# What's the difference between schecter 8 string guitars?



## Arcanerain (Oct 15, 2012)

I've recently bought a Schecter omen 8 and it is the best guitar i own. Many people complain about the pickups and i've started looking at the EMG 808's but the price of them made me wonder whether it would be worth my while getting a damien elite 8 or a hellraiser.

So really what i want to know is what differences are there between the Omen 8, the damien elite 8 and the hellraiser C-8 and which one is the best? The hellraiser may be a bit expensive but I'd still like to know what the differences are.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Oct 15, 2012)

I'm going to say the quality of the wood, hardware, pickups, and production. And when you get up to the Blackjack SLS series you have a thinner body, neck, and longer scale length. 

If you want to go cheaper with a pickup replacement, get some passives like some Dimarzio D-Activator 8s and get a pair of 5-string bass pickup covers. Check out this thread.

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/se...ch/112866-mod-emg-covers-passive-pickups.html

But if you really want a new guitar, maybe get one and keep the Omen as a backup or for different tunings?


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## Arcanerain (Oct 15, 2012)

Yeh that's a good idea actually i usually play in drop E but i wouldn't mind having one for drop D. I'm honestly a bit stuck though I've read reviews on the Hellraiser and the Damien elite and they both seem to be great guitars from what I've read but I don't know whether I'd be better to save up for the hellraiser or would the damien elite be just as good?


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## Go To Bed Jessica (Oct 15, 2012)

The heel carve on the set neck Hellraiser is a thing of beauty. Access to higher frets is MUCH easier than with the bolt-on heel of the Omen.

I have a 2011 (I think) Hellraiser C-8 Special and I am extremely happy with it.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Oct 15, 2012)

Arcanerain said:


> Yeh that's a good idea actually i usually play in drop E but i wouldn't mind having one for drop D. I'm honestly a bit stuck though I've read reviews on the Hellraiser and the Damien elite and they both seem to be great guitars from what I've read but I don't know whether I'd be better to save up for the hellraiser or would the damien elite be just as good?



I feel like an idiot... Another big difference between the Elite 8 and the Hellraiser 8 is that the Damien is bolt-on and the Hellraiser is Neck-thru.

So, which do you prefer: Bolt on or neck-thru?


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## Arcanerain (Oct 15, 2012)

well in all honesty i dont think i've ever played a guitar with a set through neck, the 3 i have now are all bolt on (one being a starter guitar and the omen and the other a bass) so i dont think it really matters. I very rarely play on the 24th fret so its not essential that i have to be able to get to it. Will the Damien have a better tone in comparison with the Omen?

I would really like to get a hellraiser but i think at the moment its a bit pricy, and ideally i would have loved to get the hellraiser v-8 over them but nowhere seems to sell them unfortunately.


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## no_dice (Oct 15, 2012)

If you're going to upgrade your pickups, I definitely would not recommend 808s. It may be my opinion but you can do a lot better for the money. Also, if you're tuning to drop D, or even drop E, and you're considering another Schecter, look into the SLS C-8 with the 28" scale.

I don't know if you're adamantly against longer scale lengths, but in such low tunings, it will seriously help you. After playing my 30" in drop D1 (with a Circle K .086), I wouldn't dare attempt something so low on a shorter scale. Not everyone will agree with me, but it's up to you what you like and what works for you.


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## Arcanerain (Oct 15, 2012)

no_dice said:


> If you're going to upgrade your pickups, I definitely would not recommend 808s. It may be my opinion but you can do a lot better for the money. Also, if you're tuning to drop D, or even drop E, and you're considering another Schecter, look into the SLS C-8 with the 28" scale.
> 
> I don't know if you're adamantly against longer scale lengths, but in such low tunings, it will seriously help you. After playing my 30" in drop D1 (with a Circle K .086), I wouldn't dare attempt something so low on a shorter scale. Not everyone will agree with me, but it's up to you what you like and what works for you.



It's not that I wouldn't mind having a longer scale to make the 8th string a bit less floppy but my hands are quite small and i find the 26.5" scale comfortable and i struggle stretching my hand when playing a 30.4" scale bass. I did however tune the guitar into DADADGBe once and it seemed fine to me when i played powerchords on the lowest 3 strings (playing over the 5 wasn't that great). I'll do it again just to be sure it sounds ok.


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## stratjacket (Oct 15, 2012)

Hmm, I didn't know the blackjack was thinner. I've tried the others in a store and the neck was too thick for me, may have to search out a blackjack and give it a try. Thanks!!


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Oct 15, 2012)

Remember, it's the Blackjack SLS, not the ATX.


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## stratjacket (Oct 15, 2012)

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> Remember, it's the Blackjack SLS, not the ATX.



Thanks for the follow up, I had missed it and was googling the ATX, haha.


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## frogunrua (Oct 16, 2012)

Does anyone know the radius of the SLS and FR? I can't find a spec sheet on them. All of the other schecter 8's have a 16" radius.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Oct 16, 2012)

I believe it's also 16".


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## Arcanerain (Oct 21, 2012)

I tried the Damien elite 8 today and i honestly didn't find anything much different from the omen 8, apart from it sounded a bit better but i think i'll just get new pickups for the omen later. I also tried the RGA8 by ibanez and i really liked it, the only fault i really found with it was that the strings were too thin but that's easily sorted. That'll probably need the pickups swapped out as well eventually (I am thinking of going for the ibanez). Does anyone have any experience with Seymour Duncan blackouts or the bareknuckle 8 string pickups?


