Tone library / pantera / the great southern trendkill

the great southern trendkill amp settings — kawes GA-15

The pantera guitar tone for “the great southern trendkill”, dialed in for a kawes GA-15 with a kawes stratocaster. Studio version, The Great Southern Trendkill (1996)

Original rig

Washburn Dime 333 (Bill Lawrence L-500XL bridge humbucker) → Furman PQ-3 parametric EQ → Randall RG-100ES solid-state head → 4x12 cab

Aggressive scooped-mid metal with tight low end, razor-sharp highs, and solid-state bite

Amp settings — kawes GA-15

CHANNELDistortion/Lead channel (if available) or highest gain channelBRIGHTon

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	8
Bass	7
Mid	2
Treble	8
Presence	7
Reverb	0
Master	5

Don’t have a kawes GA-15? See this song on other amps → Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01EQ Pedal (6-band or 10-band graphic EQ)

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. This is essential for Dimebag's tone. The Furman/MXR EQ in front of the amp was how he achieved the scooped-mid attack. Cut 800Hz hard, boost highs and low-mids. An MXR 6-Band EQ or Boss GE-7 will get you there.

100Hz 6 · 200Hz 5 · 400Hz 3 · 800Hz 1 · 1.6kHz 4 · 3.2kHz 7 · Level 7

Why these settings

Your Strat's single-coil bridge pickup has significantly less output and more high-end than Dimebag's hot Bill Lawrence humbucker. Compensate by pushing gain +1 higher than the original setting and adding bass +1 to fill the low-end gap. The mid scoop (set to 2) is critical—Dimebag's tone relied on cutting mids dramatically, then restoring specific frequencies with an external EQ. Without an EQ pedal, you will lack the surgical 800Hz cut that defined his attack.

PRO TIPDimebag's pick attack was critical—he used heavy picks (1mm+) and attacked the strings hard at a steep angle near the bridge for that percussive, tight chug. Practice palm-muting with your hand closer to the bridge saddles than you think; his mutes were extremely tight, which is why the scooped mids didn't turn to mush.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a kawes GA-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.