Tone library / Metallica / Master of Puppets

Master of Puppets amp settings — NUX Mighty Lite BT

The Metallica guitar tone for “Master of Puppets”, dialed in for a NUX Mighty Lite BT with a Squier Stracocaster Fender. Studio version, Master of Puppets album (1986)

Original rig

Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ (preamp) slaved into Marshall JCM800 2203, Jackson King V with Seymour Duncan Invaders, 5-band graphic EQ in V-shape

Aggressive, tight, mid-scooped thrash with precise palm-mute definition and saturated crunch

Amp settings — NUX Mighty Lite BT

CHANNELHi-Gain or Metal amp model (select highest-gain voicing available)BRIGHToffBOOSTon

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	8
Bass	7
Mid	2
Treble	7
Presence	6
Reverb	0
Master	5

Don’t have a NUX Mighty Lite BT? See this song on other amps → Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE8 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Noise Gate (use Mighty Lite's built-in if available)

Essential for tight palm mutes — kills string noise between riffs

Threshold 4

02EQ Pedal (Boss GE-7 or similar)

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. This V-shaped EQ is the secret to the Master of Puppets tone. Without it, push bass and treble harder on the amp

100Hz 8 · 200Hz 6 · 400Hz 2 · 800Hz 1 · 1.6kHz 3 · 3.2kHz 7 · 6.4kHz 7 · Level 6

Why these settings

Your Squier Strat's single coils are significantly lower output and brighter than Hetfield's hot humbuckers. Gain is pushed to 8 (vs original 6-7) to compensate for the weaker signal. Mids dropped to 2 to approximate the V-scoop; the Mighty Lite's digital modeling lacks the Mesa's natural compression, so palm muting will require more precision in your picking hand. Roll tone knob to 8 to tame Strat ice-pick highs.

PRO TIPDownpick everything — Hetfield's right-hand attack is all aggressive downstrokes on the low E. Anchor your palm firmly on the bridge saddles for that percussive 'chunk' on muted notes. Your Strat will never fully nail this tone due to pickup type, but a hard-tail bridge humbucker guitar (or even a $30 humbucker-sized single coil swap) would get you 70% closer.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a NUX Mighty Lite BT. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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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.