Smells Like Teen Spirit amp settings — Orange Micro Terror
The Nirvana guitar tone for “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, dialed in for a Orange Micro Terror with a Fender Player Stratocaster. Studio version, Nevermind (1991) — main distorted riff
Early-'90s Japanese Fender Stratocaster with Seymour Duncan JB bridge humbucker, Mesa/Boogie Studio Preamp (Rhythm channel, clean setting), Crown Power Base 2 power amp, Marshall 1960B 4x12 cab with Celestion G12T-75s, Boss DS-1 Distortion (Tone: 4, Level: 10, Dist: 7)
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Gain | 2 |
| Bass | 5 |
| Mid | 4 |
| Treble | 6 |
| Master | 7 |
01Boss DS-1 Distortion
RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. This pedal IS the tone; Cobain ran his amp clean and used the DS-1 as his gain source. A DS-1 clone or RAT will get you close.
Cobain's amp was set clean with the DS-1 providing all distortion. The Micro Terror is a single-channel amp with inherent grit, so gain is dropped to 2 to keep it as clean as possible — any dirt must come from the recommended DS-1. Orange voicing is warmer and thicker than Mesa, so mid is cut from 6.5 to 4 and treble raised slightly to recover the upper-mid bite. The Micro Terror has no presence or reverb controls.
Get this tone on your amp
These settings are for a Orange Micro Terror. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.
Get ToneAdapt on Google PlaySong, 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.