Tone library / Dream Theater / Metropolis, Pt. 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper

Metropolis, Pt. 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper amp settings — NUX Mighty Plug Pro

The Dream Theater guitar tone for “Metropolis, Pt. 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper”, dialed in for a NUX Mighty Plug Pro with a Fender David Gilmour Stratocaster. Studio version, Images and Words (1992)

Original rig

Mesa Boogie Mark IIC+ head, Ibanez RG with DiMarzio pickups (likely D-Sonic bridge), some clean sections used a Zoom portable system with tape-speed doubling for chorus effect

Tight, articulate high-gain with punchy mids, controlled low-end, and smooth top — precise prog-metal rhythm and fluid leads

Amp settings — NUX Mighty Plug Pro

CHANNELMesa-style high-gain model (e.g., 'Optima' or closest Mark IIC+ voiced amp sim — check NUX app for 'MES' or 'Recto' category, select the tightest mid-forward option)BRIGHToffBOOSTon

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	7
Bass	4
Mid	7
Treble	6
Presence	5
Reverb	1
Master	6

Don’t have a NUX Mighty Plug Pro? Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE7 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Noise Gate (NUX built-in)

Essential for tight palm-muted riffs — keeps silence clean between staccato hits

Threshold 4 · Decay 3

02Tube Screamer (NUX built-in 'T-Scream' or similar OD block)

Use as a clean boost into the high-gain amp model — tightens low-end, adds midrange focus (classic Petrucci trick)

Drive 2 · Tone 6 · Level 6

03Digital Delay (NUX built-in)

Subtle slapback for leads — keep mix low so it doesn't mud the precision riffs

Time 4 · Feedback 3 · Mix 2

Why these settings

Your Gilmour Strat has single coils vs Petrucci's high-output humbuckers — the NUX amp sim's gain is boosted +1 from the original's 6, and bass dropped from 5.5 to 4 to prevent the looser single-coil low-end from getting muddy. Mid pushed to 7 to compensate for the Strat's natural mid-scoop vs the thick Ibanez voicing. The TS-style boost in front is critical: it compresses the signal and adds the tight midrange punch single coils lack. Tone knob at 7 (not 10) rolls off some ice-pick highs the Strat naturally emphasizes.

PRO TIPPetrucci's right-hand precision is half the tone — anchor your palm firmly near the bridge for the palm-muted sections and use consistent downstrokes on the main riff. The 12/8 sections need lighter touch; let the notes ring. For the clean verse tone, switch to neck pickup, drop gain to 2-3, and enable a chorus block with slow rate and moderate depth — the original used tape-speed manipulation, chorus approximates it.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a NUX Mighty Plug Pro. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

Get ToneAdapt on Google Play

Find your amp

Browse

Dream Theater tonesALL SONGS Fender David Gilmour Stratocaster tonesSAME GUITAR Tone libraryEVERYTHING

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.