Slash's guitar strings: the Guns N' Roses rig, sourced
Documented string gauges, brands, and tunings Saul 'Slash' Hudson uses with Guns N' Roses, Velvet Revolver, and his solo band. With citations.
Guns N' Roses · reviewed by the Change Your Strings editorial team ·
Slash plays Ernie Ball strings in .011–.048, tuned to Eb standard on a Gibson Les Paul. His current signature set is the Ernie Ball Slash Signature (.011–.048): a Paradigm core with a nickel-plated steel wrap and Everlast treatment, with brass-reinforced plain ends built for his Tune-O-Matic bridges. He was also an early Cobalt beta tester from the 2012 launch and praised the Cobalt voicing publicly. That thick .011 plain string is central to his bend feel.
What's on the guitar
Slash's rig is one of the most documented in rock:
- Guitars: Gibson Les Paul (primary). Multiple signature models, most with '59-voiced humbuckers.
- Strings: Ernie Ball, .011–.048. His current signature set is the Slash Signature (SKU P02200): Paradigm core, nickel-plated steel wrap, Everlast treatment. He was also a documented Cobalt beta tester from the 2012 launch.
- Tuning: Eb standard (half-step down) as the default. Some material in E standard.
- Amps: Marshall JCM 800 (2203) and Marshall Slash signature heads.
The .011 gauge on a Les Paul's 24.75-inch scale feels comparable to a .010 on a 25.5-inch scale Strat. That's the setup sweet spot, slightly thicker than default, tuned a half-step down, pushing a vintage-voiced humbucker.
See our full review of the Ernie Ball Cobalt Slinky line for what makes the cobalt wrap voicing different from nickel-plated steel.
Endorsed vs. verified use
Slash is a documented Ernie Ball endorser and a verified Cobalt user. Both are on the record, Ernie Ball features his quote in Cobalt marketing, and Guitar World's January 2012 launch video documents him testing the set. This alignment matters because many artist endorsements don't match actual studio use. Slash's does.
Why Cobalts for a Les Paul
The Cobalt voicing adds roughly 2–3 dB of output and a tighter upper midrange through a passive humbucker. On a PAF-voiced Les Paul, which is naturally warm and slightly scooped, that extra presence reads as articulation without needing to push the amp harder. It also tightens the low end on Eb standard tuning, which can otherwise feel slightly slack with .011 gauge.
The takeaway: Cobalt isn't a metal-only string line. It's a voicing choice that pairs especially well with low-output humbuckers and medium tunings. Slash's rig is the best-known example of that pairing.
Sources
- Ernie Ball, "Slash Signature Electric Guitar Strings 11-48" (current signature set spec, SKU P02200). https://www.ernieball.com/guitar-strings/electric-guitar-strings/slash-signature-guitar-strings
- "Slash Discusses Ernie Ball Cobalt Electric Guitar Strings." Guitar World video, January 5, 2012. https://www.guitarworld.com/features/video-slash-discusses-ernie-ball-cobalt-electric-guitar-strings
- Ernie Ball Cobalt product page, featured artist quote. https://www.ernieball.com/guitar-strings/electric-guitar-strings/slinky-cobalt-electric-guitar-strings
- Premier Guitar, "The Legend of Slash's Appetite Les Paul." https://www.premierguitar.com/gear/guitars/slash-appetite-les-paul
String brand, gauge, or tuning specifics change across tours and albums. This page is re-dated when Slash's tech publishes a rig update.
Electric guitars
Recorded 1986–87 · The Appetite Burst
Kris Derrig 1959 Les Paul Replica
The instrument used to track Guns N' Roses' Appetite for Destruction (1987). Built by Kris Derrig in 1986 as a 1959 Les Paul Standard replica with Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro pickups. Manager Alan Niven bought it for Slash and delivered it the night before the Appetite overdub sessions; it became his main guitar thereafter.
Source: Premier Guitar: The Legend of Slash's Appetite Les Paul.
2020+ · Current production main
Gibson Slash Collection Les Paul Standard
AAA flamed maple top, solid mahogany body, C-shape neck, Gibson Custom BurstBucker Alnico II pickups, hand-wired electronics with Orange Drop capacitors. Available in Appetite Burst, November Burst, Anaconda Burst.
