Immigrant Song by Led Zeppelin (Riff · Distorted) — Guitar Tone

The Immigrant Song by Led Zeppelin guitar tone is built on a Marshall 1959 Super Lead, dialed in at gain 6/10, bass 6.5, mid 6, treble 7, presence 7 (community-researched baseline). Full breakdown below — then adapt every knob to your exact guitar and amp, free.

Amp settings (0–10)

Community-researched baseline. Your rig is different — GuitarToneAdapt re-dials every knob for your specific guitar, amp and pickups.

How these settings compare

Measured against the 70 hard rock tones in our researched catalog: Gain 6 sits right around the hard rock average (6.0); mids at 6 are right around average (6.1).

Guitar controls

Original gear

Amp: Marshall 1959 Super Lead (Number One Les Paul)

1959 Gibson Les Paul “Number One”; Maestro Echoplex EP-3; occasional Tone Bender fuzz. Bass and treble up, presence high.

Gear used on this tone

Don’t own this gear? GuitarToneAdapt re-creates the sound on the rig you actually have.

Pickups

bridge/both humbucker (Les Paul)

Effects / signal chain

distortion

Tone character

bright cranked breakup, full low end, dynamic, vintage grit

Recording context

studio

How it’s played

cranked-amp breakup (medium gain) distortion. This shapes how hard the amp is pushed and where the EQ sits for the Immigrant Song sound.

Difficulty

6/10 · Riff

The riffs are iconic but playable; the tone is a cranked bright amp, a hot Les Paul and a touch of echo — not high gain.

Level: Expert-level — see more the hardest guitar songs →

Worth knowing

• Immigrant Song is a relentless galloping riff — a bright, cutting cranked-Marshall tone, mids present, played hard. Keep it raw and driving.
• Jimmy Page's Led Zeppelin tone is a cranked, bright, dynamic classic-rock sound — a 1959 Gibson Les Paul ('Number One') into a Marshall 1959 Super Lead, though the FIRST album (and the Whole Lotta Love-era sound) used a small Supro Thunderbolt cranked, and early tours a Hiwatt. A Maestro Echoplex EP-3 tape delay is all over the live sound (Whole Lotta Love, Dazed and Confused).
• His settings push bass AND treble high (~7-8) with presence up (~8), mids moderate (~5-6) and gain moderate (~5) — it's amp breakup and a hot Les Paul, not high gain. A little fuzz (Tone Bender) and the Echoplex add the character.
• Settings are community-researched starting points, not official recall sheets — it's a cranked amp, a Les Paul and your hands more than a high-gain channel.

Immigrant Song guitar tone — FAQ

Share this tone

Sources

• Jimmy Page Amp Settings & Gear — MusicStrive
• Jimmy Page Amp Settings — Guitar Chalk
• Jimmy Page Guitars & Gear — Equipboard

Free practice tools

🎤 Online guitar tuner →  ·  🎶 Guitar chords →  ·  🎸 Guitar tunings →  ·  🎚️ Tuning chart →  ·  🎼 Guitar scales →  ·  🎚️ Chord transposer & capo →  ·  🥁 Metronome →  ·  🎶 Song chords →  ·  🎧 Guess the Tone game →  ·  🎸 Tone Legend quiz →  ·  📊 Tone data report →

🔥 The most famous guitar tones of all time →  ·  🗂️ Browse tone collections (by genre & language) →

Songs by level: 🎯 Easy  ·  🎸 Intermediate  ·  🔥 Hardest — each with the amp settings.

More like this

🎸 How to get Led Zeppelin’s guitar tone →  ·  🎸 more Hard Rock guitar tones →  ·  🎚️ Marshall Plexi settings →  ·  🎛️ best hard rock amp settings →  ·  🎸 more iconic guitar riffs →  ·  🎚️ Distortion tone guide →  ·  🎯 more dynamic touch sensitive tones →  ·  📖 New to amp settings? What every knob does →

Related tones