Cliff Burton

In this video Burton can be seen playing a Rickenbacker 4001 in a Burgundyglo finish.

This Bass has been heavily modified with a Gibson EB-0 "Sidewinder" pickup in the neck position, a Seymour Duncan Stacked Jazz pickup in the Bridge position, and a Seymour Duncan Stacked Strat pickup in the chamber for the foam mute under the bridge, activated by a push/pull pot.

This Rickenbacker was Burton's main rig from about Pre-1980 to 1984 and was used in the recording of "Kill 'Em All" and parts of "Ride The Lightning" until it was retired due to malfunction(s). Burton can be seen with this Bass in many pictures from the "K.E.A." tour.

In a handwritten list Burton made for the orginal Metallica Fanclub in the summer of 1983, he lists his gear and modifications as follows:

"Right now, I'm using a Randall 300 watt head into: 1 Randall 1x18 cab and 1 road 2x18 cab."

"At this time I only use 2 effects. A Morley Power Wha Boost and an MXR Limiter."

"I play a Rickenbacker 4001 bass. The 2 stock pickups have been replaced as follows: In the bass position there's a "Gibson EB" pickup. In the treble position, there's a "Seymore Duncan Stacked Jazz" pickup. I have also had a 3rd pickup installed in the bridge. It's a "Seymore Duncan Stacked Strat." Both Duncan pickups are "Humbucking" in design so they help reduce unwanted noise."

After retiring his Rickenbacker 4001 Burton used a number of high-end basses.

Among these was a Black Alembic Spoiler Bass he bought and used breifly in about 1983-1985, This bass probably wasn’t used on the recording of the "Ride The Lightning" album.

This bass was later stolen around 1984-1985.

This bass has never been found, so if you or someone you know owns a Black '83-'85 Spoiler be sure to look for a large chip in the back finish up around the side of the Peghead as it might have belonged to Burton.

Cliff Burton rocking a Morley Power Wah Boost pedal (notice the side sticker for boost intensity next to boost knob). You can also spot the TS9 switch under Cliff's heel, just behind the wah.

In this photo we can see a young Burton with a Black Gibson EB-0.

It can be told that this is not an EB-3 by the fact that this Bass doesn't have a Bridge Pickup and this Bass may also serve as an explaination as to how Burton got the Neck Humbucker for his modified 4001 Rickenbacker.

This photo appears to have been taken in the late 70's when Burton was in the band "Fry By Night" (Originaly "Fly By Night" however the band changed it's name after a typo on a poster).

In this photo, Burton can be seen playing a Black Fender Precision Bass with Metallica's side project Spastik Children.

After the theft of Burton's Black Alembic Spoiler, he acquired a Japanese-made Aria SB-1000 Pro-II Black 'N' Gold. This bass was Burton's main rig from 1985-1986 and was used on the recording and supporting tour of the "Master of Puppets" album.

He used this bass until his death while on the "Master of Puppets" tour in 1986.

Aria later released a Tribute Bass based on this model in Burton's honor.

A Peavey Mark IV Bass Amp Head can be seen in the upper right hand corner of this photo of Cliff Burton.

Cliff Burton signature Aria Pro II is strung with RS66LB

Cliff used during year 1985 the Aria pro II SB-1000 before playing on an SB-Black'n'Gold.

Stated in the book to "To Live is To die" John Marshall had stated he used to the fuzz wah. quote "He used to like getting different sounds: the power wah fuzz was his thing".

Cliff Burton can be seen with a Boss CS-2 in this photo.

In this photo, Burton can be seen playing a Red Gibson Flying V.

The Neck Pickup appers to be removed and taped over, however the controls don't appear to be modified to accommodate these modifications

TalkBass user funkytoe, who knew Burton personally, recalled a Big Muff with a pi symbol in multiple TalkBass threads.

"Cliff Burton's gear" Comment #31, January 17, 2008

If you want to know what gear Cliff used, you need to be specific about time.

In the later days with Metallica, he had moved on to Aria basses and mesa or ampeg amps.

Around the "Kill em All" time, Cliff was still using his burgundy (oxblood) Rickenbacker 4001. It had a Gibson EB pickup at the neck and a hot Dimarzio pickup at the bridge. He called the Dimarzio his "secret weapon." Cliff's guitar tech at that time was Chuck Martin at ABC Music in Castro Valley, California. He might be able to give you more specifics about exactly what Cliff used pickup-wise.

Cliff's amp was a Sunn Colliseum Lead head with various cabs. The one I remember most was this big 2 x 18 cab. I don't think Cliff used 10 inch speakers prior to the time he switched to Mesa.

I remember 3 effect pedals. (1) EH Big Muff Pi. I distinctly remember the Pi symbol on that pedal; (2) EH Bass Balls and (3) Morley Power Wah Fuzz. He may also have had a power wah boost, but I am certain he was playing with a Power Wah Fuzz in his Trauma/early Metallica period.

Hope that helps your quest for tone.

