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Seek and destroy amp settings — Boss Katana 50 gen 3

The Metallica guitar tone for “Seek and destroy”, dialed in for a Boss Katana 50 gen 3 with a Jackson JS20 DKQ. Studio version, Kill 'Em All (1983)

Original rig

Marshall JCM800 2203 (hot-rodded, high treble input) + Gibson Flying V (1981, bridge humbucker) + Pro Co Rat distortion pedal

Tight, scooped, high-gain thrash rhythm with razor-sharp palm-mute attack and dry, percussive low-end

Amp settings — Boss Katana 50 gen 3

CHANNELBrownBOOSToff

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

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Why these settings

The Katana's Brown amp type emulates the Marshall JCM800 voicing. Your Jackson's passive humbuckers closely match the original Flying V's output, so gain stays at 8 (no pedal needed—Brown channel provides the cascaded preamp saturation). Bass is raised to 7 (vs original's 4-5) because the Katana's Brown voice is slightly tighter in the low-end than a real JCM800; mids scooped to 3 to preserve the aggressive thrash scoop without losing pick attack definition.

PRO TIPDig in hard with downstrokes and keep your palm tight on the bridge for the percussive mute—Hetfield's tone is 50% technique, and any slop in the palm muting will turn this into mush at high gain.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Boss Katana 50 gen 3. 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.