Preset Guitar Rig 5 Avenged Sevenfold -
To achieve the signature Avenged Sevenfold (A7X) sound in Guitar Rig 5
, you need to emulate Synyster Gates' high-gain, tight, and mid-focused "American" metal tone. This is best achieved using simulations of high-gain tube amplifiers like the Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier Bogner Uberschall Guitar Chalk 🎸 Essential Amp & Cabinet Setup
The "core" of the A7X tone is a modern high-gain sound with a slightly scooped but present midrange and a very tight low end to handle fast palm-muted riffs. Primary Amp Selection (Mesa/Boogie simulation): Best for the City of Evil Ultrasonic
(Bogner Uberschall simulation): Excellent for a thicker, modern high-gain response. Cabinet (Control Room) 4x12 Modern 4x12 Vintage Microphone Mix : Balance a Dynamic 57 (for bite and grit) with a Condenser 414 (for body).
: Keep the microphones close to the center for maximum clarity and high-end definition. 🎚️ Recommended Preset Settings
Use these general parameters as a starting point to dial in the "Bat Country" or "Nightmare" style tones. Guitar Chalk Suggested Setting 7.0 – 8.0 High saturation but still clear. 5.5 – 6.5 Thick, but avoid "mud". 3.5 – 4.5 Slightly scooped but keeps presence. 6.0 – 7.5 Bright and cutting. Adds "air" and high-end sparkle. ⚙️ Key Effects & Signal Chain
A7X's tone relies heavily on pre-gain tightening and post-gain cleaning. Noise Gate (First in Chain)
: Set this aggressively to ensure silent stops during "chugging" riffs. Skreamer (Overdrive) : 8–10 /
: This acts as a boost to tighten the bass before it hits the amp. Graphic EQ (Post-Amp) Cut frequencies around 200–300 Hz to remove boxiness. Slightly boost for "nasal" lead presence. Delay/Reverb (Optional) Add a subtle Psychedelay Twin Delay for lead solos to provide space. Keep rhythm tracks dry for maximum impact. ⚡ Pro Tips for Authenticity Drop Tuning : Most A7X songs are in (e.g., "Unholy Confessions") or preset guitar rig 5 avenged sevenfold
: High-output humbuckers are essential. Synyster Gates famously uses his signature Schecter/Seymour Duncan Invader Sustainiac Quad Tracking
: To get that "massive" studio sound, record your rhythm parts four times, panning two 100% Left/Right and two 70% Left/Right. Key Takeaway
: Don't over-crank the gain; Syn's tone is surprisingly clear. Focus on the to get that "sizzling" top end. YouTube tutorials
showing these exact modules in the Guitar Rig 5 interface, or are you looking for downloadable .ssr files for these presets?
This report details how to reconstruct the signature guitar tones of Avenged Sevenfold—specifically focusing on Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance
—using the components available in Native Instruments Guitar Rig 5. 1. The Core Amp Selection
To replicate the band's aggressive yet clear high-gain sound, you must select amplifiers that mimic their real-world gear, such as the Mesa/Boogie Triple Rectifier Go to product viewer dialog for this item. (used extensively in the City of Evil era) or Gates' custom Schecter Hellwin . Primary Amp Choice: " ": This is based on the Go to product viewer dialog for this item.
, which provides the tight palm-muted "thump" and saturation characteristic of Avenged Sevenfold's rhythm tracks. Secondary Amp Choice: " ": This model is based on the Mesa/Boogie Rectifier To achieve the signature Avenged Sevenfold (A7X) sound
. It is excellent for a thicker, more "wall-of-sound" rhythm tone with a massive low-end response.
Clean Amp Choice: "Cool Plex" or "Jazz Amp": For the bright, sparkling cleans found in songs like "Buried Alive," use these with high treble and slight gain for added body. 2. Recommended Signal Chain & Settings
Achieving the "A7X" sound requires more than just gain; it requires surgical EQ and specific "boost" techniques to keep the low-end from becoming muddy. A. Input & Pre-Processing
Skreamer (Overdrive): Place this before the amp. Set Drive at 0, Tone at 5-6, and Volume at 10. This "tightens" the amp's response, making palm mutes more percussive.
Noise Gate: Place this first in your rack. An aggressive threshold (around -40dB) is essential for the band's signature "stop-start" syncopated riffing. B. Amplifier Settings (Lead/High Gain)
Gain: 7.0 – 8.5 (Avoid cranking to 10 to maintain clarity). Bass: 5.0 – 6.0.
