Tone library / Nirvana / Smells Like Teen Spirit

Smells Like Teen Spirit amp settings — Mackintec Maxx 15

The Nirvana guitar tone for “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, dialed in for a Mackintec Maxx 15 with a Tagima Woodstock TG510. Studio version, Nevermind (1991) — main distorted riff and chorus

Original rig

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

Aggressive, gritty grunge crunch with scooped lower mids and biting upper-mid presence

Amp settings — Mackintec Maxx 15

CHANNELCleanBOOSToff

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

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Cuvave Cube Baby (Distortion / Preamp Mode)

Gain source — set Preamp model to classic high-gain/distortion to emulate Kurt's Boss DS-1 into clean front end

Type 7 · Gain 8 · Tone 6 · Level 7

02Cuvave Cube Baby (Chorus / Mod Block)

Bypass mod block for main riff/chorus; engage for clean verse

Mod Mix 0 · Rate 0

Why these settings

Kurt got his explosive dirt by running a Boss DS-1 into a pristine clean Mesa preamp, so the Cube Baby acts as your primary gain source while the Mackintec Maxx 15 stays clean with gain at 2. The Maxx 15 has no dedicated mid or presence control, so push the bass to 6 to emulate the 4x12 cabinet thump and keep treble neutral at 5 to avoid harsh solid-state fizz. Clean verse: switch off the Cube Baby distortion/preamp and turn on its chorus block at moderate rate.

PRO TIPHit the muted four-stroke scratch between riff repetitions aggressively using your fretting hand laid across all six strings, striking right over the bridge humbucker for sharp transient attack.

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These settings are for a Mackintec Maxx 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.