MK Ultra guitar tone

The rig Muse used

Researched from interviews, production write-ups and gear histories — not guessed.

Signal chain

The order the original sound was built in. The exact settings get dialled for your own amp or modeller when you generate the tone.

1. Manson Custom Electric

   1

   source

   guitar
2. DigiTech Whammy IV

   2

   octave tracking / pitch doubling

   pitch
3. Z.Vex Fuzz Factory

   3

   gated dirt / oscillator

   drive
4. Diezel VH4 100W Head

   4

   rhythm crunch / core heavy tone

   amp
5. Diezel 4x12 Vintage 30 Cabinet

   5

   rhythm crunch projection

   cab
6. Shure SM57

   6

   dynamic guitar mic

   mic
7. Line 6 Echo Pro

   7

   ambience and stereo widening

   delay

Why we think this is right

During 'The Resistance' era, Matthew Bellamy heavily utilized his custom Manson guitars (particularly the 'Santa' and '007' models) with humbuckers, tuned to Drop D (and down a half-step live). The core studio tone for the heavy, synthesizer-like riffs on 'MK Ultra' is driven by a combination of high-gain amplifiers—primarily the MIDI-controlled Diezel VH4 blended with the boutique, aircraft-aluminum-housed Dickinson Mk II combo which Bellamy started using heavily during this album's sessions. The tracking of the lead riff features a prominent octave effect (an octave up and down blend) produced via his rack-mounted pitch shifters/harmonizers (such as his Eventide or DigiTech Whammy).

Sources

• youtube.com - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQHK66jwoU5Zvha-qV6hpNZ4n7c4VZuQOS_4RTuVF5fBehmDEKz3QgdJelXziQCxr_bW91act5-_jDyKInZcdJ1WGvt4mBnpkzotS-CGAJP_zI5Y2OqSuT4M8yozvf61Ns0=
• muse.mu - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQFvQcuzgi3EtlU-l5Uk-g_hHJmWQ99DqqpceZiZIUyOo6YuiMlPkG4tDmWjA_egVwatOHIkVrdelCJyHYwg0ee5v62A-0nqcWExDgLCbEUHZoETSK9DlVRCglXkPykGiQ1U-oXDupJQBw==
• mixdownmag.com.au - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEPyRX9fNo3VTke7jJ6JQx-kUpbiOlcidQ8GLbhYhaXD6Cb5uAT00_huZIBxPkKuD6_lehtqmRM79Ng5B0v0Hs8A7bybf44VFp4wGpQ9-C30FAyMGlU-AGwfuSqozK8ExZO8f2bcEoQhliZjJzvVYAJriU=
• muse.mu - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQGV2Xo8I3GbVGIiHtf8RI-2n2yl5020YAn7HFJ7F9PznO5Y2rP4tSJzzoFqoGAdydsCCb3yqCxsI7bqZsO6hyQUDVC5JUKwus9e-3l05OLWnw7vvyIkGsa8orLNnxSN1BV5DBDc1Fu57cY=
• equipboard.com - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQHn1yyTibciVSeGIXwsgv-wXjfevncePE1RN0zClNtKNsN17PBaRLxZWXvYiu3qRmMUqvXXwIscdbe4HfzjPM8qCbTwVqgC7L1bEymPangNonKc01F5uZ0IRTGNXvWorHs=
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• reddit.com - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQFkCHO0FvvfCWf0-c2XpodE2RrFOOh925ew3b0UROBp0DsbMXBNGYupkaGpoUL-70PztC8K5h6ASI_RK_n8S6qwAIsZJqM-jchExCjdYqaR7_6WErgg2Phz5Ac56hkJlH2yA-BX-1ejgCgBZ6Tadw9GyEUndaNiWuVtjjQbqxh9l-kFHXv6Z_cGnB0eYAWUXXUGzlg=
• youtube.com - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQGEC1ll3Nln31Sj9W7V5cco4StEOTEVSRDGKuAMVdsfK9Z4D8j03xLJn2N2hqgImf6i96a_0GODaoBNIXlcl8MkfmT61gyaVwGkAnl9Agwn8_0tkNR1jsNgSdm2nx7WWk0=
• youtube.com - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQFjN-aLIf94ZZMSwNgoTZH_potaGSgHBI9SKtzNA0SlBe0s0ZE1nXlZRfBMezzQ7nnZ81jMV0KhKfQArHga9P2Vk99iQur_d0J7Ua5T1B8f5a9u6qn0vULtRU0b8BGgGUU4
• reddit.com - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQERdTzKqLM95tayeJ-83Xb2j8-6ZHqQ6LyKVRDye2deo970VBDF3HwBp6hdBLOO6R48BebQEaHq0QuEfhqf3NNZSCxjK9ZWlQJwYnUJdzEHhrXPCtfCP1e3sp6YzcGGGcRbSAYvytG9dAdhAGq4orcg3dCdRLWw77k1MDHq2TJDaBkFkbKeoPF5qlT40m4tSH1pD_md
• youtube.com - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQFYil1a1xebo9fmHFBd7ZymwfUyMnsKLYEJNb5VSFDsWCE03b3R6uUWlcl6GYYyX57FuEgrueHLrjEINepZEME72xWWc097pOHll3EloVAZQrD8oFPPQyUJvpXhdlhgw7k=
• guitarfxdepot.com - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQGwuUotal_QM4WyiB2wL7Hfs8GNV_5eLQv3PRHQsjeHKSay97lwZPx7RiObPiq5WvZEwc9eH0gKH5d2_K5ibZcj_nck1zwwvrupsKAsgcXVTEWjrk4juP-haRFu5dZz38OrH7Cj7U4rxQqCoew=
• songsterr.com - https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEQuqwIV_2se9Vrn5klMVQAh5A3b5l5cRKWfo5vP7j23JyI_goDZTeiwuZzmdfeS-GC76CqAORsq-0JErF4UQ-D_W8z2ToG6uCg9jM11rl8vTt2KHIi0oqbg1ZA2THrSuIVHfuEnZmNo9d6P2sz1aOPtPnWWW0SfVhXkZuyjZWs04kiVNrW
• Dickinson Amplification official artist roster
• Sound Like Muse - MK Ultra (Guitar Analysis & Community Consensus)
• Equipboard - Matthew Bellamy Gear Profile
• Guitar World & Mixdown Magazine Matt Bellamy Gear Rundowns

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