the distortion tones of nirvana's in utero and how to nail it

[@roxandlol_1272]

your passion and dedication of how far you`re going to achieve this one specific interest of music is fascinating to me. I´m glad, but also a bit nostalgic about the fact that the journey of the In Utero sound is almost over. I´ve been following your progress for over a year now and hope to see more of your content. Maybe you´ll uncover even more unknown album sounds in the future!

[@AaronRash]

Thanks for following along, it's been a fun journey!

[@aurada9963]

this man has perfected the art of recreating guitar tones

[@90PercentNerd]

no shit

[@LSD123.]

The In Utero sound is definitely unique, it has a really raw sound. It's by far my favourite Nirvana album. Shout out to Steve Albini.

[@mirata7748]

Got chills, sounds unreal, I've heard these sounds for so long that hearing it replicated like this so flawlessly is absolutely surreal, I learn something new from each video you release, I didn't realise the DS2 and Sansamp were both used at the same time to get that tone. In Utero's sound just never gets old to me. It's been a while since you've started this tone chasing journey and honestly not only did your tone evolve but so did your presentation of your videos, community etc. I find it kinda hard to believe we've already reached this stage where it seems like we've already figured out everything we need to replicate that tone. It's been 30 years since February 1993, 30 years since the release of In Utero and 30 years to finally be able to achieve that sound again. Everything fell into place. The future is already looking pretty great!

[@revengeof1307]

Yea he always doubled up on the ds2 and sansamp even live you could hear a shift in tone especially in breed when he was makin noise at the beginning

[@johnpickk7526]

@@revengeof1307 imo he never did live, breed he would use the ds-2/grunge pedal alone, at least with the in utero live footage we have

[@Bkoded]

im in love with how that aluminum guitar sounds, i never thought id want one so much till now

[@endlessnameless01]

If you listen to Pat's and Kurts live tones they basically recreate this. Its a pretty common thing for recording. One really bassy tone then another brighter tone. Double track both of them and pan and it'll sound huge. Pat seems to have a darker tone on the live Nirvana shows then kurt has his usual brighter tone.

[@cobussy]

pat tended to use a rat, but also would have his tone and volume knobs rolled down a lot, hence the darker sound.

[@brijul630]

Quite possibly the easiest tones to recreate.....and I'm a nirvana fan too.

[@SBanas]

Amazing, as always. You're actually the reason why I came back to Nirvana after not listening to them in years. Thanks man, you're really doing a great job with those videos!

[@NBProdt]

Serve the Servants just sounded like the album, seriously man, you should do a documentary on these tones, great content!

[@eurikadude]

It is insane how accurate these tones are, you could easily convince me those are the isolated guitar tracks, appreciate all your work man!

[@pauldyson1327]

Aaron is the man, . My bandmate who is basically as old as my dad I have a 72 TWIN reverb. A DS1 and 2. A 74 hi flier phase 3. But I never had the Sans Amp. I didn't realize how essential that was to the tone. I bought one. We hooked it up according to Aarons diagram. And BOOM, it started hissing and feeding back exactly the same. Awesome. I live less then an hour from Pachyderm and I've been there a few times. Ive wondered about the mics? But, in a room on its own the setup seems to be100% correct. Aaron nailed it. Awesome! Thank you.

[@THE-CRT]

Ah one of the best nirvana albums

[@wywy6540]

Definitely top 3

[@emillas]

The

[@707_sucks]

the best

[@SLONOREZ-qt4fc]

There were not so many of them. lmao

[@ScratchdHelp]

all of them are the best.

[@baskah]

Nailed it man! Loved the journey you took us on with every single video. Looking forward to the next!

[@brianwood7237]

I've only ever seen one musician play a Quad Reverb live...Albert 'Iceman' Collins, a Houston bluesman and an innovator and amazing guitarist...the fact that Steve and Kurt somehow settled on the Quad Reverb - a beast of an amp - makes me smile

[@eryonzane]

I don't even like Nirvana that much but I totally love your channel and the way you're able to perfectly recreate those guitar tones

[@TheSSEssesse]

Aaron. Major props on all the work you’re doing. You’ve changed my opinion on tone shaping and what’s actually important in nailing iconic tones. Also, looking forward to the production run of the aluminum guitars. I’m a lefty and a Kurt fan, so I’m really looking forward to picking one of them up. Thanks for the great content.

