Tone library / Van halen / Little guitars

Little guitars amp settings — Fender Fender Champion 110

The Van halen guitar tone for “Little guitars”, dialed in for a Fender Fender Champion 110 with a Jackson Jackson JS32 King V. Studio version, Diver Down (1982) — recorded at Sunset Sound, Hollywood in 12 days

Original rig

Petschulat Mini Les Paul (#13) with mini-humbuckers → MXR Phase 90 → MXR Flanger → Echoplex → modded 100W Marshall Super Lead plexi into 4x12 Celestion greenbacks, cranked for power tube saturation

Bright, chimey crunch with flamenco-influenced attack, midrange bark, and subtle modulation shimmer — distinctively spanky due to the small-scale guitar's unique resonance

Amp settings — Fender Fender Champion 110

CHANNELSingle channel (Voice switch OFF for warmer Marshall-like response)

Knob	Setting (0–10)
Gain	7
Bass	4
Mid	7
Treble	5
Presence	0
Reverb	0
Master	6

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Guitar

PICKUPbridge TONE7 VOLUME10

Signal chain

01Phase 90 (MXR or clone)

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. Essential for the subtle swirl on this track. Set slow for texture, not obvious swoosh. A budget Donner Jet Convolution or Behringer VP1 gets you 70% there.

Speed 3

Why these settings

The Champion 110 is a solid-state Fender with naturally scooped, bright voicing — the opposite of Eddie's mid-forward cranked Marshall. Pushed mid to 7 to compensate for the Fender scoop and bring out the bark Eddie's plexi provided. Rolled treble back to 5 because your Jackson's humbuckers into this amp will be ice-picky at higher settings. Gain at 7 is the max usable on this amp before it turns fizzy — it approximates power tube breakup but won't nail the sag and compression of Eddie's setup. The recording is bone dry, hence reverb 0.

PRO TIPEddie's picking attack on this track is critical — he uses aggressive downstrokes with the pick angled slightly, digging in near the bridge for that flamenco-meets-metal snap. Roll your tone knob to 7 to tame the Jackson's brightness and get closer to the woody, slightly honky character of the mini Les Paul's mini-humbuckers.

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These settings are for a Fender Fender Champion 110. 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.