Source: Gibson: The Slash Collection.
Tour use 1990s+ · Backups
Multiple Gibson Les Paul Standards (vintage and reissue)
Including a 1958 reissue and various Custom Shop Slash signatures across the years. All carry Alnico II humbuckers in some configuration; most are Burst-finished.
Source: Slashparadise: Slash's guitars.
Amps
1996–97 · Limited run, 3000 units
Marshall JCM 2555SL Slash Signature
Slash's first signature amp, based on the Silver Jubilee 2555. Only 3000 made between 1996 and 1997. Discontinued, then reissued through the AFD100 line. The Silver Jubilee circuit was the Slash live tone reference from the Use Your Illusion tours forward.
2010–11 · Limited edition, 2300 units
Marshall AFD100 Signature Head
100W signature head launched in 2010, designed to recreate the modded 1959 Super Lead used on Appetite for Destruction. Two switchable voices: the AFD ("Appetite") tone and the tone of his "#34" modified JCM800. Built-in power attenuation from 100% down to 0.01%.
Source: Premier Guitar: AFD100 launch, Slashparadise: AFD100.
Studio classic · Appetite era
Modified Marshall JCM800 / 1959SLP
The amp used to track Appetite for Destruction was a modified Marshall 1959T Super Lead rented from S.I.R. in Los Angeles. The "Stock #39" amp was modified by S.I.R. tech Tim Caswell (the unused tremolo-circuit tube re-purposed as an extra preamp stage, with a master volume added). Per later reporting, the amp actually delivered to the sessions was Stock #36, modified by Frank Levi after Caswell had left S.I.R.; Slash was unaware of the swap at the time.
Source: Tony McKenzie, AFD100 amp history; Slashparadise, Slash's amps.
Effects
Signature pedal · Long-running staple
Dunlop SW95 Slash Cry Baby Wah
Fasel-loaded Classic circuit, footswitchable distortion, red LED. Used on every Guns N' Roses, Velvet Revolver, and Slash solo album since the late 1990s. The wah on the "Sweet Child o' Mine" intro lead is the canonical reference.
Studio + live · Delay tools
Boss DD-3 Digital Delay + Boss DD-500
A Boss DD-3 sits on his Blues Ball pedalboard per Premier Guitar's 2024 Rig Rundown. In the main Guns N' Roses touring rig, two Boss DD-500 digital delays run in their own effects loops, switched from a MIDI floorboard.
Source: Premier Guitar: Slash Blues Ball Rig Rundown 2024, Guitar Chalk: Slash pedals.
Strings
Current signature set · SKU P02200 · .011–.048
Ernie Ball Slash Signature (.011–.048)
His own production set, the result of three decades with Ernie Ball. A Paradigm core wire with a nickel-plated steel wrap and an Everlast nanotreatment for durability. The plain strings use a heavier brass reinforcement at the ball ends, built specifically for the tuning stability of his Tune-O-Matic Les Pauls.
Source: Ernie Ball: Slash Signature Electric Guitar Strings 11-48.
Cobalt beta tester since 2012 · CYS-reviewed .011–.048
Ernie Ball Power Slinky Cobalt (.011–.048)
The set Slash helped launch in 2012. A cobalt-iron wrap drives passive humbuckers 2-3 dB hotter than nickel at the same gauge, with a tighter upper midrange. On a PAF-voiced Les Paul in Eb standard, it is the closest CYS-reviewed match to his .011 gauge feel.
Source: Guitar World: Slash Discusses Ernie Ball Cobalt Strings, January 5, 2012.
If you want this rig
Slash Signature Set (.011–.048)
Why this one: Slash's exact current production set: his .011 to .048 gauge on a Paradigm core with an Everlast nanotreatment for durability and heavier brass-reinforced plain ends for Tune-O-Matic tuning stability. Tune to Eb standard on a humbucker guitar. For the same gauge in the hotter Cobalt voicing he beta-tested in 2012, see the Power Slinky Cobalt.
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