Tone library / Nirvana / Smells like teen Spirit

Smells like teen Spirit amp settings — Boss Me-25

The Nirvana guitar tone for “Smells like teen Spirit”, dialed in for a Boss Me-25 with a Epiphone SG Standard. Studio version, Nevermind (1991) — iconic distorted chorus/riff

Original rig

Fender Stratocaster (Seymour Duncan JB bridge humbucker) -> Boss DS-1 Distortion -> Mesa/Boogie Studio Preamp (Rhythm/Clean channel) -> Crown Power Base 2 power amp -> Marshall 1960B 4x12 cab

Aggressive, raw pedal-driven grunge distortion with punchy upper-mid bite

Amp settings — Boss Me-25

CHANNELCLEAN (Preamp block: Clean)BRIGHToffBOOSToff

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	2
Bass	5
Mid	7
Treble	6
Reverb	0
Master	6

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01OD/DS: 'DS-1' (Boss ME-25 OD/DS Block)

Engage for the iconic chorus and main riff; bypass for the clean verse

Drive 7 · Tone 4 · Level 8

02MODULATION: 'CHORUS' (Boss ME-25 Mod Block)

Engage on clean verses and solo for the EHX Small Clone sound

Rate 4 · Depth 8 · Level 5

Why these settings

Cobain used a Boss DS-1 into the clean rhythm channel of a Mesa Studio preamp, so the ME-25 preamp block is set to Clean with low gain (2) to act as a transparent pedal platform and avoid muddy double-gain stacking. The Epiphone SG bridge humbucker delivers the necessary output and warmth of Kurt's Seymour Duncan JB, so the DS-1 tone is rolled back to 4 to prevent harshness while maintaining cutting upper-mids.

PRO TIPHit the muted four-stroke percussive rake ('chug-chug-chug-chug') strictly using the fleshy side of your fretting hand across all six strings while striking aggressively over the bridge pickup.

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These settings are for a Boss Me-25. 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.