Hotel California amp settings — Kadence Xa -8
The Eagles guitar tone for “Hotel California”, dialed in for a Kadence Xa -8 with a Kadence Astromen. Studio version, Hotel California (1976) — iconic harmonized and trading outro guitar solo
Don Felder: 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard into cranked Fender 5E3 Tweed Deluxe; Joe Walsh: 1950s Fender Telecaster into cranked Fender Tweed Champ with subtle MXR Phase 90 and tape echo
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Gain | 6 |
| Bass | 5 |
| Treble | 7 |
| Master | 5 |
01Overdrive / TS-style Pedal
RECOMMENDED — not currently owned
02Analog / Tape Delay
RECOMMENDED — not currently owned; set ~420ms for the solo repeats
The Kadence Xa-8 is a compact entry-level practice amp lacking dedicated mid, presence, and onboard reverb controls, so tone shaping relies on its 2-band EQ and drive channel. Setting the drive gain around 6 provides the touch-sensitive tweed-style saturation of Felder and Walsh's cranked small Fender amps without turning into modern fizzy distortion. Roll the treble up to 7 to capture the signature bite of the bridge pickup while keeping bass at 5 to prevent the small speaker from flubbing out. If you add an external overdrive pedal later, switch the amp to the clean channel with gain at 2.
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These settings are for a Kadence Xa -8. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.
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