🎸 Rock · 1970s

Message in a Bottle by The Police (Riff · Clean) — Guitar Tone

by The Police · riff

The Message in a Bottle by The Police guitar tone is built on a Clean amp, dialed in at gain 2.5/10, bass 4.5, mid 5.5, treble 7, presence 6 (community-researched baseline). Full breakdown below — then adapt every knob to your exact guitar and amp, free.

🎛️ These settings are for the original rig — re-dial them for YOUR amp in 10 seconds. Free, no signup →

Amp settings (0–10)

2.5

GAIN

4.5

BASS

5.5

MID

TREBLE

PRESENCE

2.5

REVERB

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 540 rock tones in our researched catalog: Gain 2.5 sits well below the rock average (4.8) — cleaner and more dynamic than typical rock; mids at 5.5 are right around average (6.2).

Guitar controls

VOLUME

TONE

Original gear

Amp: Clean amp (bright, glassy) + Electric Mistress chorus/flange

Andy Summers’ modified early-’60s Fender Telecaster (a Gibson PAF in the neck, Tele single-coil at the bridge, brass bridge, built-in preamp) gives a bright, glassy clean. The signature add9 arpeggio sits in chorus (an Electro-Harmonix Electric Mistress) — more chorus than flange on this track.

Gear used on this tone

🎚️ Fender Telecaster songs & tones →🎚️ single-coil guitars songs & tones →

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

Pickups

neck/blend (glassy, with PAF warmth)

Effects / signal chain

chorus, reverb

Tone character

bright glassy clean, shimmering chorus, ringing add9 arpeggio, articulate

Recording context

studio

How it’s played

clean & glassy with chorus distortion. This shapes how hard the amp is pushed and where the EQ sits for the Message in a Bottle sound.

Difficulty

4/5 · Riff

The add9 chord shapes and stretches are the challenge; the tone is a bright clean Tele with a chorus/flange — let every note ring.

Level: Intermediate — see more intermediate guitar songs →

Worth knowing

Message in a Bottle is a CLEAN, bright, glassy Telecaster with chorus (an Electric Mistress) — not distortion. Low gain, treble up, let the add9 arpeggio ring. The chorus/flange is the signature ingredient.
Use a bright clean tone, low gain, treble high, and a chorus or Electric Mistress. Let every note of the arpeggio ring out.
Settings are community-researched starting points, not official recall sheets.

⚡ Same tone, YOUR gear — re-dials the gain & EQ for your amp and pickups, free →

🎧 Can you guess the tone?

Recognise famous songs from just the amp dials — a quick 10-round game. Beat your friends. Play free →

🎸 Which guitar legend is your tone twin? Take the quiz & share your result →

Message in a Bottle guitar tone — FAQ

What amp settings do I need for the Message in a Bottle guitar tone?

Set your amp to roughly: gain 2.5, bass 4.5, mid 5.5, treble 7, presence 6, reverb 2.5. These are community-researched baselines — GuitarToneAdapt re-dials them for your exact guitar and amp.

What gear was used for the Message in a Bottle tone?

Original gear/effects: Amp: Clean amp (bright, glassy) + Electric Mistress chorus/flange; chorus, reverb.

Can I get the Message in a Bottle tone on a different guitar or amp?

Yes. Different guitars and amps need different knob positions to sound the same. GuitarToneAdapt models pickup output and wood brightness, then compensates so you match the record on your own rig.

How do I sound like The Police on Message in a Bottle — what gear and pedals?

Start with neck/blend (glassy, with PAF warmth), the amp EQ above (gain 2.5, bass 4.5, mid 5.5, treble 7, presence 6, reverb 2.5), and chorus, reverb. Then let GuitarToneAdapt compensate for the guitar, amp and pedals you actually own so it sits like the record.

Share this tone

Sources

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🎤 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 The Police’s guitar tone → · 🎸 more Rock guitar tones → · 🎛️ best rock amp settings → · 🎸 more iconic guitar riffs → · 🎚️ Chorus tone guide → · 🎚️ Reverb tone guide → · 🎯 more articulate tones → · 📖 New to amp settings? What every knob does →

Settings are community-researched estimates, not official. GuitarToneAdapt adapts them to your gear. guitartoneadapt.com