No. 1251993·progressive-metal·4 blocks
Sober
Tool's breakthrough single, built entirely on dynamics — a brooding, restrained Drop-D verse that detonates into a crushing chorus. On Undertow (1993) Adam Jones cut it on his 1979 Les Paul Custom Silverburst into his modified mid-'70s Marshall Super Bass 100, the two channels jumpered together for an aggressive, saturated voice. This predates his Diezel multi-amp rig (which arrived on the later records). The quiet-to-loud swing is in the right hand and the guitar volume, not a pedal: a Plexi-family Marshall pushed hard, cleaning up when he eases off and roaring when he digs in.
UndertowSignal path · input → output · 7 blocksLive values · Fractal Axe-Fx
Guitar
Gibson Les Paul Custom (1979 Silverburst)
Pickups
HH
Tuning
bridge
Strings
drop_d
Noise Gate
Studio Comp
Plexi 100W High
4x12 Greenback
Spring Reverb
Filter Tilt
Noise Gate
← Studio noise gate (FRFR essential)
Threshold
-56dB
Decay
0.3s
Level
0
Studio Comp
← Studio compressor (light)
Threshold
-30dB
Ratio
2:1
Attack
40s
Release
220s
Mix
0.3
Level
0dB
Plexi 100W High
← Marshall Super Bass 100 (jumpered)
Drive
7
Bass
5
Mid
7
Treble
7
Presence
6
MV
6
Cut
4
4x12 Greenback
← Marshall 4x12 (Celestion-loaded)
LowCut85Hz
HighCut9500Hz
Level
0dB
Spring Reverb
← Light studio ambience
Mix
0.1
Decay
0.8s
Predelay
0.0ms
Filter Tilt
← Tilt EQ (global brightness)
Tilt
0.5
CenterFreq
1000Hz
Level
0
Engineer's note
File 125
Tool's breakthrough single, built entirely on dynamics — a brooding, restrained Drop-D verse that detonates into a crushing chorus. On Undertow (1993) Adam Jones cut it on his 1979 Les Paul Custom Silverburst into his modified mid-'70s Marshall Super Bass 100, the two channels jumpered together for an aggressive, saturated voice. This predates his Diezel multi-amp rig (which arrived on the later records). The quiet-to-loud swing is in the right hand and the guitar volume, not a pedal: a Plexi-family Marshall pushed hard, cleaning up when he eases off and roaring when he digs in.
— Adam Jones
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