John Frusciante Amp Settings: Marshall and Fender Tone Guide (RHCP)

There's little you can do to separate Frusciante's tone from his high-dollar Fender Stratocasters and Marshall tube amps. Fender tube amps are also a good fit, but those aren't particularly cheap either. So I should be clear up front, I can't account for your guitar or amp, which are far more responsible for your tone than the settings themselves.

That said, the correct amp settings can at least get you started, which you can take to whatever amps or guitars you have access to. I'll cover my preferred John Frusciante amp settings which you can start with, then tweak as needed.

Note that I've based these settings largely off "Under the Bridge" and "Californication" tracks with the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Frusciante's Gear (main guitar and amp)

Frusciante used Fender Stratocasters and Marshall heads for most of his RHCP recording work. The Fender Player II Stratocaster is the closest accessible option to his core guitar setup. For amps, the Marshall DSL40CR captures the mid-forward Marshall breakup that defines his dirty tone — it's a current-production 40-watt combo that works well at home studio volumes.

Frusciante Clean Amp Settings

A bright switch is going to be extremely helpful here, but if you don't have one, fall back on your presence and treble settings. Those three elements are going to be the difference makers. If you also don't have a presence knob, it's going to be tough, since your primary tweaking option will only be the treble control.

• Gain: 2
• Bass: 7
• Mids: 8
• Treble: 7
• Presence: 9
• Volume: 9
• Bright button: On

Gain/Dirty Amp Settings

For a dirty channel, I'm only changing the gain and volume to give you a little more breakup. If you want something heavier, I would add an overdrive pedal to push it a little further. If you don't have one, push gain up to 8 or 9 and bring the volume down to 5ish.

• Gain: 7
• Volume: 6

Frusciante's Guitar Geek Rig Diagram

This is the original Guitar Geek rig diagram of John Frusciante's rig. Remember, this is not a commentary on the gear you would need, but you can definitely get an idea of the brands and/or specific models to look for.

Questions about Frusciante's tone?

If you have questions about these amp settings or insight from your own testing and experience, drop it in the comments section below and I'll do my best to help out.

Always keep in mind that tone is subjective to an extent, and can be difficult to pin down with amp settings alone.

But again, this page at least gives you a place to start.

I sincerely hope it's helpful.

Square image in opening paragraph via Wikimedia Commons

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