# What TUNING do you use on your MAIN 7 String?



## Hendog (Mar 8, 2011)

*What tuning do you use on your main 7 string, and why did you chose that tuning?
*




I'll start... I use 4 different tunings on my guitars. On my 6's I use E, Drop D, and Drop C. But on my main 7 I use the regular 7 string tuning, E with a low B. I choose E with a low B on my 7 string because it is easy to use on songs we already play without transposing or making the other guys retune, it's familiar, it's easy to tune, and B is low enough!


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## Stealthdjentstic (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop A on my loomis and B standard on my Ibby. I honestly go 50/50 between the two. If I want to rip a solo or play brutal/tech death then I'll whip out the loomis but for other stuff I usually find myself using the ibby.


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## Quitty (Mar 8, 2011)

I used to go drop-C on my 6-string, mostly to try and compensate for the lack of a 7th string to some degree. 

My current band plays standard or drop D, so my 6-string is tuned that way ever since i joined up, 
and my Ibby 7 is standard B or half-step down, but i'm still considering my options. Friggin' fret buzz...


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## eegor (Mar 8, 2011)

I started out with A standard, and it sounded really heavy, just they way I like it. But then I tried drop Ab on a whim and fell in love with that. Shortly after, however, I started not liking drop tuning a whole lot so I just tuned that Ab up to a Bb and keep in in that tuning (Bb standard).


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## jerome snail (Mar 8, 2011)

Currently in A standard, but I plan to tune it up in B standard, and I'm wainting for an extended scale 7 string to tune in A srandard...


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## ChuckLee (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop A because it's a bit out of standard


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## SolNuMachine (Mar 8, 2011)

F standard- 74 to 12. Went after F# and it seemed slightly tight. This guitar feels better to me than any of my others, and it about the cheapest POS I have, ironically. She getting an m7 soon.


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## Lon (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop G....


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## ThorSilhouette (Mar 8, 2011)

Bb Standard.


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## AcousticMinja (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop G#!


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## harvested (Mar 8, 2011)

standard in terms of intervals... 75% is standad B, but sometimes i go a little lower to standard Bb or standard A, depends what band am I covering...


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## Nyx Erebos (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop A because you have the regular 6 string tuning and the low A which is low enough for me. And that way I can learn 6 string stuff and Nile stuff hehe.


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## maggotspawn (Mar 8, 2011)

A Standard on my 7 strings.


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## SolNuMachine (Mar 8, 2011)

Um.. anybody else think outside the box? Not to be a dick, (well... actually going out of my way to be a dick) but I for one would like to see any other postings besides myself and the drop G guy (props) that are relatively unique.
I know that unique musicality and unique tunings are unrelated, btw.


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## Quitty (Mar 8, 2011)

SolNuMachine said:


> Um.. anybody else think outside the box? Not to be a dick, (well... actually going out of my way to be a dick) but I for one would like to see any other postings besides myself and the drop G guy (props) that are relatively unique.
> I know that unique musicality and unique tunings are unrelated, btw.



Well, i've got a reverse-drop-F#-semi-reverse-drop-G# acoustic, for Andy Mckee stuff


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## SolNuMachine (Mar 8, 2011)

I used to use that tuning. Thinking about setting up another guit for that- was pretty fun.


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## kris_jammage (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop G/C (GCGCfad) on both my 7's. My band play in Drop C so this seems the most logical tuning to me!


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## meisterjager (Mar 8, 2011)

Currently flitting between Drop A and A standard. I need a second guitar haha

Drop A because the other guy I'm working in doesn't believe that you can write metal in standard tuning. hmm.

A standard because I used to play in D standard on my 6 strings - natural continuation.


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## Zorkuus (Mar 8, 2011)

Double drop A. That is both B strings tuned down a step. I'm not much of a fast solo player so I use the higher strings mainly for melodic stuff. It's nice to have an open string as a root note. Although I use standard B tuning as much as I use this drop A one so it isn't exactly my "main" tuning.


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## AxeHappy (Mar 8, 2011)

B standard. It's a floater and experimenting with tuning is just more pain than it's worth. I'll get a fixed bridge 7 some time though.


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## mattofvengeance (Mar 8, 2011)

SolNuMachine said:


> Um.. anybody else think outside the box? Not to be a dick, (well... actually going out of my way to be a dick) but I for one would like to see any other postings besides myself and the drop G guy (props) that are relatively unique.
> I know that unique musicality and unique tunings are unrelated, btw.



Look no further. I have mine set up in Drop C (CGCFADG) since the other guitarist I'm working with uses a 6 in Drop C. My hands don't feel at home on a 6, and that extra string for lead work is just awesome.


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## jymellis (Mar 8, 2011)

B standard BUT at 435 not 440


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## clopstyle (Mar 8, 2011)

drop G# mainly, have used drop F as well.


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## SolNuMachine (Mar 8, 2011)

mattofvengeance said:


> Look no further. I have mine set up in Drop C (CGCFADG) since the other guitarist I'm working with uses a 6 in Drop C. My hands don't feel at home on a 6, and that extra string for lead work is just awesome.


