Everyone wants that glassy, mid-scooped "Gravity" sound, but most people just slap a Fender preset on and wonder why it sounds like a tin can.
Chasing the AmpliTube 5 John Mayer tone is a bit of a rabbit hole. You’re trying to replicate a guy who uses $100,000 Dumble Steel String Singers and custom Two-Rock heads. Honestly, doing that inside a computer is a tall order. But it’s totally possible if you stop thinking about "presets" and start thinking about gain staging.
The secret isn't just one amp. It’s how the virtual air moves in the cabinet room.
The "Continuum" Clean: It’s All About the Headroom
If you’re looking for that big, 3D clean tone from the Continuum era, you need to head straight for the Fender Collection 2 inside AmpliTube 5.
Specifically, look at the '65 Super Reverb. This is the workhorse. John’s sound is famously "scooped," meaning the bass is big, the treble is sparkly, and the mids are pulled back. In AmpliTube, try setting your Treble to 7, your Bass to 6, and pull those Mids down to 3 or 4.
One mistake? Cranking the gain.
John’s cleans are loud but never "hairy" unless he wants them to be. Keep the Volume (which acts as gain on these vintage models) around 3 or 4. If it’s too quiet, use the Master volume at the bottom of the AmpliTube interface to bring it up. You want the virtual tubes to be awake, not screaming.
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The Parallel Rig Trick
Mayer rarely uses just one amp. In his real rig, he blends a Dumble for the "thump" and a Two-Rock for the "sparkle."
You can do this in AmpliTube 5 by using the Signal Chain view. Drag a second amp into a parallel path.
- Path A: The '65 Super Reverb (for that Fender chime).
- Path B: Try the JH Gold (the Hendrix Marshall) but keep the gain nearly at zero.
Mixing these two gives you a thickness that a single amp model just can't touch. It fills out the "weight" of the note, especially when you’re playing those thumb-over-the-neck chords.
The Pedals: Don’t Overdo the Klon
We all know Mayer loves his Klon Centaur. In AmpliTube, that’s the Silver Centaur.
Here is the thing: most people use it as a distortion pedal. Don’t. Use it as a "clean boost."
Set the Gain to about 9 o'clock. Crank the Volume to 2 o'clock. This pushes the front end of your virtual Fender amp just enough to make it feel "rubbery." That’s the feeling where the note "gives" a little when you dig in with your pick.
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If you're chasing the "Trio" era lead sound, you’ll want to stack. Put the Tube Screamer (the TS808 model) before the Centaur. Keep the gain low on both. It’s about layers, not a single heavy-handed effect.
Compression is the "Secret" Sauce
Mayer’s tone sounds "produced" even when he's live. That's because of high-end rack compression.
Inside AmpliTube 5, don’t just use a stompbox compressor. Go to the Rack section at the end of the chain. Pull in the White 2A (based on the LA-2A).
Set the "Peak Reduction" just until the needle barely moves on your loudest notes. This glues the tone together. It makes those "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" double-stops pop without jumping out of the mix and hurting your ears.
The Cab Room: Where the Magic Happens
This is where 90% of AmpliTube users fail. They use the default 57 microphone and call it a day.
If you want a Mayer vibe, you need "air."
- Change the mics: Use a Ribbon mic (like the Velvet VR) paired with a Dynamic 57.
- Move them back: Slide the mics an inch or two away from the speaker cloth. This softens the high-end "fizz."
- The Room: Turn up the "Room" fader. Mayer’s tone is famous for its sense of space. A dry signal sounds like a DI; a room signal sounds like a legend.
Your Actionable Checklist for the "Mayer Sound"
Stop tweaking and start playing. Follow this specific setup to get 95% of the way there:
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- Guitar: Use the Neck pickup. Or, if you have a Strat, position 4 (Neck and Middle). Roll your guitar’s tone knob down to about 8 to take the "ice pick" off the top.
- Amp: Fender '65 Super Reverb. Settings: Volume 4, Treble 7, Mid 3, Bass 6, Reverb 3.
- Pedal 1: Silver Centaur. Gain 2, Treble 5, Output 7.
- Pedal 2: Analog Delay (the EchoMan). Set it for a very short slapback—barely noticeable. It just adds "width."
- Rack: White 2A Leveling Amplifier at the very end.
Once you have this dialed in, the rest is in your hands. Literally. Mayer’s "pluck" comes from the fingers, not the pick. Try putting the pick down and snapping the strings against the fretboard. You'll hear that "pop" immediately.
Go into your AmpliTube 5 settings, lock these in as a "Mayer Clean" preset, and then don't touch the mouse again for an hour. Just play.