Riff Tone

The Sentinel

Judas Priest

Guitarmetal1980s

Original Gear

Guitar1981 Hamer Standard (Explorer-style) with Kahler tremolo

AmpMarshall JCM800 2203 head into Marshall 4x12 cabinet (Celestion G12-65 speakers)

PickupsDiMarzio Super Distortion humbucker (bridge), stock Hamer neck humbucker

Amp Settings

gain7.5

bass4.5

mid5

treble7.5

reverb0.5

presence6.5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1984. Both Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing used Hamer guitars and Marshall JCM800s for Defenders of the Faith. No evidence of other amps or guitars for the riff section of 'The Sentinel'.

Tone Character(10)

thin and brightscooped midsrazor-sharp attacktight and percussivecrisp and articulateaggressive palm mutingpiercing harmonicshigh-output saturationwide and punchydry, minimal ambience

Difficulty

The riff requires fast, tight alternate picking with aggressive palm muting and precise pinch harmonics, demanding advanced right-hand technique and rhythmic accuracy.

Sources

Judas Priest Tone - forum topic | Ultimate Guitar Getting the Electric Eye tone: how to get closer? : r/Guitar - Reddit What to Remember When Performing Judas Priest's "The Sentinel"

Create an account to adapt this tone to your gear

Create Free Account