Considering buying an extended range guitar

[le9508]

Hi everyone,
I have been browsing this website for the past few weeks and I finally decided to make an account
I am considering buying a 7 or 8 string guitar, but I am leaning towards 8 just because you basically get a 7 string with an extra string if you ever need it. From what I have found, Agile seems to be the best brand for the money and quality, but I will gladly look into any other options out there.
The guitars I have narrowed my search down to are:
Agile Interceptor Pro 727 EB EMG Tribal Red DOT - RondoMusic.com
Agile Interceptor Pro 827 EB EMG Black Flame DOT - RondoMusic.com
Agile Interceptor Pro 828 EB EMG Black Flame - RondoMusic.com
Agile Interceptor Pro 830 EB DNC Blue Flame DOT - RondoMusic.com
Ideally, I would like a guitar with dots on the fretboard, but only some of Agile's guitars have them for some reason. This shouldn't be too much of a problem though.
The main thing I am worried about is the scale length. Coming from a 6 string with a 25.5" scale length, adjusting to a 27",28" or even 30" might be hard. What are your opinions and personal experiences with this?
As for the tone I am trying to get, After the Burial is a good example of what I am looking for. I will probably be tuning the lowest string down to E, so this will also factor into which scale length I will choose (I was thinking 28" would be a good compromise between playability and tone).

What do you guys recommend I buy?

 

[Nimby]

I love Ibanez, personally. You'd probably be good going for an RG8 or one of the other ERGs that they make.

The main thing I am worried about is the scale length. Coming from a 6 string with a 25.5" scale length, adjusting to a 27",28" or even 30" might be hard. What are your opinions and personal experiences with this?

I never really had any difficulty going from 25.5" to 27", and my hands are fairly small. I've never used anything over 27", so I can't comment on any of the other lengths.

 

[Hexatticus]

If you plan to do expressive bending and vibrato on your leads you may want to keep the scale length on the short side. However, If you are going to use it more for crushing riffs and speedy rhythms the longer scales will offer up the goods with less string gauge needed to get the job done.

 

[le9508]

Thanks for the replies,
I've looked at the Ibanez guitars and they seem nice, but the fact that the necks are bolt-on bothers me. I personally like neck through guitars better since the accessibility to the high frets is easier and they are just more elegant.
Does Ibanez make any neck through models under $1000?

 

[Go To Bed Jessica]

Maybe check out some of the newer 28" set neck Schecters. The build quality is impressive for the price and the heel is really nicely carved and feels much the same under the hands as some of the neck through guitars I have played.

The necks tend to be more rounded than the Ibanez offerings - more of a C shape than the shallow D that Ibanez use - but IMO that isn't a bad thing.

Unless you are playing lots of big stretches near the nut end of the neck, the scale length probably won't be as much of an issue as you think it will.

 

[7stg]

Agiles are good bang for the buck. I don't think ibanez makes a neck through anywhere near $1,000.

In the end scale length comes down to playability and tone. Longer scales have more definition in the lower notes. It has to do with less inharmonicity or where the overtone frequencies of the note played are out of tune with the fundamental.

For a low F#1, a 30 inch scale will have 32% better harmonic content and 15% more tension than 28 inch scale guitar.

It's important to determine what scale length is comfortable for the styles desired to be played. If you can't find a guitar with a particular scale length to try and see how it feels, find a bass with a 34" scale and capo at the 2nd fret for 30.3, 3rd fret for 28.6, and 4th fret for 27, or a 35" scale bass can be capoed at 2nd fret for 31.2, 3rd fret for 29.4, 4th fret for 27.7, 5th fret for 26.2.

 

[Orgalmer]

Welcome to the SSO club, man

Having owned an Intrepid 828 before I'd vouch for either the 27" or 28" scale - the 30" scale is good too but it would be a massive jump from 25.5" scale. Not necessarily a bad thing, but something to keep in mind. The 30" scale also makes your higher strings sound more brittle, I noticed that this is good for heavier stuff but if you're trying to get a warmer tone, then those higher strings suffer a bit. The 27" and 28" scale seems to be a good compromise between the two and you don't need ridiculously thick strings to get to drop E.

I also agree that some of the Ibanez and Schecter models may also suit what you're looking for for similar money, Schecter in particular may have a good offering. Judging by the links you posted I assume you're looking for under $1,000? if your budget is higher, you may want to also check out Carvin and see if their DC800 model is to your liking. Those guitars are very well made and sound killer.

Also keep an eye out for second hand Agiles, they often go pretty cheap so you can get a bargain if you do your research.

Good luck!

 

[BusinessMan]

An rg8 is a quite nice guitar for $400. I'd suggest one of those to get you started so you can find out if you like them or not.

As for scale length, I didn't noticed no difference in going from 25.5" to 27". I have really big hands so now when I play 25.5" guiars I feel kind of cramped.

 

[Orgalmer]

I've looked at the Ibanez guitars and they seem nice, but the fact that the necks are bolt-on bothers me.

Just thought I'd add to this point, with bolt on necks I tend to find they're not a bad thing with an 8 string, just going from my own experience, neck-thru guitars and basses tend to have a warmer tone overall with less attack and bite, and have a bit more sustain, whereas bolt-on tend to have a snappier tone with more attack and bit less sustain.

I just wanted to point this out as people often think that neck thru = better overall, they're just different so a good quality bolt-on may suit your sound better than a neck-thru.

