Home / Roomtone Amp Sim / Indie / Alternative Tone

Indie / Alternative Guitar Tone

Indie and alternative guitar covers a lot of ground, but the throughline is character over polish: jangly cleans, edge-of-breakup rhythm tones, and the occasional wall of fuzz. The goal is a tone that has personality and still tucks into a band mix.

Every preset below is built for that, with the amp voicing, EQ, and effects already set. Use them as a fast way to find your starting point, then tweak.

Every tone below is a Roomtone Amp Sim preset. Get Roomtone ($29) or browse all 483 presets →

Hear a Indie / Alternative tone

This is the actual Roomtone interface with the Slacker Indie Jangle preset loaded. The knob positions below are the real settings, and the audio is rendered straight from the plugin.

Roomtone Amp Sim showing the Slacker Indie Jangle preset, a Indie / Alternative guitar tone

86 Indie / Alternative presets

Chorus Spring Combo

80s studio - chorus with spring reverb character

Drive 3 Bass 5.5 Mid 5 Treble 6.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Synth Pop Clean

80s synth pop clean - electronic-influenced guitar

Drive 3 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Beach Telephones

Bright surf-jangle indie clean - Fender clean into FET squash, CH-1 chorus, and a telephone-bandpass 7-band EQ, then a parallel rack of lo-fi cassette grain, a saturated washy reverb, slapback delay and stereo width. Sparse, beachy, bedroom-indie - sounds like a jangle hook through a cheap phone speaker by the sea.

Drive 1 Bass 2.6 Mid 8.2 Treble 10 Presence 10
CompressorWahPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancerSlowGearPitchExciterTapePreampRotaryTransientShaperSoftClipperOctaveEQ

Funky Clean Rhythm

Funky clean rhythm guitar

Drive 3 Bass 4 Mid 5.5 Treble 7.5 Presence 7
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

College Radio Jangle

80s alternative jangle through AM broadcast - JC-120 chime, FET broadcast comp, plate reverb, NRSC-1-C radio bandwidth-limit on the tail

Drive 2.5 Bass 5 Mid 6.5 Treble 7.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Bright Jangle

Jangly indie rock - bright and bouncy

Drive 2 Bass 5 Mid 6 Treble 6.5 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQStereoEnhancer

Tremolo Wash

Deep pulsing 80s indie tremolo - hypnotic and lush

Drive 2.5 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Afro Pop Clean

Clean afro-pop influenced

Drive 2 Bass 4 Mid 5.5 Treble 7.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Bedroom Pop

Lo-fi bedroom recording - warm and warbly

Drive 2.8 Bass 6 Mid 5 Treble 5.5 Presence 4.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Bright Chorus Pop

Sparkly 80s alternative pop - bright chorus chime with parallel opto squash, plate splash and wide stereo

Drive 2.8 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.8 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Modulated Psych Rhythm

Psych rhythm - light crunch chime amp, slow phaser swirl, D-C-V chorus wobble, Dyna-style squash, subtle tape warmth. Tighter reverb for chord clarity.

Drive 3 Bass 5 Mid 5 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbTapePreampLo-FiEQ

VHS Dreams

Warm VHS tape aesthetic - thick compressed wobble

Drive 2.2 Bass 6 Mid 6 Treble 4.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

4-Track Cassette

Home recording aesthetic - JC-120 clean into cassette tape with 4-track squash

Drive 2.8 Bass 5.5 Mid 6 Treble 5.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

AM Radio Ghost

Distant radio aesthetic - static and nostalgia

Drive 2 Bass 4.5 Mid 6.5 Treble 4.5 Presence 4.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Baritone Cassette DI

Cassette DI baritone - heavy 1176-style squash, tight low end, upfront and dry

Drive 2 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 5.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Brit Art Crunch

UK indie art-rock crunch - FenderClean edge-of-breakup + BluesDriver push, 1176 FET comp, slap delay and plate

Drive 4.5 Bass 5.5 Mid 6.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancerEQ

Candy Synth-Verb

Cassette DI - ethereal synth-like with lush reverb

Drive 3 Bass 4.5 Mid 6 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Dark Swirl

Dark 80s atmosphere - chorus and flanger swirl

Drive 3 Bass 6 Mid 4.5 Treble 5.5 Presence 4
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Dynamic Response

Touch sensitive - clean to crunch based on dynamics, tamed output for transparent peaks

