7 String build questions.

[FlyingV]

Hello, noob here. I looked around a bit and did not see a post regarding this. If this has been covered please excuse me and a link to the past topic would be appreciated.

I don't suppose I need to tell anyone here all the reasons I am interested in doing a Warmoth build. What I would like to know is if the people who have built 7 strings using Warmoth's two choices of scale for the necks - 25" & 28 5/8" have found they got the sound and feel they wanted? There are lots of 25.5" 7 strings out there, I can imagine how they sound and feel because I have a 25.5" guitar. I also have a 26.5" scale Loomis and really like the feel of that scale. I have a 25" scale Carvin DC127 and I think it would maybe not be the best choice for a 7 string scale. I have never had a guitar with the 28 5/8" scale and I am wondering if it is going to feel strange and too bass guitar like?

Your opinions and experience on this would be appreciated.

 

[LarsXI]

At that point you'd have a baritone. For that, I'd go try out a baritone guitar someplace and see if I liked it. People generally enjoy the low chords, and cite competition with the bassist as a potential problem. You'd definitely have incredible range. You could cover rock lobster.

 

[stubhead]

The first thing to consider is that all the available seven-string sets are way off-base in their string gauges - a seven set with 9-42 on the top six usually has a 54 for the low B, to match tension it should be about a 60. There's a chart of sorts here, accumulated by someone who went through the tension gauges at D'Addario's site:
http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/sevenstring-guitars/8340-optimum-string-gauge-sets.html

That sevenstring.org site skews towards 14-year-old metalheads, but there's a lot of good advice there too once you get your filters tuned. That chart runs a little heavy, just for the way I prefer a guitar to feel. Partly using that info and part experience from endless fiddling with gauges on half-a-million guitars, I strung up my new Warmoth 25" scale seven with 10-13-17-26-36-48-66:

Those gauges turned out to be a lucky guess, I can whammy chords on the bottom four strings up or down a half-step in tune.... I have guitars with 24", 24.625", 25", and 25.5" scales, and I've used a lot of odd tunings in the past, so my "luck" runs pretty good in these matters.... I'm going to give it a shot with 9-42 and a 60 on the bottom, it may work, maybe not. Gauges above 70 or so just don't work well, until you do get to a longer scale. Musician's Friend and others sells single strings of all different gauges.

I would prefer Warmoth to offer a 26.5" option on the sevens, but the 25" is workable. You can't get any string bigger than a 60 through the Schallers that Warmoth sells though, I used Planet Waves this time around. :hello2:

 

[FlyingV]

stubhead, thanks much! Pretty much exactly the things I wanted to know. Very good info and I appreciate it. Your build looks really good! I am familiar with the tension chart @ D'Addario's website. I did not know about the Schallers limit of 60, that is really good to know and you probably just saved me a bunch of time and $ with that tip, thanks big time on that one!

oh, btw, what bridge is that on your build? I don't recognize that trem unit? Why did you not go with a Floyd or Kalher if I may ask?