Frown amp settings — First Act MA2039

The Title Fight guitar tone for “Frown”, dialed in for a First Act MA2039 with a Rvone Rst 150. Studio version, Floral Green (2012)

Original rig

Gibson Les Paul Standard with humbuckers into cranked tube amp (likely Marshall or similar), no confirmed pedals - raw amp distortion with tight midrange focus

Gritty, mid-heavy post-hardcore crunch with punchy low-mids and controlled treble bite - shoegaze-influenced saturation without excessive gain

Amp settings — First Act MA2039

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	7
Bass	5
Treble	6
Master	6

Don’t have a First Act MA2039? Match your own rig →

Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE7 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Distortion Pedal (Boss DS-1 or similar)

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. The First Act MA2039 lacks sufficient gain for this tone. A basic distortion pedal is essential. Keep amp gain at 3-4 when using this pedal.

Tone 5 · Level 7 · Dist 6

Why these settings

The First Act MA2039 is a small solid-state practice amp with only gain, bass, treble, and master volume controls - no mid, presence, or reverb knobs exist on this unit. Its internal gain cannot reach Title Fight's saturated crunch alone. With the recommended distortion pedal, drop amp gain to 3-4 and let the pedal provide the grit. Without a pedal, gain 7 is the honest maximum before the small speaker breaks up poorly.

PRO TIPRoll the tone knob to 7 to tame the Rvone's single-coil ice-pick frequencies and get closer to the thick Les Paul humbucker warmth Shane Moran used on this recording - dig in with your pick near the bridge for that aggressive post-hardcore attack.

Get this tone on your amp

These settings are for a First Act MA2039. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

Get ToneAdapt on Google Play

Find your amp

Browse

Title Fight tonesALL SONGS Tone libraryEVERYTHING

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.