Riff Tone

The Trooper (2015 Remaster)

Iron Maiden

Guitarmetal1980s

Original Gear

GuitarFender Stratocaster (Adrian Smith, Dave Murray) with DiMarzio Super Distortion bridge pickup (Smith), stock single coils (Murray)

AmpMarshall JMP 2204 (Adrian Smith), Marshall 1959 Super Lead Plexi (Dave Murray)

PickupsDiMarzio Super Distortion (bridge, Smith); Fender single coil (bridge, Murray)

Amp Settings

gain7

bass5.5

mid7

treble7.5

reverb1.5

presence6.5

Effects & Signal Chain

distortionMXR MXR Distortion +

eqMXR MXR 10 Band EQ

boostBoss Boss FA-1 FET Preamp

Notes

Studio recording, Piece of Mind sessions (1983, used for 2015 remaster). Both Smith and Murray played the main riff. Gear confirmed for studio use on this album. No evidence of live/touring substitutions for this recording.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussiveaggressive British crunchhigh-output bridge pickup attackcutting upper midsarticulate note separationfocused low endslight amp reverbminimal ambienceclassic NWOBHM metal tonepunchy rhythm

Difficulty

The riff requires fast alternate picking, precise palm muting, and tight rhythmic accuracy at a high tempo, making it challenging for most players.

Sources

Pedals used in Piece of Mind album : r/ironmaiden - Reddit Interview: Iron Maiden's Adrian Smith and Dave Murray in Their First Guitar World Feature from 1983 | Guitar World Guitar tone : r/ironmaiden - Reddit

This tone has been researched 15 times by the community

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