090 string set first guitar only soundcheck

[DeKay]

I always hated the fact that people talk alot about big guitar strings but never even played such. So I ordered an custom set of "090 062 046 034 024 017" and tried it out on my PRS MM Baritone with an BKP Painkiller in the bridge position (27.7 scale)

DeKay - 090 string set soundcheck by Caynug on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free

Nothing fancy recorded but I think it shows that big strings also sound good (to me even better, had 080 before) and the tension for EADGCF (8 string tuning 1 step downtuned) is about 8.6kg which is beautiful perfect tension to me in such a tuning!

The only downside is the drilling (took me 2 minutes) of the tuner and the nut setting and bridge fiddling. But once that's done it's done forever, lovin the feel.

What do you guys think?

 

[Explorer]

I always hated the fact that people talk alot about big guitar strings but never even played such.

...What do you guys think?

I think your first sentence perfectly sums up a lot of the posts on here about big strings.

"The harmonics are different on bigger strings than on smaller strings!" Actually, the harmonics are different on lower pitches than higher pitches.

"I tried downtuning my low .056 to E1 and it sounds terrible!" Yes, it would, just as your top string would if you tuned it from E4 to E3. That's why they don't make your string set all one gauge.

"It doesn't sound good when played through my amp, which doesn't have a frequency range to cover those pitches!" Well... to me, this is the equivalent of complaining that your color photo printing software is terrible because you're printing to a black-and-white printer.

"Everybody knows it won't work!" No, not everyone does, but a lot of people are repeating what other people have said. Empiricism is king when dealing with hearsay.

"It sound just like a bass!" No, it sounds like a guitar, but playing in the pitch range of a bass. Play your lowest string and your highest string, and you'll notice that the lowest and highest have different harmonic spectra.

"You shouldn't use big strings because no one else does." Exactly... the same way one should only play guitars with six strings. *laugh*

(BTW, that last point? Even here, sometimes people will go into the ERG forum and argue that others shouldn't use eight strings. WTF? *laugh*

----

I've gotten much neg rep over time for challenging these assertions. It amuses me when someone can't come up with an argument against empiricism... and also makes me feel bad for their "friends," who are probably also attacked by someone when they think they can get away with it. Who needs friends like that? *laugh*

Don't worry about what others think of you trying it. I used to communicate regularly with some guys over at EMI Quarterly, the journal for experimental musical instruments. Those guys were very knowledgeable about strings, and I never heard them making the kinds of assertions I regularly find here.

Good job!

 

[DeKay]

I think your first sentence perfectly sums up a lot of the posts on here about big strings.

"The harmonics are different on bigger strings than on smaller strings!" Actually, the harmonics are different on lower pitches than higher pitches.

"I tried downtuning my low .056 to E1 and it sounds terrible!" Yes, it would, just as your top string would if you tuned it from E4 to E3. That's why they don't make your string set all one gauge.

"It doesn't sound good when played through my amp, which doesn't have a frequency range to cover those pitches!" Well... to me, this is the equivalent of complaining that your color photo printing software is terrible because you're printing to a black-and-white printer.

"Everybody knows it won't work!" No, not everyone does, but a lot of people are repeating what other people have said. Empiricism is king when dealing with hearsay.

"It sound just like a bass!" No, it sounds like a guitar, but playing in the pitch range of a bass. Play your lowest string and your highest string, and you'll notice that the lowest and highest have different harmonic spectra.

"You shouldn't use big strings because no one else does." Exactly... the same way one should only play guitars with six strings. *laugh*

(BTW, that last point? Even here, sometimes people will go into the ERG forum and argue that others shouldn't use eight strings. WTF? *laugh*

----

I've gotten much neg rep over time for challenging these assertions. It amuses me when someone can't come up with an argument against empiricism... and also makes me feel bad for their "friends," who are probably also attacked by someone when they think they can get away with it. Who needs friends like that? *laugh*

Don't worry about what others think of you trying it. I used to communicate regularly with some guys over at EMI Quarterly, the journal for experimental musical instruments. Those guys were very knowledgeable about strings, and I never heard them making the kinds of assertions I regularly find here.

Good job!

Thank you alot for the big post. Loved reading that.

I am not worried about what anybody says, to many people talk shit and repeat what one person said (good example would be that schecter 8 string guitars have baseball necks, haha)

Can't really reply with much because you basicly said it. And if anybody is wondering if he should get an 090 string (Mine is compound wound GHS special dynamite alloy) just get it, drill your tuner set up your nut then when tuning set up the bridge. It works and it feels incredible nice!

Is the recorded line in sound actually "okay"? Just plugged it into my line 6 spider III (home recording amp) and went straight to recording this soundcheck without much hassle on eq and such, actually no eq on clean parts and only a bit eq on distortion.

 

[DeKay]

I think your first sentence perfectly sums up a lot of the posts on here about big strings.

"The harmonics are different on bigger strings than on smaller strings!" Actually, the harmonics are different on lower pitches than higher pitches.

"I tried downtuning my low .056 to E1 and it sounds terrible!" Yes, it would, just as your top string would if you tuned it from E4 to E3. That's why they don't make your string set all one gauge.

"It doesn't sound good when played through my amp, which doesn't have a frequency range to cover those pitches!" Well... to me, this is the equivalent of complaining that your color photo printing software is terrible because you're printing to a black-and-white printer.

"Everybody knows it won't work!" No, not everyone does, but a lot of people are repeating what other people have said. Empiricism is king when dealing with hearsay.

"It sound just like a bass!" No, it sounds like a guitar, but playing in the pitch range of a bass. Play your lowest string and your highest string, and you'll notice that the lowest and highest have different harmonic spectra.

"You shouldn't use big strings because no one else does." Exactly... the same way one should only play guitars with six strings. *laugh*

(BTW, that last point? Even here, sometimes people will go into the ERG forum and argue that others shouldn't use eight strings. WTF? *laugh*

----

I've gotten much neg rep over time for challenging these assertions. It amuses me when someone can't come up with an argument against empiricism... and also makes me feel bad for their "friends," who are probably also attacked by someone when they think they can get away with it. Who needs friends like that? *laugh*

Don't worry about what others think of you trying it. I used to communicate regularly with some guys over at EMI Quarterly, the journal for experimental musical instruments. Those guys were very knowledgeable about strings, and I never heard them making the kinds of assertions I regularly find here.

Good job!

Oh and you use that 185 string right? Do you already have an recording of that or something? I am waiting for months now that you record something on that G0 tuned string.