Tone library / Metallica / Seek & Destroy

Seek & Destroy amp settings — NUX MG-300

The Metallica guitar tone for “Seek & Destroy”, dialed in for a NUX MG-300 with a Aria pro ii manga series Japanese. Studio version, Kill 'Em All (1983)

Original rig

Modified Marshall JMP 2203 100W head (Jose Arredondo mod), Gibson/Epiphone Flying V with humbuckers, ProCo Rat for additional gain saturation

Scooped thrash metal — tight palm mutes, aggressive pick attack, sharp treble bite, chunky low end, dry and percussive

Amp settings — NUX MG-300

CHANNELUK 800 (JCM800 model) or UK VNTG (Plexi variant)BRIGHTonBOOSToff

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

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Noise Gate (NUX built-in)

Essential for tight thrash palm mutes — kills string noise between riffs

Threshold 4 · Decay 3

02Tube Screamer (NUX built-in TS model)

OPTIONAL — engage only for lead sections to add sustain and cut; rhythm tone is amp-only

Drive 2 · Tone 6 · Level 7

Why these settings

The NUX MG-300's UK 800 model approximates the hot-rodded JCM800 voicing. Your Aria Pro II Japanese humbuckers are moderate output, so gain stays at 8 (original tracking used a modded high-gain cascade). Mid scooped to 3 replicates the classic thrash scoop — the original sources cite mids around 2.5-4. Treble dropped 1 notch from original (7 vs 8) because the MG-300's digital treble can get harsh at high gain.

PRO TIPHetfield's attack on this track is all downstrokes with the pick angled slightly — dig in hard directly over the bridge pickup pole pieces for that percussive 'chunk' on palm mutes. Precision matters more than gain.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a NUX MG-300. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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More tones for the NUX MG-300

Cowboys from HellPantera Killin in the nameRage against the machine PsychosocialSlipknot Satu-SatunyaHIVI!Heart-Shaped BoxNirvana Comfortably numbPink floyd

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