Carefully listen to your favorite System of a Down song to find the key, chord progressions and rhythm. Most System of a Down songs are in Drop C tuning which means the lowest string (known as the low E string) is tuned down to C. The other strings are tuned GDGAD from low to high.
Write down the chords, rhythm and finger picking patters you observed while listening to the song. You may need to listen to the song several times before you are able to recognize the correct chord progressions or rhythm. Don't let this discourage you, System of a Down songs are very complicated and require focus.
Play guitar along with the recording and add distortion when necessary. If you play in a band try the song out with the rest of the members. If your guitar part does not sound similar to the recording, listen to the original song again and rework the chords, rhythm and finger picking patterns until it sounds similar.
Obtain tablature of a System of a Down song from a tablature database such as Ultimate Guitar (See Resources) or 911 Tabs (See Resources).
Understand the tablature. Guitar tablature represents the six strings on the guitar. The top line of the tablature is the highest pitched string, the bottom line represents the lowest. The numbers on the lines represents the fret numbers.
Play guitar while looking at the tablature. Go slowly at first and play without the original recording to get the hang of the song and to hear the chords.
Play guitar with the original recording to see if you are able to match the sound of Daron Malakian. You might not match it exactly, but if the chords are correct it will sound similar.