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Riff Tone
Tie Your Mother Down
Queen
Guitarrock1970s
Original Gear
GuitarHomemade 'Red Special' (Brian May's original, chambered body, 24-inch scale, three Burns Tri-Sonic single-coil pickups wired in series with phase switches)
AmpMid-1960s Vox AC30 (Normal channel, two Celestion G12 Alnico 'Blue' speakers) with Dallas-Arbiter Rangemaster treble booster
Amp Settings
gain7.5
bass6.5
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Notes
Studio recording, 1976, 'A Day at the Races' album. May used the AC30's Normal channel (Normal 'Hi' input), with the amp's volume at 10 and cut at 0. Guitar volume at about halfway for riff section. Treble booster always on. No evidence of other pedals or effects for the riff section.
Tone Character(10)
thick and dirty distortionaggressive power chord grindtrebly chimehint of overdrivetight and percussiveBritish crunchbright and articulatepunchy attackfocused midrangecutting upper mids
Difficulty
The riff requires tight, aggressive picking at a fast tempo, with precise power chord changes and syncopated accents, making it moderately challenging for intermediate players.
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Create Free AccountGuitarrock1970s
Original Gear
GuitarHomemade 'Red Special' (Brian May's original, chambered body, 24-inch scale, three Burns Tri-Sonic single-coil pickups wired in series with phase switches)
AmpMid-1960s Vox AC30 (Normal channel, two Celestion G12 Alnico 'Blue' speakers) with Dallas-Arbiter Rangemaster treble booster
Amp Settings
gain7.5
bass6.5
Create an account to see all tone details
Create Free AccountEffects & Signal Chain
Notes
Studio recording, 1976, 'A Day at the Races' album. May used the AC30's Normal channel (Normal 'Hi' input), with the amp's volume at 10 and cut at 0. Guitar volume at about halfway for riff section. Treble booster always on. No evidence of other pedals or effects for the riff section.
Tone Character(10)
thick and dirty distortionaggressive power chord grindtrebly chimehint of overdrivetight and percussiveBritish crunchbright and articulatepunchy attackfocused midrangecutting upper mids
Difficulty
The riff requires tight, aggressive picking at a fast tempo, with precise power chord changes and syncopated accents, making it moderately challenging for intermediate players.