🎸 Indie Rock · 2010s

Why d You Only Call Me When You re High by Arctic Monkeys (Riff · Distorted) — Guitar Tone

by Arctic Monkeys · riff

The Why d You Only Call Me When You re High by Arctic Monkeys guitar tone is built on a Fender / Vox, dialed in at gain 4/10, bass 5, mid 6, treble 6, presence 5 (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)

4
GAIN
5
BASS
6
MID
6
TREBLE
5
PRESENCE
3
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 38 indie tones in our researched catalog: Gain 4 sits right around the indie average (4.0); mids at 6 are right around average (6.0).

Original gear

Guitar: Fender · Amp: Fender / Vox

Pickups

neck pickup

Signal chain

Fender → Fender / Vox

Effects

reverb, light overdrive

Tone character

Dark, reverby, low-gain tone with a slinky, late-night groove.

Worth knowing

⚡ 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 →

Why d You Only Call Me When You re High guitar tone — FAQ

What amp settings do I need for the Why d You Only Call Me When You re High guitar tone?

Set your amp to roughly: gain 4, bass 5, mid 6, treble 6, presence 5, reverb 3. These are community-researched baselines — GuitarToneAdapt re-dials them for your exact guitar and amp.

What gear was used for the Why d You Only Call Me When You re High tone?

Original gear/effects: Guitar: Fender · Amp: Fender / Vox; reverb, light overdrive.

Can I get the Why d You Only Call Me When You re High 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 Arctic Monkeys on Why d You Only Call Me When You re High — what gear and pedals?

Start with neck pickup, the amp EQ above (gain 4, bass 5, mid 6, treble 6, presence 5, reverb 3), and reverb, light overdrive. Then let GuitarToneAdapt compensate for the guitar, amp and pedals you actually own so it sits like the record.

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

More like this

🎸 How to get Arctic Monkeys’s guitar tone →  ·  🎸 more Indie Rock guitar tones →  ·  🎛️ best indie amp settings →  ·  🎸 more iconic guitar riffs →  ·  🎚️ Overdrive tone guide →  ·  🎚️ Reverb tone guide →  ·  📖 New to amp settings? What every knob does →

Related tones

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