That's way cool. run like a 7 or .008 on top?


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## TimSE (Mar 8, 2011)

for 1 band i use B standard

my other band i use drop A and when iv finished my current build il be using GCGCGCE too. Hurray for devin tunings. tricky but very fun


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## ry_z (Mar 8, 2011)

Usually it's in Bb standard, but sometimes Ab Db Ab Db Gb Bb Eb. I love that tuning, I just need a guitar that handles it better.


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## welsh_7stinger (Mar 8, 2011)

my 7 - drop G# or half step down from standerd,

my cort (6 string)- whole step-drop C-C#-C

bc rich (6 string)-drop B nd lower

my self assembled guitar - standerd or drop D


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## kmanick (Mar 8, 2011)

I always like to have 2 7's
one in Standard "B-E-A-D-G-B-E"
and one a 1/2 step down (for jamming Nevermore, Outworld etc)


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## Customisbetter (Mar 8, 2011)

DROP B-itches

Tuning up is classy.


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## vampiregenocide (Mar 8, 2011)

I use both my 7s equally, so I don't have a 'main' one so much. On my RG2027x I use open Cmaj (GCGCGCE) and on my RG7321 I use drop Bb which I occassionally drop down to Ab or Eb.


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## TXDeathMetal (Mar 8, 2011)

Usually I'm tuned to B standard (BEADGBE) but when I feel like jamming out some At The Gates or Carcass then i'll tune my G string down to F# (BEADF#Be)

My other 7 string I keep in Drop A (AEADGBE) and I keep my 6 in D standard (DGCFAD)


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## JohnIce (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop A all the time, for embellishing chords mostly. Out of all our songs, only one uses the low A string in a single-note riff


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## Laxdude67 (Mar 8, 2011)

i stay in the As.

Drop A# on my 6.

Drop A/Ab and Ab standard on my 7.


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## killertone (Mar 8, 2011)

I am in BEADGBE. I like to do complex voicings like add9s and maj7s and they sound crappy tuned any lower. IMO.


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## BucketheadRules (Mar 8, 2011)

I only have one 7 

It's usually tuned to standard although it's been in Bb a lot recently, and obviously the associated drop tunings.


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## djpharoah (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop Z$ .. yes Z$. Tuned from Low to Lower 24-103 gauge strings.









 at these type of threads.


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## Sludgehammer (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop G in the band, but I prefer drop G# with the string gauges I like


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## The Reverend (Mar 8, 2011)

I've only got one 7, (until Friday!) which I keep in Drop A. Any lower and fret buzz ruins me. On the Agile I'm getting, I plan to play in G# standard.


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## WhiteWalls (Mar 8, 2011)

I keep it in standard (BEADGBE) tuning and drop it either to drop A or drop D (ignoring the B string) when needed, this way i can play everything i want without transposing songs more than 2 half steps up or down.

Same thing for my band, we have songs in B standard, drop D and drop A, so we can play everything with the same guitar and still have some variation depending on what's best for the song...

And that's why i absolutely hate floating bridges


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## aleXander (Mar 8, 2011)

I've got my new Ibby in Drop B with a low F#
My washburn is in Drop B with a High F#


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## Ginsu (Mar 8, 2011)

I use drop A...I want a baritone scale 7 though, so I can use drop F#, since F# Minor is my favorite key...and since I play djent, I need an open low F#...


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## ImpendingDoom (Mar 8, 2011)

I play around from dropped G to drop A on my 7. I was suprised to not see many 8 stringers on this thread. Dropped E fror that bad boy when I'm trying to djent. When I want more melodic down tuned stuff I usually go to dropped F# or F# standard. Stephan carpenter FTW!


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## blister7321 (Mar 8, 2011)

drop A/ B standard


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## Fantomas (Mar 8, 2011)

Main guitar : Bb standard, my band also plays that tuning 
No2 : B standard, mostly used to play along instructional video's and backing tracks .
No3: Fixed bridge, and mainly used for playing Periphery, Keith Merrow, Sikth type stuff with various odd tunings,


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## Mukersman (Mar 8, 2011)

B standard... stupid floyd...

On my acoustic though I switch tunings a shit ton. I have used Open C, Open D, Open Dm, Dadgad, DGdgad, open G, Drop C, B standard, Drop B, Cgcgce... lol I really wish I had a tremelno, or that I bought a hardtail rather than a 7620. Still love it though.


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## cregmachine (Mar 8, 2011)

i have really taken a liking to tuning my jackson 7 2 f,c,g,c,f,a,d


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## Erodrim (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop A# on my 7 cause i can't intonate string over .059 so to get the tension i want i went UP half a step

but right now i'm waiting on my Scale The Summit tab book so i'm tuned to B standard


My main 6 is tuned to Drop B and my backup/test 6 is tuned F#G#C#F#A#D#


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## musicaldeath (Mar 8, 2011)

I was using standard tuning for a while but found I was going nowhere. Now I have my UV tuned to: Bb F Bb Eb F Bb Eb. (Basically DADGAD for a 7 string tuned half step down with a high Eb). So far so good. Tesseract seem to make great use of this tuning as well.


