James Hetfield's Gear on Master of Puppets (1986)

Metallica - Master of Puppets (1986)

In 1986, Metallica released Master of Puppets, which quickly became known not only as one of the most critically acclaimed Thrash Metal albums of all time, but one of the most influential albums of all time, and name-checked by countless Metal guitar players as a source of inspiration.

Master of Puppets was recorded in Copenhagen, Denmark at Sweet Silence Studios with producer Flemming Rasmussen sitting at the helm. Although the album was, in most ways, a huge success story, it was also marred in tragedy.

While touring in support of the album, on the 27th September 1986, just 6 months after the album's release, the band were involved in an accident while in Sweden. The band's tour bus ran over a patch of black ice, causing it to skid and eventually flip over. Bassist Cliff Burton was thrown from his bunk and through the bus window, and tragically lost his life.

Pioneers of Thrash Metal

You can trace the origins of Metallica back to 1981, when drummer Lars Ulrich placed an advert in a local newspaper looking for musicians to jam with. One of the replies came from James Hetfield.

Even though Metallica was not a completed entity at this stage, Lars persuaded the owner of Metal Blade Records, Brian Sagel, to let them record a track for the upcoming compilation album, Metal Massacre.

Having been influenced by a combination of '70s Punk and the emerging UK scene known as the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, Hetfield and Ulrich began writing songs and searching for people to join their musical journey.

Early lineups of the band featured bassist Ron McGovney, and Megadeth founder Dave Mustaine. Eventually the band settled on its classic line up, with lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Cliff Burton, before heading into the studio to record their 1982 debut album, Kill 'Em All.

Metallica were at the forefront of the emerging Thrash Metal movement coming from the San Francisco Bay area, and became part of a conglomerate of bands known as The Big Four, which included Anthrax, Slayer and Megadeth (the latter formed by Dave Mustaine after his dismissal from Metallica in April 1983).

Guitar Player magazine from April 1989 showing James Hetfield with his Jackson King V. Credit: Guitarpulp.com

James Hetfield's guitars on Master of Puppets

During the recording sessions for Master of Puppets, numerous guitars were present in the studio, but the guitar that was widely reported as being the main guitar for the rhythm tracks was Hetfield's Jackson Custom Shop King V. This is the guitar nicknamed the "Kill Bon Jovi" guitar due to its headstock sticker.

The guitar is a white Jackson King V, loaded with a pair of Seymour Duncan Invader humbuckers.

In a new book attributed to the Metallica frontman himself, Messengers: The Guitars of James Hetfield [Permuted Press, 2023], he explains:

"I remember when I first got it, just looking at the way the knobs were set up and where the toggle switch was. They were in a horrible place for me. I swapped them so I could at least get to the toggle switch because, before that, the knob was in the way, just not a great design.

Then there's the distance between the tailpiece and the bridge, which is too long and somehow didn't feel tight enough for me. I felt that the pickup was too far away from the back bridge, so I had a luthier go in, router out the pickup hole, and move it more towards the bridge.

I thought that would help with the tightness of the crunch, but it didn't. From the beginning, there was a lot of love put into that guitar to make it sound right and try to make it work out."

James Hetfield's amps on Master of Puppets

An original Mesa Boogie Mark IIC+. Credit: Keystone Music Supply / Reverb

Mesa Boogie Mark IIC+

The main guitar amplifier used on Master of Puppets was the Mesa Boogie Mark IIC+, however this was not used in its typical fashion - instead, the amp had been modified to be used as a preamp and was slaved into a modified Marshall JCM800. The unique combination of the Mark IIC+ preamp and the JCM800 power amp, along with Hetfield's tight rhythm playing, is what created the Master of Puppets sound.

The Mark IIC+ had some unique EQ options, with a range of pull pots that activated features not listed on the amps front panel, such as gain boosts and low end boosts.

James Hetfield's Mark IIC+ settings on Master of Puppets

Hetfield's settings for this time are very readily documented, including some studio notes made by producer Flemming Rasmussen.

EQ settings for "Battery" on Master of Puppets (1986) made by Flemming Rasmussen. You can clearly see the diagram of the Mesa Boogie Mark IIC+ graphic EQ. Credit: fwrproduction.com

• Volume 1 7.5
• Treble 7 (Pulled)
• Bass 2
• Middle 4
• Master 1 4 (Pulled)
• Lead Drive 5 (Pulled)
• Lead Master 3.75
• Presence 4.5

The Treble knob being pulled activates a "Shift" mode, which shifts the centre-point of the upper frequency range and allows the pot to have a different sweep.

The Master pull knob enables the "Deep" mode, which adds an overall low-frequency boost.

The Lead Drive pull control is the channel selector. In the pulled position, the Lead channel of the amp is enabled.

You'll notice a very clear lack of mids in the settings. This is known as a scooped tone, with plenty of low and high end but no prominent mid-range. This gives Hetfield's guitar tone aggression and helps it sit well in the mix.

