South of Heaven (Early Version / Jeff Hanneman's Home Recording) amp settings — Katana 50 gen 3
The Slayer guitar tone for “South of Heaven (Early Version / Jeff Hanneman's Home Recording)”, dialed in for a Katana 50 gen 3 with a Jackson JS32T AH Kelly. Early Version / Jeff Hanneman's Home Recording, from Soundtrack To The Apocalypse (2003) — pre-production demo of South of Heaven (1988)
1986 Marshall JCM800 2203, Boss RGE-10 10-band EQ (inverted V/mid-boost), Jackson Soloist with EMG 81 bridge pickup
| Knob | Setting (0–10) |
|---|---|
| Gain | 7 |
| Bass | 5 |
| Mid | 8 |
| Treble | 6 |
| Presence | 6 |
| Reverb | 0 |
| Master | 5 |
01Boss GE-7 or Katana's Parametric EQ (built-in)
RECOMMENDED — use Katana's built-in Graphic EQ via Boss Tone Studio to create the inverted V/mid-hump shape that defined Hanneman's tone. This is non-negotiable for authenticity.
The Katana's Brown channel emulates a modded JCM800 and is the correct choice here. Your Jackson's passive humbuckers have less output than Hanneman's EMG 81s, so gain is set to 7 instead of the original's 10 — the hot EMGs compressed the JCM800's front end harder. Mid pushed to 8 compensates for the Katana's slightly more neutral voicing versus the naturally mid-forward JCM800. Presence dropped to 6 to avoid the Katana's digital fizz at high settings.
Get this tone on your amp
These settings are for a Katana 50 gen 3. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.
Get ToneAdapt on Google PlaySong, 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.