Ron Eschete's round wound 7th string

[voyage]

Ron recently started playing guitars by a luthier in Los Angeles. There is a YouTube video quite long where the luthier and Ron discuss the guitars. In it, Ron talks about the string he uses for his seventh string. He uses flat wounds but the seventh is a roundwound to get some brightness so it can be heard. I really wish I knew exactly what strain he's using and what gauge. I use the D'Addario chromes 11-65 but the 65 is too floppy and quiet. I think Ron uses a 70 or so but I'm not sure. I'd really like to try the exact same string. If anybody knows, or can point me to that YouTube video which I've been unable to relocate, or has Ron's contact info, it would be a big help and greatly appreciated. Thank you so much.

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

I’m not sure what he uses. But if you want a RW 7th, I can strongly suggest using a nickel 0.076” from John Pearse (breezyridge.biz) if you can get it through the post hole on your tuning peg. They also have a 72 and an 80.

I used them for 25 years on my 7s (solid and archtop). But then I discovered that Chrome singles are available up to 0.075”, tried one, and love them. The amplified tone of the 7th string depends a lot on the guitar and amplifier you’re using. Different pickups really affect how that low A string comes out of the speaker. I have a set HW KA HB on a 16” carved archtop, a KA floater on a 17” carved, a Benedetto B7 on a laminated 16, and Lace Alumitones on a Tele 7. These are all excellent with a 75 Chrome.

But I still use a RW 76 on my early ‘90s ESP hardtail because the Duncan HBs make a fat Chrome sound dull and thumpy. I put an active EMG in my LP 7 several years ago, and it sounds different. I think it brings out the harmonics so cleanly that it makes the entire string set sound a little more acoustic. The EMG is also a bit more responsive to the tone pot - it seems to go a bit deeper into thunk and whomp with tone rolled off but also brightens up a bit more like roundwounds with the tone pot further up.

I used to use big speakers (at least 12”) with fat & flabby bass because I thought smaller ones didn’t let the bass bloom. Although I used a RW 7th because I didn’t know there were big flat singles available, I liked it because it added some chime to brighten up the whomp. And a big flat wound 7th is nothing but whomp through most guitar or bass amps with 12” or 15” speakers small and light enough for gigging. Even most traditional design 10s are too loose way down there to let it sound like just another string in the set. There are some big, big bass cabs that are tight and punchy, but they’re impractical for most of us because of size, weight, cost etc.

It turns out that really good small drivers and well designed cabs are better for a 7 because they let the 7th string sound just like the other 6 but lower in pitch. One of the beauties of a Blu / Bud is that it brings out the pitch and harmonic structure of the 7th string very, very well and clearly from all my 7s. My Toobs (6.5” and 10”) also do a great job of this with the right amplifiers. The DV Mark EG250 (which has a 6205 tube in the front end) makes my 7s sound fantastic through the Toobs, as does my SBUS.

I had a Mk 1 Boogie with EVM when I got my first 7. It was a wonderful amp, but even a RW 7 was flabby and out of balance with the rest the set. An SWR Baby Baby Blue with two 8s was much better, and a Phil Jones Briefcase with a pair of really long throw 4s sounded great. But my current amps are in a different league and let a full set of flats sound like they’re all on the same instrument.

So with the right amp and speaker, I prefer a Chrome 75 to the RW 76 or 80 I used to use. I hope this helps.

[Quetango]

Hello voyage!
From Ron eschete in some interview :
I also use custom string gauges from GHS. My strings are 13.5p, 16p, 22 flat, 30flat, 40flat, 50 bright flat, and 70 Boomer Round on the 7th string.

Hope it helps

[voyage]

Thanks very much for the long post, it's full of great information. I use a 65 Chrome for the 7th when my Eastman carved guitar. It just sounds too floppy and loose. I'm guessing that bumping up to a 75 for the 7th string would tighten up that string a lot. I may try that but thanks for your other recommendation too.

[voyage]

Thanks much. I think the Boomer is the string that Ron uses for his 7th. I will try one as well, probably a little larger.

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

Thanks very much for the long post, it's full of great information. I use a 65 Chrome for the 7th when my Eastman carved guitar. It just sounds too floppy and loose. I'm guessing that bumping up to a 75 for the 7th string would tighten up that string a lot. I may try that but thanks for your other recommendation too.

The 75 Chrome is a seriously fine 7th string. It’s definitely a higher tension string than a round core RW of the same or slightly heavier gauge, and to me it blends much better tone wise with the JS113s I use on archtops than any other 7th I’ve tried. It’s also a fine match for Chromes, which I use on my solid bodies.

I do find that I have to lower the bass side of the neck pickup a bit to balance out the volume. The 75 sounds tighter and more like the other wound strings with the pickup a bit further down on the low side than on the high side. How much varies with the pickup - you just have to adjust and check until you find the sweet spot.

[voyage]

Dave, what are the JS 113s that you keep mentioning? I don't know what the JS stands for. I did follow Ron Eschete's example and try a 70 Boomer GHS roundwound and it's a whole new world. Instead of sounding like a flabby rubber band that doesn't make any sound now the 7th string sounds bright and almost balanced with the chromes. Suddenly I'm starting to use the 7th string cuz it sounds good. You sure have a lot of interesting amplifiers. I'm doing this through my 15" Polytone. I will try a 75 Chrome as you suggest although I am a little nervous about the tension of such a large string on the neck.
Now all I need to do is learn how to play jazz.

[Woody Sound]

I have a GHS Compound Nickel Wrap Pure Nickel - Semi-Flat roller/pressure wound) .74 that I will gladly send out. No longer playing 7-string. Just PM your address.

WS

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

Dave, what are the JS 113s that you keep mentioning?

Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Swing 113 nickel flat wounds - the 113 set is 13 to 53. They’re excellent strings that many (but far from all) of us love. I use them on both of my carved archtops, but I recently switched to TI GB114s (14 to 55) on my laminated box. The guitars all carry a 0.075 Chrome 7th.

The GB114s are even more expensive than the Jazz Swing series, and I feared that they cost even more only because they have George Benson’s name on them. But they really added new depth and richness to the sound of the AF207. I haven’t tried any strings bigger than 13-52 on it in all the years I’ve had it (I bought it new when they came out). So I can’t say that heavy GBs are better on a heavy laminated guitar with a thick poly coating than any other brand because I haven’t tried any others. I don’t think the thinner Eastman tops need heavier strings than the 113s to bring out their best.

Since I’m getting great life from TI flats and I’m so happy with their sound and feel on all 3 archtops, I see no reason to try other brands. The 113s on both Eastmans are well past a year now and still fine.

[voyage]

Thanks much!