Smells Like Teen Spirit
Raw fuzzy grunge power chords.
What is the Smells Like Teen Spirit guitar tone?
The Smells Like Teen Spirit guitar tone is raw fuzzy grunge power chords, heard on Nirvana's 1990s grunge recording. It is a distorted riff tone, and Nirvana reportedly tracked it with Kurt Cobain's Fender Mustang or Jaguar, with an Electro-Harmonix Small Clone on the quiet parts and a Boss DS-1 on the loud ones, through the Mesa/Boogie, Fender Bassman and Vox AC30 amps Butch Vig used across Nevermind, with the chorus chords double-tracked. The point here is a raw, barely controlled tone, so cleaning it up too much moves it away from the record rather than towards it.
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.
Smells Like Teen Spirit amp settings: a starting point
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 6, Bass 6, Middle 4, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 2 for the loud choruses, with the bridge pickup. There is a second setting for the quiet verses below.
- Gain 6
- Bass 6
- Middle 4
- Treble 6
- Presence 5
- Reverb 2
- Signal chain
- Electro-Harmonix Small Clone (quiet parts) → Boss DS-1 (loud parts)
- The control that matters most
- Two sounds, not one. The quiet parts are a cleaner tone with a chorus pedal and the loud parts a distortion pedal with the chords double-tracked, so set each on its own rather than riding one gain setting.
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.
Second sound
Smells Like Teen Spirit amp settings for the quiet verses
For the quiet verses, start at Gain 2, Bass 6, Middle 4, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 3, with the neck or middle position.
- Gain 2
- Bass 6
- Middle 4
- Treble 6
- Presence 5
- Reverb 3
- Signal chain
- Electro-Harmonix Small Clone
- Where the song switches
- The verses are quiet, with the guitar through a Small Clone chorus pedal, and the choruses are big and loud, with the chords double-tracked.
- Pickup
- Neck or middle position
The same reference as the panel above: positions on a generic five-knob amp, a starting point rather than the settings on the record.
What gear did Nirvana use on Smells Like Teen Spirit?
Kurt Cobain's Fender Mustang or Jaguar, with an Electro-Harmonix Small Clone on the quiet parts and a Boss DS-1 on the loud ones, through the Mesa/Boogie, Fender Bassman and Vox AC30 amps Butch Vig used across Nevermind, with the chorus chords double-tracked.
Sources: Wikipedia: Smells Like Teen Spirit, Guitar.com: the gear Kurt Cobain used on Nevermind
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 Smells Like Teen Spirit tone on your own amp?
Tell us your guitar, amp, and pedals
AI researches the original tone of Smells Like Teen Spirit
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Smells Like Teen Spirit tone questions
What amp settings do you need for Smells Like Teen Spirit?
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 6, Bass 6, Middle 4, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 2 for the loud choruses, with the bridge pickup, and at Gain 2, Bass 6, Middle 4, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 3 for the quiet verses, with the neck or middle position. 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 raw fuzzy grunge power chords from different positions.
Does Smells Like Teen Spirit use one amp setting or two?
Two. The verses are quiet, with the guitar through a Small Clone chorus pedal, and the choruses are big and loud, with the chords double-tracked. On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 6, Bass 6, Middle 4, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 2 for the loud choruses, and at Gain 2, Bass 6, Middle 4, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 3 for the quiet verses.
What is the most important control for the Smells Like Teen Spirit tone?
Two sounds, not one. The quiet parts are a cleaner tone with a chorus pedal and the loud parts a distortion pedal with the chords double-tracked, so set each on its own rather than riding one gain setting.
Can you get the Smells Like Teen Spirit tone without the original gear?
Yes. The original was tracked with Kurt Cobain's Fender Mustang or Jaguar, with an Electro-Harmonix Small Clone on the quiet parts and a Boss DS-1 on the loud ones, through the Mesa/Boogie, Fender Bassman and Vox AC30 amps Butch Vig used across Nevermind, with the chorus chords double-tracked, 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 Smells Like Teen Spirit a rhythm or a lead tone?
It is a riff part with a distorted character, from Nirvana's 1990s grunge 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.
Guides for this sound
How to get any song's guitar tone on the amp you ownFind the documented rig, match the amp family, set the gain lower than you think and EQ against the record. A seven-step method, worked on a Boss Katana.
Boss DS-1 settings from Nirvana to metalBoss DS-1 starting settings for grunge, punk, rock leads and metal, what the Tone knob really does in BOSS's own words, and what is known about Kurt Cobain's.
