Tom Sawyer amp settings — Behringer V-Amp pro

The Rush guitar tone for “Tom Sawyer”, dialed in for a Behringer V-Amp pro with a Ibanez SR500E. Studio version, Moving Pictures (1981)

Original rig

1972 Fender Jazz Bass (Rotosound Swing Bass 66 roundwounds) into Ampeg SVT / Ashly preamp blended with a dirty tube guitar amp track and clean DI

Aggressive, growly midrange grind with snappy top-end fret clack and tight low-end punch

Amp settings — Behringer V-Amp pro

CHANNELClassic Clean / SVT model + 8x10 Cab IRBRIGHToffBOOSToff

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	7
Bass	6
Mid	8
Treble	7
Reverb	0
Master	6

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge+middle TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Onboard Compressor Block

Level-matching peak limiter to mimic studio UREI 1176 compression

Ratio 4 · Attack 3 · Release 5

02Onboard Drive / Preamp Overdrive

Provides the upper-mid harmonic distortion blended into the SVT sound

Drive 6 · Tone 7 · Level 7

Why these settings

The Ibanez SR500E's active Bartolini pickups are naturally darker and smoother than 70s Jazz single-coils, so set the onboard 3-band EQ switch to the 700Hz mid frequency, boost onboard mids to +2, and leave the treble flat to slightly boosted. On the V-Amp Pro, drive the gain and upper-mids to simulate the dirty split-track Ampeg grind that defines Geddy's attack. Keep the master volume balanced to avoid digital clipping in the unit's output stage.

PRO TIPDig in hard with your fingers right over the bridge pickup with a low-action setup so the strings clack against the frets, which is crucial for reproducing Geddy's signature percussive bite.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a Behringer V-Amp pro. 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.