Kirk Hammett — £500 · Sweet Spot Rig

• Wah pedal in the "on" position at heel or toe acts as a tone filter — learn to park it
• EMG 81 bridge pickup: tighter, more compressed attack than passive pickups at high gain
• Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier Modern mode: gain at 7, master at 4 — tight and punishing
• Wah-laden pentatonic patterns: pick and wah simultaneously for the classic Kirk phrasing
• Open-string pull-offs create the snaking chromatic runs through solos
• Riff technique: downstroke-heavy palm muting with the wrist close to the bridge
• Tremolo bar dips for dramatic accents at phrase endings — fast dip, immediate return
• Delay: 300ms at low mix on solos gives depth without muddying fast runs

• ✗Running the Dual Rectifier's gain channel at maximum — above 8 on most high-gain channels, palm mutes lose note separation and become an indistinct wall. The target is the minimum gain for the target saturation, not maximum
• ✗Expecting the guitar volume knob to clean up the tone at high gain the same way it does with passive pickups — active pickups output a consistent, buffered signal. The volume knob only changes output level, not the pickup's interaction with the amp
• ✗Neglecting to adjust a floating bridge when changing string gauges or tuning — a Floyd Rose or floating bridge requires re-balancing the spring tension any time the string setup changes.
• ✗Not using a noise gate — self-noise at metal gain levels is continuous between notes. A gate is not stylistic; it is required for professional-sounding silence between riffs.
• ✗Maximum gain on the amp channel — this is the most common mistake in high-gain playing. The clarity and note separation that makes fast playing readable degrades at maximum gain.
• ✗Leaving the wah in a fixed position (cocked) between uses — a cocked wah acts as a midrange filter and changes the tone. If not using the wah expressively, take it out of the chain.
• ✗Too many repeats at high mix — more than 3 repeats makes the delay effect accumulate and overwhelm the dry guitar signal. Keep it to 2-3 repeats at a subtle mix level.
• ✗Scooped mid EQ — no guitar tone cuts through a thrash band with scooped mids. Mesa Rectifier tones at band volume are more mid-present than they appear in isolation.

ESP KH-2 (EMG 81/60 pickups) into a Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier. The Dunlop Kirk Hammett Signature Cry Baby wah is almost always in use — Hammett uses it as a tone-shaping filter on rhythm parts and for the characteristic wah-drenched solos. Very high gain, smooth sustain from the EMGs.