GuitarCleanRiff
The Unforgiven Riff Guitar Tone Settings — Metallica
Metallica · 1990s · metal
studio
Original Recording
Guitar
ESP MX220 'Eet Fuk' (likely), or ESP Explorer-style with EMG 81/60 pickups
Pickups
EMG 81 (bridge), EMG 60 (neck) active humbuckers
Amp
Roland JC-120 Jazz Chorus
Pickup Position
Neck pickup (EMG 60), or middle position if using dual humbuckers
Studio recording, 1991 Black Album sessions. Clean riff sections of 'The Unforgiven' are widely reported to use the Roland JC-120 for its signature clean tone. Guitar is most likely James Hetfield's ESP Explorer-style with EMG pickups, as used on the Black Album. No evidence of acoustic or Telecaster for the main clean riff; those are used for intro/other sections.
Amp Settings
Mids4
Bass6
Gain0
Reverb2
Treble7
Presence5.5
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Tone Character
- crystal-clear clean
- slightly compressed attack
- bright and present highs
- full-bodied low end
- distinct stereo chorus shimmer
- tight and articulate note separation
- no audible overdrive
- studio-polished clarity
- subtle reverb ambience
- dynamic response to picking