James Hetfield

James Hetfield has been seen performing with a 1973 Gibson Les Paul Custom, known as the "Iron Cross," on multiple occasions. The attached user-uploaded photo provides visual evidence of his use of this guitar.

Hetfield: We’re really pleased with Fractal. It’s amazing. For my rig, we went into the studio and put some sounds into it—a combination of my Mesa/Boogie amps mixed in with a little bit of my Diezel sound. The clean sounds are from the Roland JC-120. On stage, Mesa 2:Ninety power amps drive my cabinets, but those cabs aren’t miked at all. They’re only there for my monitoring, for getting feedback, and for just feeling it. The Fractal is going direct to the board.

In this video, James Hetfield's rig is also shown to consist of a Matrix GT1000FX-1U power amp.

According to fractal audio all live Metallica tones are made by using the Axe-fx III

During Metallica's performance at Lyon Halle Tony Garnier on September 12, 2017, James Hetfield was seen playing a Gibson Explorer Korina, as captured in the concert footage on YouTube.

At 11:05 in the video, James' guitar tech mentions that he uses the Peterson VST tuner to tune James' guitars.

In a user-uploaded Instagram photo, James Hetfield is pictured using a Line 6 DL4 Delay Modeler.

Three of them can be seen in this picture of James' rig for Master of Puppets and ...And Justice For All. They were modified Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC heads. Here is a link to an article showing it's James' rig: https://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/james-hetfield-live-rig-pictures-and-settings-1984-1993.1990933/

– Garage Inc. A 100w Wizard Modern Classic was used as the main amp on the album. also in the picture is James's first electric guitar the Gibson SG.

James Hetfield used the Audio-Technica Artist Elite AE5400 microphone primarily during live performances on Metallica's tours from "St. Anger" through "Death Magnetic." He can also be seen using this microphone in the "St. Anger" rehearsal video. While he now opts for the Shure Super 55, the AE5400 was a significant part of his setup during that period. This information is detailed in an article on Metalwani.

In the 1st photo of this slideshow, we can see Hetfield playing a Gibson Les Paul in a Cherry Sunburst with a Bigsby Tremolo.

This Guitar is heavily road-worn and appears to be modified as there is a toggle-switch in one of the pot-holes and the knob is altogether missing. The purpose of these modifications are unknown.

In this photo James Hetfield can be seen using Sony MDR-7506 headphones.

In this Guitar World article detailing the techniques used by James Hetfield to record Sad But True, it says:

"Further depth and texture was added by overdubbing a Jerry Jones baritone tuned an octave lower than the guitar, while additional overdubs consisted solely of muted string “chuks” to enhance the percussiveness of the attack."

The article then goes on to specify the exact guitar used was a, "Jerry Jones Danelectro Longhorn baritone copy (bridge pickup)."

In this photo, James Hetfield is playing his signature ESP James Hetfield Truckster Electric Guitar. It can be distinguished from the Truckster LTD by the pattern of the "distressed" marks on the finish.

The rack mounted Shure UR4D Wireless Receiver is pictured in the source of James Hetfields rack system.

In the "Making of Moth into Flame", he plugged his Snakebyte into a Mini Rectifier 0:28

This guitar was played by James and is being auctioned off to benefit Metallica's All Within My Hands Foundation. It is seen in use in this Rolling Stone article about the charity.

The auction decription reads:

Martin HD28 Guitar Played by James Hetfield & Autographed by Metallica Own the actual Martin guitar played on stage by James Hetfield during the inaugural All Within My Hands Foundation Helping Hands Concert & Auction!

The guitar will be autographed by all four members of Metallica immediately following the performance.

The HD-28 includes many of the options guitar players and collectors prize in historic Martins. A Sitka spruce top with East Indian rosewood back and sides, all wrapped together in Martin’s classic herringbone inlay.

In this video by Dunlop, at 0:37 Hetfield compares his new White Fang siganture pick to his older Black Fang model.

At 14:52 Big Mick explains Metallica used to use Audio Technica AE-2500 microphones to mic their guitar cabs before they went to Fractal.

The Trussart Les Paul (LP) "Rusty Holey" is played by James Hetfield in this photograph.

James Hetfield' second custom guitar from ESP. It can be seen in tours after the release of "Load" and during the “Cunning Stunts” DVD on the song “Sad But True”.

At 6:32 in this video of the making of Nothing Else Matters, James says the following and is seen playing the Gibson EDS 1275.

“It got fun actually for a little while in the studio experimenting with things. I would try out a bunch of different shit, you know. Certain amps, like old thing Supro that Jimmy Page was using, and shit. Some 12-string stuff, you know, sitar thing on “Wherever I may Roam.” That’s just the cool thing about guitar, you can kinda go wild.”

In this video you can see James Hetfield playing ESP Explorer Double Neck.

In the July 2011 performance at Sonisphere, James Hetfield uses the Diezel Hagen 100W Tube Guitar Head Amp, as seen in Metallica's "Am I Evil?" video.

In the image, James Hetfield is seen with an Ibanez Dino Cazares DCM, suggesting he may be testing the guitar.

In the YouTube video "The Guitars of Metallica: Kill Em All era" by CIRCLE OF TONE, it is discussed that James Hetfield used a Marshall JMP50 Plexi Amp Head during his early days with Metallica.

In this video we're shown James' signature Iron Cross Electric Guitar and at 3:57 they mention these pickups.

In this video we can see Metallica rehearsing, James and Kirk are using the Ax8

James Hetfield is shown using a National Resolectric Guitar in a user-uploaded photo on Hdnux. This guitar features a Highlander preamp for its magnetic and piezoelectric pickups, a Jason Lollar P-90 in the neck position, and a solid African mahogany body. The versatile design, with independent volume controls and a 3-way toggle switch, highlights Hetfield's preference for high-quality, dynamic sound.

At 3:06 in this video, James Hetfield's rig is shown to consist of a Voodoo Lab GCX Audio Switcher.