No. 2191980·heavy-metal·4 blocks

Ace of Spades

The most-copied downstroke riff in rock, and it is not a Les Paul. Clarke had pawned his 1972 Deluxe before Motorhead and did not get it back until he formed Fastway in 1982 -- the Motorhead-era guitar is a DiMarzio-loaded Stratocaster, chosen for one reason: Lemmy ran a Rickenbacker through a Marshall with all treble and no bass, and a Les Paul simply could not be heard next to it.

Ace of Spades coverAce of Spades
Settings for
Signal path · input → output · 9 blocksLive values · Line 6 Helix
Guitar
Fender Stratocaster (DiMarzio-loaded)
Pickups
HSS
Tuning
bridge
Strings
standard
Noise Gate
Deluxe Comp
Stupor OD
Brit Plexi Brt
4x12 Greenback 25
Simple Delay
Dynamic Room
Tilt
Noise Gate
← Gain-structure housekeeping
Cab
Threshold
-62dB
Decay
60s
Deluxe Comp
← Studio compression
Dynamics
Threshold
-22dB
Ratio
3:1
Knee
6dB
Attack
14ms
Release
120ms
Mix
30
Level
0dB
Stupor OD
← Boss OD-1 Over Drive
Distortion
Drive
5
Tone
6
Level
7
Brit Plexi Brt
← Marshall 100W (bright channel)
Amp
Drive
8
Bass
4
Mid
6
Treble
8
Presence
7
ChVol
6
Master
9
Bias
5
BiasX
5
Sag
5
Hum
5
Ripple
5
4x12 Greenback 25
← Marshall 4x12 (Celestion-loaded)
Cab
LowCut120Hz
HighCut6800Hz
Resonance
5
Level
0dB
Pan
0.5
Delay
0
Simple Delay
← Studio slap
Delay
LowCut400Hz
HighCut3200Hz
Time
120ms
Feedback
3
Mix
7
Level
0
Dynamic Room
← Jackson's Studios tracking room
Dynamics
LowCut260Hz
HighCut6000Hz
Mix
11
Decay
0.8s
Predelay
8ms
Level
0
Tilt
← Global tilt EQ
EQ
Tilt
5
CenterFreq
1000Hz
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 6 blocks replaced with a stand-in model
    Which ones

    Replaced with a stand-in: Gate, Studio Comp, Yellow Scream, Plexi 100 Bright, 4x12 Greenback, Room 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.

  • Katana 1 block missing from the file; 4 blocks replaced with a stand-in model
    Which ones

    Not in the file: Room. The recipe calls for this block, but we have no verified model ID for it on this platform, so the preset is written without it. Add it by hand using the settings above.

    Replaced with a stand-in: Crunch, Booster, Delay, 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.

Helix DSP
54% of one chip — fits
Sources
3 cited, 1 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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