[@tomphil5216]

Being a lefty guitarist is hard. I hope aarons guitars are affordable

[@brianfurry9542]

You're right, sometimes, the chase is better than the catch. But, you sir,have nailed it. You have harnessed the powers that be. Congratulations. Looking forward to a rundown of some of the songs. I bet Francis Farmer would sound awesome through you set-up!! Thank you for showing us the way!!

[@exitostropicales101]

I really like this channel, thanks a lot for breaking things down. I bet you can't mod a SansAmp Classic to make it sound like the original SansAmp

[@viciousattackvideo]

Man I can’t wait for videos on drum sounds too. One day you can make a 6 hour documentary on each drum for every song.

[@Guizzexe]

Finally, Almost a year i follow you and i feel so affected by what you ve done here. Wish yall the pleasure to nail Nirvana s tone and all the love and support Aaron you need !

[@Ikki3528]

I think it would be interesting if you used a cherry red color on the Mosrite, it would be somewhat different from the other colors like black, sunburst, white and so on. Great video as always Aaron! Looking forward to the next ones!

[@captobvious4121]

I couldn’t agree anymore!

[@Juan-rd5jf]

Imo a candy apple red or graffiti yellow would look the best, but until we have an actual example we cant tell

[@captobvious4121]

@@Juan-rd5jf true but those colors sound good too

[@bendler0]

100%

[@katielowen]

Color influences tone too much 😏

[@snorlaxatives13]

aaron… i just started the video and the tone is fucking PERFECT

[@HERETICSCAR]

Thank god for your videos without you I don’t think I would be able to try and re create tones so thank you

[@J.C...]

Dammit Aaron. Dammit dammit dammit. I just had to find this channel. Now you're gonna have me going down this rabbit hole, bro. 🤣🙏 'Come As You Are' is the first riff I learned that was more than just a 1 string riff like 'Satisfaction'. I had to break it into 2 parts and then learn them together. It was at THAT MOMENT that I knew I could really teach myself to play. And I did! That was Dec 2019/Jan 2020, before everybody decided to play guitar during the pandemic. It's clear to me now that Ive always been a guitar player. It just took me 30 years to buy a guitar that was better than the nylon string acoustic I had as a kid lol. I've always been into music wayyyy more than any of my friends. Id ride around and try and figure out timing of songs on the radio aka 4/4, 11/7, etc...while trying to keep in time with the tapping foot. Yea. I've always been a musician. I just finally gave in to it and I couldn't be happier about it.

[@gregorydmitriev7305]

Dude you're just the best! I'm literally stunt by all of you videos! Oh god))

[@Andrey-lt6fc]

Man, waiting for your solo album!

[@Batemanmusic2458]

I’ve been watching since your first tone recreation video (I can still remember when and where I watched it) and to see you come so far is amazing man, I can’t wait for the website and the guitars , and for what’s to come. Keep doin what you’re doin Aaron

[@hankdude1282]

Wow, congradulations. This is one of best videos i ever saw, really great.

[@mason_wills]

Top 3 Nirvana albums, for sure.

[@HunnyHunter666]

thats great dude, u made it now i will wait for your own album your songs are Beautiful

[@ipvoc19]

Sounding absolutely incredible man, phenomenal work 🙌

[@R3volutionEarth]

Two fun ideas for the Mosrite finish: 1. Pool burst - paint the guitar to look like swirling water of the pool on the Nevermind album cover / Come As You Are video. 2. Kurt's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" shirt - paint the guitar black with green stripes and grey accents - just like Kurt's shirt from the video.

[@juderinehart5879]

this is the best nirvana tone recreation I've ever heard its perfect. If only I had a quad reverb 😂😂 Edit: when are you going to put your store up?! I am really wanting to get that square wave and engine pedal!!

[@lippi2171]

He puts ridiculously huge effort into these, like I think he has no competition in this field. After seeing his videos I look back at other older tone recreation videos and they're no match. And I'm not even in my nirvana phase anymore haha

[@cortmaclean406]

It comes back around. I recommend making a playlist of the Nirvana songs that make you happy. The dark arts and the grotesque are tough themes on your psyche.

