Tone library / Metallica / One

One amp settings — Marshall DSL20HR

The Metallica guitar tone for “One”, dialed in for a Marshall DSL20HR with a Fender American Professional II Stratocaster. Studio version, ...And Justice for All (1988) — iconic clean intro & verses

Original rig

Roland JC-120 (clean intro) / Mesa Boogie Mark IIC++ & Mark IV heads (heavy riffs/solo), ESP MX-220 with EMG 81/60 pickups

Pristine, chorus-treated, slightly scooped high-headroom 80s clean
Amp settings — Marshall DSL20HR
CHANNELClassic GainBOOSToff
GAIN 3 BASS 7 MID 4 TREBLE 5 PRESENCE 4 REVERB 3 MASTER 5
KnobSetting (0–10)
Gain3
Bass7
Mid4
Treble5
Presence4
Reverb3
Master5
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Guitar
PICKUPneck+middle TONE9 VOLUME8
Why these settings

The iconic clean intro was recorded through a sterile, wide Roland JC-120 solid-state clean rather than high-gain tube distortion. To emulate this on a naturally mid-forward Marshall DSL20HR, run the Classic Gain channel clean at gain 3 and scoop mids to 4 while pulling presence back to 4 to tame single-coil Strat brightness. Note: the DSL20HR also features a Resonance control on the rear/front panel—set Resonance to 6 to restore low-end body for the Stratocaster. For the machine-gun heavy section later in the song, switch to Ultra Gain with gain at 7 and mids cut to 2.

PRO TIPPosition 4 (neck+middle) creates the parallel out-of-phase glassiness that closely mimics the studio chorus effect on single-coil guitars; pick lightly right over the middle pickup to soften pick attack.

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These settings are for a Marshall DSL20HR. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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