Beat it amp settings — Fender Vibro Champ
The Micheal jackson guitar tone for “Beat it”, dialed in for a Fender Vibro Champ with a Ibanez GIO GRG170DX. Studio version, Thriller (1982) — Eddie Van Halen solo
Frankenstrat (Seymour Duncan SH-5 Custom humbucker, bridge) into Hartley-Thompson HT45 combo, Echoplex tape delay
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Gain | 10 |
| Bass | 4 |
| Mid | 6 |
| Treble | 5 |
| Presence | 0 |
| Reverb | 2 |
| Master | 10 |
01Overdrive/Distortion (TS-style or DS-1)
RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. The Vibro Champ is a low-wattage clean amp that will not achieve high-gain saturation on its own. A dirt pedal is essential to get anywhere near this tone. A Boss DS-1, TS9, or any medium-gain overdrive will work. Without this pedal, the tone is unobtainable.
The Vibro Champ is a 5W clean platform with no preamp gain stage — it physically cannot produce Van Halen-style saturation without a drive pedal in front. I maxed the amp's volume and treble-leaning EQ to push it as hard as possible, then cut treble from the original's 7.5 to 5 because the Vibro Champ's small speaker and Fender voicing are already bright. Mid pushed to 6 to compensate for Fender's natural mid-scoop vs the original's mid-forward character. Reverb at 2 approximates the Echoplex ambience.
Get this tone on your amp
These settings are for a Fender Vibro Champ. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.
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