Drive 1.8 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTransientShaperEQ

Endless Summer

Surf pop dream - Princeton edge-of-breakup with classic chorus, spring verb, cassette warmth

Drive 1.3 Bass 5.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbTapePreampLo-FiEQ

Gated Verb Cassette

Cassette DI - pedal gated reverb character

Drive 3 Bass 5.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Raw British Indie

gritty british indie - british chime top boost + gritty distortion bite

Drive 4.5 Bass 5 Mid 6 Treble 6.5 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Southern Rock Crunch

Southern rock - Plexi 50W edge-of-breakup, BluesDriver push, humbucker mid warmth, spring reverb

Drive 4.5 Bass 5.5 Mid 7 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Dry Garage Rock

Dry garage rock

Drive 2.5 Bass 4 Mid 6.5 Treble 7 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Late Night Melancholy

Ethereal indie pop - warm tube clean, deep shimmer, dreamy chorus

Drive 2.8 Bass 5 Mid 5 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Midnight Romance

Dark romantic 80s atmosphere - Dumble smooth clean, heavy parallel squash, Dimension chorus, flanger glint, modulated hall, tape warmth

Drive 2.8 Bass 5.5 Mid 5.8 Treble 5.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Modulation Stack

Layered mods - flanger into delay into reverb

Drive 3 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Arena Indie Rock

Arena indie rock

Drive 2.8 Bass 5.5 Mid 6 Treble 7 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Post-Punk Chime

Post-punk chime

Drive 3.5 Bass 4.5 Mid 6 Treble 7 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Plucky Rhythm

80s synth-pop plucky rhythm - JC-120 into Vox cab, 5:1 squash, tight slapback, gated ambience, transient-punched staccato, tape warmth and wide stereo

Drive 2.2 Bass 4.5 Mid 6.5 Treble 7 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTransientShaperTapePreampEQ

Polished Indie Pop

Polished indie pop - bright sparkle with tight delay

Drive 2 Bass 4.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 7 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Psychedelic Shimmer

Octave-up shimmer wash - clean amp into granular shimmer reverb with subtle chorus glue

Drive 2.5 Bass 4.5 Mid 5 Treble 6.5 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Reggae Chorus

Chorus-drenched new wave jangle - reggae-influenced

Drive 1.5 Bass 4.5 Mid 6 Treble 7 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Reverb Wall

Pure reverb wall - Fender clean into prominent CE-2 chorus and huge hall reverb, delay off for maximum reverb focus

Drive 2.5 Bass 4.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Silky Smooth

Silky smooth - polished bedroom pop

Drive 2 Bass 5.5 Mid 5 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Sparkly Indie Pop

Bright indie pop - sparkly with tasteful ambience

Drive 1.5 Bass 4.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 7 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Angular Art Punk

angular art-punk - british chime edge of breakup with single-coil bite

Drive 3.2 Bass 4 Mid 6 Treble 6.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Ultra LoFi Bedroom

Ultra lo-fi bedroom - warm and intimate

Drive 1.8 Bass 6 Mid 5 Treble 5 Presence 4
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Vinyl Warmth

Record player aesthetic - crackle and warmth

Drive 1.5 Bass 6 Mid 5.5 Treble 5 Presence 4.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Washed Out Dreampop

Lap-steel space wash - Fender clean into long digital delay and ambient reverb, slide swell envelope, wide stereo

Drive 2.8 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampSlowGearEQ

Indie Dance Sparkle

sparkle

Drive 1.5 Bass 5 Mid 6 Treble 7 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Fake 12-String Split

Octave-up 12-string emulation - clean Magnatone, granular octave-up doubling (PitchShifter mode 3 - 4-grain Hann/cubic Hermite, polyphonic-clean), CE-2 chorus wobble, plate splash, tape warmth, MidSide widening

Drive 2.8 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiPitchOctaveTapePreamp

Garage Rock Raw

garage rock - raw, gritty gritty vintage breakup

Drive 6.5 Bass 6 Mid 5.5 Treble 5 Presence 4.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiOctaveSoftClipperEQ

Slacker Crunch

90s indie crunch - gritty vintage into british cab

Drive 5.5 Bass 5 Mid 6.5 Treble 5.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Garage Fuzz Overload

british thick-mid + gritty distortion fuzz - garage punk garage style

Drive 4.5 Bass 5.5 Mid 6.5 Treble 5.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Indie Jangle

Indie cab with jangly clean - purpose-built for jangle pop

Drive 1.5 Bass 4.5 Mid 6 Treble 6 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

