Paranoid amp settings — soundsation amp

The Black Sabbath guitar tone for “Paranoid”, dialed in for a soundsation amp with a Gibson Les Paul Classic. Studio version, Paranoid album (1970)

Original rig

Gibson SG Standard → Dallas Arbiter Rangemaster (modified) → Laney LA100BL 100-watt head, presence/mid/treble maxed, bass at 0

Aggressive mid-forward crunch with searing treble bite and no low-end mud

Amp settings — soundsation amp

BRIGHTon

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	7
Bass	2
Mid	9
Treble	8
Presence	8
Reverb	0
Master	6

Don’t have a soundsation amp? See this song on other amps → Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Treble Booster / Clean Boost (e.g., TC Electronic Spark Mini, MXR Micro Amp, or EHX LPB-1)

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. The Rangemaster treble boost is essential to Iommi's tone; it adds the aggressive upper-mid bite and pushes the amp into saturation. Without it, the tone will lack definition and cut.

Level/Gain 7

Why these settings

Iommi ran bass at 0 on the Laney, but your Les Paul's humbuckers have more low-end than his SG, and unknown Soundsation amps tend toward muddiness—bass at 2 prevents flub while keeping weight. Mid and treble pushed high replicate his maxed EQ approach. Without the Rangemaster boost, you'll need to compensate with amp gain; a treble booster pedal is the missing link for authentic bite.

PRO TIPIommi's attack came from aggressive downstrokes with the pick angled slightly so the edge scrapes the string—this adds the percussive 'chirp' on the front of each note that defines the Paranoid riff tone.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a soundsation amp. 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.