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Owner of a Lonely Heart — Yes1 / 2
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Owner of a Lonely Heart Riff Guitar Tone Settings — Yes

Yes · 1980s · rock

studio

Original Recording

Guitar
1962 Fender Stratocaster
Pickups
DiMarzio FS-1 single coil (bridge), Fender single coils (middle/neck)
Amp
Late-'70s Marshall 2203 JMP MKII 100-watt master volume head
Pickup Position
Position 4 (neck + middle) or Position 2 (bridge + middle)

Studio recording, 1983. Clean riff/verse sections tracked with Stratocaster (likely middle or neck pickup) into Marshall 2203 JMP MKII. No evidence of 12-string or Rickenbacker for clean riff; Rabin confirms Strat only. Effects and amp settings are for the studio recording, not live.

Amp Settings

Mids
7
Bass
4
Gain
0
Reverb
1
Treble
6
Presence
5

Effects Chain

  • Boss CE-2 Chorus (or similar chorus pedal) · chorus
  • Boss CS-2 Compressor (or similar compressor pedal) · compression

Guitar → Compressor → Chorus → Marshall 2203 JMP MKII (no amp reverb)

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Tone Character

  • bright and glassy
  • articulate and percussive
  • snappy attack
  • chorus-like shimmer
  • tight, focused rhythm
  • dynamic and punchy
  • single-coil clarity
  • minimal breakup
  • compressed for even dynamics
  • no audible reverb

Notes & Caveats

  • ⚠️Gain adjusted to 0 for clean tone
  • ⚠️No explicit amp settings for the clean section; settings are based on cited distorted settings with gain reduced for clean tone.
  • ⚠️No explicit pickup selector position stated; inferred from typical Strat clean tones and era.
  • ⚠️No explicit pedal model for chorus or compression in the clean riff; chorus and compression are clearly audible and referenced as typical for Rabin's rig.
  • ⚠️No amp reverb used; any reverb/compression was added at the mixing desk, not in the guitar signal chain.
  • ⚠️No evidence of delay, flanger, or phaser in the clean riff section.
  • ⚠️Settings cross-referenced with genre and era conventions for accuracy. Trevor Rabin's riff tone is mid-forward, punchy, and bright with moderate crunch, typical of 80s rock using a Marshall or similar amp. The bass is tight, mids are present for cut, treble and presence are high for clarity, and reverb is minimal, matching the dry, gated production of the era.

Sources