Quick tone direction
Use a bridge humbucker into open British crunch. Keep more mids and less gain than a modern metal preset, and separate the rhythm, harmony and solo parts instead of using one dense sound.
- Gain
- Medium-high crunch with clear gallops
- EQ
- Firm bass, strong mids and bright but smooth attack
- Pickup
- Bridge humbucker
- Effects
- Dry rhythm; restrained ambience for leads
- Tuning
- Standard E
The recording uses distinct rhythm and lead voices from Dave Murray and Adrian Smith. Avoid one over-saturated preset for every part.
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The recording
It introduced the classic Harris-Murray-Smith-Dickinson-McBrain lineup's first album cycle, with Nicko McBrain's arrival helping drive the band's more forceful rhythmic identity. The track opens with guitars in unison, quickly expands into Murray and Smith's harmonized lead language, and moves through a documented Smith-then-Murray solo sequence. Doubled guitar parts, a galloping rhythm, and centrally placed solos make the arrangement dense, urgent, and immediately recognizable.
Tuning Standard tuning (E A D G B E)
Signal chain · Riff
Showing the riff gear and shared equipment. Gear marked for the other part is not included.
Original gear
Fender Stratocaster with DiMarzio Super Distortion bridge pickup
Guitar · Dave Murray · Riff & solo
Murray’s Stratocaster supplied his rhythm/gallop and harmony/lead material, including the high harmony and one of the featured solo voices; the exact guitar-to-song assignment is not documented track-by-track, so both is the defensible classification.
Marshall 50-watt amplifier heads
Amp · Dave Murray · Riff & solo
Murray’s 1983 interview identifies four 50-watt Marshall amplifiers with Marshall cabinets, including an EV-loaded cabinet miked for the front-of-house sound and other Celestion-loaded cabinets; the interview discusses the Piece of Mind-era setup, but does not isolate equipment to The Trooper’s individual tracks.
Marshall speaker cabinets
Cabinet · Dave Murray · Riff & solo
The same 1983 Murray interview identifies Marshall speaker cabinets used with his Piece of Mind-era guitar rig, with one cabinet containing EV speakers and others containing Celestions; it does not establish a specific cabinet model or prove which cabinet served each individual Trooper guitar part.
Cry Baby wah-wah
Fuzz · Dave Murray
Murray reported this effect in his contemporary board, but the source does not establish that wah appears on The Trooper master or identify whether it serves riff or solo.
MXR Distortion Plus
Overdrive · Dave Murray
Murray listed the Distortion Plus in his contemporary board, but no source supplied here verifies its use on this studio master or assigns it to a part.
MXR Phase 90
Phaser · Dave Murray
Murray listed a Phase 90 in his contemporary board, but recording-specific evidence does not confirm that it is audible on The Trooper.
FET Power Booster
Overdrive · Dave Murray
Murray reported the booster as part of his contemporary board, but its use on this master and its part assignment are undocumented.
Graphic equalizer
Pedal · Dave Murray
Murray said he left a graphic equalizer on continuously in his contemporary rig, but the source does not prove it was used on this recording or reveal its placement for a particular guitar part.
Gibson SG Standard
Guitar · Adrian Smith
Smith identified the SG Standard as one of his main guitars in the 1983 interview, but no supplied source ties it specifically to The Trooper’s master or separates riff, harmony, and solo takes.
Ibanez Destroyer
Guitar · Adrian Smith
Smith identified this as one of his principal guitars in the contemporary interview, but recording-specific evidence does not establish which, if any, Trooper part it played.
Ibanez Tube Screamer
Overdrive · Adrian Smith
Smith listed the Tube Screamer in his contemporary board, but the supplied evidence does not establish that it was recorded on The Trooper master or identify a particular guitar part.
Flanger
Chorus · Adrian Smith
Smith reported using a flanger in his contemporary setup, but no supplied source identifies its model or confirms that it is audible on The Trooper.
Boss chorus
Chorus · Adrian Smith
Smith listed a Boss chorus in his contemporary board, but the supplied evidence does not establish its presence on this master or assign it to riff or solo.
Alternatives
Practical playing approach
Recreation guidance, not a claim about undocumented studio control positions.
- 1.Execute tight, precise palm-muting on the galloping eighth-note rhythm patterns.
- 2.Ensure clean synchronization between both guitarists during harmonized dual-lead melody lines.
- 3.Use bridge humbuckers with rolled-up tone controls to match the biting 1983 lead tone.
- 4.Keep vibrato wide and expressive during sustained notes on the solo sections.
Frequently asked questions
What gear was used for the The Trooper guitar tone?
The available research points to Fender Stratocaster with DiMarzio Super Distortion bridge pickup into Marshall 50-watt amplifier heads. The full reported signal chain and evidence links are listed on this page.
Are the original The Trooper amp settings documented?
Exact historical knob positions are not reliably documented for most recordings. ToneTwin does not publish generated values as studio fact; it creates playable settings only for the amp and pedals a player selects.
What tuning is The Trooper in?
The current research record lists Standard tuning (E A D G B E). ToneTwin keeps corrections open when reliable accounts disagree.
How do I recreate the The Trooper tone on my own gear?
Use the reported pickup, gain character, effects and signal-chain order as the target, then translate that target to your equipment. The matcher models controls for your selected rig rather than copying undocumented studio numbers.
Researched and reviewed by the ToneTwin Research Team.
Sources
