Tone library / Radio head / Creep

Creep amp settings — Cort Cm15r

The Radio head guitar tone for “Creep”, dialed in for a Cort Cm15r with a Fender Squire. Studio version, Pablo Honey (1992) — clean verse tone. The distorted chorus tone requires a high-gain pedal you don't own.

Original rig

Fender Telecaster Plus with Lace Sensor pickups → Fender Deluxe 85/Twin Reverb (clean) → Marshall Shredmaster (for distorted sections)

Dry, exposed, slightly compressed clean with single-coil bite — intentionally sparse and vulnerable
Amp settings — Cort Cm15r
GAIN 2 BASS 4 MID 5 TREBLE 5 PRESENCE 0 REVERB 2 MASTER 6
KnobSetting (0–10)
Gain2
Bass4
Mid5
Treble5
Presence0
Reverb2
Master6
Don’t have a Cort Cm15r? Match your own rig →
Guitar
PICKUPbridge TONE8 VOLUME10
Signal chain

01ProCo RAT 2 or Boss DS-1

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. Essential for the crushing chorus tone. Without this pedal, you can only achieve the clean verse sound. A RAT or DS-1 clone ($30-50) gets you 90% there.

Distortion/Dist 7 · Filter/Tone 5 · Volume/Level 7
Why these settings

Your Cort CM15R is a basic solid-state practice amp with limited headroom — actually ideal for this clean tone since the original used clean Fender amps as a neutral platform. I dropped bass to 4 (vs original's 5) because small practice amp speakers get muddy fast. Treble stays moderate because your Squier's ceramic single coils are brighter than Greenwood's Lace Sensors. The distorted chorus is impossible without a dirt pedal — the CM15R's gain circuit won't produce that wall-of-sound crunch.

PRO TIPThe clean tone's power comes from restraint and space. Play with your pick closer to the neck for a softer attack. When you get a dirt pedal, the dramatic impact of Creep comes from the VOLUME jump — set the pedal's output noticeably louder than your clean signal, not just dirtier.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Cort Cm15r. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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More tones for the Cort Cm15r
Cemetery GatesPanteraI'll be there for youBon JoviHighway to HellAC/DCStill Loving You (Re-Recorded)ScorpionsParanoidBlack SabbathToreteMoira Dela Torre
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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.

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