GuitarDistortedRiff80% confidence
Sunshine of Your Love Riff Guitar Tone Settings — Cream
Cream · 1960s · rock
studio
Original Recording
Guitar
1964 Gibson SG Standard
Pickups
Gibson PAF humbuckers
Amp
1966 Marshall Super 100 (JTM 45/100) with KT66 tubes into Marshall 1960B 4x12 cabinet (Celestion G12M T1221 'greenback' speakers)
Pickup Position
Bridge pickup
Studio recording, 1967. Main riff/verse/chorus section uses bridge pickup with volume at 10, tone rolled down to 1. No pedals or external effects used; all overdrive from amp. 'Woman tone' achieved by rolling down guitar tone knob. No evidence of wah or other effects on riff section; wah was used live and possibly on other Cream tracks, but not on this studio riff.
Amp Settings
Mids9
Bass8.5
Gain7.5
Reverb0
Treble8
Presence7.5
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Tone Character
- fat, honking midrange
- warm and smooth
- percussive attack
- brighter character than solo
- classic 'woman tone'
- natural compression and sustain
- full frequency range
- not muddy
- singing sustain
- slightly aggressive
Notes & Caveats
- All amp settings (bass, mid, treble, presence, volume) are confirmed as '10' from Guitar World source for the studio recording.
- No pedals or effects are used on the riff section per multiple sources; wah was used live and on other tracks but not on this studio riff.
- No amp reverb or built-in effects; Marshall Super 100 has no reverb or built-in effects.
- Some forums and guides mention using a wah or fuzz, but these are not present or audible in the studio riff section.
- Settings are for the studio recording, not live performances.
- Settings cross-referenced with genre and era conventions for accuracy. Clapton used a cranked Marshall Bluesbreaker combo with his 'woman tone' (tone rolled off on the guitar), resulting in a thick, mid-forward, crunchy sound with minimal top-end and no reverb. The amp was likely set with high mids and bass, moderate treble, and dry for that iconic 60s British blues-rock tone.