Ordered SC-608B!! String gauge choice good?

[Crescent2k6]

I'm the kid who tried to refinish his RG1527 but haven't posted here in a while because I kindof... borked the body. Basswood is soft as all hell! Edges do not agree with electric sanders. I've used it for so many spare parts already though there's no chance it's ever going back together. Anyway, gonna be a senior (in hs) this year, and as a year early graduation present (not getting anything later) my parents bought me a SC-608B. I'm as excited as one can possibly be waiting for this thing to come (shipped today!! ) however I just want to make sure my string choices were good. I already ordered them. I love the tension of 9's on a 25.5" scale, 9's on a 24.75 are a bit flabby but 10's are too thick (not too tight just thick). So I ordered...

E - .009
B - .011
G - .016
D - .024
A - .032
E - .042
B - .054
F#-.074

Does this look good? I loved the feel of the 9-54's on the ibby rg 7 but i'm not sure how the 74 will balance out. The string tension calculator seems to say that it's got just a smidgen more tension than the B, which i think will be good. But i've never played an 8 in my life so what do I know haha. The fact that ESP ships the thing with 10-56's and then a low 68 seems either retarded, or makes me feel like a 74 is way too thick for 9's, but give me your input! Thanks alot :]. Pics WILL come once the guitar arrives.

P.S. I HAVE played .008 gauge strings before before, but they seemed like toys they were so thin, and being how the esp has a thick neck and is going to be a brutal metal guitar I figure the FEEL of the 9's will be good but i'm kindof worried about the tension being a 27" scale and all. Am i freaking out about nothing? is the extra 1.5" not that huge of a difference? Because to me the difference between 24.75 and 25.5 is night and day...

 

[cev]

Handy rule of thumb: tune your current guitar up one semitone - that's what 27" scale feels like, tensionwise.

I guess that's not possible in your case... well, imagine tuning your guitar up one semitone

Also, the string tension calculator is usually pretty good, so I would trust it for your first set of strings, then make adjustments based on your personal preferences after trying them for a while.

 

[Crescent2k6]

lol well i still have my trusty les paul, although it's the dreaded 24.75. 2 semitones? aka full step up?

 

[cev]

Eh... it won't quite work. The reason that tuning up one semitone is a good trick is because 27" is exactly one fret longer than 25.5" (if you put a capo on the first fret on a 27" guitar, it will be exactly like a 25.5" guitar). I don't think the same thing works out between 24.75" and 25.5".

 

[Crescent2k6]

ah okay. do you think the 74 is good proportionately to the other strings?

 

[cev]

Well, everyone has their own personal preferences for the low strings for it's hard to predict what you'll like, but it certainly is a good starting point. If it turns out it's too tight/floppy, just change it on the next set.

 

[Zoltta]

I found a 70 Nanoweb Elixir to be perfect

 

[Crescent2k6]

yeah now that i'm looking at the gauges more and more and seeing how the tension slope seems to go down from A to E and then to the low B, a 70 seems like it'd be perfect... Technically a 74 would be good but I think the 54 as a low B is perfect which is about 1.5lbs (off the top of my head) less than the low E... 1.5lbs less than a 54 would be a 70 for a low F#

 

[Ishan]

len 27"
E     .009" PL == 14.72#
B,    .011" PL == 12.34#
G,    .016" PL == 16.46#
D,    .024" NW == 17.68#
A,,   .032" NW == 17.68#
E,,   .042" NW == 16.56#
B,,,  .054" NW == 15.22#
F,,,# .074" NW == 15.97#
total == 126.63#

It looks OK to me; I'd go with this myself :

len 27"
E     .009" PL == 14.72#
B,    .012" PL == 14.69#
G,    .015" PL == 14.46#
D,    .022" NW == 14.96#
A,,   .030" NW == 15.75#
E,,   .040" NW == 15.07#
B,,,  .054" NW == 15.22#
F,,,# .074" NW == 15.97#
total == 120.85#

 

[cev]

Well, I was under the impression that he wanted to use a standard set of 9's, otherwise I would've recommended a balanced set like that.

Also, the tension falling off on the lower strings is not a good thing! Well, unless you like the middle strings having more tension than everything else, but I can't see why anyone would ever want that.

 

[Crescent2k6]

Allright well then I guess the 74 was probably a good choice. The only reason i have the gauges i do for the top 7 is because i wanted to use a standard set of 9's but yeah i can see how the tension rolling off may not be a good thing. I suppose technically it's better to have the tension going up on the lower strings but i just love the feel of the 54 vs a 56 or 59 (which i have tried in the past).

 

[cev]

Well, the way I see it is it's a compromise: you want to have good tension, but not everyone likes to way thick strings feel and sound. You just have to try a few different gauges, and decide what's right for you.

 

[fabeau]

I just found this thread,I need an help from you guys..
I tuned down 2 semitones both the 7th and the 8th string, so now I have this tunes:
E-B-G-D-A-E-A-E
yes is like a "dropped"...but the biggest string is too few tense...can you suggest me a gauge? Right now I still have the manufacture gauge (the guitar is some weeks old)..
and where can I buy that big strings?? I tried to find some in some shops here but I surrended..any good online shop?

Thanks!!

 

[hypermagic]

JustStrings.com - Strings for guitar, bass, banjo, mandolin, fiddle and other musical instruments

 

[elvendio]

I put an modified bass string on my SC 608B 85 gauge for lowww C .

Sorry for those who have seen my video already.

 

[fabeau]

Thanks hypermagic!
Elvendio, is your lowest string a C??

 

[DarkKnight369]

The Hellraiser C-8 is 26.5" scale and I like the .074 for the low F#. I was thinking about maybe trying an .080, but one string is $4 from D'Addario. The rest of the guitar is like the D'Addario EXL 140 set I think which is .010-.054, and a .064 for the B. Wondered why the strings were so thick, but I guess it was to not make the .074 feel so odd.

Anyway, these newer string gauges got me bumping up the .059 for A on my 7 to a .064, trying a .062 next as the .064 works, but I have to really fighte it through the tuning peg and the nut might need filing. I will see if the .062 works better.

 

[elvendio]

Thanks hypermagic!
Elvendio, is your lowest string a C??

Yep it's a very low C i guess you could say double dropped C. The guitar is tuned like this. C G C G C G C E. Just like in Led Zeps Friends but with an extra low C and G.

 

[LordHines42]

I've been experimenting a lot lately with gauges. I find the 80 to be too tinny-sounding, but the 74 to be a perfect mix of tone and tension. Anything lower than a 74 on a 27 inch scale is a no no.

I also replaced my 54 with a 64, and I love it.