Techdeth
RESIDENT ROCK PROFESSOR
I hear so much shit . What’s the real rig
psychodave
Well-known member
Marshall's modded by Jose with a tube screamer out front. Multiple tracks to thicken it up. You can hear some phasing issues on that entire album if you listen close enough.
Techdeth
RESIDENT ROCK PROFESSOR
I saw that half the time then half the time I see new jcm800 was the amp . But I believe you because that’s where my mind was
thegame
Well-known member
I‘ve already cracked that walnut:
https://www.rig-talk.com/forum/thre...-the-lightning-amp-was-a.220746/#post-2424795
https://www.rig-talk.com/forum/thre...-the-lightning-amp-was-a.220746/#post-2424795
RaceU4her
Well-known member
i know i read or heard somewhere that amp was stolen before they went to the studio and it was a stock marshall 1959 boosted
ZEN Amps
Well-known member
I don't think there's any real evidence it was a Jose Marshall. This guy takes it all pretty seriously if you have some time to kill: metallica gear history
CEG85
Active member
From pics of seen during that era they use Marshalls, I think the same amps carried over to MOP when they were slaved with the Mesa IIC+.
Last edited:
johnpace2
Well-known member
Yup, and he's a member here and a great guy. Newworldman is his name on here. Lives about 20 mins away from me.
Techdeth
RESIDENT ROCK PROFESSOR
The one from KEA was and was modded Jose . Which makes me think it was French SLP or maybe 800
RaceU4her
Well-known member
Hetfield's modded Jose amp was tragically stolen along with a lot of other gear from the band's van outside a venue called The Channel [long-since closed] in Boston on January 22, 1984. It was a devastating loss for James. For many years, it was widely rumored to have contributed to the dark mood on the song "Fade To Black". And James later confirmed that was true,
Losing a beloved piece of gear is one thing, but it becomes a real issue when you're due to fly to Copenhagen, Denmark and begin recording your band's sophomore album in less than a month. Prior to the recording of the band's next album, which would come to be known as “Ride The Lightning”, James had to find a replacement. He tried some of Merciful Fate's amps but nothing was giving him the tone he wanted. He ended up buying a Marshall JMP 2203 head over in Denmark. An old interview with CKLN 88.1FM Radio, James claims the amp was a "French-Made Marshall", but the likely story is that the manual was in French. Marshall did tailor some of their marketing to the Scandinavian and various European markets. Some of them even had different looking backplates. But the amp was, by all accounts, a stock Marshall JMP 2203.
This amp was later modified by Ken Fischer [of Trainwreck Amps] to allow bypassing the preamp, but this wasn’t done until much later. For the recording of Ride The Lightning, James used an old Ibanez Tube Screamer to drive his signal into the amp a little harder, trying to replicate what the Jose Arredondo extra gain stage mod did for him. Hetfield is also reported to have used a Mesa Boogie Mark II as well.
ZEN Amps
Well-known member
I mean it may have been a Jose mod, but that article is pretty compelling and well-researched. The Jose connection is tenuous at best - could be true, we will never know.
Fortunately what we do have is those early records to enjoy forever, and I'm good with that \w/
