Tone library / Polyphia / Ego Death (feat. Steve Vai)

Ego Death (feat. Steve Vai) amp settings — Boss Katana 50 MkII

The Polyphia guitar tone for “Ego Death (feat. Steve Vai)”, dialed in for a Boss Katana 50 MkII with a Ibanez JEM7V Steve Vai. Studio version, Remember That You Will Die (2022)

Original rig

Tim Henson: Neural DSP Archetype plugin (Corn Cob M50/Matchless Chieftain emulation), Ibanez TOD10 with Fishman Fluence pickups. Steve Vai: Carvin Legacy amp, Ibanez JEM, heavy delay

Pushed clean with bite, mid-forward articulation, dynamic pick attack clarity

Amp settings — Boss Katana 50 MkII

CHANNELClean amp typeBOOSToff

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	2
Bass	4
Mid	7
Treble	6
Presence	5
Reverb	1
Master	6

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE8 VOLUME10

Why these settings

Katana Clean type approximates the Matchless-style voicing Henson uses. Bass dropped from original 6 to 4 because Katana Clean has stronger low-end than modeled boutique amps. Mids kept at 7 for Polyphia's signature articulation and pick attack clarity. Gain at 2 creates the pushed-clean bite when you pick aggressively like Tim does — the JEM's DiMarzio Evolution pickups have more output than single-coils, so this low gain prevents muddiness while still clipping on hard attacks.

PRO TIPUse aggressive downstrokes and palm-mute dynamics to make the low gain clip naturally on accents — Tim's technique creates the tone's bite, not amp saturation. Roll your guitar's tone knob to 6-7 for Vai's lead sections to get his singing, compressed midrange character.

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These settings are for a Boss Katana 50 MkII. 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.