Locked Out of Heaven amp settings — Frontman 212R Fender
The Bruno Mars guitar tone for “Locked Out of Heaven”, dialed in for a Frontman 212R Fender with a Ibanez RG550. Studio version, Unorthodox Jukebox (2012)
Fender Stratocaster into vintage clean tube amp (Fender/Vox/Marshall studio clean) + outboard studio compression and subtle preamp drive/tape saturation
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Bass | 4 |
| Mid | 6 |
| Treble | 7 |
| Reverb | 2 |
| Master | 4 |
01Compressor (e.g. MXR Dyna Comp / Boss CS-3)
RECOMMENDED — not currently owned; essential for the squishy, punchy 80s Police-style staccato funk spank
The Frontman 212R clean channel has high headroom and a naturally scooped mid response, so keep Bass tight at 4, push Mid to 6, and Treble to 7 with the Bright switch ON to get the signature cutting bite. Your Ibanez RG550 has hot pickups compared to a vintage Strat, so use the split in-between Position 4 (neck + middle single-coil) to mimic the airy Strat spank on the muted chops. The amp provides a great direct clean platform today, but adding an outboard compressor pedal will nail the hyper-squashed studio transient control.
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These settings are for a Frontman 212R Fender. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.
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