Tone library / Descendents / When I Get Old

When I Get Old amp settings — Roland JC-40 Jazz Chorus

The Descendents guitar tone for “When I Get Old”, dialed in for a Roland JC-40 Jazz Chorus with a Vintage V6M24. Studio version, Everything Sucks (1996)

Original rig

Marshall JCM-900 50W (A channel), DOD compressor/sustainer as clean boost, Music Man Axis with humbuckers

Aggressive mid-forward punk crunch with pick attack clarity and tight low-end

Amp settings — Roland JC-40 Jazz Chorus

CHANNELDistortion channelBRIGHToff

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

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE8 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Boss BD-2 Blues Driver or similar clean boost

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. Egerton used a DOD compressor with compression off purely to boost signal into the Marshall. A BD-2 with gain at minimum replicates this: it pushes the JC-40's distortion circuit harder without adding its own dirt. Without this pedal, raise amp gain to 8.

Level 7 · Tone 5 · Gain 1

Why these settings

The JC-40's solid-state distortion is inherently scooped and fizzy compared to the JCM-900's tube midrange bark. Compensate by pushing mids to 8 (vs ~5 on the Marshall) and pulling treble back to 6 to avoid harsh transistor highs. The JC-40's distortion channel lacks the compression and harmonic saturation of a tube amp, so you'll get a tighter, more brittle attack — which actually works for Egerton's 'pick clarity' goal. Reverb stays at 0; this tone is bone dry.

PRO TIPEgerton's attack clarity comes from aggressive downpicking close to the bridge with the pick angled slightly. On the JC-40, this technique is even more critical — the amp won't compress your dynamics, so every pick stroke translates directly. Dig in hard and stay consistent.

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These settings are for a Roland JC-40 Jazz Chorus. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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