Being capricious about 7/8

[ItWillDo]

A bit longer than a year back I sold an RGA8 after having some misery with it (the usual bridge-pin issue, bad fretwork, etc...) and this pretty much put me off of 8's completely and I kind of convinced myself that 8's just weren't for me. I then bought a used RG7621 for about 300 EUR and to this day, I'm pretty convinced it's the best 7 I've ever played/held.

Afterward I started working and decided I'd gift myself a custom 7-string. Forward to this date, the custom has been finished in the meanwhile and it's an amazing axe. It's got pretty much everything I would've ever wanted in a guitar.

But I just don't seem to feel the chemistry I have when I hold the RG7621. I can confirm it's an absolute piece of art, but I just don't feel a connection. And that's kind of sad, because now I'm GASsing really hard for an RG2228 considering I now convinced myself that it was the lemon RGA8 that actually put me off of 8-strings and I'm actually considering to sell my custom shop to fund it.

Has anyone else ever had this experience and how did/do you cope with it?

TL;DR:
- Bad experience with lemon RGA8 in past, got put off 8's
- Bought used 7621, best guitar ever
- Got custom shop, amazing guitar but not same feeling as 7621
- Now want to sell custom shop to fund an RG2228 again
- Help.

 

[bachandroll]

Could you please post pictures and specs, or a link to the custom's NGD? More info=better answers.

 

[GRIZ]

plus one for pics

 

[ItWillDo]

Alright, here it goes:

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THE SPECS:
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Strings: 7-string
Scale: Multiscale 25”-27”
Frets: 24 stainless steel jumbo frets
Neck/body system: Bolt-on neck with threaded inserts
Fingerboard: Birdseye-maple, with a compound 20”-26” radius
Neck wood: Wenge/Maple 5 ply neck
Body wood: Swamp Ash
Top/headstock wood: Curly/flamed Maple
Nut: Graphtech
Binding: Faux binding
Side!dots Luminlay
Inlays: Offset dots (mother of pearl) Faux inlay on the headstock.
Hardware color: Gold
Bridge: 7x T4M headless single bridges + locking nuts Gold
Pickup Bridge: Bare Knuckle Aftermath angled
Pickup Neck: Bare Knuckle Aftermath angled
Controls layout: Volume with push-pull,3-way switch
Knobs: Gold dome knob
Strap buttons: LOXX Gold
Color: White washed
Finish: High gloss top and back, satin/matte neck
Extra: Neutrik-jack


Pics:

 

[MemphisHawk]

I would learn to love that custom shop you have over a 2228. Very nice looking instrument!

 

[simonXsludge]

I would learn to love that custom shop you have over a 2228.

Why "learn" to love something if you are not bonding with it despite its great looks and specs on paper? Doesn't make much sense to me.

My advice is: If you're not bonding with it, sell it and try a 2228. I can tell you that much: The 2228s are great guitars. Not as individual as your custom, but very high quality players nonetheless. I often found myself liking high end stock models with a few mods more than a couple of customs I have tried. A high quality instrument is a high quality instrument, no matter if custom or stock model.

 

[IChuckFinleyI]

Why "learn" to love something if you are not bonding with it despite its great looks and specs on paper? Doesn't make much sense to me.

My advice is: If you're not bonding with it, sell it and try a 2228. I can tell you that much: The 2228s are great guitars. Not as individual as your custom, but very high quality players nonetheless. I often found myself liking high end stock models with a few mods more than a couple of customs I have tried. A high quality instrument is a high quality instrument, no matter if custom or stock model.

I agree 100% with the "learning to love something". There's an old saying "warrior knows his weapon when he picks it up". The same goes for musicians, we know our instrument when we pick it up. Sometimes it's an over the top custom, a high end production model or even a beat up used one.

Another fun quote about "learning to love something": You wouldn't marry a woman and then HOPE to fall in love with her. That can be applied to most things in life.

Your custom guitar is visually stunning and the luthier clearly took their time and built it with pride. That being said, if you're not feeling it, then it may not be meant for you. If you're not happy with it, there's someone else out there that probably would. I'm sure there's a few people on this site that would be more than happy to give it a good home.

I suggest going out and playing as many 8 string guitars as you can. Try to sit down with each one for 30 minutes to an hour with each one. Go over EVERYTHING with them. You should approach it like you would if you were buying a house or a car.

TLDR: If you don't like your current guitar, then go out and find one that you do. Play as many as you can so you can get a real grasp on what's fits your and your style the best.

 

[ItWillDo]

Hey guys, thanks for the words of advice. I'm planning to take a day off somewhere next week and just visit a couple of music stores to give some 8's a shot. Hopefully I'll land on one that I do sync with.

Cheers!

 

[GRIZ]

i love the look of that thing

but i'll join the chorus. if you don't love it, don't keep it

 

[SiggyCertified]

Omg that could not be more gorgeous. But I agree with the lot.

 

[shikamaru]

maybe I misunderstand the “bond” thing, but my first feeling with a seven string wasn’t exactly a revelation. I kept picking the wrong string, though my left hand was at the right position, what I thought was my E string was in fact my B string etc… it took me a little while (I’d say a month or so) to really start to feel comfortable with the instrument.

It could be that the same thing is happening to you. Maybe this is your first fanned fret guitar, maybe the neck profile is different from your 7621, and so on…

Another example would be when one first picks up a guitar. Shaping chords you feel clumsy, and after a while muscular memory does the rest.

Maybe you just need to get used to it. How long did you have this custom, and how much time did you spend on it ?

 

[Konfyouzd]

That custom is doooooooooooooooooooooope... Ain't nothin' capricious about the feelings in my pants after those pix...

 

[ItWillDo]

maybe I misunderstand the “bond” thing, but my first feeling with a seven string wasn’t exactly a revelation. I kept picking the wrong string, though my left hand was at the right position, what I thought was my E string was in fact my B string etc it took me a little while (I’d say a month or so) to really start to feel comfortable with the instrument.

It could be that the same thing is happening to you. Maybe this is your first fanned fret guitar, maybe the neck profile is different from your 7621, and so on…

Another example would be when one first picks up a guitar. Shaping chords you feel clumsy, and after a while muscular memory does the rest.

Maybe you just need to get used to it. How long did you have this custom, and how much time did you spend on it ?

I tried for about 2 months, using the guitar as my main for both practice and gigs. Then after a month of only using the custom, I picked up my RG7621 again for the first time and I can't describe the feeling, but it immediatly felt like home.

It could be true that maybe I would need time to 'adapt' to the instrument but I doubt it's that. I've felt comfortable with it from the first day, and I adapted very quickly but I think I owe that more to the quality than anything. When I bought the RG7621 about a year ago, I had been playing an RGD7420Z for longer than 2 years. And as soon as I gave it a shot, I was completely sold. I didn't need any time to adapt nor get used to it despite the shorter scale/other bridge/...

I do think some guitars are meant to be and some aren't. Even if you buy an $8000 custom, it might be of amazing quality, but nothing is going to guarantee that you're going to bond with it and that it will inspire you.

 

[shikamaru]

yeah, I get what you’re saying, and in this case, you have given that guitar a fair share of your time, if doesn’t work for you then it’s probably not going to improve a lot if you give it a year or two, make sure you try that RG2228 before you get it though !