About a Girl amp settings — Fender Champion 20

The Nirvana guitar tone for “About a Girl”, dialed in for a Fender Champion 20 with a Jet Stratocaster. Studio version, Bleach (1989) — main rhythm tone

Original rig

1968 Fender Twin Reverb into Bullfrog 2x12 cab, Epiphone ET270 (single-coil pickups)

Raw, jangly edge-of-breakup clean with open chime and direct attack

Amp settings — Fender Champion 20

CHANNELVoice: '65 Twin CleanBRIGHToffBOOSToff

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	4
Bass	5
Treble	7
Reverb	1
Master	6

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Guitar

PICKUPmiddle TONE10 VOLUME10

Why these settings

The Champion 20 lacks a physical mid knob, so we emulate the Twin Reverb's natural mid scoop by setting the Voice selector to the '65 Twin model. A Strat middle pickup mimics the dry, open snap of Cobain's Epiphone ET270 single-coils without being excessively harsh on the high end. Gain at 4 gives that crisp, pushed edge-of-breakup grit without descending into full distortion. Solo: kick in a Boss DS-1 style distortion if added later.

PRO TIPHit the open Em and G chords hard with a thin-to-medium pick right near the bridge to get that signature dry, percussive Bleach rhythm attack.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Fender Champion 20. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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More tones for the Fender Champion 20

She's goneStealheart Heart sheaped boxNirvana So Far AwayAvenged Sevenfold Harvester of sorrowMetallica ParanoidBlack sabath Gözlerimin Etrafındaki ÇizgilerŞebnem Ferah

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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.