Tone library / Michael Jackson / Beat It

Beat It amp settings — Roland cube Cube 15

The Michael Jackson guitar tone for “Beat It”, dialed in for a Roland cube Cube 15 with a Selder Qc4. Studio version solo, Thriller (1982)

Original rig

Eddie Van Halen: Frankenstrat (Seymour Duncan humbucker) -> 1967 Marshall 100W Super Lead (Model 1959) cranked with Variac -> Celestion Greenback 4x12 cab

High-energy brown sound lead with harmonic sizzle, dense midrange, and fast attack

Amp settings — Roland cube Cube 15

CHANNELLead (Metal Stack)

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	7
Bass	5
Mid	7
Treble	7
Master	6

Don’t have a Roland cube Cube 15? See this song on other amps → Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Why these settings

The Cube 15's 'Metal Stack' lead setting supplies the hot-rodded Marshall saturation Eddie achieved by diming his Plexi on low voltage. Mids and treble are pushed to 7 to deliver the aggressive upper-mid cut and pinch harmonics, while bass is reined in at 5 to keep the 8-inch speaker tight. Presence and reverb knobs do not physically exist on the Cube 15 panel and are set to null.

PRO TIPPick aggressively near the bridge with the edge of a stiff pick to extract EVH's signature squealing pinch harmonics and percussive pick attack.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Roland cube Cube 15. 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.