Hail to the King
Heavy, mid-paced crunch riffs set back in the mix under a pounding drum beat.
What is the Hail to the King guitar tone?
The Hail to the King guitar tone is heavy, mid-paced crunch riffs set back in the mix under a pounding drum beat, heard on Avenged Sevenfold's 2010s metal recording. It is a distorted riff tone, and Avenged Sevenfold reportedly tracked it with Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance's Schecter signature guitars, Gates' fitted with Seymour Duncan Invader pickups, through Gates' own Schecter Hellwin USA 100 head and Hellwin cabinet, the pair that won the band's blind shoot-out of 25 amp and cabinet combinations for the album; Gates says they also used a little Fractal Axe-Fx and a lot of pedals in the studio, with Mike Elizondo producing. The weight comes from layered takes and controlled low end rather than from raw gain, which is the part most players overshoot.
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.
Hail to the King amp settings: a starting point
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 7, Bass 5, Middle 4, Treble 7, Presence 6, Reverb 2, with the bridge pickup.
- Gain 7
- Bass 5
- Middle 4
- Treble 7
- Presence 6
- Reverb 2
- Signal chain
- Noise gate → Amp distortion → Short reverb
- The control that matters most
- The guitar's level in the mix, not the gain knob. Zacky Vengeance says the riffs sound massive because they were brought down in the mix under the drums and bass, so set the amp for a tight, clear crunch and let the band carry the weight rather than piling on distortion.
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. Your first match is free with an account, and needs no card.
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.
What gear did Avenged Sevenfold use on Hail to the King?
Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance's Schecter signature guitars, Gates' fitted with Seymour Duncan Invader pickups, through Gates' own Schecter Hellwin USA 100 head and Hellwin cabinet, the pair that won the band's blind shoot-out of 25 amp and cabinet combinations for the album; Gates says they also used a little Fractal Axe-Fx and a lot of pedals in the studio, with Mike Elizondo producing.
Sources: MusicRadar: Avenged Sevenfold talk songwriting and Hail to the King, Musician's Friend: Synyster Gates interview, Guitar World: Schecter USA Hellwin 100 review, Wikipedia: Hail to the King (song)
Tonelify 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 Hail to the King tone on your own amp?
Tell us your guitar, amp, and pedals
AI researches the original tone of Hail to the King
Get exact knob settings adapted to your rig
Hail to the King tone questions
What amp settings do you need for Hail to the King?
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 7, Bass 5, Middle 4, Treble 7, Presence 6, Reverb 2, 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 heavy, mid-paced crunch riffs set back in the mix under a pounding drum beat from different positions.
What is the most important control for the Hail to the King tone?
The guitar's level in the mix, not the gain knob. Zacky Vengeance says the riffs sound massive because they were brought down in the mix under the drums and bass, so set the amp for a tight, clear crunch and let the band carry the weight rather than piling on distortion.
Can you get the Hail to the King tone without the original gear?
Yes. The original was tracked with Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance's Schecter signature guitars, Gates' fitted with Seymour Duncan Invader pickups, through Gates' own Schecter Hellwin USA 100 head and Hellwin cabinet, the pair that won the band's blind shoot-out of 25 amp and cabinet combinations for the album; Gates says they also used a little Fractal Axe-Fx and a lot of pedals in the studio, with Mike Elizondo producing, but the parts that define the sound are the gain structure, the EQ curve, the pickup position and the effects order. Those translate to other equipment, which is what the adaptation step does.
Is Hail to the King a rhythm or a lead tone?
It is a riff part with a distorted character, from Avenged Sevenfold's 2010s metal catalogue.
Does Tonelify cost anything to try?
Your first match for your own gear is free with an account, and needs no card. After that both plans start with a 7-day free trial: 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.