"Cliff Burton's gear", Comment #79, December 23, 2008

FC Bass said:

BTW: I bought a Morley PWF a while ago, with the big muff after the Morley you have instant Cliff sounds :bassist: awesome! (Much better than the PWB)

Absolutely correct. Chrome Morley Power Wah Fuzz followed by EH Big Muff PI is what Cliff used in his Trauma/Early Metallica days and is the key to his sound (apart from his hands, attack, etc.)

"Cliff Burtons Rickenbacker", Comment #3, April 23, 2009

For the Maxwell tapes, Cliff played his Ric though Jim Martin's Morely Power Wah Fuzz, an Electro Harmonix Bass Balls and a EH Big Muff PI. I know this because I have been to Maxwell with both Jim and Dave on many occasions and have my own memories of Cliff's gear in this regard.

"Burton's tone with this head", Comment #6, September 1, 2010

Before Cliff hooked up with Metallica and finally got the label money to buy tube amps, he played solid state Sunn heads and cabs. His tone was nearly identical to his later tone with Metallica.

Cliff's tone was not in his amp. It was in his hands (and to some extent his pedals) and the aggressive way he played.

If you want Cliff's tone, you are better off getting an old Tel Ray Morely pedal (either a Power Wah Volume or Power Wah Fuzz), a vintage Electro Harmonix Big Muff Pi and Bass Balls. Those pedals and some practice will get you closer to Cliff's tone than any new bass head - guaranteed!

Bonus information: Equipboard user marijan_barac had a conversation with funkytoe, which made up the original content of this submission. What he wrote is preserved in its entirety below:

Guy who knew him personally as a friend and had seen his gear many times claims he remembers a distinctive PI symbol on the pedal. Also here is part of the conversation with him in which he cites Big Muff as Cliff's pedal: 'Yes I knew Cliff and saw his equipment many times over the years. Two of the first pedals I remember him getting were a Morley Power Wah Fuzz and an Electro-Harmonix bass balls. He used the Bass Balls briefly, but it did not get dirty enough for him. He tried a lot of Boss distortion pedals, but ended up choosing a Big Muff Pi. Cliff used that set up for quite a while with both his Randall and Sunn heads, at least up until the time he joined Trauma. After he switched to Mesa Boogie heads, he decided he liked the natural grind from the head better than the Fuzz sound from the Morley Power Wah Fuzz. So, he traded that for a Morley Power Wah Boost to help overdrive the front end of the Mesa head. In all the time Iknew him, he always had a Morley pedal on his Board. He also started experimenting with other pedals to replace the Big Muff Pi during the Metallica years. I remember a Tube Screamer for a while. Then he had a combination of a Tube Screamer and a Boss CS-1 Compression Sustainer going into the Morely Power Wah Boost. That is the last set up i remember him using. A Tube Screamer with a CS-1 and a Morley Power Wah Boost into a Mesa tube head.'

The DS-1 Distortion was Boss' only distortion pedal in the late 1970s, having been released in 1978. Based on this fact and the information above, Burton's Big Muff was either a V3, a V4 or a V5.

"Cliff Burton's Pedals Timeline.", Comment #1, April 23, 2009

Its probable that Cliff used a Morley Wah Boost and Big Muff With a CS-1 on his first gigs as seen here:

Within the linked photos, the 'flat chicken-head' knobs, pedal decals & silver, rectangular casing of the Big Muff can be made out, the much shorter length of the box in the second photo very much looking to be a generative upscaling error.

At 59:56 you can see Cliff playing with the Randall RBA-500 and the Road 218 cab. He also mentions the amp in a handwritten note (http://whichbass.co.uk/wbwp/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Cliff-Burton-Handwritten-note.jpg)

This photo of Cliff Burton shows him playing through a Sunn Beta Bass Head.

This is the photo of Cliff Burton from 1985. You can see the Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer right next to the Morley PWB. There are more than a handful photos of him using the TS9(some black n white, some in colour) including: live in Paris France 84, Poperinge Belgium 84, unknown show from 84, Ruthie's Inn Berkeley CA 85 and Castle Donington UK 85(as seen here). Reason why I decided for this particular photo is because it's the highest quality 'in-colour' one I could find and the shape, switch and radioactive green tint of the TS9 are easily recognised.

On a side note, other than the live shows, Cliff used an Ibanez TS9 as a source of overdrive in the studio as well. Featured at least on every song of the "Ride The Lightning" album(except the first few notes in "Fade" and the intro to "Fight Fire", those being purely clean). There are many isolated bass tracks on YouTube, the unmistakable TS9 clipping, midrange 'hump' and dynamic sensitivity can be heared providing the 'thunder' on every "RTL" album track with more or less gain depending on the song(and sometimes paired with Boss CS2, Morley PWB and some delay for 'lead bass' sections of the songs such as intro to "Bellz" and lead licks in "Ktulu") . For example: https://youtu.be/XD0PcU429ms?si=OZ0SPVVVYZcy6atF

P.S. After I've set out to confirm Cliff's use of the TS9 some 10+ years ago when most people talked exclusively about Big Muff Pi and there were only few blurry photos available, Cliff's childhood friend, now late, mr. Ken Ryken, better known as Funkytoe on TalkBass forum confirmed it for me in a private message.

