The Spirit Of Radio amp settings — Roland Cube 40GX
The rush guitar tone for “The Spirit Of Radio”, dialed in for a Roland Cube 40GX with a Gibson Les Paul Standard 60s. Studio version, Permanent Waves (1980), recorded at Le Studio, Morin-Heights, Quebec in 1979
Gibson ES-355 with PAF-style humbuckers → MXR Dyna Comp → MXR Distortion+ (light boost) → Electro-Harmonix Electric Mistress Flanger → Boss CE-1 Chorus → Marshall 100W Super Lead head → Marshall 4x12 cab
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Gain | 4 |
| Bass | 5 |
| Mid | 6 |
| Treble | 7 |
| Presence | 6 |
| Reverb | 2 |
| Master | 6 |
01Cube 40GX Built-in Chorus (CE-1 type)
Use the Cube's onboard CHORUS effect set to moderate depth — this is essential to the tone
02Boss CE-2W or similar chorus pedal
RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. A dedicated chorus stacked with flanger creates the lush stereo spread of the original. The Cube's built-in will get you 70% there.
03Cube 40GX Built-in Flanger
The Electric Mistress flanger is the signature sound of this riff — use the Cube's FLANGER effect with slow rate and moderate depth for that jet-plane sweep
04Electro-Harmonix Electric Mistress or similar flanger
RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. The Electric Mistress has a distinctive voice that's hard to replicate. Cube's flanger approximates it.
The Cube 40GX's JC Clean model approximates the clean headroom Lifeson used, but lacks the Marshall midrange bark. I pushed mids to 6 (original was 7 on Marshall) to compensate for the Cube's flatter voicing. Your Les Paul's hotter humbuckers vs the ES-355's lower-output PAFs mean gain stays at 4 instead of 5-6 — the pickups will push the preamp harder naturally. Treble at 7 maintains the bright, articulate attack despite the Les Paul's warmer mahogany body.
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These settings are for a Roland Cube 40GX. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.
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