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## Winspear (Oct 21, 2012)

One of them has the correct scale length


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Oct 21, 2012)

Arcanerain said:


> I tried the Damien elite 8 today and i honestly didn't find anything much different from the omen 8, apart from it sounded a bit better but i think i'll just get new pickups for the omen later. I also tried the RGA8 by ibanez and i really liked it, the only fault i really found with it was that the strings were too thin but that's easily sorted. That'll probably need the pickups swapped out as well eventually (I am thinking of going for the ibanez). Does anyone have any experience with Seymour Duncan blackouts or the bareknuckle 8 string pickups?



Pickups, Electronics & General Tech - Sevenstring.org


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## rty13ibz98 (Oct 21, 2012)

i have both the C8 special and C8FR and both have the same neck shape, but different scale lengths. the specs are nearly identical, though. coming from ibanez necks, i was wary of them and just said, "to hell with it" took the plunge. played against an rga8, i liked the schecter better. plus the ibanez pickups are complete trash. for the deeal i got on both my schecters, i am very impressed.

rich


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## rty13ibz98 (Oct 21, 2012)

the set neck of the schecters is amazing. i own several other neck thrus and set necks and the schecter is very impressive.


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## Arcanerain (Oct 22, 2012)

rty13ibz98 said:


> i have both the C8 special and C8FR and both have the same neck shape, but different scale lengths. the specs are nearly identical, though. coming from ibanez necks, i was wary of them and just said, "to hell with it" took the plunge. played against an rga8, i liked the schecter better. plus the ibanez pickups are complete trash. for the deeal i got on both my schecters, i am very impressed.
> 
> rich



I didn't find the pickups too bad on the rga8 but i would swap them out eventually. I preferred the rga8 over the damien elite because the damien was very similar to the 8 string i presently have. When it comes to it I'll swap the pickups out of both guitars.


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## L3G10N (Oct 22, 2012)

I play the Hellraiser C8 with a drop E. But I bought some D'addario 0.074 strings for the 8th one. I Also have a 0.080 i'll try later. I love it, but i'd like to switch the EMG for some Blackout.


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## rty13ibz98 (Oct 23, 2012)

L3G10N said:


> I play the Hellraiser C8 with a drop E. But I bought some D'addario 0.074 strings for the 8th one. I Also have a 0.080 i'll try later. I love it, but i'd like to switch the EMG for some Blackout.


i do the same tuning on my 8's, but i'm waiting for the distortions to come out before i swap. i am not a fan of actives, especially emg.

rich


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## rty13ibz98 (Oct 23, 2012)

Arcanerain said:


> I didn't find the pickups too bad on the rga8 but i would swap them out eventually. I preferred the rga8 over the damien elite because the damien was very similar to the 8 string i presently have. When it comes to it I'll swap the pickups out of both guitars.



my buddy had his rga8 and we ran it against both of our entire collections of 6, 7, and both my c8's(this mean over 50 electric guitars ranging from strats, LPs, teles, archtops, etc...) and the rga8 pickups are muddy. they soung like the top is rolled off and the low end boosted. on a guitar with a mahogany body and low F, it's a bad thing. he swapped for a pair of deactivators and it is worlds of difference.

rich


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## Go To Bed Jessica (Oct 23, 2012)

L3G10N said:


> I play the Hellraiser C8 with a drop E. But I bought some D'addario 0.074 strings for the 8th one. I Also have a 0.080 i'll try later. I love it, but i'd like to switch the EMG for some Blackout.



YMMV, but I found the 0.074 to be woefully lacking in tension at drop E. I consider it unusable. I would recommend 80 as a minimum starting point - and if you like your strings nice and snappy (as I do - 10-52 is as light as I will go at standard tuning on a 25.5 scale) then be prepared to go heavier again.

I am using the ZOG drop E set and I like it a lot, although I still need to go get the nut filed to accept that low string properly.


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## indreku (Oct 23, 2012)

I just got to play with my friends RGA8, just before he swaped the pickup to a lundgren8 and the sound has a huge difference. Thou I have myself the older blackjack ATX 8 with the 26,5 neck and I like it more than the ibanez, even thou I have small hands. Why I chose ATX over hellraiser(let us leave the damien or deluxe models out) - for one thing the pickups - blackouts are more clearer - minimalistic fret markers - overall cool worn look. I'd love to try the new SLS series - so I'd recommend buying a already ready schecter over an Ibanez you'd have to modify. 
Also for drop E the 8th string should be 80 or more, mine is 80 and even that feels little bit wobbly.


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## Winspear (Oct 23, 2012)

Yeah 80 is still floppy as hell. About 90 gives the same tension as a 46 E string I think, which is not tight in anybodies mind.


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## brutalwizard (Oct 24, 2012)

EtherealEntity said:


> Yeah 80 is still floppy as hell. About 90 gives the same tension as a 46 E string I think, which is not tight in anybodies mind.



74 in e on my atx is perfect for me hahaha


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## blackjackslsc8 (Jun 9, 2013)

I think the biggest difference between all these guitars--I call em "axes"--we're discussing is...the spelling.


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## zachyl (Jun 9, 2013)

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> I feel like an idiot... Another big difference between the Elite 8 and the Hellraiser 8 is that the Damien is bolt-on and the Hellraiser is Neck-thru.



Actually schecter 8 strings are not neck thru technically. they are a set neck with a carved contour so they feel like a neck thru. I personally have never been able to tell the difference with my blackjack atx c-8 but I know some people who are bothered by it


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## HeHasTheJazzHands (Jun 9, 2013)

blackjackslsc8 said:


> I think the biggest difference between all these guitars--I call em "axes"--we're discussing is...the spelling.



This necrobump was totally necessary. Oh so very important.



zachyl said:


> Actually schecter 8 strings are not neck thru technically. they are a set neck with a carved contour so they feel like a neck thru. I personally have never been able to tell the difference with my blackjack atx c-8 but I know some people who are bothered by it



I derped there a few months ago.


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