family sound VOICE GAIN BIAS FEEDBACK SAG PRESENCE BASS MIDDLE TREBLE LEVEL BOOST (knob) BOOST (switch) character / reference
clean clean_american O (OPEN) 9 12 8 7 10 13 10 13 12 12 off American clean: sparkling clean, slightly scooped mids, full headroom (< 1% THD); country, funk, pop
clean clean_british O (OPEN) 11 11 9 7 11 11 13 12 12 12 off British clean: clean with full mids and a touch of grit on the peaks, AC/plexi style at low volume; pop-rock, indie
clean clean_jazz O (OPEN) 9 13 7 7 8 13 11 9 12 12 off Jazz clean: warm and round, softened highs, no compression; jazz, bossa
clean clean_boost O (OPEN) 11 12 8 7 10 12 12 12 12 14 on Clean boost: same clean +5–8 dB with a touch of compression; clean solos, more present rhythm
blues edge_of_breakup W (WARM) 11 11 9 9 10 12 12 12 12 12 off Edge of breakup: clean that only breaks up when you dig in; pick dynamics, even harmonics
blues blues_american W (WARM) 12 10 10 10 9 13 10 12 12 12 off American blues (tweed): soft compression, fat lows, rounded highs; blues, roots, rockabilly
blues blues_british W (WARM) 13 11 11 11 11 11 13 12 12 12 off British blues (bluesbreaker): forward mids, more pronounced grit, singing sustain; blues-rock, classic rock
overdrive overdrive_american O (OPEN) 14 12 12 11 11 13 10 13 12 12 off American overdrive: power amp that gives way gently, round lows and open highs, little compression; ’70s rock, southern
overdrive overdrive_british O (OPEN) 14 11 13 12 12 11 14 12 12 12 off British overdrive (plexi): full mids, rough grit, power amp that pumps with SAG; ’70s hard rock, AC/DC, Led Zeppelin
overdrive crunch_british W (WARM) 15 11 13 12 12 11 13 12 12 12 off British crunch (JCM800): saturated cathode follower + compressed power amp, dry attack, forward mids; ’80s hard rock
overdrive crunch_american W (WARM) 15 12 12 10 11 13 10 13 12 12 off American crunch (hot-rod): warm saturation with present lows and bright highs, fewer mids; US rock, country-rock
distortion distortion_british T (TIGHT) 14 12 13 9 12 11 13 13 12 12 off British distortion (2203 / 900): cold stage, clipping on both half-cycles, full mids, tight lows; hard rock, NWOBHM
distortion distortion_american T (TIGHT) 15 13 13 8 11 13 9 13 12 12 off American distortion (rectifier): big lows, scooped mids, cutting highs, little SAG to stay tight; grunge, alternative, nu-metal
metal metal_classic T (TIGHT) 15 13 13 7 12 12 11 13 12 12 off Classic metal (’80s): hard distortion but with mids, cold BIAS, no SAG for palm-mutes; thrash, speed, classic heavy
metal metal_modern T (TIGHT) 16 14 14 7 13 13 8 13 12 12 off Modern metal: heavy scoop (MIDDLE 8), very cold BIAS for tight clipping, high PRESENCE; modern thrash, djent, metalcore
metal metal_doom T (TIGHT) 16 12 15 14 10 14 12 11 12 12 off Doom / stoner metal: high gain with full SAG and present mids, lows maxed out: thick and spongy; doom, sludge, stoner
hi-gain hi_gain_british T (TIGHT) 16 12 15 10 13 12 13 12 12 12 off British hi-gain (JVM / Soldano): maximum gain with full mids and high PRESENCE, power-amp compression; modern rock, hard rock, lead
hi-gain hi_gain_american T (TIGHT) 17 13 15 9 14 13 9 13 12 12 off American hi-gain (5150 / Mark): maximum gain, full lows, scooped mids, prominent highs; US metal, tight rhythm
hi-gain hi_gain_lead T (TIGHT) 17 12 16 12 14 12 12 12 12 14 on Hi-gain lead: maximum gain, little negative feedback, SAG and BOOST for solos: sustain and compression
hi-gain lead_smooth W (WARM) 16 10 14 13 9 12
