Snow (Hey Oh)
Percussive sparkling clean sixteenths.
What is the Snow (Hey Oh) guitar tone?
The Snow (Hey Oh) guitar tone is percussive sparkling clean sixteenths, heard on Red Hot Chili Peppers' 2000s alt rock recording. It is a clean riff tone, and Red Hot Chili Peppers reportedly tracked it with John Frusciante's Fender Stratocaster into Marshall Major and Silver Jubilee heads, the rig he listed for Stadium Arcadium, recorded at the Mansion with the band playing together, and an Electro-Harmonix POG on the outro to make the guitar sound like an organ. The sound depends on compression and pick attack more than on gain, so a lightly driven amp with the tone rolled back gets closer than a high-gain setting.
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 clean channel on a modelling combo 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.
Snow (Hey Oh) amp settings: a starting point
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 2, Bass 5, Middle 5, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 3, with the neck or middle position.
- Gain 2
- Bass 5
- Middle 5
- Treble 6
- Presence 5
- Reverb 3
- Signal chain
- Electro-Harmonix POG (outro)
- The control that matters most
- Compression. Pick attack and compression define this more than gain, so a lightly driven amp gets closer than a high-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
- 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. If you tell Tonelify which amp you own, it rewrites every value above for the controls that amp actually has.
What gear did Red Hot Chili Peppers use on Snow (Hey Oh)?
John Frusciante's Fender Stratocaster into Marshall Major and Silver Jubilee heads, the rig he listed for Stadium Arcadium, recorded at the Mansion with the band playing together, and an Electro-Harmonix POG on the outro to make the guitar sound like an organ.
Sources: Guitar Player, November 2006: Frusciante on Stadium Arcadium (archived), Ground Guitar: Frusciante's gear on Stadium Arcadium
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 Snow (Hey Oh) tone on your own amp?
Tell us your guitar, amp, and pedals
AI researches the original tone of Snow (Hey Oh)
Get exact knob settings adapted to your rig
Snow (Hey Oh) tone questions
What amp settings do you need for Snow (Hey Oh)?
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 2, Bass 5, Middle 5, Treble 6, Presence 5, Reverb 3, 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 percussive sparkling clean sixteenths from different positions.
What is the most important control for the Snow (Hey Oh) tone?
Compression. Pick attack and compression define this more than gain, so a lightly driven amp gets closer than a high-gain setting.
Can you get the Snow (Hey Oh) tone without the original gear?
Yes. The original was tracked with John Frusciante's Fender Stratocaster into Marshall Major and Silver Jubilee heads, the rig he listed for Stadium Arcadium, recorded at the Mansion with the band playing together, and an Electro-Harmonix POG on the outro to make the guitar sound like an organ, 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 Snow (Hey Oh) a rhythm or a lead tone?
It is a riff part with a clean character, from Red Hot Chili Peppers' 2000s alt rock 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.
