Killing in the Name
Rage Against the Machine
Drop D Marshall crunch with whammy squeals and hard stops.
What is the Killing in the Name guitar tone?
The Killing in the Name guitar tone is drop D Marshall crunch with whammy squeals and hard stops, heard on Rage Against the Machine's 1990s rap metal recording. It is a distorted riff tone, and Rage Against the Machine reportedly tracked it with Tom Morello's custom "Arm the Homeless" guitar in Drop D into a Marshall JCM800 2205 head and a Peavey 4x12, with a DigiTech Whammy on the solo. This is a Marshall-style crunch pushed hard and left dry, with the pedals doing the dramatic work rather than the amp.
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.
Killing in the Name amp settings: a starting point
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 7, Bass 5, Middle 6, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 0, with the bridge pickup.
- Signal chain
- DigiTech Whammy (on the solo) → Marshall JCM800 crunch
- The control that matters most
- Middle. This is a hard-pushed Marshall crunch, not a scooped high-gain sound, and the mids keep the Drop D riff punching through the rhythm section.
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.
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 Rage Against the Machine use on Killing in the Name?
Tom Morello's custom "Arm the Homeless" guitar in Drop D into a Marshall JCM800 2205 head and a Peavey 4x12, with a DigiTech Whammy on the solo.
Sources: Neural DSP: Tom Morello's pedalboard and amp settings, Mixdown: Tom Morello gear rundown
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 Killing in the Name tone on your own amp?
Tell us your guitar, amp, and pedals
AI researches the original Killing in the Name tone
Get exact knob settings adapted to your rig
Killing in the Name tone questions
What amp settings do you need for Killing in the Name?
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 7, Bass 5, Middle 6, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 0, 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 drop d marshall crunch with whammy squeals and hard stops from different positions.
What is the most important control for the Killing in the Name tone?
Middle. This is a hard-pushed Marshall crunch, not a scooped high-gain sound, and the mids keep the Drop D riff punching through the rhythm section.
Can you get the Killing in the Name tone without the original gear?
Yes. The original was tracked with Tom Morello's custom "Arm the Homeless" guitar in Drop D into a Marshall JCM800 2205 head and a Peavey 4x12, with a DigiTech Whammy on the solo, 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 Killing in the Name a rhythm or a lead tone?
It is a riff part with a distorted character, from Rage Against the Machine's 1990s rap metal catalogue.
Does Tonelify cost anything to try?
Both plans start with a 7-day free trial and nothing is charged until it ends. Stage is metered and Headliner is unlimited within a fair use limit of 150 new matches a day, and yearly billing works out cheaper on both; the current prices are on your account page once you have one. Reading this page and the rest of the library costs nothing and needs no account.