How To Quad Track Guitars for a Massive Metal Tone

Modern metal production is on another level. Gone are the days of dodgy demos; today’s audience expects even local bands to have polished, massive-sounding records. That huge, wide, and aggressive guitar tone you hear on records from bands like Periphery, Spiritbox, or Architects isn’t just a great amp and a great player—it’s often the result of smart layering.

One of the most powerful techniques for achieving that “wall of sound” is quad tracking. It’s more than just double tracking; it’s a specific method for creating unparalleled depth and width. Let’s break down exactly what it is, how to do it right, and how to avoid the common pitfalls that turn a massive wall of sound into a muddy mess.

FAQ: Your Guide to Quad Tracking Metal Guitars

What is Quad Tracking, Anyway?

Simply put, quad tracking is the process of recording four separate performances of the same rhythm guitar part. It’s not about copying and pasting one performance four times (that will just make it louder and create phasing issues). It’s about building a thick, layered sound from four unique takes.

The standard setup looks like this:

• Guitar 1: A single performance, panned 100% to the left.
• Guitar 2: A second, unique performance, panned 100% to the right. (This is your standard double track).
• Guitar 3: A third, unique performance, panned somewhere between 70-80% to the left.
• Guitar 4: A fourth, unique performance, panned somewhere between 70-80% to the right.

The result is a core pair of hard-panned guitars creating maximum width, supported by an “inner” pair that adds density and power, filling out the stereo field.

Why Bother With Quad Tracking? Isn’t Double Tracking Enough?

For some genres, sure. But for the hyper-polished, dense sound of modern metal, quad tracking offers some serious advantages:

• Unmatched Thickness: The subtle, microscopic variations in timing and pitch between four individual takes create a natural chorusing effect that you simply can’t replicate with plugins. It makes the guitar section sound enormous.
• Wider, More Immersive Stereo Image: While the hard-panned pair gives you width, the inner pair connects the edges to the center of the mix, preventing the “hole in the middle” effect and making the guitars feel like they’re wrapping around the listener.
• Tonal Blending Opportunities: This is where it gets really fun. You don’t have to use the same tone for all four tracks. You can use your main high-gain tone for the wide pair and a slightly different tone for the inner pair to add new character. For example, your main rhythms (Guitars 1 & 2) could be a Peavey 5150 sound from the Neural DSP Archetype: Gojira, while your inner pair (Guitars 3 & 4) could use a tighter, more mid-focused tone from the Fortin Cali Suite to add a different kind of bite.

The Step-by-Step Guide to Recording Quad Guitars

Ready to try it? Here’s a practical workflow.

1. Nail Your Main Rhythm Pair (Guitars 1 & 2)

This is your foundation. Your playing needs to be as tight as humanly possible, locked to the click and the drums. Modern metal has an incredibly high bar for musicianship, and quad tracking will only amplify sloppiness.

• Record your first take. Don’t worry about perfection, just get a solid, energetic performance. Pan this track 100% Left.
• Record a completely new take of the same part. Focus on matching the first take’s energy and timing. Pan this track 100% Right.

Listen back. This is your core double-tracked sound. If these two tracks don’t sound tight together, don’t even think about adding more layers. Go back and re-record until they’re locked in.

2. Add the Second Layer (Guitars 3 & 4)

Now you’ll record two more takes, following the same process.

• Record your third take. Pan it around 70% Left.
• Record your fourth take. Pan this one around 70% Right.

Pro-Tip: Vary Your Tone
To get the most out of your quad tracks, use a slightly different sound for your second pair. You don’t need a totally different amp, but small changes can make a big difference. Try:

• Using a different pickup selection.
• Slightly backing off the gain on your amp sim for a tighter, less saturated sound.
• Using a different boost pedal model in front of your amp.
• Switching to a different impulse response (IR) with a slightly different midrange character.

3. Bus Your Guitars for Success

Once you have your four tracks recorded and panned, route them all to a single stereo group or bus channel in your DAW. This allows you to process them as a single cohesive unit, which is key for getting them to “glue” together during the mix phase.

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Quad Tracking

Quad tracking is powerful, but it’s easy to get wrong. Watch out for these common issues:

• Copy-Pasting Takes: We have to say it again. Never, ever just duplicate your audio files. It doesn’t create width, it just creates a mess of phasing problems called comb filtering. You need four separate, unique performances.
• Sloppy Performances: If your double tracks sound loose, your quad tracks will sound like a catastrophic train wreck. The goal is a tight, massive wall of sound, not a wide, sloppy mess. Practice to a metronome!
• Using the Exact Same Tone x4: While this can work, it often leads to a buildup of fizzy high-end frequencies and a lack of definition. Using a slightly varied tone for the inner pair (Guitars 3 & 4) adds complexity and helps each part stand out just enough.
• Too Much Low End: With modern metal’s low tunings, four 8-string guitars can quickly turn your mix into a swamp of low-end mud. Be prepared to be aggressive with your high-pass filters. You’re often cutting everything below 100-150Hz, sometimes even higher, to make room for the bass guitar and kick drum. For a complete guide on this, check out our deep dive on mixing low-tuned guitars.

How Do You Mix Quad-Tracked Guitars?

Once you have your four tracks bussed together, the real fun begins. Your goal is to make them sound like one monstrous guitar performance.

• Bus EQ: Use an EQ on your guitar bus to shape the overall tone. This is where you’ll do your main low-end filtering, carve out some space in the mids (around 300-500Hz) for the snare and vocals, and maybe add a little high-end air for clarity.
• Bus Compression: An audio compressor on the bus can work wonders for gluing the four tracks together. Use a slow attack to let the pick attack punch through and a fast release to bring up the body and sustain of the chords. This helps even out the dynamics and make the guitars feel more cohesive.
• Saturation: A little bit of tape or tube saturation on the bus can add pleasing harmonics and further blend the tracks together.

Reading about these techniques is one thing, but seeing them applied in a real session is a game-changer. Imagine watching producers like Will Putney, Jens Bogren, or Nolly Getgood tackle a dense mix with eight or more guitar tracks. On Nail The Mix, you get to do exactly that. We give you the raw multi-tracks from bands like Gojira and Meshuggah so you can see firsthand how the pros EQ, compress, and automate these massive guitar sounds into a finished record.

Check out our full catalog of Nail The Mix sessions to see exactly how it’s done.