Who inspired you to play 7-stringers??

[s_k_mullins]

Ok I don't know if this thread has ever been done (probably has).. But lets talk about who inspired us to pick up 7-strings.

And as always...




I would have to say my biggest influences for gettin my 7 were Dino Cazares (the ....in man!)...



...Also, I gotta say Stephen Carpenter from the Deftones is a big influence on my playing...





...And all the early stuff from Korn was a big influence.. Head and Munky kicked ass on those 1st few albums.

[mnemonic]

i remember i used to listen to korn back in the day before i played guitar. i had no idea they used sevens or tuned down or anything until after i started playing sevens

anyway, my influences to pick up a seven were a combination of loomis and bulb

[EDG3CRUSHER]

Definitely Dino. Then, I began listening to Meshuggah, Bulb/Periphery, and Dino got himself an 8, so I followed suit.

[Esp Griffyn]

This man inspired me, I'd be very surprised if he hasnt had a hand in a good portion of members here taking up 7s...

[Groff]

Before I picked up guitar, and really go into music, I had no idea when people were down tunin, or playing sevens. Then I got a Guitar One magazine with a Korn tab in it and it was on a 7 string. That was my first exposure to them. I wanted one for a while, but then gave up wanting one. Then I heard Petrucci playing one, and Vai also... But it wasn't enough to give me GAS. Then I heard Loomis and I was sold!

[darbdavys]

Korn. later, i started listening opeth (offtopiced ) and nevermore and was friggin enchanted with loomis' sound. that's what got me into the world of sevens

[Bleak]

Petrucci started it all for me

[CAPTAIN SARG]

no one really inspired me i just decided to play a seven string one day at guitar center and loved it then i got into bands that use seven strings

[Papa Shank]

Petrucci with A Change of Seasons, later Fredrik Thordendal and Meshuggah.

[sworth9411]

I first saw Meshuggah on Tour with Candiria back in 1998 (I think I was 13) and was totally blown away…I had never seen guitars with 7 strings at that point (or very little I think I was stealing my brothers fender and playing through a metal zone and a peavey bass amp at that point) I just couldn’t believe it but I was too far away and too entranced to really notice anything about the gear.

So a few months later I remember seeing Fear Factory with some local bands and seeing Dino’s Lighting riffs and reading the word Ibanez on the headstock. I was mesmerized by Dino’s picking patterns, and how clean his rhythm was almost like another percussionist but with the guitar…I remember saving up all summer for the Black Ibanez RG7620 in the local store and paying for it in Cash (still have it).

After that point It seemed like every local band in the area got their hands on a seven of some kind but at that point NuMetal was dying and they were kind of looked down upon it’s a shame a lot of my friends got rid of some killer guitars that I would kill for today, I myself got rid of a UV77BK ***kicks self in ass*** because my friends called me a dick because it was what Korn used….stupid.

I am slowly but surely now moving on to the 8 but haven’t made the plunge yet….Thanks again to Dino and Meshuggah (they continue to innovate the genre even today which is so exciting).

Sorry about the essay and no pics but you dudes know who they are, and if you don’t then why the hell are you on this forum?

[awesomeaustin]

Buz and Ken, Unearth showed me the light!! then the guys from Scar Symmetry, and Meshuggah came along

[supertruper1988]

John Petrucci with A Change of Seasons.

[Jaaaaamie]

No-one. I've always been into low tunings since I first picked up the guitar. Then hearing Crowbar made me take my 6 string down down down. Then I tuned it just a tad lower.

However, I missed all the high notes from regular tunings, but whenever I was in regular tunings I missed all the low notes. Ta da!

[Triple-J]

I know Im gonna get ripped for this but............................Coal Chamber!
People like Vai put me off 7s and made me think it was a instrument for shredder types in leather pants I dug Korn but learning their material just doesnt work if all you have is yrself and no fx to play with and I was far to slow to be playing Fear Factory tunes but when I heard Coal Chamber it was perfect for the standard of my playing at the time and a great intro to 7s/downtuning cause it was midpaced and simplistic.

