Quick Start
How to Use ToneStakr
ToneStakr turns a guitarist name and a budget into a complete, buyable signal chain. Here's everything the site can do and how to get the most out of it.
Pick a guitarist and a budget
Go to the Rig Builder, choose any guitarist from the catalogue, and set your budget. ToneStakr outputs a complete signal chain — guitar, amp, and pedals — adapted to that price point. Every item is in-production and buyable today.
Compare all budgets side by side
Sound Like pages show every budget tier at once — $250, $650, $1,300, and $3,200 — so you can see exactly what changes as you spend more. Useful for deciding where to focus your budget rather than committing to a single tier.
Use Stage Mode for amp dial positions
Once you have a rig, hit the Stage Mode button. It opens a full-screen overlay showing the amp's knob positions as visual dials — Gain, Bass, Mid, Treble, Presence, Reverb — sourced from the artist's documented settings where available, estimated from tone fingerprint where not. Use it at rehearsal or on stage as a quick reference.
Find out how close your gear is
The ToneAdapt panel appears on Sound Like pages once you've added your gear. It scores how closely your amp and guitar match the target tone, and explains which characteristics you're missing. Add your gear once; it applies across every artist profile.
Get per-song settings
Some artist profiles include Song Rig Snapshots — specific amp and pedal settings for individual songs. These go further than a general artist profile: they show exactly which pickup position, amp channel, and pedal configuration the recording used.
Search by the gear you already own
Reverse Tone Search works the other way around: enter a pedal or amp you already own and see which artists use it, which tones it fits, and how to get the most out of it in a signal chain.
Compare two guitarists head to head
Comparison pages put two guitarists side by side at the same budget — same price tier, different signal chains. Useful for understanding how two players who appear similar (Hendrix vs Clapton, Mayer vs SRV) approach tone very differently.
Read the tone guides
The Guides section covers the knowledge behind the gear: signal chain order, why budget isn't the main variable in tone, how to evaluate pedals, and how to tune amp settings by ear. Reference material for making better decisions before you spend money.
Budget tiers