Tone library / Michael Jackson / Beat it

Beat it amp settings — Fender Blues Junior IV

The Michael Jackson guitar tone for “Beat it”, dialed in for a Fender Blues Junior IV with a Fender American Original 60s Stratocaster. Studio version, Thriller (1982) — signature main rhythm riff

Original rig

Steve Lukather: modified 1977 'Robot' Strat / '59 Les Paul into Fender Deluxe Reverb and Marshall JCM800/Plexi heads

Tight, punchy, articulate hard-rock crunch with focused upper-mids

Amp settings — Fender Blues Junior IV

BOOSTon

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	8
Bass	5
Mid	8
Treble	5
Reverb	1
Master	4

Don’t have a Fender Blues Junior IV? See this song on other amps → Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE8 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned; adds the Marshall-style mid-push and compression this track needs

Drive 7 · Tone 5 · Level 7

Why these settings

The Blues Junior's 'FAT' boost is engaged and the preamp volume is pushed to 8 to squeeze maximum natural crunch from this clean-platform amp without an external dirt pedal. Because the Strat's single-coil bridge pickup is brighter and thinner than Lukather's humbucker, the amp's mids are pushed to 8 and treble pulled to 5 to tame harsh 6kHz glass. If you acquire the recommended TS9, set the amp volume back down to 3 and let the pedal generate the core Marshall-style bite.

PRO TIPPick aggressively near the bridge with the edge of a heavy pick to replicate Lukather's percussive attack, and roll the Strat's tone knob down to 8 to round off the bridge single-coil's spike.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Fender Blues Junior IV. 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.