12-String Shimmer

12-string jangle with granular shimmer reverb wash - compressed sparkle, stereo chorus, long octave cloud over bright clean

Drive 2.5 Bass 4.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 7 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

College Radio Clean

Bright indie clean - sparkly small american combo character

Drive 1.5 Bass 4 Mid 5 Treble 8 Presence 7
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Boutique Bell Clean

Boutique bell-like clean - articulate Dumble sparkle pushed into its sweet spot, parallel comp glue, short slapback, plate splash, wide stereo

Drive 3 Bass 5 Mid 6 Treble 7 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Warm Jangle Drive

Always-on light drive - offset warmth with edge and note definition

Drive 2.5 Bass 5.5 Mid 6.5 Treble 5.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTransientShaperEQ

Frenetic Raw Crunch

Raw bedroom crunch - frenetic distorted energy with lo-fi edge

Drive 5.5 Bass 5.5 Mid 6 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Punchy Post-HC Crunch

british crunch crunchy breakup with clean boost - bass-heavy punchy post-hardcore

Drive 4 Bass 8 Mid 6 Treble 4 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Rolled Back Glassy

british crunch with volume rolled back - glassy edge-of-breakup clean

Drive 2.5 Bass 7 Mid 6 Treble 4.5 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiEQ

Tight Punk Chug

Tight palm-mute friendly crunch - punchy lows with controlled gain

Drive 4.5 Bass 7.5 Mid 6.5 Treble 4.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTransientShaperEQ

Apartment Plate Wash

Bright bedroom-recorded Jazzmaster wash - JC-120 platform with onboard-stereo chorus stacked over Small Clone, slapback digital delay 280ms, Brooklyn apartment plate reverb, light cassette grit. Doused / How Long Have You Known dream-pop signature

Drive 2.5 Bass 5.5 Mid 4.5 Treble 7 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancer

Motorik Hall Layer

Layered krautrock motorik chorus + analog delay wash - JC-120 clean platform, Small Clone Classic chorus stacked, dotted-eighth analog BBD delay 460ms with stereo dual-ratio, long hall, subtle Small Stone phaser drift. Loose Ends / Dopamine / Mire density

Drive 2.8 Bass 5 Mid 4.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancer

Cracked Wall Fuzz

Cranked Hiwatt-style mid-scooped fuzz wall - Crunch JCM800 as Hiwatt surrogate driven by RAT distortion, mid scoop, modulated hall through fuzz, subtle Sea Machine chorus underneath. MBV-influenced Skin Game / Acheron / Lorelei wall

Drive 4.5 Bass 6 Mid 4 Treble 6.5 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampStereoEnhancer

Underwater Vibrolux

Small studio Fender Vibrolux + Blues Junior cranked into breakup - light RAT bite, DimensionD subtle stereo chorus, analog delay, hall, Tascam 424 cassette character with wow/flutter. Frog in Boiling Water Brown Paper Bag / Soul-net dark haunted territory

Drive 3.6 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampStereoEnhancer

Floating Lead Cloud

Single-note lead floating in shimmer cloud - JC-120 platform with BluesDriver clean-boost for note bloom, CE-2 chorus, long melodic digital delay 500ms fb 0.45, shimmer reverb, PreEQ mid boost for articulation. Ethereal lead-melody tone for any era

Drive 3 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancer

Chaise Longue Lead

Lipstick single-coil into AC30TB-style class-A combo pushed by Klon-style transparent boost - chewy EL84 breakup, mid-forward Vox chime, NOT fuzz. Bright scratchy lead riff voice from the debut single

Drive 3.2 Bass 4 Mid 6 Treble 6.5 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Wet Dream Fuzz Wash

Vintage staple-pickup guitar through fuzz-and-reverb shoegaze pedal stack into small EL84 combo - woolly muff-style fuzz with lush plate reverb pad, Klon-style mid-push on top. Loveless-leaning indie wall

Drive 3.8 Bass 4.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 5.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Isle of Wight Clean Rhythm

Surf Green Jazzmaster into small American class-A combo - clean rhythm bed for indie verses, glassy single-coil sparkle, light room ambience, sits under fuzz lead parts without competing

Drive 2.4 Bass 4.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 5.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Moisturizer Tight Fuzz

2025-era post-punk fuzz - humbuckers into tight muff-style fuzz pushing AC30-style class-A combo, drier than debut shoegaze, faster attack, mid-forward Vox bite. Aggressive indie rhythm and lead

