How did you start playing 7-strings?

[Emperoff]

Just had some curiosity, because the 7-string players are a minority, and would be cool to hear how did you ended playing one of those badass instruments

I must admit that the first time that I saw a 7-string, was in the KoRn performance of Metallica's MTV Icon, and I just felt in love with them So I was thinking about buying one for a long time, and when I finally tried one was like "huh, how the hell do I play this?" lol
Then came Dream Theather and Unearth, that awoke my 7-string GAS, so taking a look at eBay I found the awesome guitar I have now (Dillion 7-string) and since I had it in my hands, I never looked back to 6-strings

What about you, guys?

 

[CL7]

I got into 7s when i 1st heard Fear Factory's Digimortal . It's hard to believe i actually tune lower than dino cazares now. All my 7s are in low Drop A and Drop G and the highest i'll ever tune on an electric 6 string is Drob B.

 

[Elysian]

i first got into 7's when i first heard nevermore, my friend told me they were opening for type o negative, and i had been meaning to check them out, so i went and saw them at the showbox. was right up front the whole show, and i must say, it was one of the best show's i've ever seen, and i got a whole new respect for 7's, because before that the only exposure i had for 7's was korn, fear factory, etc, and i had a very negative image of them... i promptly went out and bought an RG7421 for 300 bux, put a dimarzio blaze custom in the bridge spot, and started playing... and now my newest addition to my collection is my 599 universe

 

[WayneCustom7]

Funny thing, I never really listened to '7 string music', in fact I never really heard any aside from Steve Vai's Passion and Warfare. I won my first seven on Ebay, biddding for one only after trying one in a music store and becoming curious....

 

[Papa Shank]

I wanted to play Dream Theater - A Change of Seasons so I picked up a UV from Ebay.

 

[Regor]

Got into 'detuned' music thru Fear Factory's Demanufacture. Got a cheapo guitar tuned to B to play it. When Obsolete came out, I found out about 7-strings. And since a 7-string is 'designed' to be tuned low, I got an RG7621 (cuz it was cheaper than a 7620).

 

[Dylan7620]

I wanted to play Dream Theater - A Change of Seasons so I picked up a UV from Ebay.

hell yea! that song rocks my nuts off still lol

i was a korn kid. i had a six string before but after the initial frustration i quit for a while. korns guitars always sounded i guess "bigger" to me than the other bands that people were listening to. then after i got my got my RG7 i looked on the net to find out more stuff about it. i found jemsite and it just fueled me to get even more into it, upon discovering guys like vai and JP its easy to say it was over right then and there... i was a 7 string guy.

 

[LordOVchaoS]

Morbid Angel did it to me.

 

[Pauly]

Korn - Follow the Leader

The guitars on that album really did feel like they were moving a considerable amount of earth, and to my ears at the time it came out, it was the coolest thing ever. I mean the riffs weren't memorable musically, but they just sounded so nasty and low and fat! I know that they mixed a super dirty tone with a cleaned up one and combined it to produce that particular sound, but it just thought - 'must. have. 7. strings.'

I was sold even more when I heard Chaosphere, the moment I heard NMCC and that orgasmic ending riff I more or less went straight to the nearest custom shop as was like 'make me a lefty 7 goddamit!'

 

[Shannon]

I had been tuning my 6-string down since the early 90s. I was big into bands like Carcass, Morbid Angel, Entombed, & early Fear Factory. Korn came later. After tuning down to B and beyond, I really missed having a high E string. In 97, I finally plunked down $1400 & special ordered a new plain jane all-black no-frills Ibanez UV7BK. It was the only new 7 available at the time, but at least I finally owned a 7-string! 6 months later, the new $900 RG7620s came out & everyone started buying them. Arrrrrgh.

 

[Pauly]

Korns guitars always sounded i guess "bigger" to me than the other bands that people were listening to.

Yeah, it's weird how even other bands using 7-strings didn't seem to sound so massive guitar-wise. Even though they have a lot of low-end, I often wondered whether it was Fieldy who was actually the reason why they sounded so huge. They really do sound ridiculously large sounding on the 'middle' albums (Follow, Issues, Untouchables).

 

[7slinger]

I went to Mars Music to get strings, came home with a 7!

I guess I had been curious, had always messed around with
tuning down and such, Mar's had one left that was damaged
and repaired by the store, I asked them to make me a deal,
they did, and here I am 5 years later...I don't even own a 6
anymore.

 

[The Rx Elite]

For me it was Fear Factory, Korn, and Sepultura. Loved all 3 of them, Roots, Life is Peachy and Demanufacture was all I listened to for the entire year of 96 (not really, but definitely the most played). Then Ibanez came out with the 7620 in 97 (which they had a black and a white 7620) Picked me up a black one. ...would give anything to have a white one.

 

[Ken]

For me, it was seeing a UV77MC on the wall at my local music store and playing it too much. Just seemed a natural fit to me.

