Nuno Bettencourt

• Rhythm precision is more important than lead technique — "Get the Funk Out" is built on right-hand precision that most players underestimate
• The JC-120 clean tone requires no pedal overdrive — the amp's pristine clean is the foundation for the funk-influenced playing
• The N4's pickups are active-style hot DiMarzios — a standard Strat or Les Paul will not produce the same output level and character
• Funky rhythms require strict upstroke emphasis on the upbeat — the "chuck" sound comes from a clean downstroke mute followed by the upstroke chord
• "More Than Words" is played entirely with the right-hand fingers, no pick — position the thumb on the bass strings and fingers on treble
• For the hard rock tone, the Marshall runs at moderate gain — Nuno's crunch is vintage and natural, not modern high gain
• The guitar volume knob is a constant tool — roll to 6-7 for rhythm cleans, open fully for leads
• Pentatonic and chromatic passing tones combine in his solos — he does not stay purely inside the pentatonic box
• For the two-handed tapping in "He-Man Woman Hater" — the right hand taps the note and pulls off, the left hand frets the two lower notes in a legato run
• The right-hand muting technique on rhythm parts requires the heel of the palm resting lightly on the bridge saddles — too much pressure kills sustain completely; too little lets the notes ring over each other and destroys the funky staccato clarity
• Nuno's lead tone on "Get the Funk Out" uses the amp on the clean channel with the guitar's volume at full and the Marshall naturally compressing — there is no overdrive pedal, just the amp responding to a hot signal from the active-voiced DiMarzio pickups
• Practice transitioning between thumb-plucked fingerstyle on "More Than Words" and full-pick attack on hard rock parts in a single session — the technique switch is abrupt and requires muscle memory developed from practising both styles back-to-back without pause

Nuno Bettencourt of Extreme is one of the most underrated guitarists of the 1990s — combining funk-influenced rhythmic precision with explosive hard rock leads, equally at home on the clean fingerpicked "More Than Words" and the shredding "He-Man Woman Hater."

Nuno Bettencourt combined shred technique, funk rhythm feel, and pop melody in a way few guitarists achieved. His Washburn N4 — a custom design with a natural finish, Seymour Duncan pickup, and Floyd Rose — produced a tonal identity immediately recognisable: punchy, articulate, and harmonically rich.