Drive 3.5 Bass 4 Mid 6 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Moody Dry Jazz Clean

Warm dark jazz clean - Fender Twin edge-of-breakup with hair on dig-ins, slow CE-2 chorus warble, long dark hall wash, light cassette texture, opto compression. Sustained maj7/min7 voicings - intimate, full-bodied, NOT thin

Drive 2.5 Bass 5.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 4.5 Presence 4
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreamp

Dark Jazz Chord Wash

Signature dark-jazz-chord clean wash - Fender Twin edge-of-breakup with hair on dig-ins, slow wide Polychorus-style classic chorus, hall reverb 6s decay, short DD-7-style digital delay, light opto compression. For maj7/min7/dim chord voicings sustained over slow tempos. Czech One / Easy Easy / Slush Puppy territory

Drive 2.8 Bass 5.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 5 Presence 4.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-Fi

Wooly Fuzz Outburst

Mid-forward woolly Tonebender-style fuzz outburst - BigMuff boost into Fender Twin clean, mid push for Tonebender voicing (NOT scooped), reduced reverb to let fuzz fill space, no chorus. Half Man Half Shark / Dum Surfer / Stoned Again territory - the sudden fuzz explosion from clean jazz

Drive 2.8 Bass 5 Mid 6 Treble 5 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-Fi

Bedroom 4-Track Cassette

Lo-fi bedroom-demo DIY tone - Tascam 424 op-amp preamp into DI cab, cassette saturation, small-room reverb, light slapback, subtle classic chorus, intentional room hiss. Out Getting Ribs / Zoo Kid / Man Alive! Shrunken Heads home-recording aesthetic

Drive 3 Bass 4.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 4.5 Presence 4
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreamp

Drop-D Low Drone

Low-tuning drone wash - Fender Twin edge-of-breakup voiced for drop-D / open-D rumble, wide Polychorus-style chorus on low strings, dark hall reverb, neutral bass (drop tuning provides the low end - don't boost EQ bass). DADF#AD open-D Out Getting Ribs and drop-D Cellular territory

Drive 2.8 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 5 Presence 4.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-Fi

Spring Plus Room Bloom

Live amp spring + room stack - Fender Hot Rod Deluxe edge-of-breakup into 1x12, onboard-spring character with short 80ms delay acting as room pre-delay for the medium decay bloom underneath. Pretty flat tone stack, light opto compression, slow Polychorus-style chorus. The 'really bare sound with considerable reverb' live wash

Drive 2.8 Bass 5.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 5 Presence 4.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-Fi

Baby Blue Wash

Slow ballad jazz-chord wash - Fender Twin Reverb clean with hair on dig-ins, restrained Polychorus-style chorus, dotted-1/8 digital delay locked to 102 BPM (440ms), spacious dark hall reverb for live-room feel, light tape preamp for early-2010s lo-fi studio character. Sustained Strat single-coil voicings, Eb-major maj7/min7 ballad territory

Drive 2.8 Bass 5.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 5 Presence 4.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreamp

Twangy Slide Bloom

Bright twangy slide-guitar tone - Fender Deluxe clean with light SD-1-style asymmetric overdrive, treble-pushed for slide cut, SlowGear bow-attack swell, hall reverb wash, short tape slapback. Comet Face / Man Alive! era slide passages

Drive 2.8 Bass 4.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiSlowGear

Small Clone Wobble

Showcase preset for EHX Small Clone chorus mode (mode 7) - filtered-square LFO through cascaded 1-pole LPs at 10Hz creates the signature rounded-square wobble. Slightly slower than CE-2, more pronounced pitch character. Dry-ish overall, lets the wobble shine

Drive 3 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 5.5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Pulsar Variable Vib

Showcase preset for the Pulsar Vibrato chorus mode (mode 9) - variable-shape LFO that interpolates from sine to filtered-square. Pure wet pitch modulation. Fast enough rate for noticeable vibrato character, depth dialed to that classic Pulsar throbbing edge. NEVER combine with Delay (off-key echo bug)

Drive 2.8 Bass 5 Mid 6 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Baroque Theatre Sustain

Theatrical baroque indie clean - JC-120 chime with lush stereo chorus and grand hall reverb, glittery sustained chord aesthetic

Drive 2.5 Bass 4.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 7 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-Fi

Garage Rock Edge

Fender Bassman edge-of-breakup with LA-2A squash and tape, Albert Hammond Jr Strat into a cranked Tweed, midrange-forward bridge pickup grit, lo-fi tape mastering character

