No. 1302003·nu-metal·5 blocks

Faint

Faint's signature guitar gesture is a fast, down-strummed Drop-D octave hook riding over Meteora's driving string section — bright, cutting, and relentless. Brad Delson tracked it on a PRS through a Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier, with a Marshall layered in (the first time Linkin Park blended amps), tuned Drop D a half step down. The tone has to slice through a dense electronic-and-strings arrangement, so it's pushed brighter and more present than the Hybrid Theory rhythm sound.

Meteora coverMeteora
Settings for
Signal path · input → output · 7 blocksLive values · Line 6 Helix
Guitar
PRS Custom 24
Pickups
HH
Tuning
bridge
Strings
drop_d
Noise Gate
Deluxe Comp
Cali Rectifire
4x12 Cali V30
Room
Tilt
Noise Gate
← Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor
Cab
Threshold
-48dB
Decay
0.2s
Level
0
Deluxe Comp
← Light studio compression
Dynamics
Threshold
-30dB
Ratio
3:1
Knee
4dB
Attack
40ms
Release
400ms
Mix
50
Level
0dB
Cali Rectifire
← Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier (Modern) + Marshall layer
Amp
Drive
7
Bass
5
Mid
5
Treble
8
Presence
7
ChVol
4.5
Master
10
Bias
5
BiasX
5
Sag
4.5
Hum
5
Ripple
5
4x12 Cali V30
← Mesa Recto 4x12 (Celestion V30)
Cab
LowCut85Hz
HighCut9000Hz
Resonance
0.5
Level
0dB
Pan
0.5
Delay
0
Room
← Studio room ambience
Reverb
LowCut200Hz
HighCut6500Hz
Mix
10
Decay
0.3s
Predelay
10ms
Level
0
Tilt
← Tilt EQ (global brightness)
EQ
Tilt
0.6
CenterFreq
1200Hz
Level
0

What we checked

Computed by a program, on this recipe, every time this page is built. How this works

Preset files — 1 of 3 complete
  • Helix builds complete — every block in the recipe is in the file
  • Quad Cortex 5 blocks replaced with a stand-in model
    Which ones

    Replaced with a stand-in: Gate, LA Compressor, Recto, 4x12 Recto V30, Room. These load cleanly but are not the model named above — the file will sound wrong here until we map them. Set these blocks by hand.

  • Katana 3 blocks replaced with a stand-in model
    Which ones

    Replaced with a stand-in: Brown, Noise Gate, Reverb. These load cleanly but are not the model named above — the file will sound wrong here until we map them. Set these blocks by hand.

Helix DSP
55.2% of one chip — fits
Sources
3 cited, 2 from publications that do original gear reporting
Attribution
Not yet rated — This recipe predates the attribution-confidence field and hasn't been reviewed for it.
What we didn't check
  • Nobody played this through a real amp. There is no human listening test behind any number on this page.
  • The settings are reasoned from the sources below, not measured off the record.
  • No audio has been rendered for this recipe yet, so you cannot hear it before you load it.
  • 3 platforms on this page (TONEX, Kemper, Fractal) get a model pointer, not a preset file — nothing was built or checked for them.
The mic in this chain

Shure SM57

Still made, still the studio default. The cheapest part of this chain to get right.

Affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you, and as an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. The mic is listed because the chain uses it, not because anyone paid for the placement.

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