Holy Wars.... The Punishment Due amp settings — Bright 15G
The Megadeth guitar tone for “Holy Wars.... The Punishment Due”, dialed in for a Bright 15G with a Bright Simple Strat. Studio version, Rust in Peace (1990) - signature opening thrash rhythm riff
Jackson King V (Seymour Duncan JB bridge humbucker) -> Marshall JCM800 (modded / Bogner Triple Giant preamp) -> Marshall 4x12 cab
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Gain | 7 |
| Bass | 5 |
| Mid | 6 |
| Treble | 5 |
| Reverb | 0 |
| Master | 4 |
The Bright 15G practice amp's drive channel is pushed to 7 to deliver the necessary thrash saturation while preventing its small 8-inch speaker from farting out on palm mutes. Single-coil pickups on a Strat are naturally thinner and brighter than Dave Mustaine's high-output Seymour Duncan JB humbucker, so treble is held back to 5 and the guitar tone knob is rolled to 8 to shave piercing single-coil bite while mids are set at 6 for thrash cut. Adding a dedicated distortion pedal like a Rat or DS-1 into the clean channel is the primary upgrade path for authentic JCM800-style crunch. Clean bridge interlude: disengage the drive channel OD switch and switch to neck+middle pickups.
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These settings are for a Bright 15G. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.
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