Advice for a new 7stringer.

[BabUShka]

Hey guys..So now I've tried lots of stuff like changing the pickups to EMG707, different string gauges and tunings, but nothing makes me satisfied over my Ibanez S7320..
Its waay to dark sounding, the B string doesnt cut at all, its sounds all muddy and I cant seem to find any other ways of getting it to sound better..

I am thinking of maybe getting a RG7420 or even forget Ibanez and go with a used LTD..

I you had 4-500$ to spend on a 7stringer through Ebay, what would you choose?

Is the SC-207 a descent guitar, or are there better models for that price now? It looks nice at least, and from YouTUbe it sounds ok and best of all it has no trem.. Or Maybe H207?

 

[terrormuzik]

with that money I'd go for some Schecter or ltd

 

[Ulvhedin]

Det er en moddet 7620 med 707 i bridge på finn til 3,5k, men antar du har sett den?

 

[ticklemeasian]

the stock ibanez pickups are crap, replace them with a better pickup and you will have it sound more bright and bitey. i changed the pickups out of my ibanez s520ex to BKP painkiller/cold sweat and the bridge pickup sounds amazing and the neck is great for soloing. the reason the B string is not cutting and why it sounds too dark is because of the pickups, just replace them. i don't recommend emgs though. if you are short of money get the d sonic/liquifire or the d activator set.

 

[Zerox8610]

Ibanez and LTDs are smart choices. I'd personally avoid schecter due to the necks.... I hate their necks.

 

[808]

put some bare knuckle pickups in it and some fatty some .56 to .10 guage strings on it and it will sound alot better the bare knuckle pickups are passive which well be awsome in that guitar.

 

[BabUShka]

I've routed the guitar for EMG707s, so I'd rather buy a new guitar than changing pickups in it.. Because I still have no guarantee if it will satisfy me or not with other pickups, and selling a 7stinger routed for EMG but with passives, will make the guitar loose some value. I've had ok offers on it earlier, but I didnt dare to sell it.

I have no problemt with EMGs, all my other guitars have EMG; and i really love them. ANd there's a slight difference between RG and S, beucase this S have mahogany body.

Schecters are nice, i have a Blackjack ATX as a main guitar. But in this pricerange I wont get a Loomis, BJ or Hellraiser and Ive heard much shit about the cheap schecters.

I've tried 52, 56, 59, 66 gauges, and none of them improved my sound. All strings sounds ok, exept the 7th..

Det er en moddet 7620 med 707 i bridge på finn til 3,5k, men antar du har sett den?

Yes, but I'd like the guitar more stock, not a mix between different guitars. ANd the pickups are not 707, its routed for 707 with passive pickups in it.

Jackson 7 String Guitar | eBay

Anyone played those JAcksons? Looks really nice, TOM-kinda bridge and cheap.. FOr this price I could buy some Dimarzios or BK's too..
Im kinda leaning to LTD, but Id like to hear more advice on other guitars too.

 

[ISRAFEL]

I would go with Schecter. I own the Loomis 7 and love it. For the price, Schecter's quality is amazing and personally I love the feel of the necks...then again its all within the hands of the player. The only thing I have to say about EMG's is 18volt mod those babies!

 

[terrormuzik]

anyways, You might like the Schecter's neck, and if not ,You can still sell it with no loose and get ibanez

 

[BabUShka]

hehe, the problem is that I cant afford a new Schecter.. I bought a Schecter Blackjack ATX C-1, 3 months ago.
I'd love to buy one more Schecter, but im a bit skeptical of the cheap schecter models as DAmien, Omen ++

 

[blaaargh]

Have you tried messing with your EQ at all? That might help your tone without having to get a new guitar. What are your current settings/gear?

