Plug In Baby

The recording

Bellamy used his custom Manson DeLorean's bridge humbucker, routed through the guitar's built-in Z.Vex Fuzz Factory, then a DigiTech Whammy shifted the riff down an octave before feeding the saturated signal into a Diezel VH4 on Channel 3, giving the part its tight low-end and soaring high-gain character. His aggressive alternate picking and heavy pick attack help the rapid chromatic run cut through the mix.

Tuning Standard (E A D G B E)

Reported gear

Manson DeLorean

Guitar

Bellamy used a custom Manson DeLorean guitar, which has a Z.Vex Fuzz Factory built into the bridge cavity, to play the main riff with the bridge humbucker selected.

Z.Vex Fuzz Factory

Fuzz

The built-in Z.Vex Fuzz Factory provides the aggressive, gated fuzz that defines the song's opening riff.

DigiTech Whammy

Pitch Shifter

A DigiTech Whammy adds an octave-down shift to the fuzzed riff and an octave-up boost for the bridge, creating the distinctive synth-like texture.

Diezel VH4

Amplifier

The signal was sent into a Diezel VH4, cranked to Channel 3 for tight low-end and searing high-gain, shaping the fuzz-saturated tone.

Alternatives

Music Man Axis

Modern equivalent · for the Manson DeLorean

$1,200 to $1,800

Line 6 Hysteresis

Modern equivalent · for the DigiTech Whammy

$200 to $250

Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi

Budget alternative · for the Z.Vex Fuzz Factory

$100 to $150

Marshall JCM800 2203

Budget alternative · for the Diezel VH4

$800 to $1,200

Practical playing approach

Recreation guidance, not a claim about undocumented studio control positions.

1. 1.Select the bridge humbucker and attack the riff with a heavy pick.
2. 2.Set the Z.Vex Fuzz Factory to full volume and high drive.
3. 3.Dial the DigiTech Whammy to -1 Octave for the main riff and +1 Octave for the bridge.
4. 4.Crank the Diezel VH4 Channel 3 for a tight, saturated tone.
5. 5.Use rapid alternate picking to articulate the chromatic run cleanly.