 

[Naren]

For me, it was no particular band that did it for me, although I was blown away when I heard Unearth. I've always been into really heavy music and I had played in some bands with drop-tuned sixes (whole step down and drop-C). But what really struck me was the extended range. I thought "hm, I get 2 extra frets per string, then a whole new string, which means I get 36 more notes than I have now." The idea of creating chords with the new string fascinated me, as well as extended scales into the lower end. People like Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, and John Petrucci influenced me more to buy it than any particular band (although Unearth really did sell me on it).

Of course, Bob (the Dark Wolf), who I played in a band with, will probably tell you it was his seven that influenced me to get one. I'll admit his seven is awesome, but his low F string struck me as "an insanely massive low string I don't need" (although it did sound awesome when he'd hit a super low F power chord and I'd hit a much higher F power chord in standard). I will say that I was not confused when I first picked up a seven. I asked Bob how he tuned his guitar the first time I met him, so that when I picked up the guitar, I knew where everything was (of course, the string spacing and the extra string was a little awkward at first).

 

[Shawn]

Morbid Angel did it to me.

Me too. I saw Morbid back in 1994 and he had his Hamer custom V along with his UV7PWH (Rutan owns it now?). Anyway, when I saw that, I had to have one. I had 6-strings tuned down for a while then Korn came out around the same time I started looking for one. I decided to keep my down tuned 6-string and forget the whole 7-string thing.

In May of 1998, I walked into a music store and I saw a brand new RG 7620 BK. I bought it and never looked back. 7-string was so natural to me that It felt right. Now I cant stop collection them..lol.

 

[The Dark Wolf]

Of course, Bob (the Dark Wolf), who I played in a band with, will probably tell you it was his seven that influenced me to get one. I'll admit his seven is awesome, but his low F string struck me as "an insanely massive low string I don't need" (although it did sound awesome when he'd hit a super low F power chord and I'd hit a much higher F power chord in standard). I will say that I was not confused when I first picked up a seven. I asked Bob how he tuned his guitar the first time I met him, so that when I picked up the guitar, I knew where everything was (of course, the string spacing and the extra string was a little awkward at first).

You had absolutely zero problems with it, though, E. Took to it like a chimp slinging shit, in fact, my man! (That look on your face when you hit the open low F was priceless, though., It was like disgust mixed with awe, heh heh. )Then you went and ripped up some sick riffs with a look of bliss You were born for a 7, methinks. Most other guitarists, however, even really, really good ones, just look at it in confusion when they see that 7th string. "Is that a duh-duh-duh-seven string?"

My story is almost the same as Shannon's. Dime did it for me. I started de-tuning right after I heard 'Vulgar Display of Power'. I thought about being an octave lower for years, but started out a bit less dramatic in drop D. Then went to C#. Then to drop C#. Then to Drop C. I started hearing some things about 7 strings about then, and began to think it was a really good idea. I finally got a 7 (in early 2001), after seeing the one and only ad for the RG2027 I've ever seen. Love at first sight. Couldn't afford/didn't know where to get the 2027, so got a Squire 7 to hold me over. I then I went immediately down to drop A. Then double drop tuned, both the low E and low B, to drop D/G. I got the RG2027 about this time, my dream guitar! Then drop Gb. Then drop F I've been playing in drop C/drop F for probably 3 years now. It's the only tuning that really makes sense to me anymore, and frees me up to play in all kinds of keys, since they're all pretty much right there. I play stuff from F all the way up standard E (which is the 4th fret on my drop C string, normally the low E for you standard folks). And the tuning makes barre shapes real easy, so it's sort of like having that low open note all us metal heads love, but anywhere on the neck. Hence, more keys.

 

[Kane]

I had always shunned 7 strings because they were associated with nu-metal bands. About 3 or 4 years ago I attended an Origin show in Antioch, TN. A kick ass 3 piece local band called Dicoria opened up for them, so after the show I approached the guitarist and asked if they were looking for another guitarist. He said they were and we setup a tryout. When he told me he used a 7 string I was leary, but he informed me that bands like Cannibal Corpse and Morbid Angel used 7's, assuring me that they weren't just for nu-metal. I had recently purchased a sweet Ibanez RGsomethin 6-string, so the next day I took it back to the store and traded it in for the only 7 string on the floor; a Schecter Avenger 7. I took it home and, needless to say, I was hooked as soon as I started playing it. I went to the tryout and got the gig, but unfortunately the band broke up shortly thereafter, and I moved out to Cali to tend to my brother who had recently been in a neck breaking, body paralyzing motorcycle accident. I wish I had started playing 7's years ago, and 6 strings feel completely wierd to me now. Although, for the last several months I've been increasingly into classical guitar and have picked up my 7s less and less. They're still my electric of choice though.

 

[chronicinsomnia]

As soon as Vai's Passion and Warfare hit the stores i was off and looking for a UV. Hard to believe that was 15 years ago... damn.

 

[The Dark Wolf]

You ever hear Paul Galbraith, Kane? He's an INCREDIBLE classical guitarist, kind of specializes in Bach, was a Segovia contest winner... and plays an 8-string!

http://www.paul-galbraith.com/paulmain.html

If you like classical guitar, I can't imagine you not enjoying his playing. (If you've heard of him already, well... fuck me, I guess that's cool then )