Gear Guide

Best Mesa/Boogie Players — Tone Guides & Rig Breakdowns

Mesa/Boogie's Rectifier series became the defining sound of American metal in the 1990s. James Hetfield uses it for Metallica's wall-of-crunch rhythm tone. John Petrucci runs Mesa Boogies for Dream Theater's detailed, high-gain leads. Adam Jones of Tool sculpts his dark, sludgy riffs through Mesa circuits. If you need tight, controlled high-gain tone with American character, Mesa/Boogie is the answer.