Tone library / Nirvana / Smells Like Teen Spirit

Smells Like Teen Spirit amp settings — harley benton 40 mfx

The Nirvana guitar tone for “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, dialed in for a harley benton 40 mfx with a Harley benton Harley Benton ST-20 SB Standard. Studio version, Nevermind (1991) — main distorted riff/chorus

Original rig

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

Aggressive, abrasive grunge distortion with punchy upper-mids and tight low end

Amp settings — harley benton 40 mfx

CHANNELLead / High-Gain Amp Model (Marshall/Mesa voiced)BOOSToff

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

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Onboard DS-1 / Orange Distortion Block

Engage onboard distortion block in the HB-40MFX front-of-chain with amp model set to clean/crunch

Dist 8 · Tone 6 · Level 7

02Onboard Small Clone / Chorus Block

Keep bypassed during main riff/chorus; engage for clean verse

Rate 4 · Depth 6

Why these settings

The ST-20's single-coil bridge pickup is brighter and thinner than Kurt's Duncan JB humbucker, so treble is slightly pulled back and mids boosted to add essential punch. On the HB-40MFX, run the onboard DS-1 style distortion block into a neutral clean amp model to emulate running a Boss DS-1 into Kurt's Mesa Studio Preamp. Clean verse: bypass the distortion block and engage the onboard chorus block.

PRO TIPKurt's abrasive attack comes from heavy right-hand strumming with a medium-hard pick striking all strings near the bridge, accented by percussive left-hand mutes during the riff transitions.

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These settings are for a harley benton 40 mfx. 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.