Tone library / Metallica / Master of puppets

Master of puppets amp settings — Harley benton Hb80r

The Metallica guitar tone for “Master of puppets”, dialed in for a Harley benton Hb80r with a Fender Player Stratocaster. Studio version, Master of Puppets (1986) — rhythm guitar tone, main riff section

Original rig

Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ preamp slaved into modified Marshall JCM800 100W power amp, Jackson King V 'Kill Bon Jovi' with EMG 81 bridge pickup, no pedals for distortion

Tight, aggressive thrash rhythm with scooped mids, pronounced low-end chunk, and cutting high-frequency bite

Amp settings — Harley benton Hb80r

CHANNELOverdrive channelBRIGHTon

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	8
Bass	7
Mid	3
Treble	7
Presence	6
Reverb	0
Master	5

Don’t have a Harley benton Hb80r? See this song on other amps → Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE8 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Behringer TM300 (Tube Amp Modeler)

Set Amp Type selector to 'Rectifier' position (far right) for Mesa-style voicing. Use as your primary gain source — set amp to clean channel with gain at 2-3 to avoid double-gain mud

Drive 7 · Low 6 · High 7 · Level 6 · Amp Type 5

Why these settings

Your Strat's single-coil bridge pickup is significantly lower output and brighter than Hetfield's EMG 81 active humbucker. Compensate by adding +1 bass and +1 gain on the TM300 versus a humbucker setup, and roll tone knob to 8 to tame ice-pick highs. The HB80R is a solid-state practice amp without the preamp saturation of a Mark IIC+ — the TM300 becomes your distortion source, so keep the amp's gain minimal and let the pedal do the heavy lifting.

PRO TIPPalm-mute position is critical for this tone — anchor your picking hand directly over the bridge saddles, not floating above. Hetfield's signature chunk comes from extremely precise, consistent palm pressure combined with aggressive downpicking at 200+ BPM. Practice the main riff at half speed with a metronome until your muting is uniform across all six strings.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Harley benton Hb80r. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

Get ToneAdapt on Google Play

Find your amp

Browse

Master of puppets on other ampsSAME SONG, YOUR AMP Metallica tonesALL SONGS Fender Player Stratocaster 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.