pedal to get cliff burton tone

cliff em all · #1 09-20-2012, 04:33 PM

hello... do any of you guys have a recomendation for a pedal to get the cliff burton distortion tone? to be clear im not talking about the tone he has when he does solos but just his normal distorted tone he had in the ride the lightning album

franksgbass · #2 09-20-2012, 04:55 PM

I'm sure im not gonna be the last person to say that it has a lot to do with his Rickenbacker and his finger attack.But you asked for a pedal, so I would say that the OSD from Fuzzrocious with the tone favoring the highs a bit and gain around 1-2oclock will get you close. Depending on what bass you are using of course. Also, the Leeds from Tech 21 is a great alternative to the VT bass. It does the HI-Watt tone well. And that always reminds me of the rick tone, Good luck.

bass nitro · #3 09-20-2012, 11:13 PM

Big Muff - green one , Morley wah-wah distortion pedal, Ric and 4x12 all tube.

spaz21387 · #4 09-20-2012, 11:15 PM

he actually used an 80s usa muff. and a morley power wah.

bass nitro · #5 09-20-2012, 11:22 PM

http://www.uberproaudio.com/who-play...-rig-metallica very accurate.

spaz21387 · #6 09-20-2012, 11:36 PM

It doesnt say which version. The green muff wasnt made till after he died!

Josh Pelican · #7 09-20-2012, 11:52 PM

There are so many threads on this, man. Google search "cliff burton tone" and you'll fine thousands of results from this board alone.

He used an all-American Big Muff. Many people in other threads said it was a Sovtek, but they were created after his passing. It might have been one of these:

They were originally made in... 1976? There were several versions/remakes. If I recall correctly, Cliff already had his tone prior to joining Metallica, so the time frame certainly works. It is possible he was using one of the older "Triangle" Big Muffs, my guess is the regular Big Muff (Version 3, 4, 5, or 6).

Crystalman85 · #8 09-21-2012, 12:00 AM

If you're talking about that overdriven sound that's heard on the ride the lightening album, a tube screamer would be a good choice for that. there are plenty of choices for tube screamer pedals like the Ibanez bass tube screamer, the voodoo lab sparkle drive, and the way huge electronics pork loin.

Stretchhh · #9 09-21-2012, 03:48 AM

Get a Fuzzrocious Oh See Demon and run your amp pretty clean. I honestly just achieved this tone without a problem just then.

OzzyGreg · #10 09-21-2012, 04:20 PM

.
Frank Bello created a patch for the Zoom B3 that he thinks emulates Cliff's sound. Scroll forward to 1:25.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qG7FQ...feature=relmfu

I'm not real familair with Metallica stuff, so whether or not his patch is very accurate is open to speculation.

It includes compression/distortion, tape echo, and a bit of Vox Wah pedal (though he reckons he put a bit of flanger in there, not actually Vox Wah.)

Greg

portlandguy · #11 09-21-2012, 04:24 PM

sansamp BDDI

JehuJava · #12 09-21-2012, 05:09 PM

Wow this is a good question. I'm surprised it's never been asked before.

rob_thebassman · #13 09-23-2012, 11:13 AM

try out various fuzz and distortion pedals, I know cliff used a normal big muff and morley fuzz wah but it doesn't stop you using something else to get that guitar like sound

rob_thebassman · #14 09-23-2012, 11:25 AM

oh this is for his normal bass tone, my bad XD I'd suggest any SVT emulator or warm overdrive

downeastthrash · #15 10-20-2012, 02:36 PM

Big muff and morley wah. how do people not know this by now!!!! And an ibanez tubescreamer. try this....tube screamer into muff, then muff in wah.

winterburn69 · #16 10-21-2012, 07:26 AM

IIRC he used an Ibanez Tubescreamer on Ride the Lightning.

downeastthrash · #17 10-22-2012, 09:37 PM

I use the the modern morley pwb with a big muff. it sounds like cliff. but with a tube screamer and wah not so much. you got to have the old tel ray. thats the key. has a bigger range of wah.

downeastthrash · #18 10-22-2012, 10:00 PM

But use a tube screamer or and i have yet to try this...a russian big muff. Just for his regular tone. but his regular tone doesnt work well with wah ,along with his pedal set up exactly like his. i gues modern re issue wahs and pedals dont sound the same.

bigchiefbc · #19 10-22-2012, 10:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by downeastthrash

But use a tube screamer or and i have yet to try this...a russian big muff. Just for his regular tone. but his regular tone doesnt work well with wah ,along with his pedal set up exactly like his. i gues modern re issue wahs and pedals dont sound the same.

He didn't use a Russian muff. Cliff was dead before those were made in Russia. He used an NYC big muff, although there were several versions and we don't know exactly which it was.

downeastthrash · #20 10-23-2012, 05:14 AM

His regular tone isnt fuzzy. so its not the muff. has to be a tubescreamer or just cranked his mesa head. but he def had a big muff for solos.