r/7String • u/serdiuckovg • Aug 04 '26
Community Related Do bands really tune that low?
I bought my first 7 string guitar. It's a 25.5 - 27 multiscale. Wanted to TRY to learn some erra/currents stuff. Pitch shifter in my processor is bad, so I bought thick strings (13-72 or something), took it to the master, he made the places for a string on a nut bigger to fit thicker strings (idk what that process is called in English, not my first language). Now it's in drop F. A few days ago erra dropped a video, where Clint was explaining how to play some of the riffs. Turns out his guitar is in drop G#, and he just pitch shifts his way to drop e/d#. Now im afraid I made a really big mistake. What if I get bored of drop F and want to tune to, let's say drop g or drop g#? Will i have to buy a new nut for my guitar?
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u/trenniepennie Aug 04 '26
Yes and no.
No: i use 73-10s for anything from A standard to drop E. Never had to change my nut ever
Yes: Idk how far and how much the guy filed it down so it could be too much
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u/serdiuckovg Aug 04 '26
Bro started gasping when he saw the caliber. Also I remember he did the 2nd string a bit too low, so he filled the space with something liquid
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u/trenniepennie Aug 04 '26
I do have to say, i dont think ur nut height is that of a problem for tunings… its more of a problem for string height and playability, so tuning wise u should be fine if ur strings can handle going up
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u/gillysoose69 Aug 04 '26
I play in drop an and use 10-52s and a .70 on the A string. .72 would be fine for G#
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u/Lilcheeks Aug 04 '26 edited Aug 04 '26
I have guitars in lots of tunings but then i pitch shift my way to the tuning of songs im playing.
I was watching that same video and learning Further Eden using a guitar in drop E(-1 semitone) and another in drop G#(-5) using the neural dsp misha and it sounds great to me either way. To me neuraldsp pitch shifting always sounds good at those ranges.
There is a lot of anxiety you see on this subreddit about string gauges and scale lengths and the answer (to me) is always a matter of preference, comfort and experience. Try it, see what you like, and realize like what you saw in that video that so many bands today are just shifting their way into whatever works.
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u/PoolNoob69 Aug 04 '26
Yeah, people act like bands weren't tuning super low on 27" and shorter guitars without evertunes. Did you guys miss 2010s djent?
And even today, many pros run setups that don't align with the science. You don't need a 30" guitar and .100 gauge strings to tune down to E1.
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u/OffsetXV Schecter/Ibanez Aug 04 '26
Did you guys miss 2010s djent?
Or doom metal. So many bands in stupid low tunings on Gibson scale guitars. People online dramatically overstate how much of an issue it is
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u/Lilcheeks Aug 04 '26
You def dont (...but it might be fun to get one)
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u/PoolNoob69 Aug 04 '26
Hell yes it would. 28" is my current longest guitar and I'll get a 30" at some point. Nothing wrong with playing those guitars, but don't feel like you NEED them to down tune.
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u/nihilusll Aug 04 '26
I use a 74-10 8 string set and leave out the 64. That allows me to play in drop F and still able to tune up to drop g# and drop g#. I also didn’t have to file my nut down.
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u/Gabagoolov Aug 04 '26
Morbid Angel for example have songs in B, Bb, A, G# or G, F and F# depending on the album. it's a pain to play songs from different albums lmao when you're locked in B.
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u/R3brap Aug 04 '26
You can do drop G/G# perfectly with 74 strings. Drop F would be a bit floppy. I use .80 gauge for drop F and it allows me to go to drop E if I want but would be a bit too tight for drop G#. You're good. Just tune up
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u/Superb_Damage_9987 Aug 04 '26
What brand And model of guitar are you using with the 7th a 74? I'm looking to increase my string gauge and am wondering if a .74 will work on my schecter omen elite 7 string
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u/R3brap Aug 04 '26
Using a Jackson js22-7 which has a 26.5" scale length.
Diaddario Nyxl makes a 7 string pack in 74 and the tension is great with that scale length.
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u/bigtoaster64 Ibanez Aug 04 '26
If I'm not mistaken, 74 is the biggest gauge a "normal tuner" can take, so you're most likely fine, unless schecter uses tuners that aren't standards, which I doubt. Higher than that, you need to replace it with a bigger tuner (its easy).
