Paranoid amp settings — Harley benton HB-10G

The Black Sabbath guitar tone for “Paranoid”, dialed in for a Harley benton HB-10G with a HARLEY BENTON Explorer. Studio version, Paranoid album (1970), standard E tuning

Original rig

Gibson SG Standard ('Monkey') → Dallas Rangemaster treble booster (modified) → Laney LA100BL head into 4x12 cabs, normal channel input, amp dimed with no bass

Aggressive, cutting British crunch with scooped lows, pushed mids, and searing treble bite from the Rangemaster boost

Amp settings — Harley benton HB-10G

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	8
Bass	2
Mid	8
Treble	7
Presence	0
Reverb	0
Master	6

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Why these settings

The HB-10G is a small solid-state practice amp with limited gain and no presence control — it cannot replicate the Rangemaster's harmonic push or the Laney's tube saturation. Gain is maxed relative to what the amp offers, mids pushed hard to approximate Iommi's 10/10/10/0 setting, but treble pulled back from 10 to 7 because solid-state amps get harsh and fizzy where tube amps stay musical. Bass at 2 (not 0) compensates for the Explorer's thinner low-end vs an SG. This gets you the general aggression and mid-forward cut, but the amp physically cannot produce the harmonic richness or sustain of the original — a treble booster pedal (TC Electronic Spark Booster, Electro-Harmonix LPB-1, or any Rangemaster clone) would transform this rig.

PRO TIPDig in hard with your pick right over the bridge pickup — Iommi's attack is percussive and deliberate, not loose. The Rangemaster's magic was making the pick attack bloom into sustain; without it, you need to compensate with aggressive picking dynamics and letting notes ring into feedback where possible.

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These settings are for a Harley benton HB-10G. 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.