Metallica - One amp settings — Stranger C15
The James hetfield guitar tone for “Metallica - One”, dialed in for a Stranger C15 with a HERTZ Stratocaster. Studio version, ...And Justice for All (1988) — Heavy rhythm and machine-gun breakdown riff
ESP MX-220 (EMG 81/60) -> Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ (slaved into Marshall power amp) / Roland JC-120 for cleans -> Marshall 4x12 (Celestion V30)
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Gain | 2 |
| Bass | 5 |
| Treble | 5 |
| Master | 4 |
01Boss GT-1 Preamp Block (BG LEAD / Mesa Mark II voice)
Main distortion engine; disable cabinet emulation if running into the Stranger guitar input, or enable 4x12 cab model if running clean.
02Boss GT-1 Noise Suppressor (NS)
Essential for clamping high gain during the machine-gun staccato breakdown riff.
The Stranger C15 is a basic solid-state practice amp lacking the parametric mid control and high-gain preamp required for the signature Justice sound, so the Boss GT-1 provides all the Mesa Mark IIC+ high-gain and extreme mid-scoop while the Stranger is parked completely clean with flat EQ. Single-coil pickups on the Hertz Strat are compensated by pushing the GT-1 preamp bass and gain slightly higher to match the low-end punch of active EMG humbuckers. Clean intro: switch the GT-1 preamp model to Clean/JC-120 with subtle chorus on the neck pickup.
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