The band Slipknot is a force to be reckoned with in the world of metal. Despite its nu-metal roots, Slipknot began to explore new avenues after taking on legendary producer Rick Rubin for "Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses)." Mick Thompson and Jim Root--the band’s masked guitar duo--played solos for the first time, and the music began to lean toward metal. "Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock" featured "Before I Forget"; more people than ever try to emulate the band's sound. Line 6 has made this easier on its Spider Jam and Spider IV models, and the older models don’t require much tinkering.
Things You'll Need:
- Electric Guitar
- Any Line 6 Amplifier (Preferably Spider Jam Or Spider Iv)
- Guitar Input Cable
Line 6 Spider Jam
Plug your guitar into the “Input” jack with your guitar cable, and switch your amp on. On most guitars, the corresponding jack will be on the underside of the main body. Instead of tweaking the sound manually, load one of Line 6's preset effects mixes.
Press the “Tone/Settings” button, which you will find to the left of the LCD display on the top of the unit. This brings up a menu of preset sounds and effects. Navigate them with the controls to the right of the display. Press “Up” on the four-way directional button. This selects the top left area of the display.
Turn the “Select” knob until the top left corner of the screen displays "Artist Bank." Then press “Down” on the four-way directional button to bring up the list of preset artist sounds (the “Down” button functions as an “Enter” button in this menu). Each item on this menu represents a folder, most of which contain a few variation sounds for each artist. Find “Slipknot” and press “Down” again. The “Select” knob now scrolls through the available Slipknot presets.
Line 6 Spider IV
Plug in, and switch your amp on. The process for the Spider IV is similar to that for the Spider Jam, except the relevant controls are to the right of the unit's front panel.
Locate the small display above the power switch. Beneath this, you will see the "Presets" knob and to its left, a four-way directional button. Press "Right" on the directional button until the screen reads "Artist" in the top left corner.
Press "Down" on the directional button until the top right of the display reads "Slipknot." Now simply turn the "Presets" knob to scroll through the available variations on Slipknot's sound.
Spider III and Older Models
Connect your guitar, and fire up your amp. With the Spider III and other older Line 6 models you have to dial the sound in manually using the knobs on the front panel. For minimal effort, the "Metal" and "Insane" settings will get you in the right neighborhood.
Turn the “Drive” to "9," “Treble” to "8," “Mid” to "3" and the “Bass” up to "8" (dots around the dial represent these levels). You want to make the low end notes sound out well and retain their definition because this is a staple of Slipknot's sound.
Keep "Reverb" set to "0," but don’t be afraid to experiment: Keep the "Reverb" off only to aid in definition of the notes. You don't want to make the complex, fast and punchy guitar work that defines Slipknot's metal disappear in a haze of reverberation.
References
Writer Bio
Lee Johnson has written for various publications and websites since 2005, covering science, music and a wide range of topics. He studies physics at the Open University, with a particular interest in quantum physics and cosmology. He's based in the UK and drinks too much tea.
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