Tone library / Savatage / Hall of the mountain king

Hall of the mountain king amp settings — Boss Katana 100 MkII

The Savatage guitar tone for “Hall of the mountain king”, dialed in for a Boss Katana 100 MkII with a Ibanez RG565. Studio version, Hall of the Mountain King (1987)

Original rig

Marshall JCM 800 2205 (or Laney AOR Pro Tube Lead 100), 2x Boss SD-1 stacked, Gibson/custom with Seymour Duncan JB, Mesa 4x12 with Celestion G12-T75, 31-band EQ in chain

Thick, saturated high-gain with scooped mids, tight low end, and aggressive upper-mid bite — classic late-80s power metal chunk
Amp settings — Boss Katana 100 MkII
CHANNELBrown (Marshall-style voicing)BRIGHToffBOOSTon
GAIN 7 BASS 5 MID 4 TREBLE 7 PRESENCE 6 REVERB 1 MASTER 6
KnobSetting (0–10)
Gain7
Bass5
Mid4
Treble7
Presence6
Reverb1
Master6
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Guitar
PICKUPbridge TONE8 VOLUME10
Signal chain

01Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive (RECOMMENDED — not owned)

RECOMMENDED — First SD-1 with tone maxed for high-end cut and tightness. Use Katana's built-in Booster (Blues Driver type) set to similar values if not purchasing pedal.

Drive 4 · Tone 10 · Level 7

02Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive #2 (RECOMMENDED — not owned)

RECOMMENDED — Second SD-1 with tone floored for thickness and saturation stacking. Alternatively, use Katana Tone Studio to add an OD-1 or Tubescreamer effect block before the amp.

Drive 3 · Tone 0 · Level 6
Why these settings

The Brown amp type on the Katana approximates the JCM 800's mid-forward bark. Mids are set to 4 (slight scoop) because Criss's tone had a processed, tight quality from the stacked SD-1s and 31-band EQ — not raw Marshall growl. Your RG565's V7/V8 pickups are hotter than a JB, so gain is pulled back from where a true JCM 800 would sit. Use Tone Studio to load a second drive block if you want the authentic stacked-SD-1 saturation.

PRO TIPCriss used a stainless steel pick for that aggressive, defined attack — try a metal or thick acetal pick (2mm+) and pick closer to the bridge to replicate that cutting transient. Drop C tuning is essential for the low-end chunk on this album.

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These settings are for a Boss Katana 100 MkII. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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