So I bought a 7 to play their songs BUT it was a Jackson 7!..............the quality of this piece of crap put me off 7s so badly I took it back to the store and swapped it for a Baritone guitar. I then played baritones exclusively for 6 years and never even thought about 7s again until last year I got a major hankering to stretch out and play leads and improve my playing so I switched back to 7s again.





And before anyone asks........yeah I have ALL Coal Chambers albums and I can blast through a pretty good cover of "Loco" too!

[InCasinoOut]

Bulb and Periphery mostly, but SikTh too even though they play sixes.

[Brendan G]

I just wanted to expand, and moving onto a 5 string bass (essentially the same as 7 string guitar right...right? ) seemed like the most logical way to do that.

[Daemoniac]

I wasnt inspired by a 7 string playing band lol... It was actually 16 Volt... Still my fav band, they only tune to drop D im pretty sure, but the processing of their guitar and the sound was just massive, so i became obsessed with downtuning and weird tunings.

When i went to get my 1st guitar it was to be an RG7321, but the store didnt have one in stock, so, like a dick, i went for a Schecter Damien 6... (not even close lol). Started tuning it down after a month, and before i sold it it ended up at drop B. Got my 1st seven about 6 months ago, tuned it to drop A, but am now searching for a better tuning. Im practicing on the 6 i have, i think G# D# G# D# A# D#

Still on the search for the most ridiculously heavy sound i can possibly have.

[Rick]

Dino.

[atimoc]

My main initial reason for getting a seven was that I was in a rut inspiration-wise and wanted to try something new to find fresh ideas on how to approach writing and playing (yes, always buy new gear when creativity eludes you ). I don't know if I can really name one specific source of inspiration, but I guess one of the first 7-string songs that really impressed me was Dream Theater's The Mirror. That's beauty of simplicity right there, in the opening riff.

[st2012]

Lots of guys inspired me but Loomis, Broderick and Cooley are my big 3.

[voiceguitar]

Christopher Bradley - Beneath the Massacre

[StevieHimself]

Sorry no pics but here's who inspired me to play 7s:

1. Steve Vai (he got the ball rolling back in 1990)
2. Korn (I'm not going to lie to anyone about this!)
3. Trey Azagthoth of Morbid Angel
4. Chris Broderick!!!!
5. Jeff Loomis!!!!
6. Rusty Cooley
7. Buz McGrath/Ken Susi of Unearth
8. Bucky Pizzarelli gave me a couple of spot "lessons" and that was really cool
9. There's a local guy named Rich Nazario who does some very neat things with his 7-string (he is a teacher at SG Music in Waldwick.)
10. Meshuggah!!!

[wannabguitarist]

Unearth:

and John Petrucci:


Started listening to both bands at about the same time. Reading the seven string legion thread on UG also inspired me a bit

[st2012]

Originally Posted by StevieHimself

Sorry no pics but here's who inspired me to play 7s:

1. Steve Vai (he got the ball rolling back in 1990)
2. Korn (I'm not going to lie to anyone about this!)
3. Trey Azagthoth of Morbid Angel
4. Chris Broderick!!!!
5. Jeff Loomis!!!!
6. Rusty Cooley
7. Buz McGrath/Ken Susi of Unearth
8. Bucky Pizzarelli gave me a couple of spot "lessons" and that was really cool
9. There's a local guy named Rich Nazario who does some very neat things with his 7-string (he is a teacher at SG Music in Waldwick.)
10. Meshuggah!!!

Bucky and John Pizzarelli both kick ass.

[Luan]

When I was a kid I used to listen to korn, so I wanted a 7 as a first guitar, and it didn't happened, I tried a schecter that was beautiful but sounded like shit, it was an avenger.
And then I discovered steve vai, then petrucci, then all the jazz players, and how they use it, and then the need of an low string.
So I saved and got my 1527