Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

[Gone_Shootin]

First off, back in May I bought a Schecter JL7 Jeff Loomis. I didn't post about it right away, because this is the first 7 string I've had in 10 or 15 years. I didn't get on with the first one years ago, so I wanted to wait to see if this one was going to stick around.

Well, it is. I really like this guitar. It holds tune well, the neck plays like butter, and the Duncan Jeff Loomis Blackouts are great pickups, they remind me alot of a Custom and Jazz in a Les Paul (my favorite setup), only brighter. And it's definitely brighter than most of my guitars, but not so much that it can't be reigned in. A simple dialing back of the treble and presence a hair and you're good. My only regret is that I got the Floyd Rose version. In hindsight I wish I would've gotten a hardtail so I could experiment more easily with tunings.

And speaking of tunings...

Most of my guitars are tuned down a whole step, with some of those being in dropped C. The last band I was in tuned in dropped C, and I still jam on the songs now and then, and jam with a couple of he guys now and then. So naturally, I decided to try the JL7 in GCGCFAD. Right now I'm running a NYXL 1074 8 string set. Tha gauges are .010/.013/.017/.030/.042./.054/.064/.074, and I leave the .074 left off. This was closest to what I was looking for in gauges and is cheaper than buying a 6 string set and adding a string to get what I wanted.

I went a little lighter on the low G because the stock .066 felt like a friggin cable under my pick. Lol. But the problem is, no matter what, it's muddy when I power chord the low two strings, unless I run such low gain that it had just as well be clean. Should I just nut up and go with heavier low strings? Would that clear things up? Or am I just tuned too low for this guitar?

I really would like to keep this tuning because I'm really starting to like it.

Oh yeah, and a pic:

 

[Demanic]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

I would definitely go with a heavier gauge. G is pretty low. The lowest I go with my 7 is A. And I usually use either a 56 or a 60. If I wanted to go to G, yes I'd use a 66.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk

 

[Gone_Shootin]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

I would definitely go with a heavier gauge. G is pretty low. The lowest I go with my 7 is A. And I usually use either a 56 or a 60. If I wanted to go to G, yes I'd use a 66.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk

I'm toying with the notion of trying the .064 and .074 on the low two strings since I'm really only a half step away from the low two strings on an 8 string in standard tuning.

 

[Demanic]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

Really, it's funny because the two highest pitched strings on my bass are a 50 and 70 respectively.

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[Gone_Shootin]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

Yeah. I restrung it today using the .064 & .074 for the low two strings. It made a little difference, but not much. I suppose that this tuning is just too low for how I play. It would work great for single note stuff chugging away underneath what somebody else is playing on a 6 string. Gotta wonder if it'd muddy up the mix, though. Gonna have to experiment next time I feel like recording some stuff.

And I had trouble hanging that .074. it's got two layers of windings, like some bass strings. So it didn't want to stay put in the bridge saddle on the Floyd. I had to pre-smash it with pliers so the saddle would grip it. Lol

 

[6stringerguy]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

I go down to A on a 6 and I use a 74 on the low A for that on 25.5 scale but I don't go lower than c on a floyd

 

[Clint 55]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

That is a beastly rig. If you want less bass, then put in a bass knob. Add a concentric pot with volume and bass cut. Job done.

 

[dave74]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

I have an expensive solution that might not get you anywhere. (in the ear of the beholder like always)
Slap a pair of k100 in one of those mesa cabs (avatar has 16ohm k100).

edit; hey you're from Iowa,,,,,and that's what Mick Thompson would do!

 

[Gone_Shootin]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

I've tried cutting all the bass out, boosting mids/high mids/treble, you name it. And like I said, I think it's probably my playing style. But I did try some different amp models in the Helix last night that showed some promise.

And I do like K100s, they're one of my favorite speaker types. But I'm leaning towards going FRFR with the Helix. Also, that's not my only rig, I've got plenty of other amps and cabs to screw around with, and I've tried them with this tuning too.

My wall of doom (nevermind the cobwebs and random basement junk):

 

[Nostalgic Distortion]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

I've tried cutting all the bass out, boosting mids/high mids/treble, you name it. And like I said, I think it's probably my playing style. But I did try some different amp models in the Helix last night that showed some promise.

And I do like K100s, they're one of my favorite speaker types. But I'm leaning towards going FRFR with the Helix. Also, that's not my only rig, I've got plenty of other amps and cabs to screw around with, and I've tried them with this tuning too.

My wall of doom (nevermind the cobwebs and random basement junk):
View attachment 82367

My house used to look like this!!!

Then we had a new baby, for some reason ever since that short fella popped out its been shrinking???

LOL, if this keeps up by the time he's ready for college I'll be lucky to be left with a Harmony acoustic & a can of picks!!!

 

[Nostalgic Distortion]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

I've tried cutting all the bass out, boosting mids/high mids/treble, you name it. And like I said, I think it's probably my playing style. But I did try some different amp models in the Helix last night that showed some promise.

And I do like K100s, they're one of my favorite speaker types. But I'm leaning towards going FRFR with the Helix. Also, that's not my only rig, I've got plenty of other amps and cabs to screw around with, and I've tried them with this tuning too.

My wall of doom (nevermind the cobwebs and random basement junk):
View attachment 82367

My house used to look like this!!!

Then we had a new baby, for some reason ever since that short fella popped out its been shrinking???

LOL, if this keeps up by the time he's ready for college I'll be lucky to be left with a Harmony acoustic & a can of picks!!!

 

[Clint 55]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

That wall is the bomb son.

I mean put a bass cut pot on your guitar. It's very effective.

If someone had too many highs, they'd put a tone knob on right?

Noone wants to put on a bass cut knob for some reason lol.

 

[dave74]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

Holy shiskaberies, now that's a music room!

 

[Gone_Shootin]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

That wall is the bomb son.

I mean put a bass cut pot on your guitar. It's very effective.

If someone had too many highs, they'd put a tone knob on right?

Noone wants to put on a bass cut knob for some reason lol.

I know what you meant. The bass isn't the problem. The mids are getting garbled. Also, this guitar doesn't have a tone control, and I intended to leave it that way. In fact, I'm seriously thinking about getting rid of the tone controls on all of my guitars.

And thanks for the compliments, everybody. I've truly been blessed to be able to have such nice things.

 

[Gone_Shootin]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

Watched some 8 string pickup demos yesterday, and noticed the same muddy tone, no matter the pickup. I guess it's just the nature of that low of a tuning. I may keep it this way for awhile, at least until I have the chance to jam with the guys to see how it works out in a band situation.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

You know, I wish I had a music room. My gear is usually packed up for a gig, but I have a few things around to pick up and play on. But nothing like that above.

 

[Gone_Shootin]

Re: Very belated NGD and a question about strings & tuning.

You know, I wish I had a music room. My gear is usually packed up for a gig, but I have a few things around to pick up and play on. But nothing like that above.

Yeah, it's nice to have, but my job is so time consuming that I don't get much time to play. I guess that's the trade off.