effects settings to match the tone of “Back in ...

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