No wonder Metallica's sound has blown chunks for so long......

T

Tubed to Life

Inspired
In the early days, each album had a distinctive and 'musical' sound. Then Cliff died..... Now Hetfield and Hammet use like four or five amps each in a show. They just need to get AXEs.


(I years ago heard they used the Mark IIc+ on Ride the Lightning, but apparently no they were still using Marshall amps and cabs, which surprised me.)
 
The story I always heard from Master of Puppets was that they ran into a Marshall JCM800, then out of the 800 and into a Mesa Mark IIc+. Essentially using the Marshall as a preamp for the Boogie. If that's anywhere near true, I can't imagine the mind that would conceive such an idea. Craziness, I tell you! However, it seems to me that back in the Standard/Ultra only days, someone made a preset using this kind of routing and it didn't sound too bad...
 
Jiffzillla said:
The story I always heard from Master of Puppets was that they ran into a Marshall JCM800, then out of the 800 and into a Mesa Mark IIc+. Essentially using the Marshall as a preamp for the Boogie. If that's anywhere near true, I can't imagine the mind that would conceive such an idea. Craziness, I tell you! However, it seems to me that back in the Standard/Ultra only days, someone made a preset using this kind of routing and it didn't sound too bad...
Click to expand...

For Puppets they slaved a Boogie 2c+ into a jcm 800
Lightning was a tubescreamer into a marshall
 
From a guy who used to be a militant fan (I would fight you to the death if you didn't like Metallica), IMO, Metallica was never really had remarkable tone. Though, when they switched to Diezel amps, it just didn't sound right anymore. The early albums distinctive musical sound had more to do with the writing and the production than guitar tones. Bob Rock replaced Flemming Rasmussen as their producer when they cut the Black Album, and things were never the same. I've tried to stick with them over the years, but St. Anger was just soooooooo bad. I still pre-ordered Death Magnetic and while it was a step in the right direction, still was pretty bad.
 
The real reason is because they are so big nobody that works with them have the balls to tell them they sound like crap. Thats why. Too many yes men and no real friends left.
 
Many school bands make and play better songs than those on Death Magnetic, and sound better too.
 
JoE3 said:
The real reason is because they are so big nobody that works with them have the balls to tell them they sound like crap. Thats why. Too many yes men and no real friends left.
Click to expand...
A common problem. Think of John Lennon's 'Cold Turkey' one of the most pathetically awful and amateurish recordings of all time. My old band back then, stoned out of its mind did better stuff on our very worst days, but no one was going to tell a Beatle, newly 'divorced' from the band, with 'rebound' stamped on his forhead, desparate for recognition as an independent artist, that this was trash. I still wanna puke whenever this steaming pile comes on the radio, as it does once in awhile...
 
@Sidivan: I think their tones were distintive, compared to other bands at the time. Kill 'em All had that hopped Marshall sound, metal but not really heavy yet. (Sounding nothing like Priest or Maiden, though.) Lightning was a step up - heavier, sophisticated yet a just a little raw. Production elements progressing alongside, Puppets was sort of 'symphonic', and also seemed to usher in the scooped mid sound. Theirs was the best produced version until Pantera.

Song quality, indeed the spirit of Metallica, I have always felt left with Cliff. They just didn't get it.

Looking back, I know a lot of reasons people change tone, but back then (particularly before the net, and the ability to find out actually who these people were - I didn't read magazines) it was a huge mystery.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom