Tone library / Gary moore / The loner

The loner amp settings — Marshall JCM800 2203

The Gary moore guitar tone for “The loner”, dialed in for a Marshall JCM800 2203 with a Epiphone SG Standard. Studio version, Wild Frontier (1987) — main lead tone

Original rig

1984 PRS Custom / Charvel (EMG 81/SA/SA) into Boss DS-1, Marshall JMP/JTM45, Roland SDE-3000 delay

Searing, highly saturated 80s singing lead tone with extreme sustain and subtle nasal midrange
Amp settings — Marshall JCM800 2203
CHANNELHigh Sensitivity input
GAIN 8 BASS 6 MID 7 TREBLE 5 PRESENCE 4 MASTER 6
KnobSetting (0–10)
Gain8
Bass6
Mid7
Treble5
Presence4
Master6
Don’t have a Marshall JCM800 2203? See this song on other amps → Match your own rig →
Guitar
PICKUPneck TONE7 VOLUME10
Signal chain

01Boss DS-1 Distortion

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned (run into High input to push sustain)

Tone 4 · Level 7 · Dist 6

02Digital Delay

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned (set to ~420ms for signature stereo bloom)

E.Level 4 · F.Back 4 · D.Time 5
Why these settings

The JCM800 2203 naturally provides the mid-forward Marshall crunch, but without Gary's active EMGs and DS-1, you need the preamp gain pushed to 8 to maximize sustain. We tame the treble to 5 and presence to 4 to round off the sharp top-end bite and focus the singing lower-mids. Rolling the SG neck pickup's tone knob down to 7 replicates Gary's iconic vocal, liquid-flute attack.

PRO TIPGary achieved his legendary infinite sustain by standing in the sweet spot directly in front of the cranked cabinet so the resonant acoustic feedback constantly fed back into the neck pickup.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Marshall JCM800 2203. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

Get ToneAdapt on Google Play
More tones for the Marshall JCM800 2203
Master of PuppetsMetallicaNo ReasonSum 41WalkPanteraNobodyAvenged SevenfoldFarewell BalladBlack Label SocietyBasket caseGreen Day
Find your amp
Browse
Marshall JCM800 2203 settingsALL SONGS FOR THIS AMP The loner on other ampsSAME SONG, YOUR AMP Gary moore tonesALL SONGS Epiphone SG Standard 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.

Get ToneAdapt — first match free