Master of Puppets amp settings — Peavey Rage 158
The Metallica guitar tone for “Master of Puppets”, dialed in for a Peavey Rage 158 with a Squier Affinity Stratocaster. Studio album track, Master of Puppets (1986) — signature main rhythm riff
Mesa Boogie Mark IIC+ (preamp with graphic EQ V-curve) slaved into Marshall JCM800 2203 power amp into Marshall 4x12 cabinets; Jackson King V Custom with Seymour Duncan Invader humbuckers
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Gain | 2 |
| Bass | 6 |
| Mid | 5 |
| Treble | 6 |
| Reverb | 0 |
| Master | 5 |
01Ex Inferno Metal Distortion Pedal
Primary gain source; providing the heavy, tight thrash saturation
02Joyo 6 Band EQ Pedal
Placed after distortion to recreate the Mesa Boogie classic graphic EQ 'V-shape' scoop
The EX Inferno pedal acts as the high-gain engine into the Peavey Rage 158's clean channel with low gain (2) to prevent muddy double-gain staging. The Joyo 6-Band EQ is essential right after the distortion to scoop 800Hz sharply while boosting 100Hz and 3.2kHz, perfectly mimicking James Hetfield's Mesa Mark IIC+ post-gain graphic EQ curve. Single coils on the Squier Strat require the tone knob wide open and slightly elevated low frequencies to match the thickness of high-output Invader humbuckers. Clean interlude: bypass the EX Inferno and Joyo EQ pedals, switch to neck+middle pickup.
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These settings are for a Peavey Rage 158. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.
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