# 8 String Gauge for 27 Scale Drop E



## Grooven (Jun 24, 2017)

I've recently went back for the 2nd time and tried out GhS Boomers 10-80's for drop E,the first time I tried it I really didn't put them to the test but after going for them again the 80 is a bit floppy for E.Now for F# it's perfect I was under the impression that 10-80 would give you the same tension as F# with lets say something like 10-74 or 75.I just don't want to get an 85 cause I'm sure imma have to do some extra work and I am not that guy lol


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## MerlinTKD (Jun 25, 2017)

I use an .080 for Eb on a 28.625" scale, and it's fine for me, but I can see why most folks seem to prefer .085, .090, or even .095. On the other hand, AAL reputedly use 10-74 on a 27" scale, so...


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## rockskate4x (Jun 25, 2017)

I recommend playing a trick on your brain. Any gauge can be made to feel larger or smaller by context without actually changing its size. For example a size .080 string will feel heavier next to a set of .009's then next to a set of .010's. If you adapt to lighter gauges on the other strings, the context will help your fingers and brain to adapt to the size .080, as it will feel heavier by contrast. I find this to be much better than increasing the .080 to an .085 or .090, as it will vibrate less freely, and get a much darker tone more plagued by inharmonicity.


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## USMarine75 (Jun 25, 2017)

Joe Cocchi of Within the Ruins uses: 1.10 .90 .54 .36 .24 .18 .15 lol. i suppose you could top that with an .11 or so on an 8-string.


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## Winspear (Jun 25, 2017)

90 is the same tension as a 45 octave E


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## Backsnack (Jun 25, 2017)

My 8 string is at the shop, currently getting some minor tweaks as well as a .090 for the low E. Fanned fret scale for the 8th string is 28.625". According to String Tension Pro, it's supposed to have 19.59 lbs. of tension, so we'll see how it goes.


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## Backsnack (Jun 25, 2017)

USMarine75 said:


> Joe Cocchi of Within the Ruins uses: 1.10 .90 .54 .36 .24 .18 .15 lol. i suppose you could top that with an .11 or so on an 8-string.


Yikes, is he playing on a 26.5" scale or something? 

I'm afraid my luthier may have a tough time with my bridge hardware fitting the 0.090 in it. We'll see how it goes. I already handed them a custom set of Hipshot tuners to cover that potential problem.


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## Backsnack (Jun 25, 2017)

MerlinTKD said:


> I use an .080 for Eb on a 28.625" scale, and it's fine for me, but I can see why most folks seem to prefer .085, .090, or even .095. On the other hand, AAL reputedly use 10-74 on a 27" scale, so...


IMO a 0.074 is too floppy for a drop E tuning on a 27" scale. 

I realize it works for Tosin and others, I'm guessing they play their 8th strings very lightly.


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## USMarine75 (Jun 25, 2017)

yeah the tuner had to be routed and obviously a new nut!


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## Winspear (Jun 25, 2017)

Backsnack said:


> IMO a 0.074 is too floppy for a drop E tuning on a 27" scale.
> 
> I realize it works for Tosin and others, I'm guessing they play their 8th strings very lightly.


You can really hear how loose it is in their vids and records. I don't usually care what strings others use but a lot of their nice clean parts have so much buzz


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## USMarine75 (Jun 25, 2017)

Apparently Cocchi can't even come close to intonating his low-E 1.10 gauge string, but they don't play clean, only massive digital distortion and a ton of effects.


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## exo (Jun 25, 2017)

I use the d'addario NYXL 9-80 set on an RG852MPB in drop Eb. It's a LITTLE spongey, but nothing I can't deal with. I normally play 10-46 on my 6's, and it's really not THAT far off to me in terms of feel. I'm on board with the "brain tricks" someone a few posts further up suggested, and give yourself a little time to adapt to the feel.......


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## BangandBreach (Jun 26, 2017)

As someone who stumbles into these gauge threads, I feel like a real dolt because I have no idea what any of the sizes of my strings are. This thread is sobering.


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## Masoo2 (Jun 26, 2017)

fyi Joe Cocchi plays in Drop F with a low C (110 gauge) and Drop G, I'm fairly certain WTR has never tuned to Drop E

I'm a big fan of 9-46+56/58+74/76. Light enough for the tone to not be clouded by an overly thick string and the tension is good enough even down to Eb for me (if I was staying at Eb I'd go up to 80 though).

Most touring 8 string users I've seen seem to use 10-74 or 9-80, including Modern Day Babylon (F Standard, Drop Ab low F, Drop Eb, Drop Ab low Eb), Carnifex (Drop F), and the aforementioned AAL (Drop E). It's rare to see super thick gauges outside of this forum, the only band I can think of off the top of my head that uses thick gauges for a 7 string is Thy Art Is Murder, which use something like 10-54+72/74 for Drop A.