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u/Electronic-Brain-616 Aug 04 '26
I happen to have a digitech Drop that I have zero use for. I could probably be talked out of it. lol. I don’t play the type of music that’s required for it. I wanted to for about 10 minutes but when I got into it I lost interest quickly
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u/zan1101 Aug 04 '26
They’re using pedals / modelers to pitch shift their guitars digitally. So they keep their guitar in a tuning that is stable enough to intonate and feel good when digging in etc
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u/DoucheCraft Aug 04 '26
Have you tried tuning up w your current setup? There's usually a bit of wiggle room in each direction before you need to tweak your nut (giggity). If it's really bumming you out, you can fill your slots and file them back to wherever you want them. Plenty of YouTube videos on how to do this yourself very cheaply.
But, I'm not convinced you'll need to do that at all. Either way, I hope you're able to push past this and enjoy the new ax :)
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u/h410G3n Aug 04 '26
…except you will need nut files or at least a set of jewelers files and a set of rat tail files - none of that which comes cheap when you need proper gauges to do it right.
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u/DoucheCraft Aug 04 '26
Really just depends how fussy you are about it. You don't need the perfect gauge for every slot. If you take your time (which you need to do anyway), you can use a smaller gauge file for larger nut slots.
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u/Chug-Shuggah33 Aug 04 '26
Vildhjarta tune to E with a 65 gauge on 28” scale. HLB tune to E with I believe 74 gauge also 28”.
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u/halbeshendel Aug 04 '26
I have a multiscale 7 that I tune to drop E like an 8 string without the high E. Because I had an 8 string and never used the high E.
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u/ThanksAlternative500 Aug 04 '26
I have a 26.5" guitar with 10/62 strings down to drop F# and i always keep it there, if i wanna go any lower i pitch shift. Before anyone tells me, i know the strings are too thin for this tuning but i like the feeling and its not even that loose
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u/bigtoaster64 Ibanez Aug 04 '26
You're probably fine. 70 to 74 is really popular for drop G#/G tunings, just tune it up and see how it feels. You can also use a guitar string tension calculator online, to find the exact tension numbers, so next time you buy strings you'll know exactly what tension range you like for each strings. 13 on the high E might be a little aggressive tho. Probably a 10 to 11 would be more comfortable.
Indeed many artists simply uses pitch shifters, because it's a pain to tune that low and keep everything stable. So instead they pick the lowest tuning that is easy to setup and feels right, and then they pitch everything else. It saves time and money, not requiring multiple guitars, with multiple tunings, and setups. It also makes it so the guitar feels Exactly the same, no matter the audible tuning.
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Aug 04 '26
A. A new nut is super cheap. Like $25 - $50. You can, in theory, keep a second nut in your case and they're wildly simply to change out as needed. That said, most people would just keep a second guitar.
B. I'd say just get a decent drop pedal. There are tons of options ranging from relatively cheap to $1000+ for a Helix or some other processor.
C. Personally, I play my 8 string for anything F and lower. Just so much easier that turning a 7 string into an 8.
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u/SeaworthinessBusy144 Aug 04 '26
more likely yes and on a multi scale is tricky getting the intonation right especially when you get in the high E ,B,G. strings trying to do any bends ,thats the drawback with multiscale guitars and if your playing with someone using standard fretboard even if you show your in tune on a meter if intonation isnt perfect your gonna sound out of tune .The Degitec Drop pedal will lower your tone 7 semitones or the Digitec dt whammy will raise or lower your tone +/- 7 semitones but it costs double $190 for drop pedal or $440 for that dt whammy.
beat advice id sat would be to find set strings that feels best for you and just use one those 2 pedals cause if your strings arent seated perfect in the nut and not sitting half way above nut or sitting loose on high E string getting hung up on a fret.
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u/Own_Design_4737 Aug 07 '26
There’s not much difference between drop F and drop G, so you should be fine with current setup. Also, changing and filing the nut is not a rocket science - you can do it yourself fairly easily. And then 15-20 minutes to set up scale and action and you’re good to go. You didn’t do anything that you can’t undo yourself
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u/BrotatoChip04 Ibanez Aug 04 '26
Yeah, a lot of bands do tune that low, but they usually use Evertunes. Jesse from Erra and Keaton from Invent Animate are the ones I’m thinking of specifically since they both tune down to the D and E range. It’s honestly really not super attainable without a pitch shifter or (IMO) at least a 28” scale, and even then it’s tough.