Early Sabbath Treble-Boost Grind — Riff & Ring-Mod Solo
Tony Iommi’s early Sabbath sound came from his Gibson SG, a uniquely modified Dallas Rangemaster treble booster and a loud Laney Supergroup amplifier. For the solo, the dry guitar was placed on one side and a studio ring-modulated version on the other; the unit was studio equipment rather than a later stompbox. Exact amp and booster positions were not documented, so settings are approximated from Iommi’s descriptions of the rig. Source: MusicRadar’s Tony Iommi interview/history (2026), Equipboard’s Paranoid album documentation, and Stompbox Book.
Signal Chain
Notes
Use less low end than the finished record seems to contain—the bass guitar supplies much of the weight. The guitar should be nasal, loud and dynamically overdriven rather than saturated like a modern metal amp.
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