Wage War’s Guitar Tone: Andrew Wade’s Source & Mix Secrets

We’ve all heard it a million times: "Get it right at the source!" It’s practically the golden rule of audio production. And when you’re talking about monster metal guitar tones like those from Wage War, that rule is non-negotiable. Andrew Wade, the producer behind some of their killer tracks and an instructor for URM Academy's Ultimate Guitar Production, knows this better than anyone. The guitar tones on their tracks often start so strong that they need surprisingly little coaxing to sit perfectly in a dense metal mix.

Let's dive into how Andrew Wade approaches crafting Wage War's guitar sound, from the initial DI signal to the final polished product, as showcased in a fascinating session breakdown.

Nailing the Guitar Tone at the Source: The Wage War Approach

It’s not just about plugging into a high-gain amp and calling it a day. The journey to a crushing guitar tone begins long before you even think about hitting record on your DAW.

The Pre-Amp Signal Chain: Setting the Stage

Before the signal even hit the main amp sound (which, spoiler alert, ended up being a Kemper profile), Andrew Wade had a secret weapon in the chain: the Waves GTR Overdrive. Interestingly, it wasn't just for piling on more gain, though it did add a bit of drive. The primary use was for its tone knob, allowing for some initial high-end shaping and boost before the amp. This pre-shaping can significantly influence how the amp or profiler reacts, giving you more control over the final character.

The Kemper Revelation: Flexibility is King

Initially, they had a gnarly Peavey 5150 tone dialed in, which sounded sick in the studio. However, when it came to final mixes, the band felt they wanted something different. Andrew, without making a big fuss, re-amped the DIs through a Kemper Profiler and sent it over. The band loved it, and that became the sound for the record. This highlights a crucial point: sometimes, even a great tone might not be the right tone for the band's vision, and having tools like the Kemper allows for quick, high-quality pivots.

The Unsung Hero: Your Guitar Pick

This is a big one, and something Andrew Wade stressed heavily. During the Wage War sessions, he noticed that guitarist Cody Quistad, despite his incredible playing, wasn't getting the clarity and attack needed for some of the super-fast riffs. Cody had recently switched to a jazz pick. While jazz picks have their place, their typically rounder edges weren't cutting it for this specific metal application.

Andrew had an "awkward but necessary" conversation and handed Cody a brand new Tortex medium gauge pick (or something similar) with sharp edges. The difference was immediate and staggering. Everyone in the room was blown away by how much clearer and more defined the riffs sounded. It was a night-and-day improvement, all down to that tiny piece of plastic. This underscores how critical it is to pay attention to every detail. The pick is your first point of contact with the strings; it fundamentally shapes the transient and harmonic content of your guitar signal.

Other Crucial 'At the Source' Details

Beyond the pick, several other "at the source" elements contribute to a great DI signal ready for re-amping:

• Guitar Choice: For this session, they used a Jazzmaster loaded with Fishman Fluence Modern pickups. These active pickups are known for their clarity and versatile voicings, perfect for modern metal.
• String Gauge: While not explicitly detailed for this song, string gauge impacts tuning stability, sustain, and overall tone.
• Cable Length & Quality: Especially with passive pickups, long or low-quality cables can suck your high-end. Knowing when to use a signal extender/buffer is key.
• DI Box & Preamps: The choice of DI box and preamp for capturing the initial DI signal can also subtly influence the tone's quality and character.

Andrew emphasizes that having this knowledge in your "brain bank" – what guitar to use, what pickup, what pick, cable considerations – and being confident in those choices is paramount. If you want to dive even deeper into these foundational elements, check out Andrew Wade’s comprehensive guitar course, which covers everything from gear selection to signal flow in painstaking detail.

Taming Harmonics: Automation is Your Friend

A common issue with high-gain metal guitars is managing pinch harmonics, which can often jump out in volume. Instead of putting harmonics on a separate track (which can lead to glitchy edits and an unnatural sound when they punch in and out), Andrew keeps everything on a single guitar track. He then meticulously automates the volume down for every harmonic hit. While a bit tedious, copying and pasting the automation curve makes it manageable and results in a much smoother, more natural integration of the harmonics into the performance.

Minimal Mixing, Maximum Impact: Andrew Wade's Processing

Because the source tone was already so dialed in, the mixing stage for the Wage War guitars was about enhancement rather than surgical correction.

Subtle EQ, Big Results

A few strategic EQ boosts were all that was needed to make the guitars pop.

• High-End Clarity: A boost of around 2dB near 4kHz (using a plugin where "Times three" was engaged, suggesting a high-shelf or bell around 1.33kHz multiplied by 3, landing in that 4kHz vicinity) brought the guitars forward and added presence. This is a common area to boost for bite and articulation. For more on shaping your metal guitars, explore these EQ strategies for mixing modern metal.
• Solid Low-Mids: Using what sounded like a Waves SSL E-Channel plugin (praised for its "solid sounding" low and mid-range), a 1dB boost around 150Hz (or sometimes up to 200Hz) was applied. This helped the chugs hit harder and feel more powerful without becoming muddy. This region is crucial for the fundamental weight of drop-tuned guitars.
• Presence and Vocal Space: A little presence boost around 2kHz was added, subtly bringing the guitars forward. Additionally, some "higher low-end mid-range" was dialed out to carve space for the vocals, a classic move to improve mix clarity.

Creating Width: Stereo Imaging Tricks

To make the guitars sound super wide and a bit thicker, Andrew employed an Ozone 6 Imager (though newer versions or similar multi-band imagers would work). He specifically applied widening to the mid-range and lower mid-range frequency bands, avoiding a full-spectrum widening that can sound disorienting or phasey. This targeted approach adds size and separation without compromising the core tone, making the guitars feel larger than life.

Enhancing Attack with Transient Shapers

One final touch to the rhythm guitars was the Waves Trans-X Wide plugin. This was used to further emphasize the attack, making everything sound more aggressive and percussive. The Trans-X was set so it would spike up at the beginning of each guitar phrase, especially after a moment of silence, then leave the sustained part of the phrase relatively untouched. This worked particularly well for Wage War's style, where the kick, bass, and guitars often hit together in tight, rhythmic phrases. It adds that extra thwack that helps the riffs cut through.

The 'Actual Secret'? It's a Combination

So, what's the actual secret to Wage War's metal guitar tone? As Andrew Wade demonstrates, it’s not one single thing. It’s a meticulous attention to detail at every stage:

1. Performance: A great player like Cody Quistad.
2. Source Tone: The right guitar, pickups, and crucially, the right pick.
3. Signal Chain: Smart choices like using an overdrive for tonal shaping before the amp/profiler.
4. Recording Technique: Clean DIs and careful automation for dynamics like harmonics.
5. Amp Choice: Flexibility to choose what serves the song best (Kemper in this case).
6. Mixing: Minimal but highly effective EQ, stereo widening, and transient shaping.

It’s about understanding how all these elements interact and making informed decisions every step of the way.

Want to see how pros like Andrew Wade craft these tones from scratch, explaining every plugin, setting, and decision? At Nail The Mix, you get to watch world-class producers mix real songs from bands like Wage War, Periphery, and Gojira. You get the multitracks to practice on and can learn the techniques that define modern metal. Dive deeper into crafting powerful guitar tones and entire mixes by checking out the Wage War session with Andrew Wade and explore how to Unlock Your Sound: Mixing Modern Metal Beyond Presets. Get ready to take your guitar tones, and your mixes, to the next level.