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## couverdure (Jun 26, 2017)

Winspear said:


> 90 is the same tension as a 45 octave E


On what scale length would the 45 in E2 be? Its tension on a 24.75" scale would be different from a 25.5" and both are massively different on a 27".


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## rockskate4x (Jun 26, 2017)

couverdure said:


> On what scale length would the 45 in E2 be? Its tension on a 24.75" scale would be different from a 25.5" and both are massively different on a 27".


He means all scales being equal so a .045 E2 and a .090 E1 are the same tension when on one guitar with a single scale length because .045 is half of .090. This rule of halves works for any two strings an octave apart on the same scale length.


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## Winspear (Jun 27, 2017)

^ Yup. It's a useful guide. You can use it for any scale length. If you're thinking "I'd usually use a 46 on 25.5" then you know to use a 90 on 25.5. If you're thinking "46 is still right for me on 27" then you know to use a 90, if not, you know to go slightly lighter etc.
But - 27" is not massively different at all. One semitone tighter  46 E on 27" becomes the same as a 36 A and 26 D on 25.5" (that is to say, a 46 36 26 from a 10-46 set are balanced in FAD)
I find a 46 E slightly loose on 25.5, better in F, so it's perfect on 27 E for me, as is a low 90


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## Winspear (Jun 27, 2017)

Masoo2 said:


> Most touring 8 string users I've seen seem to use 10-74 or 9-80, including Modern Day Babylon (F Standard, Drop Ab low F, Drop Eb, Drop Ab low Eb), Carnifex (Drop F), and the aforementioned AAL (Drop E). It's rare to see super thick gauges outside of this forum, the only band I can think of off the top of my head that uses thick gauges for a 7 string is Thy Art Is Murder, which use something like 10-54+72/74 for Drop A.



This is absolutely true and it is a valid point.
However...
Imagine this scenario: 6 string sets suddenly instead of being 10 13 17 26 36 46 are instead 10 13 17 26 32 40. Very imbalanced and loose on the bottom, especially in drop tuning. However, if that's just how they were, and how they were always sold - the same would be true. Most touring bands playing 6 strings would be using very loose bottom strings.

Most people aren't going out of their way to correct these extended range sets and have adapted to the difference in tension, because it's common. Their status as a pro or amateur is not too relevant.
You can totally parallel it to the 6 string example. Somebody may say a high gauge 8th is unreasonable because it's not common, but people are running that tension on 6 strings all the time. Likewise if somebody says their 74 E is tight enough, even though it's common it's totally reasonable to frown on that statement with as much suspicion as you would if somebody were using a 38 E string in standard.

Just putting that out there - what other people are using is really not relevant and opinion on 8 string sets has been very much biased by the very imbalanced sets that we are sold. Personally I can't deal with 7th and 8th being significantly looser than the rest at all. It feels as broken to me as playing a 6 with one half of the guitar tuned down a few steps - and from a physics standpoint this should be expected. 

But all that said! Yes the thinner you can get away with the better! Absolutely, for the clearer tone. But it's totally reasonable to find that it simply isn't working and a that a thick string is necessary, just like you probably wouldn't except to ever be happy with 007s or 008s in standard


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## Masoo2 (Jun 28, 2017)

Winspear said:


> Most people aren't going out of their way to correct these extended range sets and have adapted to the difference in tension, because it's common. Their status as a pro or amateur is not too relevant.



This too is a valid point, status is not relevant at all when it comes down to the end user and their preferences. I merely brought it up due to the attitude surrounding thin strings on this forum, where people seem like it's impossible to play a string with tension lower than a bridge cable (exaggerating) but in reality the people who seem to abuse their instruments the most while making a professional living off of it (touring) generally run comparatively light strings.



Winspear said:


> Just putting that out there - what other people are using is really not relevant and opinion on 8 string sets has been very much biased by the very imbalanced sets that we are sold. Personally I can't deal with 7th and 8th being significantly looser than the rest at all. It feels as broken to me as playing a 6 with one half of the guitar tuned down a few steps - and from a physics standpoint this should be expected.



This goes back to my point about it coming down to the end user and their preferences. For reference, I'm perfectly content with radically thinner 7th and 8th strings. But I know many others wouldn't dare to use less than a, say, 70 for Ab (I use 56/58).


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## jephjacques (Jun 28, 2017)

Anything heavier than .80 just sounds like a bass string to me. I started playing 8s when .74 was the heaviest thing you could find, got used to it, and now it feels totally natural.


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## thoughtpyotr (Jun 29, 2017)

I put a .80 on my 8 for Eb. It sounds pretty great but I pick really hard and have a pretty scratchy tone. So I actually PREFER for my strings to round out the tone.


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## thoughtpyotr (Jun 29, 2017)

I use .90 on my 8. I actually *like * the way it rounds off my tone. I have a pretty scratchy tone preference and I want the body/bass fundamental to ring out really loud acoustically or unplugged.


