Interested In Playing A 7 Or 8 String Options

[Vulpine]

Hey Gmc as you prolly have guessed I play a 6 string guitar, I hear bands like animals as leaders mainly for the chord voicings and their rhythm stuff at the same time I Love soloing Marco Sfogli, type stuff and I like the 6 string for leads,

My question is I would like to have a guitar where I could do lead soloing stuff "AS comfortable as 6 string" but also have the options of nice chord voicings that a guitar with more strings could offer so

any advice on whether I should go 7 or 8 strings ....or stick with my 6 string

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[Cosmin Lupu]

Mate, the question is - 'Do I feel like my power of expression would greatly increase with using a 7 string?' If the answer is 'yes' (and since you want to take care of lead and chords and low register riffing, I guess it is a big yes ) you should consider your budget and brand preferences, do a little research on the models which look AND sound appealing to you and go try them if you can

This would be the beginning I guess

Cosmin

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[Todd Simpson]

As someone who plays both 7 and 8 stringers in addition to the 6, I can tell you that I've really enjoyed being able to switch among them depending on what I"m doing musically. The 7 took some getting used to and the 8 is still a bit of a struggle, but I found that playing the extended range guitars really did help my playing on the 6. The six feels easier to manipulate, and control after playing the 7 for a few hours. Also, the ER (extended range) guitars will force your hand to adapt and get stronger which also helps when you go back to 6.

In short, I'd say don't limit yourself. If you run across a 7 string that you like, buy it ! But don't sell your 6! And maybe wait on an 8 til you get used to the 7. The jump from 6 to 8 can be daunting (some folks take right to it), it was daunting for me

Todd

Hey Gmc as you prolly have guessed I play a 6 string guitar, I hear bands like animals as leaders mainly for the chord voicings and their rhythm stuff at the same time I Love soloing Marco Sfogli, type stuff and I like the 6 string for leads,

My question is I would like to have a guitar where I could do lead soloing stuff "AS comfortable as 6 string" but also have the options of nice chord voicings that a guitar with more strings could offer so

any advice on whether I should go 7 or 8 strings ....or stick with my 6 string

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[Vulpine]

Thanks Todd , 7 strings Is something I will want to pick up within a month or two just something to look forward too dont really have it to buy one atm = ) do u recomend any certain tuning .... I love the Standard E or Eb I kno Vai's 7string guitar is B/E/A/D/G/B/E

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[thefireball]

Hey Todd, is that your replacement guitar?

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[vonhotch]

Hey man. I have not played an 8 string yet but my opinion is to go one string at a time an start with a 7 first. I like the tuning of BEADGBE because I dont have to think so much about learning the notes of the new string, they are all the same as the high B and I think I can remember easier than AEADGBE because there is the same combo of notes on top. So any pattern you learn on your high E,B strings is the same on your low E,B. To me that way it doesn't seem like I'm learning a new tuning I just have to start repeating patterns when I get up there.

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[Cosmin Lupu]

When I work with drop tunings, especially when playing lead and somehow ending up on the lowest string, I think about the fact that the notes have moved 2 spaces up and I tend to miss things less But it's tricky most of the times. Keep this in mind and it will be ok

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[Todd Simpson]

I use standard tuning on the 7 so a LOW B is the 7th. But yeah, folks do all sorts of crazy tunings.

Thanks Todd , 7 strings Is something I will want to pick up within a month or two just something to look forward too dont really have it to buy one atm = ) do u recomend any certain tuning .... I love the Standard E or Eb I kno Vai's 7string guitar is B/E/A/D/G/B/E

That pic is of and LTD 8 string that I sold a bit back. Just didn't like the way it played.

Hey Todd, is that your replacement guitar?

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This post has been edited by Todd Simpson: Feb 16 2013, 10:08 PM

[ConnorGilks]

I switch between 6 and 7 a lot both in my writing and my practicing. A 7 string is not just an extra string/a few more lower notes, it changes a lot of what you can do on the instrument. Not only does it change your perspective (Now all your chord shapes and scales are now based around a B or A (Drop A) instead of an E or D (Drop D), but it allows you to act as a bass for chord melody stuff, do a walking bass line, create larger chord voicings, use larger intervals in your chords and soloing, it's insane what adding just a few notes has to offer.

Definitely try out a 7 string first, and if you like it buy it. DO NOT jump to 8 strings right away, as 7 can be quite an adjustment already. I've had mine for a year now and I'm still learning how to really play a 7 string.

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[Cosmin Lupu]

Connor is right - this sort of a transition is a lengthy process, if you want to understand that instrument and make the best use of it Take your time and see how it fits in your hands.

From my present perspective, I realized I have never taken full advantage of mine while I had it

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[thefireball]

Something I tried on my Drop A 6-string guitar was use Drop D. how? The tuning for Drop A is A E A D Gb B. I just dropped the E to D. Now I have Drop D. Now whenever I bar the ADA on the bottom, the chord voicing is different. I actually used the A D A D Gb B tuning on one of my songs for my upcoming EP.

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[Cosmin Lupu]

Thanks for inspiring me to start a new post Bran -> https://www.guitarmasterclass.net/guitar_fo...showtopic=47935

That tuning sounds very interesting - just wrote it down to try it on my baritone tomorrow morning

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[Todd Simpson]

Good to see such agreement in a single thread So yeah, everyone is spot on here. It's a big transition, go 7 before even thinking about going 8, plan for a fairly long adjustment period. In the end, you may sell the 7. They are not for everyone. I recently picked up my second 8 string after selling my first (the LTD in my post with the headstock) since I just hated how it played. This new plays much better. The ibanez 7 strings are a good place to look for a 7. They have really nice necks and IMHO feel very playable.

Even my 8 has a workable neck. Wizard II

Hey Gmc as you prolly have guessed I play a 6 string guitar, I hear bands like animals as leaders mainly for the chord voicings and their rhythm stuff at the same time I Love soloing Marco Sfogli, type stuff and I like the 6 string for leads,

My question is I would like to have a guitar where I could do lead soloing stuff "AS comfortable as 6 string" but also have the options of nice chord voicings that a guitar with more strings could offer so

any advice on whether I should go 7 or 8 strings ....or stick with my 6 string

You are at GuitarMasterClass.net

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[Jonas Tamas]

I agree with Todd and Cosmin - jumping to a 8-string directly is a BIG jump. I'm mostly a 6-string player (I've played some 7-string tunes on my albums of course), and when I first tried an Ibanez 8-string, the fingerboard seemed like a dinner table to me. So try to borrow some 7-string guitars, if some of your friends do have one, and you'll see whether you feel it comfortable.

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