Riff Tone

Touch of Grey

Grateful Dead

Guitarrock1980s

Original Gear

GuitarCustom Doug Irwin 'Tiger' (Jerry Garcia's main guitar for studio in 1987; some sources suggest a Fender Stratocaster was also used on the riff section)

AmpFender Twin Reverb (preamp) into McIntosh MC2300 (power amp)

PickupsDiMarzio Super II (neck and middle), DiMarzio SDS-1 (bridge), single-coil configuration with onboard buffer/preamp

Amp Settings

gain2.5

bass5

mid5

treble7

reverb2.5

presence5.5

Effects & Signal Chain

modulationMusitronics Musitronics Mu-Tron III Envelope Filter

Notes

Studio recording for 'In the Dark' (1987). Jerry Garcia used his custom Irwin 'Tiger' guitar with single-coil pickups and onboard buffer, into a Fender Twin Reverb preamp and McIntosh MC2300 power amp. The riff section is clean, with envelope filter and light reverb. No evidence of heavy overdrive or distortion. Settings below are for studio, not live.

Tone Character(10)

bell-like top endbright and articulateclean headroomsparkly highsscooped mids for claritytight low endsubtle ambiencevintage single-coil claritydynamic and responsiveslightly compressed attack

Difficulty

The riff requires tight rhythmic accuracy and dynamic picking to trigger the envelope filter correctly, as well as clean articulation for the signature Jerry Garcia sound.

Sources

Grateful Dead Amp Settings (gear and tone tips) - Guitar Chalk Grateful Dead Guitar Tone — Settings for Every Signature Song | ToneMirror Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia Talks Gear, His Near-Fatal Illness and 'In The Dark' | Guitar World

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