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## Winspear (Jun 30, 2017)

^ It's not so much that the sound itself is a problem, but the imbalance with the other strings


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## EverDream (Jun 30, 2017)

I have a question... If the heavier a string is, the more tension it will have all else being the same, then how come no one has manufactured strings that are more dense so they are heavier without being thicker? Can steel have varying densities? If not than maybe some other string material that is still magnetic but with higher density could be used? So you could have a .074 wound string that has the same tension at E1 that a .090 currently does for example but still only .074 in diameter! The whole string would weigh the same as the .090 string but is still only .074 thick.

The only thing I don't know about is... does a denser string sound more inharmonic when tuned to a specific pitch than a less dense string tuned to the same pitch as well? Maybe if it's just higher density steel than yes, because given the same material... upping the density makes it less flexible, and as a result more inharmonic. But if a different material was used that was denser, but ALSO more flexible of a material then it might end up being just as harmonic too! I think a new guitar string made out of magnetic material that is both denser and more flexible than steel needs to be used to solve this limit of the physics of steel strings we are encountering. Someone with more knowledge of string physics tell me if I'm right or not please! And if this is what's needed, how come no one has manufactured it yet? Tell me your thoughts on this matter!

I dream of one day everyone having a solution to this problem where tension at a given pitch wasn't tied into what the thickness of the string was. Imagine a guitar with 8 strings all the same exact gauge, and each one having the same tension regardless of the pitch, that would be awesome! Choosing diameter would no longer be a something you'd choose for what tension you'd want, it'd be simply a matter preference of tone and feel. You could have 8 .046 strings or you could have 8 .056 strings, or you could have .024, .027, .030, .033, .036, .039, .042, .045, or 20-40 or 40-60 etc. there would be no limit to the possibilities. That is, IF this were possible, so I'm wondering if such a thing is possible? Someone with knowledge on the matter please chime in!


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## Grooven (Jun 30, 2017)

rockskate4x said:


> I recommend playing a trick on your brain. Any gauge can be made to feel larger or smaller by context without actually changing its size. For example a size .080 string will feel heavier next to a set of .009's then next to a set of .010's. If you adapt to lighter gauges on the other strings, the context will help your fingers and brain to adapt to the size .080, as it will feel heavier by contrast. I find this to be much better than increasing the .080 to an .085 or .090, as it will vibrate less freely, and get a much darker tone more plagued by inharmonicity.


Yeah funny enough this is exactly what happened when I played my 6 string for a little while and then went back playing my 8 string.


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## Dayn (Jul 1, 2017)

jephjacques said:


> Anything heavier than .80 just sounds like a bass string to me. I started playing 8s when .74 was the heaviest thing you could find, got used to it, and now it feels totally natural.


For me, that came down to the strings I was using. I literally tried an .085 bass string by Dunlop for a low E. It was worse by far than an .080 I had with a GHS boomer. The .074 I tried after, while less tension, felt more like a guitar string to me. Now I use a .090 from Kalium that has the smaller gauges beat. I wasn't sure at first for it to be larger with more tension, but the way it responds is different and so guitar-like, it suits me perfectly. Just like how every other string I tried from different brands responded differently. All a matter of finding what suits you best.


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## sezare56 (Oct 19, 2020)

I used these for a Fanfret Harley Benton
GHS Boomers 8 Thin n Thick 10-80

Drop E or F# for 8th string. Happy with that cheap gaunge, and cheap 8 strings guitar!


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## r3tr0sp3ct1v3 (Oct 20, 2020)

I have always used an .80 on a 27 inch scale. It sounds just fine in recordings. That rattle doesn't go through


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## r3tr0sp3ct1v3 (Oct 20, 2020)

D'addario NYXL .80-.09 is the set I always use


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## Chris Bowsman (Oct 20, 2020)

Have an 85 on 27.5”, and it’ll go down to D before it gets squirrelly.


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## teamSKDM (Oct 21, 2020)

anything thicker than .80 and your tone starts to suffer. Ive been playing 8s for years and have learned a 27" scale for 8 string is like a 24.75 scale 6 string for low drop tuning... manageable but not optimal. 28" + in my experience is necesarry for f# and below and maintaining a guitar-like tonality. guys like andrew baena for example as awesome as a guy he is his tone suffers from too much note seperation in a bad way from too thick of strings and whenever he plays power chords theyre rarely chohesive chords and just sound like low distorted rumble. theres an old guitar world video of meshuggah explaining this bad kind of string seperation as you begin to tune low with too thick of strings , because now multiple strings are all fighting for the same space in the frequency field just like playing chords on bass


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## Chris Bowsman (Oct 22, 2020)

I’m using an EQ to cut 63hz and below, and it kills most of the distorted bass effect. Power chords down to G still sound very guitar like.


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