 

[DraggAmps]

I would definitely go Ibanez or LTD over Schecter. You can get a Japanese Ibanez 7 for that price but it will be older and maybe a little worn, so it's up to you if that's worth it for a guitar that's probably superior to any new LTD (although Ibanez just feels a lot different and is a different style, so it depends on whether it's superior TO YOU). If you like the Schecter style, LTD is very similar, but with better models, better necks, and better quality in that price range, IMO. LTD has some decent new 7's in that price range. All the Schecter's under $750 or so are just not nearly as good, IMO, and they have huge necks that might be good on a 6, but many people find uncomfortable on a 7. I don't think they're that bad on the better Schecter's. But I do prefer an LTD 7 neck.

I dunno, a Schecter or LTD might not solve your tone problem though, especially not over an Ibanez. They have thicker bodies, often with mahogany and just overall specs that make them thick and warm and spongy, which is why they're popular for metal. Especially since they come often with EMG's, which make guitars sound pretty similar, they probably won't sound much different than the Ibanez with same pups. They might even be darker.

I think maybe you're just used to that thick, saturated, EMG metalcore tone (I'm speculating here), which is why you think the rest of the strings sound fine, but maybe you don't realize that the low B won't sound right with that same sort of sound. It won't be tight or defined enough and just too dark. That's why Ibanez 7's are popular, because they're brighter. If you want a clear and defined metal tone with a 7, you need different amp tones to begin with. Much less bass (some times it's best with bass on 0), tons of mids, and a Tubescreamer or similar pedal helps tremendously to increase attack and tightness. It might take a bit to get used to this tone but it's great and it will give you a much tighter, clearer, defined tone on all strings and it's mandatory for the low string. Also, use as little gain as you can stand to play with. We all like saturation but 7 strings sound better with a bit less gain for clarity and definition. Unless you're just doing power chords, that super saturated flat/scooped mids and huge bass tone won't work with a 7. Again, I'm just speculating that all of this might apply to you.

The RG7420 or 7620 will probably sounds a decent bit better than the 7321 just based on quality of woods, but probably wouldn't sound much different with the same pickups. Put a bright pickup with lots of attack and clarity, like a Crunchlab or Aftermath and use the right settings with a boost, and you'll get great low B 7 string tones. You could get just as good of a tone with an LTD but it will probably be a little different and you'll have to work harder to keep it from getting that bigger metalcore tone, especially with EMG's.

I'd just ask yourself if an older Ibanez that is most likely better constructed to some degree, but that's still old and maybe worn a bit is "better" or "worse" TO YOU than a nice and clean new LTD. It just depends on your view. Go with what seems best because none of these guitars will likely just give you an instantly much brighter and more defined sound than the RG7321. At least not to a degree that will solve all your problems. I think you're just probably taking the wrong approach with the tone. What amp are you using. If you have an AxeFx, we can fix you up no problem with your current Ibby And again, none of these guitars are going to be all that different from your 7321. At least not in the way that you need.

 

[DraggAmps]

I would definitely go Ibanez or LTD over Schecter. You can get a Japanese Ibanez 7 for that price but it will be older and maybe a little worn, so it's up to you if that's worth it for a guitar that's probably superior to any new LTD (although Ibanez just feels a lot different and is a different style, so it depends on whether it's superior TO YOU). If you like the Schecter style, LTD is very similar, but with better models, better necks, and better quality in that price range, IMO. LTD has some decent new 7's in that price range. All the Schecter's under $750 or so are just not nearly as good, IMO, and they have huge necks that might be good on a 6, but many people find uncomfortable on a 7. I don't think they're that bad on the better Schecter's. But I do prefer an LTD 7 neck.

I dunno, a Schecter or LTD might not solve your tone problem though, especially not over an Ibanez. They have thicker bodies, often with mahogany and just overall specs that make them thick and warm and spongy, which is why they're popular for metal. Especially since they come often with EMG's, which make guitars sound pretty similar, they probably won't sound much different than the Ibanez with same pups. They might even be darker.

