Tone library / Pantera / Cowboys from Hell

Cowboys from Hell amp settings — NUX MG-300

The Pantera guitar tone for “Cowboys from Hell”, dialed in for a NUX MG-300 with a Fender Player Stratocaster. Studio version, Cowboys from Hell (1990)

Original rig

Randall RG100H solid-state head, Dean From Hell with Bill Lawrence L-500XL bridge pickup, Furman PQ-3 parametric EQ, MXR 6-band EQ, Rocktron Hush noise gate — tuned standard (quarter-step flat)

Razor-sharp scooped thrash tone with chainsaw highs, massive low-end chunk, and extreme gain
Amp settings — NUX MG-300
CHANNELMetal OD or Fireman model (high-gain solid-state voiced)BRIGHTonBOOSToff
GAIN 9 BASS 9 MID 3 TREBLE 8 PRESENCE 8 REVERB 0 MASTER 6
KnobSetting (0–10)
Gain9
Bass9
Mid3
Treble8
Presence8
Reverb0
Master6
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Guitar
PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10
Signal chain

01NUX MG-300 Noise Gate (built-in)

Essential — Dime's rig was extremely noisy from the stacked EQ gain, he used a Rocktron Hush. Set gate tight to kill hiss between riffs.

Threshold 7

02NUX MG-300 Parametric EQ (built-in)

Pre-amp position — this replicates the Furman PQ-3 and MXR 6-band stacking that was critical to Dime's gain structure. Boost lows and highs, cut mids around 800Hz.

Low Freq 8 · Mid Freq 3 · High Freq 9 · Level 7
Why these settings

Your Strat's single-coil bridge pickup is significantly lower output and brighter than Dime's white-hot Bill Lawrence L-500XL humbucker. Compensate by pushing gain +1 higher than the original amp setting, boosting bass +0.5 to add low-end meat the single-coil lacks, and using the parametric EQ block aggressively to fatten the signal before the amp model. The MG-300's high-gain solid-state models (Metal OD, Fireman) get you closest to the Randall's transistor attack.

PRO TIPDime's attack came from extremely tight palm muting right at the bridge saddles — not loose and forward. Mute hard, pick aggressively with the heel of your hand almost touching the strings, and you'll get that percussive chunk even with single coils.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a NUX MG-300. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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