Man in the Box
Alice in Chains · Facelift · 1990
The main riff is Cantrell's single-humbucker G&L Rampage into a cranked-but-not-saturated 100-watt Marshall, double-tracked hard left and right. Keep gain moderate and mids pushed: the riff reads as heavy because of low-mid thickness and palm muting, not because of high gain. His Rampage's bridge unit is usually reported as a Seymour Duncan JB, though early Rampages shipped with a Schaller humbucker, so period certainty on the pickup is lower than on the amp.
Where these numbers come from: worked out from the documented rig and the sound of the record
Tuning
Eb standard (down a half step)
The answering melody over the intro riff is a talk box tracking the vocal line, not a fretted part; a wah gets you close if you don't own one.
Guitar
- G&L Rampage (1985) · Seymour Duncan JB humbucker · bridge (only pickup)
Amp
Bogner-modified Marshall JCM800 2204
Cantrell told Guitar World he used a Reinhold Bogner-modified Marshall exclusively on Facelift and Dirt; the amp is generally identified as a JCM800 2204 mod nicknamed the "Snorkler." Gain set for tight breakup rather than saturation, mids up — that's the riff's bark.
Amp
Marshall 1959 Super Lead 100
Producer Dave Jerden's account differs from Cantrell's: he says Facelift's main rhythm guitars were a Randall 100-watt on one side and a Marshall 100 Super Lead on the other, with leads through his own 1988 Super Lead modified by Mike Moran. No gain control on a Super Lead — Volume I close to 8, and Jerden said he chased fat low mids (300Hz-1k) at the desk.
Pedals
- Dunlop Heil Talk Box · talk box · Full guitar signal into the box, amp mic'd through the tube; mouth shapes the vowels of the vocal melody
- Dunlop Cry Baby · wah · Solo sweep only, not the riff; heel-to-toe over the phrase
Tone character
thick low mids · tight palm-muted crunch · mid-gain Marshall grind · clear low end, not boomy · double-tracked and wide
Low-string power chords and a two-note figure at a slow tempo — the work is in the palm muting and locking the syncopated rests, not in the fretting hand.
Want this on your own amp?
These are the record's settings. Tell us what you play through and we'll translate every knob to the amp you actually own — free.
Adapt it to my gearSources
- Jerry Cantrell: Facelift — Guitar World
- Interview with Dave Jerden — Gearspace
- Jerry Cantrell's Guitars and Gear — Ground Guitar
- Jerry Cantrell's Guitar Gear, Pedalboard & Amps — Equipboard
- Jerry Cantrell's Guitar Gear on Dirt — Boost Guitar Pedals
- Man in the Box — Wikipedia
- Man In The Box Guitar Lesson — Guitar Lessons 365