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What is the advantage of a 7 string guitar?
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12-07-2014 04:15 PM
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It's all about that bass (note availability)
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It's only five extra notes beyond traditional guitar tuning, but main thing is for running bass lines without having to move around so much, also more chord voicing possibilities.
Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
If you don't want to run bass lines could play 10-string classical guitar and get modal all sorts of possibilities there. Used to be a couple ten-string players in L.A. and went to their concerts quite interesting.Last edited by docbop; 12-07-2014 at 07:55 PM.
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Short answer-more options for walking bass lines, more options for chord voicing, tones in the lower register that aren't possible on the 6. Most players tune the 7th string to A, however some players tune B. Think about the lowest Eb that you have available on the 6 string standard tuning- 5th string 6th fret. Now with a seven you have the opportunity to get a Eb an octive lower by simply moving your finger to the 7th string on the same fret-if you are using the 7th string tuned to A.
Since many jazz tunes are in Eb, it adds a dimension that is beautiful and is another option in your palette.
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12-07-2014, 05:31 PM #5destinytot Guest
I had the opportunity to get one of these Brian Eastwood Guitars - Eastwood 7-String and tuned the 7th to a low A, but I don't really like sound of chords voiced that way. I tried to sell it but there were no takers, so I tuned the 7th to a low B - which works for me - and I use it to practise late at night. Now I'm curious to try 4ths tuning on 7-string.
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The 6 string guitar has a little more than two octaves at any particular place on the fretboard; two octaves and maybe a minor 3rd if I stretch. If I were playing piano, that'd be a root in the bass, chording in the right hand, and melody in the right hand going up to a little more than two octaves. On a 7 string, I'm easily clearing two octaves and a fifth, more with ease.
I'm a low B player and I don't often play those really low notes in the low bass range, but when I'm playing roots on the 6th string and I'd need to shift below the 5th fret, I can get that low G, for instance by just reaching down to the 7th string.
Any root you have on your low E string, you've now got a perfect 5th to support the bass line same fret, one string over.
And tuning in fourths, my bass lines just follow right through the 6th string and they don't stop there. As a chord solo player, it gives me lines and chords that I would have given up melody to shift to, or it gives me a walking bass without moving out of a given position.
David
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I own a 7 string and I find it most useful for doing running bass and 3rd/7th chords here and there (shell chords) so you are basically a rhythmic section by yourself (I tune to low B). I stop using it when I was systematically asked to comp and I could not solo anymore....
I just showed up with a six string and eh sorry, can't do that anymore...
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The 7 string allows the guitarist to fill up a lot of space in the absence of a bass player. It's great for intimate duets with a vocalist or horn (or another guitar). This can be advantageous for players seeking to work with minimal line ups in the current economic situation. It's also great for solo chord melody gigs.
It must be said though, a lot of guys get great results on a 6 string tuned down a few semi tones. Ted Greene's work on the "Solo Guitar" record is phenomenal, and guys like our own Jim Soloway get wonderful results from this equally valid approach. In fact, after buying a 7 string, I'd maybe say the tuning down method is a more direct way to get in that zone, as it requires a lot less mental and technical adjustment.
I can't resist the opportunity to post some Ted Greene, tuned down, on a Tele.
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I work duo with a vibes player from time to time on my 7 string. We sound like a trio. I don't get to solo as the bottom drops out when I try. Thankfully, I can get a whole lot of musical satisfaction just being the rhythm section. My ego doesn't require me to solo.
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I think it's basically to have an extra, just in case one of the strings breaks. Originally Posted by richb2
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for solo guitar.
if you have a bass player or Hammond B3 player there isn't much point. IMO, of course.
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As others have said, for the great bass lines in CM playing or accompanying a vocalist or instrumentalist. I have also been learning a number of alternate chord voicings rather than just dropping notes on the 5th string down to the 7th. While it's not like learning all over again, it is some work but I am really glad I decided to take the plunge; I have an excellent teacher which I think makes a real difference for me.
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i'm also in the "just tune down" camp. i haven't tried in years, but the extra string and wider neck/bridge and strange neck shape of the electric was just too disorienting for me. given how i came up, low tunings, fat strings and a lot of tension is natural for me. i have a casino tuned down to a# and it is a lot of fun. there's also a seldomly used really long scale acoustic baritone in there somewhere that just has the most interesting sound.
i use capos all the time too, so i still get a lot of mileage from the low tuned ones. though it isn't the sort of thing you'd want to admit on a "jazz" guitar forum... :/
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In practical terms it's much more than 5 extra notes. Using the Van Eps low A string, it becomes an alternative for the standard A string whic means that you're actually going down by an octave for all chords that begin on the A string. Originally Posted by docbop
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When I first played a seven string guitar there was a certain amount of culture shock that felt like being in a country where I couldn't read or speak the native language. I realized that most of what I knew about playing the guitar was based on the lowest string being tuned to E. Thankfully, it only lasted about 15 minutes. Then I figured out that everything that I could play on a six string, I could play on seven.
I once heard Bob Benedetto say that perhaps guitars should have been made with seven strings all along. I recommend that you give it a try, just don't look down.
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I think once you start to commit to playing a 7 string you probably will feel uncomfortable on a 6 string.
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Originally Posted by jads57
I actually heard Howard Paul say that when he was demoing a Benedetto 6 string.
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just checking in here since there are so few 7-string threads, lol.
I have 7 additional low notes in my range (7th tuned to Low A) but in addition to the obvious being able to play lower, I also have some new chord voicings at my disposal higher up on the neck. For instance, I can play a G chord on the 10th fret and still have access to low G (aka 3rd fret on 6th string) way up there for crafting a bass line.
For certain low moody voicings, i can replace a 5th string root with a minor 3rd and still add a root on the 7th which sounds an octave below. This opens up many new sonic possibilities.
It is very nice to have the extra string, even if most of the time you play with a bass instrument. When you need the range, it is there.
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IMO, it's the opposite. Guitars should have fewer strings instead of more. 5 strings would be an improvement, 4 would be ever better ;-)
I wish tenor guitars (and also 'plectrum guitars') would still be in vogue, like they were in the 30s and 40s, in doo-wop groups like the Ink Spots and the Mill's Brothers.
One reason is that limitations can be a good thing. For instance, when I tried to play tricky jazz chords on the ukulele, I had to to resort to all kinds of wacky inversions. Then, coming back to guitar, it was easier to use inversions there as well. And that can give rise to new ideas and things you didn't see before.
It guess I don't get the shortcoming that a 7-string guitar is supposed to address. The shortcomings in people's guitar playing, in general, doesn't seem to be: a lack of certain notes.
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I can only answer that with the phrase George Van Eps coined: Lap Piano Originally Posted by dizzy101
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No treble no treble? Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
K
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In the case of a few 7-string players, including one who's participated in this thread (Hi Mike!) there are no shortcomings in their guitar playing at all. Originally Posted by dizzy101
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Originally Posted by dizzy101
The only 5 string player I am aware of is Keith Richards. And for all his iconic status and famous licks, I don't aspire to play like him.
I have to agree with Jim's comment-not many shortcomings in the chops of George Van Eps, Howard Alden, Bucky Pizzarelli, his son John. Also the amazing work of Jimmy Bruno on 7. It's not the "lack" of certain notes-it's the palette you have to paint the picture.
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And from our own MikeSF Originally Posted by SierraTango
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That's sick man! Amazing arrangement! Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
And from our own MikeSF
K
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