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Distorted Tone
Ride the Lightning
Metallica
Bassmetal1980s
Original Gear
BassRickenbacker 4001 (modded with Gibson EB 'mudbucker' neck and Seymour Duncan Stacked Jazz bridge pickup)
AmpMesa Boogie D-180 (two heads: one clean, one for effects/distortion)
Amp Settings
gain7
bass5
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Notes
Studio recording, 1984, Ride the Lightning album. Bass often split to two amps (clean/effects).
Tone Character(9)
growly midrange snarlfuzzy upper midsaggressive, biting attacksustained distortionclanky transientwah-filtered sweeps (in solos)metallic edgeslightly scooped lowsharmonically rich fuzz
Difficulty
The part requires fast, precise fingerstyle technique, control of dynamics under heavy fuzz, and expressive wah pedal use in lead sections. The challenge is balancing note definition with aggressive effects.
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Create Free AccountBassmetal1980s
Original Gear
BassRickenbacker 4001 (modded with Gibson EB 'mudbucker' neck and Seymour Duncan Stacked Jazz bridge pickup)
AmpMesa Boogie D-180 (two heads: one clean, one for effects/distortion)
Amp Settings
gain7
bass5
Create an account to see all tone details
Create Free AccountEffects & Signal Chain
Notes
Studio recording, 1984, Ride the Lightning album. Bass often split to two amps (clean/effects).
Tone Character(9)
growly midrange snarlfuzzy upper midsaggressive, biting attacksustained distortionclanky transientwah-filtered sweeps (in solos)metallic edgeslightly scooped lowsharmonically rich fuzz
Difficulty
The part requires fast, precise fingerstyle technique, control of dynamics under heavy fuzz, and expressive wah pedal use in lead sections. The challenge is balancing note definition with aggressive effects.