Tone library / Nirvana / Smells like teen spirit

Smells like teen spirit amp settings — Yamaha THR30II

The Nirvana guitar tone for “Smells like teen spirit”, dialed in for a Yamaha THR30II with a Cort X300. Studio version, Nevermind (1991) — main distorted riff and chorus

Original rig

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

Aggressive, abrasive grunge crunch with tight low-end and upper-mid bite

Amp settings — Yamaha THR30II

CHANNELLEAD amp mode (Classic voicing)BOOSToff

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

Don’t have a Yamaha THR30II? See this song on other amps → Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Boss DS-1 Distortion

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned; with this pedal, switch THR to CLEAN mode with gain at 2

Tone 6 · Level 7 · Dist 8

Why these settings

Because you own no pedals, the THR30II LEAD model supplies the saturated clipping normally provided by Kurt's DS-1. The Cort X300's bridge humbucker matches the output of the original Duncan JB, so setting treble to 7 delivers the signature abrasive upper-mid bite without getting excessively harsh. Clean verse: roll guitar volume back to 3-4 and switch onboard chorus on, or select the CLEAN amp model with onboard chorus.

PRO TIPHit the muted 16th-note strums aggressively across all six strings with a heavy pick angle, letting the percussive fret-slap drive the front of the amp model into hard clipping.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Yamaha THR30II. 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.