Knockin on heaven door amp settings — NUX MG-400
The Guns and Roses guitar tone for “Knockin on heaven door”, dialed in for a NUX MG-400 with a Fender American Professional II Stratocaster. Studio version, Use Your Illusion II (1991) — Lead Solo
1959 Gibson Flying V / Les Paul replica through modded Marshall JCM800 (S.I.R. Stock #34 modded by Frank Levi) pushed with an MXR boost/overdrive into Marshall 4x12 with Celestion V30s
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Gain | 7 |
| Bass | 5 |
| Mid | 7 |
| Treble | 5 |
| Presence | 5 |
| Reverb | 3 |
| Master | 7 |
01MXR Distortion+
Used out front as a clean/mid boost to push the Brit 800 amp block into singing lead sustain
02Digital Delay (NUX MG-400 block)
Post-amp/FX block set for subtle ~380ms solo ambience
03Plate Reverb (NUX MG-400 block)
Post-amp room/plate tail
Slash recorded his lead tracks with fat PAF-style humbuckers, so on your Stratocaster you must switch to the neck pickup and roll the guitar tone control down to 7 to round off the single-coil glassiness and evoke his famous vocal flute-like lead quality. The Brit 800 amp block provides the core Marshall crunch, while your physical MXR Distortion+ acts as a front boost with output high and distortion low to push sustain without introducing brittle solid-state clipping. Mid is pushed to 7 with treble capped at 5 to fatten the Strat's thinner midrange profile against the record's thick Gibson tone.
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These settings are for a NUX MG-400. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.
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