[darren]

My Dean, being an evolution of a Les Paul-type design, also has no body contours. If i wear it higher up, it digs into my ribs something fierce. Even sitting down playing it will lightly bruise my ribs after a couple of hours. If it weren't still in near-pristine shape, i'd be tempted to strip the back of it and carve a tummy cut into it.

[Naren]

Originally Posted by darren

My Dean, being an evolution of a Les Paul-type design, also has no body contours. If i wear it higher up, it digs into my ribs something fierce. Even sitting down playing it will lightly bruise my ribs after a couple of hours. If it weren't still in near-pristine shape, i'd be tempted to strip the back of it and carve a tummy cut into it.

Same thing here. My Gibson cuts into my ribs sometimes when I'm sitting down and playing it. I like the way the Les Paul body looks and I love the way the LP sounds, but if I wore it high up, it would cut into my body because of the lack of body contours.

I'll revise what I posted earlier. Steve Vai and Joe Satriani don't have their guitars up high at all, but I do have mine at least several inches lower than their guitars.

[Leon]

i'm guessing that even if you're sling'n 'er low, so long as your wrist remains fairly straight, and you stretch before you play, you'll be fine.

[Naren]

Originally Posted by Leon

i'm guessing that even if you're sling'n 'er low, so long as your wrist remains fairly straight, and you stretch before you play, you'll be fine.

My wrist remains pretty straight the whole time I'm playing (completely straight at least half of the time, I'd say). Even though I play low, the neck is at a 60-70 degree angle upwards. If I played with the guitar as low as I have it, but played with the guitar vertically, I'd hurt myself pretty quickly. My arms just naturally adjust the angle to whatever's most comfortable. For me, a somewhat low guitar is more comfortable than a really high one (which is quite uncomfortable).

[eaeolian]

Originally Posted by Naren

My wrist remains pretty straight the whole time I'm playing (completely straight at least half of the time, I'd say). Even though I play low, the neck is at a 60-70 degree angle upwards. If I played with the guitar as low as I have it, but played with the guitar vertically, I'd hurt myself pretty quickly. My arms just naturally adjust the angle to whatever's most comfortable. For me, a somewhat low guitar is more comfortable than a really high one (which is quite uncomfortable).

Interestingly, I do something similar, although I think mine might be a touch higher than it sounds like yours is. My neck angle is quite high, though, and combined with long arms it helps keep my wrist straigh and "open".

[Naren]

Originally Posted by eaeolian

Interestingly, I do something similar, although I think mine might be a touch higher than it sounds like yours is. My neck angle is quite high, though, and combined with long arms it helps keep my wrist straigh and "open".

Agreed. My 7-string might be about the same length as yours. My 6-strings are probably lower than yours, though. My neck angle is somewhat high; I have long arms, long fingers, and big hands; and when I play, my wrists are straight and "open."

A good method of playing low.

[Vince]

Originally Posted by Leon

i'm guessing that even if you're sling'n 'er low, so long as your wrist remains fairly straight, and you stretch before you play, you'll be fine.

Sometimes it's fun to wear the guitar low and "Hetfield" it out for a few songs

For me, there's a height difference for my guitars depending on the kind of show I'm playing. If I'm playing a show for my solo material, I usually wear the guitar higher, Petrucci-style, because it's easier to access the higher frets this way. If I'm playing a show with my band, I'll generally wear the guitar lower because it's more comfortable and feels better on stage. I can always put a foot on a monitor and raise the guitar up on my thigh for really hard parts if I need to. Even when I have my guitar hanging lower, it's still at belt height. I need to be able to play the whole guitar. Guys like Hetfield who hold their guitars really low generally don't use the higher frets too much, and they think they look cooler with the low guitar.

Either way, any "coolness" you have from having the guitar hanging around your knees will instantly vanish when the crowd finds out you can't play the thing. Your playing is more important, obviously, but for live performance, remember it's a SHOW, and you're an ENTERTAINER, and IMAGE definitely does matter.

[eaeolian]

Originally Posted by desertdweller

Either way, any "coolness" you have from having the guitar hanging around your knees will instantly vanish when the crowd finds out you can't play the thing. Your playing is more important, obviously, but for live performance, remember it's a SHOW, and you're an ENTERTAINER, and IMAGE definitely does matter.

Agreed 100%.

[Vince]

my idea of a comfortable height... old pic, but this is how I hold my guitar for live shows:

[WayneCustom7]

Originally Posted by desertdweller

my idea of a comfortable height... old pic, but this is how I hold my guitar for live shows:

Hey we kind of look the same...