[@rickstedt]

This is freaking awesome, love your videos! Thanks for all the time and passion you've put into this! As a guitar player it's really satisfying that somebody else has the same obsession about this unique, heavy, aggressive and raw sound of in utero. You nailed it! Greetings from Germany

[@billyboyd418]

Nice work on finding tone and showing the process. You are building a great guitar collection at the same time. This definitely sounds better than the other sites that get close to their live sound but not many could figure out their recording setup with every detail. I can’t wait to see what you figure out next.

[@besaliju]

Spot on with these sounds jeeez

[@ZX-6R]

I haven't miss one of your videos, been there from day one. Wow, what an accomplishment, it's been so incredible to follow your journey! I'll definitively buy your aluminium guitar when it'll be ready!

[@joaliber13]

You finally got it!!! So proud of you! Thanks for your dedication!

[@Mrbrycejames]

You are awesome love to see someone with more passion about Nirvana than me

[@heavymetal1330]

When i listen to these tunes a lot of emotions come up… great times! Kurt is dearly missed…

[@iamnostalgiac]

I love this channel so much. It’s so interesting and so inspiring. Thank you for making such amazing content.

[@qwert7497]

Finally a video how to get this distorted tones! :D

[@sabss_13]

Dude I love your videos I feel like I need to tell you: I don't understand like 89% of the stuff you talk about, and I still love your videos and love hearing you talk about this stuff, obviously it's because of how much passion you have for in this case In Utero, but yeah I just wanted to let you know how you manage to get my, (and probably other people like me), attention with the quality of your videos and the passion you put into it. Disclaimer: also one of the reasons I probably don't understand most of it is because English is not my native language, even tho I consider my English pretty good for a Spanish speaker I don't have a lot of the technical vocabulary that you use when you talk about sound in general, idk why I spilled all this useless information here but that's it, thanks a lot for such cool videos, looking forward for more

[@ripplebear]

I had already been experimenting with different settings on the sansamp because of your other videos with varied settings, even experimenting with the filter matrix on a few different pedals that I have. I really do need an original echoflange or polychorus, the original and clones of electric mistress aren't quite cutting it. Still sounds great, and is so much fun to play. But as far as the different settings on the sansamp, yeah it doesn't make much sense that he would have one of the most tweakables drive stompsbox of the era, but not check out the other settings? There's even a picture of him bent over tweaking sansamp knobs on stage, so I wouldn't be surprised if he changed em live here and there, even if only to satisfy his own stage sound, possible early hearing loss from making that guitar explosion sound for so many years, and probably just because he wanted to lol. Thanks man, great videos!

[@Silent_18]

hey man, appreciate the amount of work you put into your videos, btw are you planning to recreate the tones of any other bands?

[@-jank-willson]

type o negative, green day, mud honey, soundgarden, guns n' roses, alice in chains, the offspring, the cure, pearl jam, stone temple pilots, red hot chile peppers, sonic youth, NIN, etc...man the 90's had the greatest music...

[@coldbanana4785]

We would like to see you playing the whole album cover now! Please)

[@-cobainism-]

thank you so much dude. i would love to see you doing some riffs with differnt eras of tones, just cause its so damn accurate. cheers mate!

[@gorillagaming2810]

Finally an accurate video on this! Great job Aaron!

[@G.Abongee]

Thank's Dude! You to your soul in to it. This is really EPIC!!! Looking foward on your next videos. Why not go in depth with each song? Many of us will appriciated. Color of the Guitar, something emblamatic of Kurt. Thank's again. Salute you from Bogota, Colombia South America. 🤘🏽🙌🏽✊🏽🤟🏽🤘🏽🙌🏽

[@lucasrussig]

You have a big fan here in Brazil! Amazing job bro, and, I want a Veleno made for you, great work, keep going dude

[@pedro_norato]

Your channel is beyond amazing

[@User-jk8wq]

Holy shit when you started playing I Hate Myself and Want to Die I thought it was the original track. That is *ridiculously* accurate PS: now get yourself a Gibson Ripper and replicate the Nevermind and In Utero bass tones

[@AaronRash]

I do want a ripper! That'd be super cool!