Hetfield would also used the amp's now-legendary 5-band graphic EQ to add a slight boost to the 80 and 240Hz controls, and a cut to the 2200 and 6600Hz sliders.

Roland JC-120 Jazz Chorus

The other amp that appeared on the Master of Puppets album is the Roland JC-120. This 2x12 combo amp was used for all the clean parts, and has been a part of Hetfield's studio rig since the Ride the Lightning album. The amp has a built in chorus effect, which was utilised for many clean tones across Metallica's catalogue of work.

The amp was EQ'd in a similar manner to the overdriven amps, with a large mid-scoop and boosted lows and highs. This produced a slightly hollow sound that you can hear on tracks such as "Master of Puppets" and "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)".

What pedals and effects did James Hetfield use on Master of Puppets?

James Hetfield has never been a prolific user of guitar pedals, especially at this early stage in the band's career. Prior to this album, Hetfield used a ProCo Rat and an Ibanez Tubescreamer, but there is no documented proof that these were used on the recording of Master of Puppets.

Instead, he seems to have played a lot of the rhythm tracks plugged directly into his amp, and utilised the chorus effect of the Roland JC-120 Jazz Chorus for the clean guitar parts on the album.

Get James Hetfield's Master of Puppets guitar sound on a budget

Hetfield's rhythm sound on Master of Puppets is one of the most coveted and copied Metal guitar tones in history, and many players have spent thousands trying to emulate this high-gain masterpiece.

But if you're working with a more realistic budget, there are still some great options available to get you close without breaking the bank.

Guitar

During the earlier years of Metallica, James Hetfield was often seen sporting a Flying V. The Master of Puppets album was recorded with his Jackson Custom Shop King V, and you can pick up the Jackson JS32 King V for under £350 in the UK. 

On tour, however, even during this era, it is common to find him playing a Gibson Explorer- a guitar with which he is now synonymous. If you shop around, it's possible to find a used Epiphone Explorer for between £300 and £500 in the UK.

Amp

With the cheapest Mesa Boogie amp coming in just shy of 2 grand, you might have to look elsewhere to capture the Hetfield MOP tone.

If you're shopping for an amp that can cover both the classic high-gain tones and the modulated cleans, then something from the modelling world would be an excellent option.

The Boss Katana 50 has plenty of volume, a flexible EQ, lots of gain on tap and various built in effects.

You could also consider a plugin which captures the Mesa Boogie Mark IIC+ mojo (there are several options out there), and run your guitar directly into your audio interface.

If you already have an amp but it's not quite capable of scooped high-gain tones, then this pedal will give you options. 

[product=kma-machines-guardian-of-the-wurm]
It's not a direct emulation of a Mesa, but what the Guardian Of The Wurm does give you is a super-tweakable 4-band graphic EQ, a shitload of gain on tap, a switchable noise gate, and a clean blend. A very powerful tool indeed!
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And if all else fails, grab yourself a second-hand Marshall and a graphic EQ pedal such as the one below.

[product=old-blood-noise-endeavors-utility-3-buffer-eq]
A simple-but-effective 3 band EQ. Scoop those mids for classic Master of Puppets-era Metallica.
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Pedals

Although it is widely thought that Hetfield didn't use any pedals on this album, there are a few options that you might want to consider:

ProCo Rat - This is a distortion that is useful as a tone-shaping pedal when paired with an overdriven amp. It gives you a very aggressive, early-Metallica style sound.

[product=drunk-beaver-bat-v2]
Stefan Karlsson of the Guitar Pedal X blog calls Drunk Beaver founder Vitalii Bobrov "the master of Rat Distortion". This is his OG multi-mode Rat, with no fewer than 6 clipping modes and 2 op-amp modes. Looking for a Rat? You've found it!
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Ibanez Tubescreamer - Famed for fattening up an already overdriven amp and pushing it a little harder, the Tubescreamer introduces a slight low-end cut which helps to tighten things up and tame any overbearing bass frequencies.

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Featuring the same Texas Instruments RC4558P chip found in some of the earliest examples of the TS808 Tubescreamer, the 4558 OD sounds absolutely incredible and does that amp-pushing-and-tightening thing to perfection.
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Boss Chorus - If you don't have an amp with built in chorus, then you'll need to grab a chorus pedal for those clean parts on Master of Puppets. The Boss CH-1 Super Chorus and Boss Chorus CE-2 are both great picks, as is this pick below.

[product=kink-guitar-pedals-smashed-kraken]
The Smashed Kraken (great name!) is a lush, sweet sounding BBD chorus based on the Boss CE-2. The Blend control adds an extra level of versatility, allowing you to mix in some of your original signal for added clarity or just a more subtle effect.
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Metallica's Master of Puppets track listing

1. "Battery"
2. "Master of Puppets"
3. "The Thing That Should Not Be"
4. "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)"
5. "Disposable Heroes"
6. "Leper Messiah"
7. "Orion"
8. "Damage Inc."

Lead image credit: Metallica.com