EVH 5150III 50W Settings Guide
Eddie Van Halen's three-channel amp. Clean, Crunch, and Lead channels cover everything from sparkly clean to extreme high-gain. The 50W version is the most practical for most players.
Used by: Eddie Van Halen, Zakk Wylde, Dimebag Darrell
The best EVH 5150III 50W settings start with: Pre Gain at 6/10, Bass at 4/10, Mid at 5/10, Treble at 6/10, Presence at 6/10, Resonance at 4/10. Adjust from there based on your amp, guitar, and room volume. For Metal: Pre Gain 7/10, Bass 4/10, Mid 5/10, Treble 6/10, Presence 6/10, Resonance 3/10.
⚡ Start Here — Recommended Settings
| Control | Starting Position | Range |
|---|---|---|
| Pre Gain | 6/10 | Clean → Saturated |
| Bass | 4/10 | Thin → Heavy |
| Mid | 5/10 | Scooped → Present |
| Treble | 6/10 | Dark → Bright |
| Presence | 6/10 | Smooth → Aggressive |
| Resonance | 4/10 | Tight → Loose |
These are universal starting points. Adjust based on your amp, guitar, and room. Scroll down for genre-specific settings and artist-documented positions.
What Each Control Does
Recommended Starting Settings
Safe starting positions for any style. Adjust from here based on your amp and room.
All values on a 0–10 scale. These are starting points — fine-tune by ear.
Settings by Genre
Channel 3 (Red) at high Pre Gain — tight Resonance prevents flabby low end on palm mutes. Mid at 5 avoids scooping but doesn't push into nasal territory. A TS-style boost at Drive 0, Level high in front tightens the input. Add a noise gate in the effects loop.
Channel 2 (Blue) for crunch — warmer than Channel 3, more responsive to picking dynamics. Mid at 6 adds the presence that Channel 3's scoop removes. Resonance at 5 gives warmth without looseness.
Channel 1 (White) at low Pre Gain — the 5150III clean is not as clean as a Fender but provides a useful dynamic foundation for Channel 2/3 switching. Push Volume on Channel 1 relative to the dirty channels for balanced live switching.
Channel 2 at moderate Pre Gain with raised Mid — reduces the 5150's natural modern scoop for a more classic, mid-forward character. This setting suits Les Paul humbuckers for vintage rock rhythm.
Artist Settings
Documented settings used by professional guitarists on this unit.
EVH's approach on Channel 3 — high Pre Gain with elevated Presence and Treble for the bright, harmonically complex lead tone. He used a Phase 90 phaser before the amp and ran the power stage hard. The Resonance at 4 keeps the bottom tight for his precise picking attack on fast passages.
Wylde uses the 5150-lineage amps at maximum gain with high Presence and controlled Treble. Mid at 6 above noon is higher than many 5150 players use — it gives his lead tone the mid-forward cut that distinguishes it from a scooped metal sound. Resonance tight for his precise low-string riffing.
Dimebag used Peavey 5150/6505 amps (the predecessor circuit). Very high gain, tight Resonance for the Pantera low-end attack, high Presence for the searing lead tone that cuts over rhythm guitar. His "Dean from Hell" into a 5150-style amp at maximum gain is the reference for 1990s heavy metal lead tone.
Tips & Common Mistakes
- Channel 3 (Red) needs a noise gate in the effects loop — at high Pre Gain it produces significant hiss between notes.
- The Resonance control is as important as Bass for low-end character — set Resonance before Bass when dialling in a metal tone.
- A Tube Screamer (Drive 0, Level high) in front of Channel 3 tightens the input and produces a cleaner, more defined pick attack without changing the amp's gain character.
- Use the 5150III's effects loop for delay and reverb — the preamp heavily colours everything in the front input, and delay trails through a high-gain preamp produce muddy, indistinct echoes.
- The 50W version uses EL34 output tubes — the 100W original used 6L6 tubes. The EL34 version has a slightly more British top-end character that responds differently to presence adjustments.
FAQ
EVH 5150III 50W — Common Questions
Best starting settings for EVH 5150III 50W: Pre Gain at 6/10, Bass at 4/10, Mid at 5/10, Treble at 6/10, Presence at 6/10, Resonance at 4/10. Adjust from there based on your guitar, room, and playing style.
For Metal: Pre Gain 7/10, Bass 4/10, Mid 5/10, Treble 6/10, Presence 6/10, Resonance 3/10. Channel 3 (Red) at high Pre Gain — tight Resonance prevents flabby low end on palm mutes. Mid at 5 avoids scooping but doesn't push into nasal territory. A TS-style boost at Drive 0, Level high in front tightens the input. Add a noise gate in the effects loop.
For Hard Rock: Pre Gain 6/10, Bass 5/10, Mid 6/10, Treble 6/10, Presence 5/10, Resonance 5/10. Channel 2 (Blue) for crunch — warmer than Channel 3, more responsive to picking dynamics. Mid at 6 adds the presence that Channel 3's scoop removes. Resonance at 5 gives warmth without looseness.
Pre Gain: Preamp gain for each channel. Channel 3 (Red) has the most gain on tap — EVH territory starts at 6. (Clean to Saturated). Post Gain: Output volume per channel — use to match channel loudness for switching. (Silent to Full). Bass: Shared low-end. Keep below 6 for metal — the 5150 bass can become flabby on Channel 3 if set high. (Thin to Heavy). Mid: Shared midrange. Channel 3 is naturally scooped — pushing Mid restores mix presence. (Scooped to Present). Treble: High-frequency character. Keep at 5–7 on Channel 3 to prevent harshness at high gain. (Dark to Bright). Presence: Power amp high-frequency resonance — the most dramatic EQ on the amp. Above 7 adds aggressive upper harmonics. (Smooth to Aggressive). Resonance: Power amp bass resonance. Low values (3–4) for tight metal palm mutes; higher for classic rock warmth. (Tight to Loose)
Channel 3 (Red) needs a noise gate in the effects loop — at high Pre Gain it produces significant hiss between notes. The Resonance control is as important as Bass for low-end character — set Resonance before Bass when dialling in a metal tone. A Tube Screamer (Drive 0, Level high) in front of Channel 3 tightens the input and produces a cleaner, more defined pick attack without changing the amp's gain character. Use the 5150III's effects loop for delay and reverb — the preamp heavily colours everything in the front input, and delay trails through a high-gain preamp produce muddy, indistinct echoes. The 50W version uses EL34 output tubes — the 100W original used 6L6 tubes. The EL34 version has a slightly more British top-end character that responds differently to presence adjustments.
Eddie Van Halen settings: Pre Gain 7/10, Bass 4/10, Mid 5/10, Treble 7/10, Presence 7/10, Resonance 4/10. EVH's approach on Channel 3 — high Pre Gain with elevated Presence and Treble for the bright, harmonically complex lead tone. He used a Phase 90 phaser before the amp and ran the power stage hard. The Resonance at 4 keeps the bottom tight for his precise picking attack on fast passages.
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