No. 0751991·blues·4 blocks

The Sky Is Crying

Stevie Ray Vaughan's aching Elmore James cover, released on the posthumous 1991 album. Slower and more vocal than Pride and Joy, it leans on Number One — his '62/'63 Strat strung with heavy .013s and tuned a half-step to E♭ — through an always-on Ibanez Tube Screamer into a cranked Fender Super Reverb, blended with his Dumble Steel String Singer. Neck pickup, fingertips on the strings, and a touch of spring reverb do the crying.

The Sky Is Crying coverThe Sky Is Crying
Settings for
Signal path · input → output · 7 blocksLive values · Line 6 Helix
Guitar
Fender Stratocaster 'Number One' (1962/63)
Pickups
SSS
Tuning
neck
Strings
eb_standard
Deluxe Comp
Scream 808
US Double Nrm
4x10 Tweed P10R
Spring
Tilt
Deluxe Comp
← Studio compression / amp compression
Dynamics
Threshold
-32dB
Ratio
2:1
Knee
8dB
Attack
100ms
Release
300ms
Mix
40
Level
0dB
Scream 808
← Ibanez Tube Screamer (TS808/TS9)
Distortion
Gain
3
Tone
6
Level
7.5
US Double Nrm
← Fender Super Reverb (blackface)
Amp
Drive
6.2
Bass
5
Mid
5.5
Treble
6
Presence
5
ChVol
7
Master
10
Bias
5
BiasX
5
Sag
6.5
Hum
5
Ripple
5
4x10 Tweed P10R
← Super Reverb 4x10 (Electro-Voice)
Cab
LowCut80Hz
HighCut7500Hz
Level
0dB
Pan
0.5
Delay
0
Spring
← Fender outboard/amp spring reverb
Reverb
LowCut200Hz
HighCut6000Hz
Mix
18
Decay
1s
Predelay
10ms
Level
0
Tilt
← Tilt EQ (global tone)
EQ
Tilt
0.5
CenterFreq
900Hz
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 3 blocks replaced with a stand-in model
    Which ones

    Replaced with a stand-in: Studio Comp, Spring, Tilt EQ. 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: Crunch, Booster, 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
59.2% of one chip — fits
Sources
3 cited, 2 from publications that do original gear reporting
Attribution
Not yet ratedThis 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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