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Black Flag Riff Guitar Tone Settings — King's X
King's X · 1980s · rock
studio
Original Recording
Guitar
Fender Elite Stratocaster (early 1980s, CBS era)
Pickups
Fender Elite Stratocaster stock pickups (active, noiseless single coils with TBX tone circuit)
Amp
Lab Series L5 solid-state combo amp
Pickup Position
Position 4 (neck + middle)
Studio recording, 1989 (Gretchen Goes to Nebraska era). Ty Tabor used the Elite Stratocaster with all controls maxed for his core tone. The Lab Series L5 was the main amp for both clean and dirty sounds, with clean achieved by rolling down the guitar volume. No evidence of pedals for clean rhythm; chorus and delay were reserved for solos or select rhythm overdubs. Settings estimated based on genre, amp, and era due to lack of explicit numbers for clean tone.
Amp Settings
Mids7
Bass5.5
Gain0
Reverb1.5
Treble6.5
Presence6
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Tone Character
- crisp and articulate
- glassy highs
- slightly compressed solid-state clarity
- tight low end but not boomy
- present upper mids
- percussive attack
- clean with a hint of edge when digging in
- dynamic response to picking strength
- clear note separation
- minimal ambient reverb
Notes & Caveats
- Gain adjusted to 0 for clean tone
- No explicit numeric amp settings for the clean tone on 'Black Flag' found in sources; settings estimated based on Lab Series L5 typical clean use, genre, and era.
- Pedals such as chorus and delay are mentioned for solos and select rhythm overdubs, but not for the main clean riff section.
- Pickup position inferred from typical Strat clean tones and Ty Tabor's known preference for glassy, quack-like cleans.
- Guitar volume rolled down for clean; exact knob numbers not specified, estimated from interviews.
- No evidence of compression, flanger, phaser, or other modulation on the clean riff section.
- Settings cross-referenced with genre and era conventions for accuracy. Ty Tabor's tone on 'Black Flag' is a thick, mid-forward, British-voiced crunch with clarity and punch, likely achieved with a Lab Series L5 or Mesa/Boogie preamp into a solid-state power amp. The riff is tight and dry with minimal ambience, strong mids, and moderate gain—classic King's X early '90s sound.