Communication Breakdown
A fast riff of rapid downstrokes with a raw, gritty edge.
What is the Communication Breakdown guitar tone?
The Communication Breakdown guitar tone is a fast riff of rapid downstrokes with a raw, gritty edge, heard on Led Zeppelin's 1960s hard rock recording. It is a distorted riff tone, and Led Zeppelin reportedly tracked it with a 1959 Fender Telecaster with a rosewood neck, Jimmy Page's main guitar on Led Zeppelin's first album in Guitar World's account and the psychedelically painted Telecaster Jeff Beck had given him in Wikipedia's, played through a Supro amp; Guitar World identifies the amp as a 1959 Supro Coronado 1690T that was rebuilt after it fell out of the back of a van in the early 1960s, with a Mullard GZ34 rectifier, Mullard ECC83 preamp valves, the original GE 6L6 power valves, some British parts and a single 12-inch Oxford speaker re-coned with a Pulsonic cone in place of the original pair of 10s, biased cold so it distorted at lower volume and more heavily at full volume, details confirmed in 2019 when Page loaned it to amp builder Mitch Colby; most of the album's tonal variety came from the Supro's four inputs and from distance miking, and for the solo Page used a Vox wah parked in the toe-down position to boost the treble; the song grew from Page's riff, was played on the band's 1968 Scandinavian tour, and was recorded at Olympic Studios in London in the roughly 36 hours of sessions for the album in September and October 1968; it came out on Led Zeppelin in January 1969 in the US and as the B-side of Good Times Bad Times. This is a mid-forward sound rather than a scooped one, and it usually sits closer to the edge of breakup than to full saturation.
You do not need that exact gear to land in the same place. What carries this sound is the gain structure, the EQ curve, the pickup choice and the order of the effects, and all four can be rebuilt on equipment that costs a fraction of the original. The numbers change from amp to amp, because a high-gain head and a small practice amp reach the same voicing from different knob positions. That translation is what Tonelify works out for the rig you actually own.
Communication Breakdown amp settings: a starting point
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 6, Bass 5, Middle 6, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 2 for the riff, with the bridge pickup. There is a second setting for the solo below.
- Gain 6
- Bass 5
- Middle 6
- Treble 6
- Presence 6
- Reverb 2
- Signal chain
- Modified Supro Coronado, both volumes up
- The control that matters most
- Amp volume, not a pedal. Guitar World puts the grit in a small Supro with a single 12-inch speaker, biased to distort early and run with both volume controls up, so use a small amp or a low-wattage setting turned up, the bridge pickup, and modest bass so fast downstrokes stay tight.
These positions are free and they are a starting point. A Katana, a Spark and a valve head reach this voicing from different knob positions, so Tonelify rewrites every value above for the amp and guitar you own. A first plan starts with 7 days free, $0 today.
Adapt these to my amp- Pickup
- Bridge pickup
These are positions on a generic five-knob amp with gain, bass, middle, treble and presence, each running 0 to 10. They are a starting point, not the settings used on the record, and they will not transfer unchanged to an amp with a different gain structure or EQ voicing. If you tell Tonelify which amp you own, it rewrites every value above for the controls that amp actually has.
Second sound
Communication Breakdown amp settings for the solo
For the solo, start at Gain 6.5, Bass 5, Middle 7, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 2, with the bridge pickup.
- Gain 6.5
- Bass 5
- Middle 7
- Treble 6
- Presence 6
- Reverb 2
- Signal chain
- Vox wah, parked toe-down
- Where the song switches
- Guitar World has Page parking a Vox wah in the toe-down position for the solo, which boosts the treble rather than sweeping.
- Pickup
- Bridge pickup
The same reference as the panel above: positions on a generic five-knob amp, a starting point rather than the settings on the record.
Does the Communication Breakdown tone sound off on your amp?
Pick what you hear. You get the knobs to turn from the starting point above, and how far. It works from the setting for the riff.
Published settings
What amp settings did Jimmy Page use on Communication Breakdown?
Volume 1 and volume 2 both on 10, tone 8, and the tremolo's intensity and speed at 0, through channel 1's treble input on a 1959 Supro Coronado 1690T with a 12-inch Oxford speaker, with the Telecaster's bridge pickup and its volume and tone on 10, and a 1967 Vox wah parked toe-down on the solo only. That is Chris Gill's settings box in Guitar World's feature on the song, which does not say where the numbers came from, so read them as the magazine's reconstruction rather than a note from the session.
