Stairway to Heaven guitar tone

Compressed, cranked-amp overdrive with Telecaster bite

Player components only. A starting point nobody has played yet.

How the Stairway to Heaven tone sounds

A compressed, cranked-amp overdrive with a biting single-coil edge. It suits Led Zeppelin IV, recorded 1970-71, and covers Jimmy Page's solo. Page played his 1959 Telecaster, the Dragon Tele, through a modified 1959 Supro 1690T Coronado, whose pair of 10-inch speakers was replaced by one re-coned Oxford 12-inch. No pedal is evident. Tip: the drive comes from the amp running hard, so keep the gain on the amp rather than adding a pedal.

Amp settings

Guitar Rig 7 Player, in signal order. Dial each one by hand.

Amp Jump
- Preamp, 7 of 10
- Bass, 4.5 of 10
- Mid, 5.5 of 10
- Treble, 6.5 of 10
- Presence, 5.5 of 10
- Master, 7 of 10

Cab: Matched Cabinet Pro, the one that loads with Jump

Signal chain: Jump → cab
Key knob: Sets how hard the cranked amp compresses and drives
Guitar: Two single coils, bridge pickup. Volume 10, tone 10.

Not quite right?

Too dark: Treble 6.5 → 7, then Presence 5.5 → 6. A starting point; nobody has tried it yet.
Too bright: Presence 5.5 → 4.5. A starting point; nobody has tried it yet.
Too much gain: Preamp 7 → 6. A starting point; nobody has tried it yet.
Too little gain: Preamp 7 → 8. A starting point; nobody has tried it yet.

Questions about the Stairway to Heaven tone

What amp did Jimmy Page use for the Stairway to Heaven tone?

Modified 1959 Supro 1690T Coronado, into Single re-coned Oxford 12-inch.

What are the amp settings for the Stairway to Heaven tone?

On Jump in Guitar Rig 7 Player: Preamp 7, Bass 4.5, Mid 5.5, Treble 6.5, Presence 5.5, Master 7.

Is the Stairway to Heaven tone a rhythm or a lead tone?

A lead tone, on the amp's crunch channel.

Can I get the Stairway to Heaven tone without a Modified 1959 Supro 1690T Coronado?

Guitar Rig 7 Player has no Modified 1959 Supro 1690T Coronado, so this setup uses Jump with the settings above.