In the note written by Cliff to the Metallica fan club in the summer of '83, he clearly states using an MXR Limiter. The pedal was manufactured in the late '70s and early '80s.

In this photo of Metallica and Trauma bassist Cliff Burton, we see his main touring rack just to the right of him. Just above the 2 stacked Mesa Boogie D-180 200 watt, all tube bass amplifiers we see the Ibanez HD1500 Harmonics/Delay Rack Mount . Notice the shiny metal plate extending half way across the unit with the EG potentiometers.

There is Cliff L. Burton with a Mesa Boogie 4x12 cabinet very clear

In the beginning of this interview, Burton states: "Yeah, for effects I use a Morley Power Wah Boost, a MXR Limiter and a... Boss Delay." and interestingly, at 0:19 he states "I used to have a Chorus, but that was stolen... So was my other Compresser and other Delay..." later stating this happened in Chicago.

Boss only had a small number of Delay pedals avilable from 1980-1986, the DM-2 Delay, the DM-3 Delay, and the DD-2 Digital Delay, so it is reasonable to assume it was one of these three models.

This photo shows thrash metal bassist Cliff Burton, known for playing in Metallica and Trauma", performing with Metallica live. His bass rig featured just right of his left leg, shows two Mesa Boogie D-180 20, watt All Tube Bass Amplifiers stacked on one another.

At the minute 0:35 of the video you can see he used the bassballs but the image is incorrect because the vintage bassballs was the real one.

In a handwritten list Burton made for the orginal Metallica Fanclub in the summer of 1983, he lists his gear and modifications as follows:

"Right now, I'm using a Randall 300 watt head into: 1 Randall 1x18 cab and 1 road 2x18 cab."

"At this time I only use 2 effects. A Morley Power Wha Boost and an MXR Limiter."

"I play a Rickenbacker 4001 bass. The 2 stock pickups have been replaced as follows: In the bass position there's a "Gibson EB" pickup. In the treble position, there's a "Seymore Duncan Stacked Jazz" pickup. I have also had a 3rd pickup installed in the bridge. It's a "Seymore Duncan Stacked Strat." Both Duncan pickups are "Humbucking" in design so they help reduce unwanted noise."

In a handwritten list Burton made for the orginal Metallica Fanclub in the summer of 1983, he lists his gear and modifications as follows:

"Right now, I'm using a Randall 300 watt head into: 1 Randall 1x18 cab and 1 road 2x18 cab."

"At this time I only use 2 effects. A Morley Power Wha Boost and an MXR Limiter."

"I play a Rickenbacker 4001 bass. The 2 stock pickups have been replaced as follows: In the bass position there's a "Gibson EB" pickup. In the treble position, there's a "Seymore Duncan Stacked Jazz" pickup. I have also had a 3rd pickup installed in the bridge. It's a "Seymore Duncan Stacked Strat." Both Duncan pickups are "Humbucking" in design so they help reduce unwanted noise."

"In the 1984 radio interview with Ken Kitt of WCSB, when asked what pedals he uses. Cliff responded with

MXR 143 limiter (No longer produced) Boss Delay* (Possibly a BOSS-DM2/DM3*) Chorus pedal (Unnamed in the interview likely a BOSS CE-3*) Washburn A-AD9 Delay (Seen in Kill’em All tour photos)"

Cliff Burton used the Road Electronics 440-218 Cabinet from his time with EZ Street through the Kill 'Em All era with Metallica, as shown in the provided image.

He had two of these custom made to run his clean signal. They can easily be seen around 2:30 in this video.

In the book Justice for All: The Truth about Metallica, engineer Flemming Rasmussen states Cliff used an AMS 15-80 Delay/Harmonizer unit for the intro of Damage Inc. and parts of Orion.

In a handwritten list Burton made for the orginal Metallica Fanclub in the summer of 1983, he lists his gear and modifications as follows:

"Right now, I'm using a Randall 300 watt head into: 1 Randall 1x18 cab and 1 road 2x18 cab."

"At this time I only use 2 effects. A Morley Power Wha Boost and an MXR Limiter."

"I play a Rickenbacker 4001 bass. The 2 stock pickups have been replaced as follows: In the bass position there's a "Gibson EB" pickup. In the treble position, there's a "Seymore Duncan Stacked Jazz" pickup. I have also had a 3rd pickup installed in the bridge. It's a "Seymore Duncan Stacked Strat." Both Duncan pickups are "Humbucking" in design so they help reduce unwanted noise."

Cliff Burton is known for using Rotosound RS77LD Monel Flatwound Bass Strings (45-105), particularly evident in the tone he achieved on Metallica’s "Kill 'Em All." His classical training likely influenced his preference for flatwound strings, which he mentioned in interviews as part of his exclusive use of Rotosound products. These strings helped balance the treble-heavy sound of Kirk Hammett's guitar and the natural brightness of his Rickenbacker bass. A user-uploaded photo also shows these strings on his Rickenbacker in standard gauge.