Source: Guitar World: the secrets behind Jimmy Page's guitar tone on Communication Breakdown
What gear did Led Zeppelin use on Communication Breakdown?
A 1959 Fender Telecaster with a rosewood neck, Jimmy Page's main guitar on Led Zeppelin's first album in Guitar World's account and the psychedelically painted Telecaster Jeff Beck had given him in Wikipedia's, played through a Supro amp; Guitar World identifies the amp as a 1959 Supro Coronado 1690T that was rebuilt after it fell out of the back of a van in the early 1960s, with a Mullard GZ34 rectifier, Mullard ECC83 preamp valves, the original GE 6L6 power valves, some British parts and a single 12-inch Oxford speaker re-coned with a Pulsonic cone in place of the original pair of 10s, biased cold so it distorted at lower volume and more heavily at full volume, details confirmed in 2019 when Page loaned it to amp builder Mitch Colby; most of the album's tonal variety came from the Supro's four inputs and from distance miking, and for the solo Page used a Vox wah parked in the toe-down position to boost the treble; the song grew from Page's riff, was played on the band's 1968 Scandinavian tour, and was recorded at Olympic Studios in London in the roughly 36 hours of sessions for the album in September and October 1968; it came out on Led Zeppelin in January 1969 in the US and as the B-side of Good Times Bad Times.
Sources: Guitar World: the secrets behind Jimmy Page's guitar tone on Communication Breakdown, Wikipedia: Communication Breakdown, Wikipedia: Led Zeppelin (album)
Tonelify's tone matcher reads that chain and translates it to the amp and guitar you already own, returning gain, bass, mids, treble and presence values along with a pickup position.
How do you get the Communication Breakdown tone on your own amp?
Tell us your guitar, amp, and pedals
AI researches the original tone of Communication Breakdown
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Communication Breakdown tone questions
What amp settings do you need for Communication Breakdown?
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 6, Bass 5, Middle 6, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 2 for the riff, with the bridge pickup, and at Gain 6.5, Bass 5, Middle 7, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 2 for the solo, with the bridge pickup. These are positions on a generic five-knob amp with gain, bass, middle, treble and presence, each running 0 to 10. They are a starting point, not the settings used on the record, and they will not transfer unchanged to an amp with a different gain structure or EQ voicing. Tonelify rewrites the same values for the specific amp and guitar you own, because a high-gain head and a small solid-state combo reach the same fast riff of rapid downstrokes with a raw, gritty edge from different positions.
Does Communication Breakdown use one amp setting or two?
Two. Guitar World has Page parking a Vox wah in the toe-down position for the solo, which boosts the treble rather than sweeping. On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 6, Bass 5, Middle 6, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 2 for the riff, and at Gain 6.5, Bass 5, Middle 7, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 2 for the solo.
What amp did Jimmy Page use on Communication Breakdown?
Amp: 1959 Supro Coronado 1690T, modified. Guitar: 1959 Fender Telecaster, the painted one Jeff Beck gave him. Sources: Guitar World and Wikipedia.
How do you get Jimmy Page's tone on Communication Breakdown?
Amp volume, not a pedal. Guitar World puts the grit in a small Supro with a single 12-inch speaker, biased to distort early and run with both volume controls up, so use a small amp or a low-wattage setting turned up, the bridge pickup, and modest bass so fast downstrokes stay tight. Play it with the bridge pickup.
What tuning is Communication Breakdown in?
Standard tuning: E A D G B E, low string to high, according to Guitar World.
Source: Guitar World: the secrets behind Jimmy Page's guitar tone on Communication Breakdown
Can you get the Communication Breakdown tone without the original gear?
Yes. The parts that define the sound are the gain structure, the EQ curve, the pickup position and the effects order, and those translate to other equipment. Tonelify's adaptation step works them out for the amp and guitar you own.
Does Tonelify cost anything to try?
A match for your own gear takes a plan, and a first plan starts with 7 days free with nothing charged that day: Stage is $6.99 a month for 20 matches, Headliner is $10.99 a month for unlimited matching within a fair use limit of 150 new matches a day, and yearly billing works out cheaper on both. Reading this page and the rest of the library costs nothing and needs no account.
