Tone library / The Police / Message In a Bottle

Message In a Bottle amp settings — Fender Champion 40

The The Police guitar tone for “Message In a Bottle”, dialed in for a Fender Champion 40 with a Tube screamer Tube screamer. Studio version, Reggatta de Blanc (1979) — iconic main riff and verses

Original rig

1961 Fender Telecaster Custom (bridge single-coil) -> MXR Dyna Comp -> EHX Electric Mistress -> Echoplex EP-3 -> Marshall JMP 1959 / Roland JC-120

Sparkling, compressed, modulated clean with chime and subtle rhythmic slap delay

Amp settings — Fender Champion 40

CHANNELChannel 1 (Blackface Clean)

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Bass	4
Treble	7
Reverb	0
Master	4

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE10 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Boss BF-3 Flanger

Set mode switch to Standard. Emulates the iconic EHX Electric Mistress modulation shimmer.

Manual 6 · Depth 5 · Rate 4 · Resonance 3

02Boss DD-8 Digital Delay

Set Mode to Warm or Analog (Mode 1) for Echoplex-style tape slapback (~280ms).

E.Level 4 · F.Back 2 · D.Time 3 · Mode 1

Why these settings

The Fender Champion 40 uses a 2-band EQ (no mid or presence controls) on Channel 1, so keep the Blackface clean crisp with treble boosted and bass reined in. The Boss BF-3 set subtly reproduces Andy Summers's hallmark Electric Mistress chorus/flanger sweep without overpowering the attack. The DD-8 delivers the necessary tape-like slapback bounce right behind the dry note.

PRO TIPUse a stiff pick and pick sharply near the bridge while keeping your left-hand finger stretches wide and precise to maintain clear string separation across the add9 arpeggio shapes.

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These settings are for a Fender Champion 40. 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.