Odds are, if you’re reading this, you already know how important Black Sabbath was to the development of heavy music.
If not, you’re in for a treat.
Black Sabbath was the original heavy metal band. They roared out of the bombed-out wasteland of Birmingham in the late ‘60s to crush flower-power psychedelia with a musical iron fist, changing rock and roll and the popular musical landscape forever. Without Black Sabbath, there is no Metallica, no Megadeth, no Van Halen, no heavy music at all.
You can divide rock music neatly into two eras: before Sabbath, and after Sabbath. The first five Black Sabbath albums should be at the top of any metal fan’s must-listen list. It’s not unreasonable to expect them to occupy the top five spots.
Integral to the raw power of Black Sabbath’s music was bassist Geezer Butler’s distinctive, roaring bass tone. Butler was a major influence on countless bass players who came after him, most notably Metallica maestro Cliff Burton.
His bass playing was as melodic as it was powerful, rumbling along to Bill Ward’s jazz-for-a-sheet-metal-factory drumming and helping craft one of the finest rhythm sections of the era.
Don’t believe me? Listen to “N.I.B.” from the band’s debut album, and let Geezer’s tone wash over you.
If you want to capture some of the early Sabbath magic, you’ve come to the right place. I’ll use the “N.I.B.” tone as a starting point to go through the amp settings and gear required to get in the ballpark of the original Sabbath sound.
Table of Contents
Geezer Butler Bass Guitars
Although he has a recent signature Lakland bass these days, the classic Black Sabbath bass sound came courtesy of Fender basses.
On the first Black Sabbath album, Butler played a Fender Precision bass. The dull thud of the strings came not from technique or amp settings, but from Butler’s general state of poverty: he couldn’t afford new strings, so the strings on his bass were ten months old by the time Sabbath went into the studio.
He used another Precision bass on the second Sabbath record, Paranoid. For me, the P bass sound is the definitive Sabbath bass tone.
The color of the bass doesn’t do much to its overall sound, but seeing as it’s a Black Sabbath bass, I’d recommend the black vintage spec model.
For those looking to get more value for money than on a vintage spec bass, the Fender Player Precision Bass is a great option.
At the lower end is the Squier Classic Vibe ‘60s model P Bass.
For all of these, I recommend ‘60s style appointments as that’s what was available when Black Sabbath entered the studio to record their first album.
Geezer Butler Amps
The original Black Sabbath bass sound wasn’t even a bass amp. Options for aspiring heavy metal stars were few and far between in Birmingham in the late 1960s. Geezer Butler was limited to guitar amps, and wound up using the same amp as Sabbath axeman Tony Iommi.
This was the Laney LA100BL head, designed for both bass and lead guitar playing. This was a powerful 100-watt amplifier with plenty of natural drive and grit. Before Marshall amps became the standard for hard rock and heavy metal, Laney were another major player in the British tone landscape.
Why stop at 100 watts when you use their 500-watt Digbeth head instead?
This has very similar features to the original LA100BL, and appears to have been designed by Laney to evoke the old Sabbath sound.
If a 500-watt head and accompanying cab feels like too much heavy lifting, Laney was considerate enough to design a floor amp specifically for bass players.
The Digbeth preamp pedal is effectively an amp in a stompbox. You can simply send the signal out from the XLR DI output to a recording desk or mixing desk.
These are, for all intents and purposes, identical amplifiers with the spirit of Sabbath firmly in their DNA. The major difference is price, with the head running about four times the price of the pedal.
Geezer Butler Amp Settings – Black Sabbath Bass Tone!
Before digging into amp settings, I’ll clarify that most of Geezer’s tone came from his technique.
You’ll need to play really hard with your fingers on your right hand. Live footage of Sabbath in their prime has Geezer pulling at his bass strings like an archer with a bow.
Play the strings around the end of your bass neck to maximize sustain and low end.
You’ll also want to exclusively use the neck pickup on your P bass.
From there, set the amp as below for the classic tone of the first two Black Sabbath albums.
Volume: 7
You need lots of volume to make the Black Sabbath sound work.
Drive: 6
You need some mushy, warm, tube overdrive for this tone.
Bass: 6
You need a present low end, but not so much that the sound ever becomes muddy.
Mids: 9
This is a mid-forward tone with plenty of definition. On your Laney amp, the mid EQ should be set to 9, and the mid setting on number four.
Treble: 8
There’s more brightness to this sound than you’d expect.
Tilt: 7
If you’re using the Laney amp, set your Tilt knob to 4.
Geezer Butler Pedals
You’ll want some kind of overdrive for this tone.
The Black Country Customs Bass Overdrive is probably the best-sounding pedal for the Sabbath tone.
Butler was a pioneer in the use of wah for bass, and it is especially important for the intro to “N.I.B.”
I’d recommend the Cry Baby bass wah, but you could use the standard Cry Baby, given that Dunlop had yet to invent the bass wah when Sabbath made their classic records.
Final Word
Jamming along to the iconic intro to “N.I.B.” is just the beginning.
This tone guide will set you on a very satisfying path of unleashing Geezer Butler’s legendary Black Sabbath bass tone in the comfort of your bedroom, or on stage before ravenous metalheads.
