Iron man amp settings — Cort Monster mx15

The Black Sabbath guitar tone for “Iron man”, dialed in for a Cort Monster mx15 with a Harley Benton SC-Custom II. Studio version, Paranoid album (1970)

Original rig

1965 Gibson SG Special (P90 bridge pickup) → Dallas Rangemaster Treble Booster → Laney Supergroup LA100BL 100W head into 4x12 with Celestion G12-25M speakers, cranked with bass input

Thick, grinding mid-heavy distortion with hollow boxy honk — the sound that invented heavy metal

Amp settings — Cort Monster mx15

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	3
Bass	4
Mid	8
Treble	6
Presence	0
Reverb	0
Master	7

Don’t have a Cort Monster mx15? See this song on other amps → Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE6 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Tube Overdrive

Simulates Rangemaster function — pushing amp into saturation while adding upper-mid cut. This is your primary gain source.

Drive 7 · Tone 7 · Level 6

Why these settings

Iommi's original tone came from a cranked 100W tube amp at full power tube saturation — impossible on a 15W solid-state practice amp. Your Tube Overdrive becomes the gain source instead; amp gain is dropped to 3 to keep it clean and let the pedal do the work. Mids pushed to 8 to replicate the hollow, honking Laney midrange character. Treble reduced from Iommi's maxed setting because the SC-Custom's humbuckers are brighter and hotter than his dark P90s. Tone knob rolled to 6 to tame high-end fizz the solid-state amp adds.

PRO TIPIommi used extremely light strings (.009-.042) and a medium pick with a loose grip due to his prosthetic fingertips — this creates a slightly sloppy, aggressive attack that defines the riff's feel. Dig in hard on the downstrokes and let the notes breathe slightly between chord stabs.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Cort Monster mx15. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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Song, artist and gear names are used to identify the tone being matched; ToneAdapt is not affiliated with or endorsed by the artists or manufacturers mentioned. Settings are AI-generated starting points — trust your ears.