Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

[h3r3t1k]

I'd like to keep my main guitar in E because with E, the occasional Eb and Drop D you can cover a lot of musical ground. Now I'd like to play some stuff tuned C/B Standard as well as Drop C, B and A. Would you say it makes sense getting a 7-string for this? Most bands tune down 6-strings but I like the fact that you can easily tune everything up a half-step to be in C Standard, tune your B up a half-step and the rest down a half-step to be in Drop C, tune up one step on EADGBE and be in Drop B or just drop your B one step and be in Drop A. All the while I don't need to have to worry about modifying my guitar. And with the option of buying 6-string sets and single B-strings separately have perfect tension. Am I correct in my reasoning? I've never had any proper lessons on theory.

Something I don't understand is that a 7-string is tuned BEADGBE while Baritone tuning on a 6-string is BEADF#B. The latter makes sense because it's what you get when you tune down a fourth. Why is a 7-string tuned differently and should I detune the G a half-step when covering stuff from bands that detune 6-strings?

 

[zjb29877]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

Heck yeah! First of all, you aren't just getting a downtuned 6, you're getting something that can also be used as a regular 6 string and something with a lower string. It's really the best of both worlds.

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[greekdude]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

I'd like to keep my main guitar in E because with E, the occasional Eb and Drop D you can cover a lot of musical ground. Now I'd like to play some stuff tuned C/B Standard as well as Drop C, B and A. Would you say it makes sense getting a 7-string for this?

YES! never regretted getting my 7 string 2 yrs ago. Still getting confused now and then without practice on specific traditional 6-strings songs. I can play nu-stuff for an hour and then someone asks me to play stairway to heaven or Angie ... and things get ugly, but <helmet-on> who the hell needs those songs</helmet-off> when you can play scorpions blackout *and* slipknot antisocial with the same guitar/setup!!

Something I don't understand is that a 7-string is tuned BEADGBE while Baritone tuning on a 6-string is BEADF#B. The latter makes sense because it's what you get when you tune down a fourth. Why is a 7-string tuned differently and should I detune the G a half-step when covering stuff from bands that detune 6-strings?

Because the baritone tries to retain the fretting positions of the traditional 6-string, while the 7-string is just a traditional 6-string with an added string on the bass side. Different animals IMHO.

 

[darthphineas]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

Because the baritone tries to retain the fretting positions of the traditional 6-string, while the 7-string is just a traditional 6-string with an added string on the bass side. Different animals IMHO.

^^ This ^^



I picked up a 1st run Ibanez Universe new off the rack when they came out. Really not a big adjustment at all. While I think the lower string has contributed to some of the newer styles of music, I seldom ever use it for much other than the lower chords for my needs/purposes.

 

[Lucy Diamond]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

My Advice.

If you want a 7 string as your second guitar, definitely get a good one. You should know by now if you are going to stick with it or not. By quality and let it be yours.

I can't wait to see her.

Later man.

 

[Chad]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

I have owned three different 7 strings over the years, but have finally decided they aren't for me. If I were to play 7 strings ONLY, it might work. But switching back and forth between 6 and 7 is confusing for me. I'd rather just have a dedicated 6 string for lower tunings, so that's what I do. I do occasionally miss having a high E, but I can still make things work and sound good without it.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

Something I don't understand is that a 7-string is tuned BEADGBE while Baritone tuning on a 6-string is BEADF#B. The latter makes sense because it's what you get when you tune down a fourth. Why is a 7-string tuned differently and should I detune the G a half-step when covering stuff from bands that detune 6-strings?

That's because the 7th string is essentially the low 2nd string (low B). I can't care less about a baritone guitar.

 

[Johnny the Kid]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

Since I bought my seven string in November, it has become my main for everything. I don't always use the B, but I do love the sound and feel of the neck. It's just a really great guitar. Based on my own experience, I can completely recommend getting a seven for your purposes.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

I tend to play everything in standard, so it doesn't work for me, but for someone like you who uses a lot of different tunings, sure! Get good at transposing to different keys so you don't have to re-tune so much. A stoptail version will be easier to switch tunings in, too.

 

[Phantasmagoria]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

I bought my Ibanez S-7420 a couple of years ago. It's an awesome axe and while it probably does'nt get quite the same playtime & is never going to replace my regular 6 stringers, it's still a great guitar to have around...different...but still familiar enough to not be too different.

I'd say a 7-string is definitely a great addition to any arsenal..

 

[Jackson Distortion]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

Are you a djentleman?

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

If you want to play rhythm n power chords for the rest of your guitar playing life, why not?

 

[Johnny the Kid]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

If you want to play rhythm n power chords for the rest of your guitar playing life, why not?

What do you mean by this comment?

And I'm asking sincerely because I'd actually like to hear your argument against seven strings.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

What do you mean by this comment?

And I'm asking sincerely because I'd actually like to hear your argument against seven strings.

Yeah, it serves the purpose of playing riffs, power chords and such, not intended for crazy solos. If there was a 7 string with a high A, I'd probably get one.

 

[greekdude]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

I play all of my crazy solos with the 7-string. I barely can stand my old 6-strings for anything anymore (including shred sticks).

 

[Phantasmagoria]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

I use mine (tuned to B standard) for DOOM & SHRED ...no modern crap/djent at all :bigthumb:

 

[greekdude]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

I use mine (tuned to B standard) for DOOM & SHRED ...no modern crap/djent at all :bigthumb:

Tuned to drop A, aint going back. That's it.

 

[Chad]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

Yeah, it serves the purpose of playing riffs, power chords and such, not intended for crazy solos. If there was a 7 string with a high A, I'd probably get one.

That doesn't make sense. You can do everything on a 7 that you can do on a 6, plus more because of the extra string. And there's no rule that the 7th string has to be lower in pitch.

 

[Johnny the Kid]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

Yeah, it serves the purpose of playing riffs, power chords and such, not intended for crazy solos. If there was a 7 string with a high A, I'd probably get one.

I disagree. The purpose of the seven string is to be able to play in the same range as a six string while having a lower bass range. The beauty of the low B is that it isn't too low unlike something like an eighter which goes down to an F#, one step above the E on a standard tuned four string bass. Furthermore, I don't consider a crazy solo to be anything in a high register on the guitar, but instead the skill needed to accomplish that solo (anything with John Petrucci) or the way that the solo lends itself to the song (the solo from Comfortably Numb).

On the topic of a seven string with a high A, there's really nothing that says you couldn't do that. If you get a seven you could easily put a thin gauge string (I'd suggest something like a .007, which Jim Dunlop makes for Reverend Billy Gibbons). Rusty Cooley used to have a Dean signature multiscale (fanned fret) 8 string that was tuned BEADGBEA. And Chris Letchford from Scale the Summit used to use an 8 tuned BEADGBEG (he has since returned to using a standard tuned 7).

 

[blueman335]

Re: Should I get a 7-string for my second guitar?

switching back and forth between 6 and 7 is confusing for me.

Which is why I don't own a 7 string, nor would I recommend one to someone who hasn't mastered 6 strings yet.