Suggestions for 6s Baritone ET DT

[Crowis]

I’m on the lookout for a 6-string baritone with evertune downtuned to B. Perhaps even to lower E (eg 1 octave lower than standard tuning).

As I am not familiar with baritone guitars, I would appreciate suggestion from all you competent people in this forum.

What scale lenght should I be on the lookout for? Any guitar suggestions?

It’s mainly for distorted metal so good cleans is not important. Humbuckers are however.
I use mostly ESP & Ibanez today but am open for anything.

 

[7stringDemon]

It’s all personal preference. I prefer 28+ inches, but I keep my baritone in F# permanently. I do this partially because my normal 25.5 guitars are just fine in B. So if I’m getting a baritone, it better damn well be for the really low notes.

27 is great in the B to G range, but doesn’t really give you as much benefit any lower than that. It’s sort of the beginning of baritone.

30 is absolutely bonkers and will make your guitar sound like a piano, but will feel TOTALLY different than your other guitars.

As far as finding one with an ET, I can’t help you there.

 

[gunch]

Solar has a 29.5 scale baritone S with ET

A1.6FBB-29 – Flame Black Burst Matte

Created with the most demanding guitarists in mind, this premium feature-loaded guitar belongs to the Solar Type A1 top of the line range, offering outstanding elegance and performance.n

www.solar-guitars.com

 

[JimboLodisC]

I would decide on your tuning first. B1 and E1 don't really work on the same instrument. For example, Ibanez does 25.5" 7-strings that come with a B1 on the bottom. Then look at Squier's Bass VI that's 30" scale for E1. They're 7 semi-tones apart from each other. There's no single set of gauges that would allow you to do both on the same guitar.

So if you're only doing B1, you don't need a baritone for that.

If you wanna go lower than A1 then something longer like 26.5"/27" would be a good target.

If you're wanting F# or lower, then 28" or longer will help.

And I'll add that people have done F# on a Les Paul, so there are no rules, just suggestions.

In my personal experience, I did Drop A on my 25.5" 7-strings for a long time. Had to slam the saddle all the way back to get the best intonation, but I made it work. Switching to thinner gauges helped make that better.

Lastly, it all comes down to your own preference for tension and gauges. Take any regular guitar and tune down. Too floppy? Get thicker gauges. Gauges too thick for your liking? Get a longer guitar. Too much of a stretch? Pick your compromise: looser strings, thick bridge cables, or go multiscale. Experimentation is what it all comes down to.

 

[nightsprinter]

.084 is the thickest string an evertune can accommodate - just wanted to toss that into the consideration bucket since string gauge is a consideration with choices.

 

[Crowis]

Thank you for all your input, appreciate it. I’ll most likely stay at B which is where I am today on standard 24.75 and 25.5 guitars.

B tuning is ok imo on 25.5 models with jumbo frets but I’m not that comfortable with it on 24.75 models.

Based on all your input here I might consider a 29-30 for lower to have something that works for low E, as 25.5 is doable for B. Frt E it was not.

That Solar seems interesting although I never had the pleasure to try their guitars.

 

[gh0styboi]

For what it's worth, I do E1 on my 27" baritone Tele using a 13-72 set, no issues. I also have a 29.75" baritone that I keep in C#1 (octave below C#) using a 26-90 set, which I wouldn't go a mm less on the scale length of, frankly. I also do G1 with no issues on my 26.5" baritone, so a lot of it - as mentioned above - is preference, as long as you can set the intonation correctly.

Honestly, for B or even A/Ab, I don't even bother going longer than standard 25.5" scales unless I have a real itch to play my RGD baritone. I usually keep my LTD H3 in B standard/drop A.

 

[ErockRPh]

FWIW, I have a 30" scale Harley Benton baritone in E1 standard. It is essentially a Bass VI, but with P90's. Even with relatively light strings (custom Stringjoys .0135-.074), it still plays and feels like a bass at that scale length. I like my strings on the looser side, so I probably would have been OK with a 28" scale (or maybe even 27") for that tuning, and I would have been happier from a feel standpoint.

 

[Doc Plus]

6 string baritone with evertune ... So you have the solar 29" as cited by gunch and the others are mainly 27" LTD. There are some less known brands like Jericho.
You can check on the evertune website because they also mod guitars: https://www.evertune.com/shop/guitars.php.

You're talking about B1 and E1 ... with only 1 guitar, I would go with 27" and tuned to drop E (with a .074").
But I would go with 2 guitars.

Did you try to set a standard scale 6 string in B standard ? If yes and you used a gauge higher than .060" and you found the sound was muddy, just try to lower the gauge.

 

[gh0styboi]

You're talking about B1 and E1 ... with only 1 guitar, I would go with 27" and tuned to drop E (with a .074").
But I would go with 2 guitars.

Honestly, this is important. Switching between B1 and E1 is going to requite a setup - you'll need to adjust the intonation, action, and maybe the neck relief to make it work properly. I wouldn't recommend using only one guitar for this switch unless you don't mind adjusting those things every time you go from a gauge that supports B1 to a gauge that supports E1. Two guitars - or just sticking with one tuning - would be way easier.

For example, if you just tune to F#1 standard, you'll have access to the B on the 5th string as well, and you can drop the F# to E to get the lower register you're after.