8-string drop-EA on 27"

[bjgrifter]

So, I'm considering a Shawn Custom Works off Rondo. My main guitar is an Agile Septor 727, 27" scale length. If I'd get and 8-string, it seems logical to run with Drop-EA . My main concern is if a 27" scale is long enough to do the low E, and what gauge would I use for that?

 

[noise in my mind]

I did drop E on my rg2228 with a 72 gauge no problem.

 

[Bearitone]

Are you trying to say drop E or drop A? Not sure what “EA” means.

If Drop A, 27” is fine
If Drop E i say go as long as you can. Go with an 830 or Multiscale 82830

 

[Masoo2]

27 is absolutely fine man, I'd just argue go thinner than thicker when it comes to gauge

70-76 will work wonders on a 27 inch scale down to E, though it may be a bit slacker than you're used to

I used 74s down to Eb no problem

 

[bjgrifter]

Drop EA is dropping both the F# to E, and the low B to A.

Are you trying to say drop E or drop A? Not sure what “EA” means.

If Drop A, 27” is fine
If Drop E i say go as long as you can. Go with an 830 or Multiscale 82830

 

[Bearitone]

Drop EA is dropping both the F# to E, and the low B to A.

Ooohh so EAEADGBE.

Yeah, 30” for the low end would be my recommendation

 

[Dayn]

27" is perfectly usable. I use a Kalium .090 - but if I used another brand, I'd probably go no less than .080, simply because after testing so many brands, none were as flexible as Kalium, which allowed that higher tension. Though I have used .074 in the past, but it's not optimal for me.

Longer will be more stable, but the question you need to ask yourself is: what music am I playing? If you play a lot of single note stuff and power chords, then the extra length won't be much of a problem. But if you play wider-spread chord voicings, it will be much more difficult to play. The difference isn't that much between 27" and 30", being 3" across the whole neck - but when you're doing stretches, an extra half-inch is extremely noticeable. Even now, some voicings are hard on 27" compared to my 25.5-26.25" multiscale.

It also depends on the tone you want for your higher strings. At 30" the higher strings will also be much harder to bend and the tone will be a lot brighter. If I didn't have my RG2228, I'd probably opt for something like 25.5" to 27" or 28" multiscale.

Basically, it comes down to this: do you want greater playability in general, or do you want to maximise the tone of your lowest notes? That'd determine whether you want 27" or longer.

 

[Joan Maal]

I use the Ernie Ball 2624 Skinny Top 09-80 see on both my 27" guitars.

E/A drop maybe results a bit floppy but absolutely acceptable.

 

[Djentlover666]

8-46 or 8-42 then 62 or 64 then 74 or 80 or 85.

 

[Djentlover666]

When mick gordon did doom he did the same tuning for most of doom. 27 inch scale as well.

 

[redkombat]

I tune down to drop D on my 27" scale 8

 

[Winspear]

Entirely personal. For me , 27" starts to sound bad close to 80 gauge. I need the same tension as a 46 octave E, which means running 90 on 27" for E - it's a no go. But others make it work. It just depends what tension you need, and your tolerance for what you want from the tone.
What do you tune your 27" to currently, and with what gauge? Then I can tell you what you'd need for the same tension in E.

 

[never_2many_strings]

For drop E, I would say that a 27" scale should be adequate. I have axes with the thickest string at E, and even lower, with a 27" scale, and it is more than fine for me. Depending on how you attack your strings, you may want thicker string gauges for it though. I personally use 74 for the 8th string on my 27" Ibanezes that go down to E, but honestly with a very light touch I've made 65s work on other 8s of that scale.

 

[Konfyouzd]

I actually use a rather large string for E0 @ 27". I use something in the ballpark of an 86.

 

[Bearitone]

I use a .090 for drop G on a 28.625” scale length and still think it’s a tad on the loose side. Couldn’t imagine a .086 for drop E on a 27”.

 

[ATRguitar91]

I use 10-46+64+80 with my 27' 8 tuned EAEadgbe. The low E string is a bit loose but plenty manageable and I can tune down a step and still have adequate playability. An .80 is the lowest I'd go though.

I think it depends on how you play and what you plan to use the 8th string for. If you plan to focus most of your riffs around the 8th string higher tension may be more important. I personally don't use the 8th string a ton, so having high tension isn't as important to me as long as it stays in tune and doesn't sound awful.

 

[MerlinTKD]

Tosin and Javier have both used 27" guitars for years in drop E, and always said they used 10-74 sets. With Daddario (standard or NYXL) I found I like the 9-80 better, but you might want a 64 for the dropped A.

Lately I've been using Stringjoy, and they seem a little tighter feeling that most; their 9-74 is perfectly balanced for F# standard, and you can switch any gauges for no upcharge

 

[BananaDemocracy]

I found 28” to be the sweet spot for the lower ERG tunings. I did drop the octave to E on a 28” neck with .76 gauge and it was very nice. Have you tried 28” +?