BassDistortedDistorted90% confidence
(Anesthesia)—Pulling Teeth Bass Tone Settings — Metallica
Metallica · 1980s (early 1980s) · Thrash metal / heavy metal
Original Recording
Bass
Rickenbacker 4001 (modified with Gibson EB 'mudbucker' neck pickup, Seymour Duncan Stacked Jazz Bass bridge pickup, and a third Seymour Duncan Strat pickup)
Pickups
Gibson EB humbucker (neck), Seymour Duncan Stacked Jazz Bass (bridge), Seymour Duncan Strat (third, under foam mute)
Amp
Mesa/Boogie D‑180 heads (split clean and effects), paired with Mesa cabinets (4×12 and 1×15)
Pickup Position
both
Cliff recorded alone in an empty room, using heavy distortion and wah‑wah (Morley Power Wah Boost), Big Muff; signal likely split between clean and dirty chains
Amp Settings
Mids8
Bass4
Gain8
Treble7
Presence7.5
compression5
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Tone Character
- heavy distortion
- wah‑wah filtering
- bright, mid‑snarly lead bass tone
- classical‑inspired arpeggios transitioning into aggressive finale
Playing Technique
- fingerstyle