Tone library / Nirvana / Smells like teen spirit

Smells like teen spirit amp settings — Sonicake Pocket Master

The Nirvana guitar tone for “Smells like teen spirit”, dialed in for a Sonicake Pocket Master with a Yamaha Pacifica 112V. Studio version, Nevermind (1991) — iconic main riff and chorus distortion

Original rig

Fender Stratocaster (Seymour Duncan JB bridge humbucker), Boss DS-1 Distortion, Mesa/Boogie Studio Preamp (Rhythm clean), Marshall 1960B 4x12 Cab

Raw, aggressive pedal-driven grunge distortion with punchy upper-mid bite

Amp settings — Sonicake Pocket Master

CHANNELUS Clean (Fender Twin/Mesa Clean Style) + 4x12 V30 Cab IRBRIGHToffBOOSToff

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	3
Bass	6
Mid	5
Treble	6
Reverb	1
Master	7

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01DS-1 Distortion Model (Sonicake Pocket Master Stomp/Dirt Block)

Engaged for the main riff, chorus, and solo; bypass for the clean verse

Dist 8 · Tone 6 · Level 7

02Analog Chorus Model (Small Clone style)

Engage during the clean verses and solo along with clean amp

Rate 4 · Depth 7

Why these settings

The original Nirvana tone relies on a Boss DS-1 slamming a pristine, high-headroom clean preamp. On the Pocket Master, use an American clean amp block with low gain to prevent double-distortion, generating all clipping from the DS-1/Orange Distortion model. The Yamaha Pacifica 112V bridge humbucker matches Kurt's Seymour Duncan JB closely, so leave the tone and volume wide open.

PRO TIPHit the strings aggressively with a downstroke-heavy attack across all four chorus chords, striking the muted strings decisively between beats 2 and 3 for the signature percussive 'chug'.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Sonicake Pocket Master. 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.