Hope this helps

 

[le9508]

The Carvin guitars look amazing, but the cheapest seems to cost about $1500, which is way too much for me.
I'm trying to keep the price under $1000

What do you guys think about the Jackson SLATFXQMG 3-8?
SLATFXQMG 3-8 | X Series | Jackson® Guitars

 

[Orgalmer]

The Carvin guitars look amazing, but the cheapest seems to cost about $1500, which is way too much for me.
I'm trying to keep the price under $1000

What do you guys think about the Jackson SLATFXQMG 3-8?
SLATFXQMG 3-8 | X Series | Jackson® Guitars

The pickups won't be the best but the rest of the guitar looks pretty good. it's a slightly shorter scale so you'll likely need thicker strings to achieve drop E.

Apart from that it's fine really.

 

[jase]

Those Agiles look great, man! I've never played one myself but I keep reading very good reviews about them. I'd like to point out something about fretboard inlays from personal experience:

Playing an 8 string without fretboard inlay is more difficult than a 6 or 7 string without them. It is a problem on higher frets on the high strings when your field of vision isn't wide enough to cover both the side dots and the frets you are playing. If you mainly just play riffs on the lower strings, it's not a problem, of cause. I think the models you linked with the offset side dots is enough to take care of this problem. And 30" is long, man! I tried the M80M which is 29.4", riffing on this scale length is very cool but very difficult to play leads on the higher frets.

I went from a 25.5" 6 string to a 26.5-28" 8 string. The switch did take 2 to 3 weeks to get used to. During the adaptation period I just played a lot of 6-string songs on it to get used to finding the first 6 strings because you do loose your point of reference. Then I'd learn some B tuned songs to get used to the 7th string. Depending what sort of music you play, I'd suggest a longer scale length if you mainly play riffs, or a shorter scale length or even consider multiscale if you play leads a lot.

 

[House74]

Maybe check out some of the newer 28" set neck Schecters. The build quality is impressive for the price and the heel is really nicely carved and feels much the same under the hands as some of the neck through guitars I have played.

The necks tend to be more rounded than the Ibanez offerings - more of a C shape than the shallow D that Ibanez use - but IMO that isn't a bad thing.

Unless you are playing lots of big stretches near the nut end of the neck, the scale length probably won't be as much of an issue as you think it will.

I have one of these, the Damien Platinum 8, the neck joint is superb and I picked mine up for $500. Easily feels like a $1000 guitar. Neck is super comfy and after playing my 26.5" Damien Elite last night at practice, I much prefer the 28" the tonal difference and tension is worth any loss in bends and the little extra effort on the lower frets IMHO

 

[Go To Bed Jessica]

Yep - I freaking love the neck join on my Hellraiser C8 Special. If it weren't for the shorter scale, I don't think I ever would have felt the need to upgrade.

Crappy phone pic included for OP.

 

[House74]

neck joint on mine

 

[Avogadr0]

If I might chime in here....

If you're dead set on the $1000 budget, then you can still get a Carvin DC800, it just won't look as sexy as many of the ones people on here post. I have one and it's an amazing guitar, and would definitely order another Carvin.

THAT SAID. If this is your first 7 or 8 string guitar, and you're not sure how it's going to work for you/you're not looking to do any serious gigging, then I would recommend what others have said and go for an Ibanez RG8 or an 7/8 string schecter. I have a schecter and can attest to the fact that they do make nice guitars.

But buying an Ibanez RG8 for $400 may give you a foothold and you can decide whether or not that guitar will suffice for you, or if you're in love with the 8 strings and want something more. You could probably sell the RG8 for a decent return, and by that time maybe you will have saved up some more cash to order a better guitar.

 

[CrazyDean]

I know that a lot of guys on here go from 6 straight to 8, but if i had done that, I know that I'd still be playing 6-strings exclusively. I bought a used Intrepid 828 and hated it. There was nothing wrong with the guitar itself, but the neck was huge compared to any 7 that I've owned. On my 25.5" scale guitars, I can easily stretch from the first fret of the low B to the fifth fret of the low B. On the 828, I had to move my hand to reach both frets. Also, I like to be able to wrap my thumb around the top of the fretboard sometimes to mute the low B or hold a chord. This is not possible on the Intrepid 828!

I recommend trying an 8, any 8, before you decide to spend $1k one. I also agree with jase. With the wide fretboard of an 8 string and all the draped across, you will want fretboard markers. Of course, if you're just chugging out riffs and you're only using the low register, then feel doesn't really matter, anyway.

 

[Avogadr0]

The thing is though, even guitars without inlays have fret markers on top. I've never had issues without inlays or fancy vine of life inlays before

 

[Corrosion]

As many others have stated 1k $ is a lot of money to spend on something that you might not like. Personally, I would suggest that you purchase a used ibanez rg8 or possibly a used agile and see if you mesh with it. If you dont like it you probably can recover the money you dropped from nto it without much off a loss. But if I knew it was something I would definitely want, I'd save abit more and buy a carvin.

I wouldnt say the transition to the scale lenght is tough but the fretboard is much wider. I have tiny hands and I had no issue. The stock pups might not be worth keeping in a lot of the stock ergs so you might need to plan on a switch. I feel like bolt on guitars have a nice snappy tone to the low strings which seems to me to improve note definition. Almost every schecter or ibanez will have inlays or markers.

 

[asher]

A well made bolt joint is just as accessible as most neck-thrus. I've had zero issues hitting the squeedlies with any of the Ibanez guitars I've owned (save the jazzbox, lol) including my 2228.