Mids: 3.5 – 5.0 (A slight "scoop" is okay for rhythm, but keep mids higher for leads to "cut" through). Treble: 6.5 – 8.0. Presence: 6.0 – 7.0. C. Post-Processing (The "Studio" Finish)
Graphic EQ: Use this to cut muddiness around 250Hz and boost the 1-2kHz range for presence. Apply a sharp high-cut filter at 8kHz to remove digital "fizz". Control Room / Cabinet: Use the 4x12 Vintage 30 cabinet IR for the most authentic mid-range bite. 3. Lead Guitar vs. Rhythm Specifics The Anatomy of a Popular A7X Patch for
Since "Avenged Sevenfold" presets are user-created content rather than an official Native Instruments expansion, this review focuses on the playability, accuracy of tone, and the technical limitations of the software versus the real gear used by guitarists Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance.
The Anatomy of a Popular A7X Patch for GR5
While there is no official "Avenged Sevenfold" license pack for Guitar Rig 5, the most downloaded community patches share a specific signal chain. Here is what you would typically find inside a well-rated preset:
1. The Noise Gate (Input) Synyster plays fast, complex riffs (e.g., "Beast and the Harlot"). Without a gate at the front, GR5’s high-gain models get muddy. The Transparent Gate is usually set to around 11 o’clock.
2. The Amp Model: "Gratifier" (Lead) The secret sauce. The Gratifier (a Marshall JCM800 simulator on steroids) is the most common choice. However, to get that Bogner "crunch," users stack two gratifiers in parallel:
- Head 1: High gain, mids at 6, presence at 7.
- Head 2: Lower gain, boosted treble, panned center.
3. The Cab Simulator: "Control Room" (XXL 4x12) This is where most presets fail. Stock cabs sound digital. An accurate A7X patch uses the Control Room with a custom impulse response (IR) loaded via a third-party loader (like NadIR). Without an outside IR of a Mesa Oversized 4x12, you are fighting an uphill battle.
4. The Effects Chain for Leads
- Reverb: Pro-Reverb (Hall, short decay).
- Delay: Psyche Delay (Analog, 400ms, 5 repeats).
- Overdrive: A Screamer (Tube Screamer clone) before the amp with drive at 0 and level at 10 to tighten the bass.
2. Dual Amp Blending
To get Zacky Vengeance's thick rhythm tone, A7X often blends two amps.
- Split your signal after the Skreamer.
- Path A:
Gratifier(Mid-heavy) - Path B:
Lead 800(Treble-heavy) - Blend them 60/40 using the
Splitcomponent andMixer. This creates the "wall of sound."
Step 5: The Lead Section (Syn Gates "Afterlife" Solo)
Switch to a different rig copy for leads, or use a footswitch. For leads, swap the Gratifier for the Lead 800 (Marshall JCM800 sim).
- Component:
Lead 800 - Gain: 80%
- Bass: 40% / Mid: 60% / Treble: 80%
- Add a fixed wah: Use
Cry Wah– set Pedal position to exactly 45% (This gives the "Singing" Syn tone).
2. The High-Gain Rhythm Tone (The "Chug")
Rating: 7/10
Most A7X presets for Guitar Rig 5 focus heavily on the rhythm tone required for songs like Bat Country or Beast and the Harlot.
- The Good: The presets usually nail the "scooped mid" feel that is popular in modern metal. The low-end response in Guitar Rig 5 is surprisingly tight, allowing for palm-muted chugs to sound clear and distinct.
- The Bad: The harmonic saturation is where it falls short. Synyster Gates’ tone has a very specific "sizzle" and compression that comes from the tube saturation of a Bogner amp. In Guitar Rig 5, pushing the gain high enough to sustain notes often results in a "fizzy" or digital buzzy sound. It lacks the organic warmth of the actual tube heads.
- The Fix: Many users tweak these presets by cutting the highs (around 4kHz-6kHz) to remove the digital fizz, resulting in a darker, metalcore-appropriate tone.
🎛️ Performance Tips for This Preset
- Palm mute zone: Right behind bridge pickup – tight and percussive.
- Pick attack: Heavy gauge (1.14 mm – Tortex or Jazz III).
- Whammy bar: Use for Syn’s signature dive-bombs (momentarily increase reverb mix).
- Delay engagement: Turn off delay for rhythm riffs; engage only for leads/clean arpeggios.