[@potato22258]

@@AaronRash Oh man, please do this, Aaron! Krist has the best bass tone

[@ravager2006]

@@AaronRash then get a tama granstar, learn drums, and do drum tones

[@andrewweeks448]

same!!!

[@BrunaHera]

The mosrite would look very cool in shell pink or surf green

[@revalone3944]

ur the only dude who actually get the sound. would love to see you do siamese dream...

[@anthonysclafani3963]

can you do a vid on the mics of in utero

[@tonywhitburn]

You've got my dream gear, especially that mirror guitar, and now you even have the exact amp and tone used on In Utero. I can't even😭

[@denverrandy7143]

Now brotha,use that beautiful tone!!!Love to hear that tone put to use in your music or im sure others are wanting you to help in the production of their music.👍

[@barretv7583]

Thank you for sharing this journey. I have fallen in love with your content, it feeds my brain

[@hazysativa3045]

In Utero was WAY before its time. I remember listening to it for the first time.... such a masterpiece.

[@gorilla1499]

My vote for the mosrite finish is for something like a Shell pink or like a yellow. Something different than what you have already from a color perspective!

[@cassianof.belluco626]

shell pink would be nice

[@alexrcowan]

This is incredible, knew that in utero distortion was special!

[@KennethTakanami]

You nailed it. Been loving this channel

[@ethanrdrake]

Amazing work. Please please do a Kemper profile pack of these sounds 🙏🏻

[@NashV]

Amazing as usual. Any chance you can remind us what speakers you have in that quad? i.e. what speaker #2 and #4 refer to?

[@Nirvana_Replica]

Indeed

[@sheldonsmith9438]

I'm sure you've watched the Billy Corgan interview with Rick Beato 50:30 is where Billy talks about speaking with Butch and hears Nvermind for the first time...stating that Butch had stolen his guitar sound, It's fascinating to me as I watch your channel and listen to interviews with Butch and Billy C. in regards to crafting "grunge" tones. Kurt was a pioneer in songwriting and persona and with the help of Butch and other producers created a sound that still stands today.

[@BullyMaguire4ever]

Billy is wrong. Nevermind guitar tones sound nothing like Gish. Billy has ego issues.

[@brywestwhit]

Love the 2 guitar side by side edits!

[@jbvs26]

this channel is fucking excellent and makes me want to pick up a guitar every time a vid comes out. we'll need a bit of international postage for that aluminium axe also! 🇦🇺

[@Djembedude12]

I never realized how massive Rape Me's tone was until listening to the isolated track

[@thegreatbaruc8741]

Fantastic video. Kurt would be impressed

[@wastewoodrockers5526]

Aaron this sounds amazing! Amazing job! I recently picked up a late 70s Twin reverb with the Utah speakers which I’m excited to start using to hopefully get some of the in Utero sounds. I think your spot on in terms of how they got the sound, I the Quad is definitely the biggest factor. Had no idea about the DS-2 being used along with the SansAmp at the same time but amazing that you figured it out! Can’t wait to see what you have in store for the future!

[@lastnightmikel]

Hi Aaron!, It would be great if you could explain a little bit more about those mics and their placement, distance from the Quad Reverb, etc... Thank you for sharing your work!

[@Kurtsinuterooo]

Hope you don"t mind if i ask a few questions about the hi flyer 1: How thick is the body? 2: What is the length of the body from top to bottom? 3: What is the width of the body? I've been thinking of making my own hi flyer build but couldn't find a proper template for the body, also your work is amazing, keep it up man!

[@gmoney4526]

THis is amazing. You still use the Fender Oxford speakers? And do tubes matter? Mine has the stock ARS tubes but heard that Earnie replaced the tubes with different ones. I found a quad a few weeks ago and let me tell you I am so glad I got it now haha. I use the jag which def doesn't quite get their with the sansamp and always wondered why the tone sounded closer when I paired the sansamp with a distortion pedal as the sansamp on its own always has this muffled tone to it but it all makes sense now. So glad I found your channel 2 years ago this truly has been an amazing experience.

[@6oundStudio]

this dude's house is amazing

[@jacobkasper-i9o]

You’re doing the lord’s work. Thank you

[@dereksendrak]

Wow great video sounds perfect! Great work man🤘🏻🤘🏻

[@PuttinOnTheRiffs]

chase the you know you're right tone dude! that song sounds amazing and massive

[@danmacfarlane3444]

Someone needs to make a whole new album with that sound.