Drive 3.8 Bass 4.5 Mid 6.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiTapePreampEQ

Edge Pop Shimmer

Articulated pop shimmer - slapback into shimmer for stadium-rock worship lead, AC30 chime

Drive 3 Bass 5.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-Fi

Worship Lead Shimmer

Strymon Cloud-Shimmer hybrid worship lead - articulated, vocal-friendly, slapback in front, FET comp for snap

Drive 2.2 Bass 5.5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-Fi

Dreamy HH Jangle

Polished bedroom-pop - HH humbucker chime, plate verb wash, short slap delay, CE-2 chorus

Drive 3.2 Bass 5 Mid 6 Treble 6 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbStereoEnhancerLo-Fi

Camper Van Plate Wash

DIY in-the-box surf - clean Twin DI, long plate verb wash, deep CE-2 chorus, stereo delay, cassette

Drive 2.7 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 6.5 Presence 5.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancer

AM Do I Wanna Know Riff

AM 2013 signature riff - Vox Starstream XII 12-string bridge into ValveSlapper + RAT into paired Selmer Zodiac + Magnatone 410. Subtle Magnatone pitch vibrato on sustains, MXR Carbon Copy analog slapback, plate room. 1176 4:1 lets pluck through

Drive 6 Bass 5 Mid 6.5 Treble 7 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancerEQ

AM R U Mine Heavy

AM 2013 hardest rhythm - Black Les Paul Custom bridge into RAT + ValveSlapper into Selmer Zodiac pushed. Mid-forward, presence high, tight close-mic room. Hard 1176 8:1 for upfront punch. Bass tight, no flub. Riff territory

Drive 7 Bass 4.5 Mid 7 Treble 6.5 Presence 7
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancerEQ

AM Dancefloor Bite

Whatever People 2006 - Tele bridge tone-full-up into single RAT into Hiwatt Custom 50 2x12. Hiwatt built-in spring is the verb. Echoplex tape slap at desk, TG1 console glue comp. Bright, bitey, garagey. Source: Jim Abbiss Sound on Sound feature

Drive 5.5 Bass 4 Mid 6 Treble 7.5 Presence 6
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancerEQ

AM Cornerstone Tele Neck

Humbug 2009 - Tele NECK pickup fingerpicked A-D-Bm-F#m, Selmer Zodiac barely-breaking-up clean, NO drive pedal, light Magnatone pitch vibrato on sustains, medium plate ~2s for 60s pop width. Transparent optical comp. Warm room mic

Drive 1.5 Bass 5 Mid 5.5 Treble 5 Presence 5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancerEQ

AM 505 Rotosphere Climax

Favourite Worst Nightmare 2007 - 505 outro climax wall, heavily fuzzed Hiwatt + Selmer paired, Hughes & Kettner Tube Rotosphere MkII Leslie-sim swirl at slow rotor (the climax sound). Echoplex slapback, plate medium. Treble-heavy stacked

Drive 6 Bass 5.5 Mid 6 Treble 6.5 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiRotaryStereoEnhancerEQ

AM Body Paint Ronson Solo

The Car 2022 - Body Paint Mick Ronson tribute solo, Les Paul Deluxe bridge HB into fixed Cry-Baby wah + Tone Bender fuzz. Cocked-wah resonant mid 700-900Hz, treble open, bass cut. Plate medium ~1.2s. No modulation - solo cuts dry

Drive 8 Bass 4 Mid 7.5 Treble 7 Presence 6.5
CompressorPhaserChorusFlangerTremoloDelayReverbLo-FiStereoEnhancerEQ

More tones by genre

Bedroom Pop · Lo-Fi · Dream Pop · Midwest Emo · Classic Rock · Shoegaze · Ambient · Dynamic · 90s Alternative · Psychedelic · Funk · Clean · Surf · 80s Rock · Country

FAQ

What settings make a good indie / alternative guitar tone?

Indie and alternative guitar covers a lot of ground, but the throughline is character over polish: jangly cleans, edge-of-breakup rhythm tones, and the occasional wall of fuzz. The goal is a tone that has personality and still tucks into a band mix. Every preset above lists its exact amp settings and effects.

Which Roomtone presets are best for indie / alternative?

Roomtone ships 86 Indie / Alternative presets, all listed above with their settings.

Does Roomtone run on Mac and Windows?

Yes, as a VST3 / AU plugin and a standalone app on macOS and Windows.