I think maybe you're just used to that thick, saturated, EMG metalcore tone (I'm speculating here), which is why you think the rest of the strings sound fine, but maybe you don't realize that the low B won't sound right with that same sort of sound. It won't be tight or defined enough and just too dark. That's why Ibanez 7's are popular, because they're brighter. If you want a clear and defined metal tone with a 7, you need different amp tones to begin with. Much less bass (some times it's best with bass on 0), tons of mids, and a Tubescreamer or similar pedal helps tremendously to increase attack and tightness. It might take a bit to get used to this tone but it's great and it will give you a much tighter, clearer, defined tone on all strings and it's mandatory for the low string. Also, use as little gain as you can stand to play with. We all like saturation but 7 strings sound better with a bit less gain for clarity and definition. Unless you're just doing power chords, that super saturated flat/scooped mids and huge bass tone won't work with a 7. Again, I'm just speculating that all of this might apply to you.

The RG7420 or 7620 will probably sounds a decent bit better than the 7321 just based on quality of woods, but probably wouldn't sound much different with the same pickups. Put a bright pickup with lots of attack and clarity, like a Crunchlab or Aftermath and use the right settings with a boost, and you'll get great low B 7 string tones. You could get just as good of a tone with an LTD but it will probably be a little different and you'll have to work harder to keep it from getting that bigger metalcore tone, especially with EMG's.

I'd just ask yourself if an older Ibanez that is most likely better constructed to some degree, but that's still old and maybe worn a bit is "better" or "worse" TO YOU than a nice and clean new LTD. It just depends on your view. Go with what seems best because none of these guitars will likely just give you an instantly much brighter and more defined sound than the RG7321. At least not to a degree that will solve all your problems. I think you're just probably taking the wrong approach with the tone. What amp are you using. If you have an AxeFx, we can fix you up no problem with your current Ibby And again, none of these guitars are going to be all that different from your 7321. At least not in the way that you need.

 

[BabUShka]

Hey man, thanks for your opinions.
I'll check out the RG7420. Already got a good offer on a LTD M 207, so ill try to keep an eye for the RG too.

But you misseda little thing mister. My current guitar is a mahogany body S7320, not RG
I already own two other mahogany body gutars, one LP and Schecter, but none of them sound that dark and muddy. Most of them have lots of growl and reeaally thick and tight bottom.. A good think about the M 207 is that it comes with passives.. So RG or LTD, we'll see. Ill do more research.

 

[DraggAmps]

Hey man, thanks for your opinions.
I'll check out the RG7420. Already got a good offer on a LTD M 207, so ill try to keep an eye for the RG too.

But you misseda little thing mister. My current guitar is a mahogany body S7320, not RG
I already own two other mahogany body gutars, one LP and Schecter, but none of them sound that dark and muddy. Most of them have lots of growl and reeaally thick and tight bottom.. A good think about the M 207 is that it comes with passives.. So RG or LTD, we'll see. Ill do more research.

Oh, gotcha. A mahogany S. Right, then the RG7620 or similar would sound quite a bit different, and most likely a lot tighter and brighter. Mahogany is great sounding but it kind of needs some much harder, denser woods to balance it out for 7 strings. I play an EBMM JPXI right now and it has a mahogany neck and mahogany tone block in the body, which gives it just enough of that mahogany sound to be pretty cool, but it couldn't use much more mahogany and stay super defined, and it uses an ebony fret board, alder wings and maple body cap to balance it out, which is very very necessary.

 

[Misha]

I would buy a maxon and messing with the tone knob, my friend just gave me his telecaster with some EMG in it, it kick some major ass, i got a big chuggy sound (sounds like Ola Englund)

 

[spaghettipomodoro]

Jackson 7 String Guitar | eBay

Anyone played those JAcksons? Looks really nice, TOM-kinda bridge and cheap.. FOr this price I could buy some Dimarzios or BK's too..
Im kinda leaning to LTD, but Id like to hear more advice on other guitars too.

Yes, I didn't like it at all, it was awkward to play imo. I'd go for an LTD or even a used Carvin. Otherwise just get an H 1000 series 7 string.

EDIT: Oh haha was looking at the neck-thru arch top ones. I can't imagine the bolt-on's fairing any better....