L2 go heavy...
- Thread starter Tommy Gun
- Start date
TheWinterSnow
Den Mørke Natt
again I said intonation issues when the strings are old and to say a 9 for a high E in standard tuning is not big enough is just silly. And the string with the worst issue, is a string that is so thick that it literally has no resonance and the only option is go from a plain string to a wound string, and I will not have my G-string be a wound 24 or 26, plain string only.
Hey if you like having a wound G for Drop B then that's cool, I am just not hip to the idea. I used to play 12-70 for drop A years ago with a wound G and I will never go back to such a (IMO) ridiculous concept.
Same here. I think its a sacrifice of finding the right tension but light enough where the strings still bright and have "pop" and "spank" to them. I don't care if you even play metal, having that dynamic is a large part for getting that almost djent sound on non palm muted single notes when you dig into them with the pick.
Hey if you like having a wound G for Drop B then that's cool, I am just not hip to the idea. I used to play 12-70 for drop A years ago with a wound G and I will never go back to such a (IMO) ridiculous concept.
Same here. I think its a sacrifice of finding the right tension but light enough where the strings still bright and have "pop" and "spank" to them. I don't care if you even play metal, having that dynamic is a large part for getting that almost djent sound on non palm muted single notes when you dig into them with the pick.
John_C
formerly Skeksis268
too thick often sounds dead and just plain weird, too thin often sounds wobbly and causes problems with fret rattle etc.
Find an acceptable midpoint
Find an acceptable midpoint
OK. I was confused there. Forgot you were talking about 2 different guitars/tunings, so my statement was aimed at you tuning to Drop B using 9's on a 6-string, LOL... I was like "dude, wtf?" To clarify... No, you should not need more than a 9 for standard E. I think leads should be played on lighter strings if you're more comfortable that way. But, I still believe rhythms should be track with heavier gauges.
And if the heavier gauge strings sound dead to you, I think you may consider trying a different brand, such as Ernie Ball or DR. Personally I've never had sustain problems with either, and they are always plenty bright sounding.
TheWinterSnow
Den Mørke Natt
I am a hardcore DR fan but the local stored never have the gauges I need. Right now I am using Ernie Ball Beefys and like I said the G is very dull. I had the same issue with the same guess (and this was a GHS) on my strat when I was down in Drop A, back then though I never played leads like I do today and through a wound 24 on instead which sounded much better. As a lead player now I can't be bothered with a wound G so while the beefys are tolerable with the G string, any higher would be too much. Its unfortunate because I would like a set on strings for my 6 string, probably at 12 that feels the same tension wise to my 7 string, but like I said, my guitars don't deal with a G being any thicker.
AntonioPetrole
Brootz
i love big ass strings. I have always play 13-60 in any tuning. Same go's for thick heavy picks. I cant stand playing a pick that is like a piece of paper. You just gotta man up butter cup
Bekanor
Renegade Folk Hero
I'm going from 10-46 + 60 on my Loomis to 9-46+60.
Bottom strings are perfect as they are, and while I can do my shreddy thing just fine on 10s it would be nice to be able to relax my hand a bit more when playing leads. Hopefully the extended scale will counter-act the floppiness I find with 9s normally and it will sit in that "just right" gap.
EDIT: Half 9's/Half 10s.
Bottom strings are perfect as they are, and while I can do my shreddy thing just fine on 10s it would be nice to be able to relax my hand a bit more when playing leads. Hopefully the extended scale will counter-act the floppiness I find with 9s normally and it will sit in that "just right" gap.
EDIT: Half 9's/Half 10s.
Again... let me clarify that I'm talking about tracking only. What you're comfortable with any other time is whatever suits you. But strong rhythm tracks are recorded with high tension strings. If you ask the pros, you'll hear the same thing from them.
The easiest starting point is EMG's + Heavy strings + a Medium or lighter pick for less pick noise, though that part is tough for me. I managed to get down to Tortex Greens, but anything lighter just doesn't agree with me.