[@dls3939]

What about the guitar tones on The Pumpkins Mellon Collie album, that would be a project and a half. If you are a fan of their stuff? That album and In Utero are two of my most favourite sounding albums ever. Sure Siamese Dream too but Mellon Collie was just reined in chaos. Love it GREAT video by the way, well done.

[@magraretsbane6274]

Absolutely man, the solo on Love has been firmly ingrained in my brain since I first heard it as a middle schooler.

[@dls3939]

@@magraretsbane6274 Oh definitely, mine is Bodies, that sound the feedback and when the riff kicks in and they just layer it up again and again, been rattling round my skull forever.

[@averylangs]

I saw you had a jcm800 and an op-amp big muff- have you ever tried recreating the siamese dream tone? that'd be a cool video if you still have that gear :D

[@calen1903]

Im like two seconds in and it already sounds amazing

[@Dankmemes555]

4:16 Was absolutely perfect

[@EuropeanJesusChrist]

I hope you do more secret tones like Seasons in the sun, Here she comes now and B-side aneurysm

[@BataraKado]

YOU DID IT AARON!!! SOUNDS EXACT

[@tr3f]

thank you again for sharing your videos with us! huge fan! also, white is a good color for the guitar with a tortoise pickguard.

[@cinemod5393]

Olympic white on that mosrite build would look killer!

[@mightymkzero9960]

Sounds great. Recon you will do kemper profile?

[@MikeGervasi]

You really have found the tones through your obsession. It's clear but distorted without any compression. The resonator guitar makes a huge difference. I wonder if it can be done with a different resonator type guitar?

[@grungegazer]

Awesome that you got the tone! But I wonder what about Pedal X or the Echo Flanger/Polychorus filter sound? I know the EF/PC was used as an effect on the HSB solo and SA but I recall Kurt being worried about a pedal that "made the whole album"

[@OtavioFesoares]

He was referring to his Echoflanger. That pedal was used throughout almost every track in the record on the filter matrix mode.

[@mycawild]

I always love your videos there shot so perfectly ♥

[@DK82abn]

For the Mosrite, I’d do a tribute to Kurt’s tele. Sunburst, painted over in teal, then scratch your wife’s name through the teal at the bottom

[@ScratchdHelp]

i have a frontman 15 i bought at a goodwill type store with an unkown 10 inch speaker that was literally junk, it was so dirty and it didn't even work, got home, my dad fixed it for me and it took me MONTHS to get a good sound out of it, i put the treble to 10, mid 2.5 and bass to 3 and the DS1's tone lightly to the left and its REALLY, REALLY GOOD! even if the speaker has holes on the outise because they didn't put it in right, it sounds incredible, it can do all sorts of tones if you change its setting right, from bleach to in utero, to lives, its just amazing how a trash "begginer" amp can be so good. (btw my guitar is a IYV PRS with sorta humbuckery single coils)

[@romykucheev]

Respect for deep exploration ❤

[@V8_200_Landcruiser]

Excellent work man!

[@Shimdaddy]

This is amazing. Thank you Aaron Rash.

[@Juderainwater]

The tone for I hate myself and want to die, is CRAZYY perfect

[@exikatorus]

Another awesome video. Those parts where you are twice playing those exact tones are absolutely mind blowing. I am excited every Sunday to see if new video will come out. Also can´t wait for the store to be available so we can buy the Engine pedal and Veleno. Just out of curiosity, how much will the Veleno cost? Thanks for response and everything you do for us.

[@matthewvalanda4312]

I really enjoy your videos. I just wanted to let you know that man.

[@loriematthews6418]

Awesome sounds from such simplicity! Absolutely love Nirvana! Would love to meet Krist Novoselic. ☺️ Anyhow, thanks for the video, enjoyed! 🙋

[@thedutchdjentleman]

I think the mosrite would be fun to have painted a burgundy racing stripe finish. You absolutely nailed those sounds Aaron!

[@Arkaitz.M.A]

Now everyone will want to get a veleno. The goal is not important, the most important is the travel, thinks that you learned, people with you where talking,....... Good job man