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Riff Tone
Good Enough
Van Halen
Guitarrock1980s
Original Gear
GuitarErnie Ball Music Man EVH Signature (likely 1985-86 model, as used on 5150/5150-era recordings)
AmpPeavey 5150 head (early prototype, studio version, 1985-86)
Amp Settings
gain7.5
bass6
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Notes
Studio recording, 1985-86, for the album '5150'. Eddie Van Halen used his signature Ernie Ball Music Man guitar and the then-new Peavey 5150 amp. No evidence of live rig or alternate guitars for this section.
Tone Character(10)
tight palm-muted chugsaggressive and saturatedbright and articulatepunchy low endcutting upper midspercussive attackclear note separationharmonic overtonessaturated crunchclassic '5150' era Van Halen rhythm tone
Difficulty
The riff requires advanced right-hand technique, tight palm muting, and fast, accurate picking at a high tempo, making it challenging for most players.
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Create Free AccountGuitarrock1980s
Original Gear
GuitarErnie Ball Music Man EVH Signature (likely 1985-86 model, as used on 5150/5150-era recordings)
AmpPeavey 5150 head (early prototype, studio version, 1985-86)
Amp Settings
gain7.5
bass6
Create an account to see all tone details
Create Free AccountEffects & Signal Chain
Notes
Studio recording, 1985-86, for the album '5150'. Eddie Van Halen used his signature Ernie Ball Music Man guitar and the then-new Peavey 5150 amp. No evidence of live rig or alternate guitars for this section.
Tone Character(10)
tight palm-muted chugsaggressive and saturatedbright and articulatepunchy low endcutting upper midspercussive attackclear note separationharmonic overtonessaturated crunchclassic '5150' era Van Halen rhythm tone
Difficulty
The riff requires advanced right-hand technique, tight palm muting, and fast, accurate picking at a high tempo, making it challenging for most players.