🎸 Metal · 1980s

Raining Blood by Slayer (Riff · Distorted) — Guitar Tone

by Slayer · riff

The Raining Blood by Slayer guitar tone is built on a Marshall JCM800 2203 + an overdrive boost, dialed in at gain 8/10, bass 7, mid 2, treble 7, presence 7 (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)

GAIN

BASS

MID

TREBLE

PRESENCE

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 284 metal tones in our researched catalog: Gain 8 sits right around the metal average (7.3); mids at 2 are well below average (5.2) — a real scoop; it sounds huge alone but can vanish in a band mix.

Guitar controls

VOLUME

TONE

Original gear

Amp: Marshall JCM800 2203 + an overdrive boost (gain past noon)

Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman ran Marshall JCM800 2203 heads with EMG 81/85 pickups. For Raining Blood: amp gain ~7, treble ~7, mids scooped (~2), bass high (~9), presence ~7, with an overdrive in front (gain past noon) for the tight, saturated thrash attack. Fast tremolo/down-picking.

Gear used on this tone

🎚️ Marshall JCM800 songs & tones →🎚️ Marshall songs & tones →🎚️ Tube Screamer songs & tones →🎚️ Ibanez RG songs & tones →🎚️ EMG active pickups songs & tones →

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

Pickups

bridge (EMG 81 active)

Effects / signal chain

distortion, overdrive

Tone character

scooped saturated thrash, tight & brutal, fast tremolo, aggressive

Recording context

studio

How it’s played

scooped saturated thrash distortion. This shapes how hard the amp is pushed and where the EQ sits for the Raining Blood sound.

Difficulty

5/5 · Riff

The relentless fast picking is the hard part; the tone is a scooped JCM800 boosted by an overdrive, EMG bridge pickup, tight and saturated.

Worth knowing

Raining Blood is a scooped, OVERDRIVE-BOOSTED Marshall JCM800 — gain ~7 with a Tube Screamer in front (gain past noon), treble ~7, MIDS scooped (~2), bass high (~9), presence ~7. EMG 81 bridge pickup. Tight and saturated.
Boost a cranked Marshall (or JCM800-style amp) with an overdrive, scoop the mids, push bass and presence, and gate it. Active bridge pickup for the tightness.
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?

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Raining Blood guitar tone — FAQ

What amp settings do I need for the Raining Blood guitar tone?

Set your amp to roughly: gain 8, bass 7, mid 2, treble 7, presence 7, reverb 1. These are community-researched baselines — GuitarToneAdapt re-dials them for your exact guitar and amp.

What gear was used for the Raining Blood tone?

Original gear/effects: Amp: Marshall JCM800 2203 + an overdrive boost (gain past noon); distortion, overdrive.

Can I get the Raining Blood 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 Slayer on Raining Blood — what gear and pedals?

Start with bridge (EMG 81 active), the amp EQ above (gain 8, bass 7, mid 2, treble 7, presence 7, reverb 1), and distortion, overdrive. 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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More like this

🎸 How to get Slayer’s guitar tone → · 🎸 more Metal guitar tones → · 🎚️ Marshall JCM800 settings → · 🎛️ best metal amp settings → · 🎸 more iconic guitar riffs → · 🎚️ Overdrive tone guide → · 🎚️ Distortion tone guide → · 🎯 more scooped mids tones → · 📖 New to amp settings? What every knob does →

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