Philips Cassette Overload — Open-D Acoustic Grind
Richards recorded the core sound with a Gibson Hummingbird in open D and a second high-strung acoustic, forcing both guitars into the microphone of a Philips cassette recorder until it distorted. The cassette was then played through an extension speaker, creating a compressed, electric-like grind before additional electric rhythm and lead parts were added. The recorder had no conventional calibrated controls, so its settings are representative. Source: Guitar Player's Keith Richards cassette-recorder feature.
Signal Chain
Notes
The cassette distortion should sound narrow and overloaded, not like a polished overdrive pedal. Keep the microphones extremely close to the soundholes and compress the transient attack heavily.
Don't have Other?
See the same signal chain mapped to another platform. Knob values carry over as starting points — gain ranges differ between platforms. NAM/TONEX users: the real gear names are what to search for as captures.