My Curse by Killswitch Engage (Riff · Clean) — Guitar Tone

The My Curse by Killswitch Engage guitar tone is built on a Laney VH100R, dialed in at gain 0/10, bass 5.5, mid 5.5, treble 6.5, presence 5.5 (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 284 metal tones in our researched catalog: Gain 0 sits well below the metal average (7.3) — cleaner and more dynamic than typical metal; mids at 5.5 are right around average (5.2).

Guitar controls

Original gear

Guitar: Caparison Horus (Joel Stroetzel signature, likely used in studio for clean parts) · Amp: Laney VH100R

Studio recording, 2006 (As Daylight Dies album). Clean sections are likely recorded with the Laney VH100R's clean channel, as per era-correct rig rundowns. No evidence of live gear or alternate amps for clean in studio. No evidence of additional amp modeling or digital amps for the original studio clean tone.

Gear used on this tone

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

Pickups

Neck pickup

Signal chain

Caparison Horus (Joel Stroetzel signature, likely used in studio for clean parts) → Laney VH100R

Effects

reverb

Amp effects: Reverb (spring, level 3)

Tone character

clear and bell-like, warm neck pickup timbre, articulate and defined, tight note separation, slightly scooped mids for clarity, subtle amp reverb for space, no audible breakup, no chorus or modulation swirl, no compression artifacts, studio-polished clean

Recording context

studio

How it’s played

straight, medium tempo, medium dynamics · clean distortion. This shapes how hard the amp is pushed and where the EQ sits for the My Curse sound.

Difficulty

2.5/5 · Riff

The clean riff requires accurate picking and muting to maintain clarity and avoid string noise, but does not involve advanced techniques or fast tempo.

Worth knowing

• Gain adjusted to 0 for clean tone
• No direct source confirms exact clean amp settings for 'My Curse' studio recording; settings estimated based on Laney VH100R typical clean setup for metal in 2000s.
• No explicit confirmation of pedal or modulation effects on clean section; no chorus, delay, or compression audible in recording.
• Guitar and pickup choice inferred from artist's studio rig and era; Caparison Horus with Seymour Duncan pickups is documented for this period.
• No evidence of effects loop or additional rack effects for clean section.
• If alternate guitar/amp/pickup info emerges, settings may need revision.
• Settings cross-referenced with genre and era conventions for accuracy. Killswitch Engage's 'My Curse' features a tight, modern metal tone with high gain, controlled bass, balanced mids, and slightly boosted treble/presence for clarity and aggression. The production is dry with little to no reverb, matching both the band's gear (Mesa/Peavey high-gain amps) and mid-2000s metalcore conventions.

🎸 All My Curse guitar tones — every part & section →

My Curse guitar tone — FAQ

Share this tone

Sources

• Killswitch Engage: Ironhearts, Redemption, and Big Digits

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 →  ·  🎯 Easy guitar songs to play (with settings) →  ·  🗂️ Browse tone collections (by genre & language) →

More like this

🎸 How to get Killswitch Engage’s guitar tone →  ·  🎸 more Metal guitar tones →  ·  🎛️ best metal amp settings →  ·  🎸 more iconic guitar riffs →  ·  🎯 more scooped mids tones →  ·  📖 New to amp settings? What every knob does →

Related tones