The easiest starting point is EMG's + Heavy strings + a Medium or lighter pick for less pick noise, though that part is tough for me. I managed to get down to Tortex Greens, but anything lighter just doesn't agree with me.
Bekanor
Renegade Folk Hero
I agree. But I doubt even for tracking I would go beyond a standard set of 10s on the bass strings. I had 10-52 + 70 on my Rizzo stealth 7 and it was tendon problems ahoy to play.
According to that gear demo he did back when, Devvy was only rocking 10-52 in open C major. That to me seems way too light, and would be waaaaaay lighter than what most people are rocking in say Eb and his recordings always sound massive.
Josh Burgess
Member
Seriously? Plenty of EXCELLENT guitarists use guitars with floating tremolos with no problems.
Jeff Loomis uses a guitar with a floating tremolo, and he is currently using 9-46 + a 64 I believe... his 7 string does have a 26.5" scale length though.
Since when? Jeff Loomis uses thick picks, Rusty Cooley uses thick picks, John Petrucci uses thick picks..... tons of virtuosos use thick picks....
Anyways... too thick of strings wobble out of tune if you bash the guitar like a monkey with no finesse... but the whole "YOU HAVE TO USE HUGE STRINGS!" thing is seriously stupid. People should find a set of strings that give enough tension to stay in tune, but still feel comfortable enough to play on...... period.
I seriously doubt you'll find many solid pro recordings where the rhythms were tracked on a guitar with a floyd. That just seems like common sense. Floating bridges flex with the strings when played. What's going to stay closer to the notes: Palm-muting on a Floyd, or palm-muting on a tune-o-matic?
I do see where the pick thickness can be subjective. I guess that more or less depends on a persons attack. I tend to go after my Gibson like I'm trying to tear apart a frozen bear carcass, personally.
Seth Munson
How do Amber Lamps?
I use .70s on everything, even E standard.
Im just so used to them now and dont mind playing them no matter what tuning
Im just so used to them now and dont mind playing them no matter what tuning
TheWinterSnow
Den Mørke Natt
This. Not only is using too thick string just as bad as too thin, its about having the player be comfortable. You want to have the strings thick enough so that the guitars don't go out of tube in a mix. As long as the intonation stays intact in the mix why does the string gauge really matter?
To me really heavy strings and thick picks lack sensitivity and dynamic, its like tap dancing with steal toe boots, they just lack subtlety.
You might want to rethink that, a lot of the bands that I listen to either exclusively, primarily or use floating trems the majority of the time for studio work. If you have subtlety as a player, the floating trems work just fine. The only players that have issues with going out of tune are the guys that aren't comfortable with floating trems. This has been discussed before when someone was ranting about how bad floating trems sucked after the OP mentioned that the dude recording usually uses a TOM and had a hard time getting used to the floyd.
If you got a guitarist who primarily plays floyds and has the skill as a recording musician, you wouldn't even notice he was playing a trem or what his string gauge was if his tone was in tune in the mix.
I can totally see that. Just saying: Why wouldn't you eliminate the possibility by just tracking rhythms on a fixed bridge? Just seems like common sense to me.
We're sort of OT at this point though. I mean I started the thread ranting about hearing a guitar track that was obviously out of tune from being down-tuned without heavy enough strings. The notes were pitching up and down on every stroke and it struck a nerve.
FloridaRolf
W.A.T.
I use 13-72 for B standard on my FX-400 and it's still a little too loose for my taste (so i tuned up to C# Standard right now)
gotta get a baritone
gotta get a baritone
I like the sound of thicker strings on any tuning. I've used 10-52's for years now on standard and drop C# and I've always thought it sounded great. Guys come round to record guitars and I pick up their guitars, it's like plucking on rubber bands. Horrible.
The Unavoidable
jättebög
I use 0.14 - 0.68 in A standard. Feels great to play, but the low A does get a bit dull compared to lighter gauges. Tone was definitely crisper with something like a 0.58 or 0.60 but I'll gladly sacrifice that for tuning/playing stability.