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## ZXIIIT (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop A (AEADGBE) but I really want to mess around with G/F tunings


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## Infamous Impact (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop A


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## hutchman (Mar 8, 2011)

Standard 7 string tuning but half a step down. So the lowest note is Bb.


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## datalore (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop A here. I need to know which notes I'm playing at all times, and I don't play 7 string guitars very often, so it is easiest for me to know what I'm doing when I can think of the 7th string as a duplicate of my regular A string. Makes transcribing a keyboard part or learning something from standard notation much faster for me.


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## steve1 (Mar 8, 2011)

ADADGBE, the other guitarist in my band is on a 6 string in drop D. it makes life easier


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## MetalBuddah (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop G#


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## clintsal (Mar 8, 2011)

MIJ S7420: B standard with D'addario 10-59's (Q-Tuner Med-Z and BKP Painkiller)

Incoming RG7421XL: Ab-Db-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb probably also with D'addario 10-59's (planning on Lundgren M7's and Graphtech Ghost Piezo system)


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## izdashit (Mar 8, 2011)

*double post


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## izdashit (Mar 8, 2011)

A standard. Then I recently learned that our bassist was tuned to BDGC all this time (Which was why something sounded wrong lol).


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## TheMasterplan (Mar 8, 2011)

A# standard and a few of my band's songs are in Drop G#. I'm boring.


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## CrownofWorms (Mar 8, 2011)

F#
B
E
A
D
F#
B
standard baritone tuning for a 7. Makes my riffs sound pretty dark and big, but I like the warmness of my solo's with this type of low tuning. btw this is on all of my 7's


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## maxoom (Mar 8, 2011)

Drop A on C7 Hellraiser 
B standard on the RG

Spend just a bit more time on the Ibby.


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## Gibsonist666 (Mar 9, 2011)

GDGCFAD and some times GCGCFAD and on the 6 drop C or D standard


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## MikeH (Mar 9, 2011)

GDGCFAD.


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## Snout (Mar 9, 2011)

F# B F# B F# B D#


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## JP Universe (Mar 9, 2011)

Just stock and down half a step for me......


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## fuzzboy (Mar 9, 2011)

Regular drop-d, but with a low G.


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## Talmaci (Mar 9, 2011)

I love the standard 7str tuning to lowest B , earlier I used A#


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## Talmaci (Mar 9, 2011)

Oh! I see here guys use really low tunings! like GDGCFAD. Cool!


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## Ishan (Mar 9, 2011)

*6ers:*
Ibanez RG3120 : Drop Bb
Squier Strat FMT HH : D standard
Mayones Lizard Se-GTM custom : a variation of open Em, Dm, Cm, C
Ibanez EX-350 : A standard

*8 string:*
Custom Agile Intrepid Pro (second run) : EAEADGBE, EBEADGBE and F# standard

That's about it I guess, I don't have a 7  I got basses too:
5 strings bass in B standard or drop A
4 strings fretless in E standard
6 strings fretless in B standard if that count.


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## apexiwildchild (Mar 9, 2011)

drop C with a high G


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## Harry (Mar 9, 2011)

B standard


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## Jontain (Mar 9, 2011)

GDGCFAD for me as a usually play my 6s in either drop C or D standard.


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## Vyn (Mar 9, 2011)

B/Bb Standard

Ironically my 6 is tuned lower than my 7: Drop A


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## setsuna7 (Mar 9, 2011)

B standard,Drop A,most of the time,have been experimenting on F C G C F A D lately..
F# standard of F standard on my RGA 8..


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## Hollowman (Mar 9, 2011)

djpharoah said:


> Drop Z$ .. yes Z$. Tuned from Low to Lower 24-103 gauge strings.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Thats awesome


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## leandroab (Mar 9, 2011)

Standard B and Drop A


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## Fisch MIOLI (Mar 9, 2011)

My old tech metal band used G# standard and my heavy metalcore band uses drop G#.


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## Kroker (Mar 9, 2011)

SolNuMachine said:


> Um.. anybody else think outside the box? Not to be a dick, (well... actually going out of my way to be a dick) but I for one would like to see any other postings besides myself and the drop G guy (props) that are relatively unique.
> I know that unique musicality and unique tunings are unrelated, btw.



Word. I tune my 7 a whopping two and a half steps down from standard drop 'A' making it Drop 'E'. I play with an extra high, so I thing that makes my tuning e b e a c# f# b.


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## PyramidSmasher (Mar 9, 2011)

maggotspawn said:


> A Standard on my 7 strings.



^^^ I dunno why. My friend who got me into buying a 7 string did it, so I did. Almost every song Ive wanted to learn is in this tuning too.


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## Snout (Mar 9, 2011)

SolNuMachine said:


> Um.. anybody else think outside the box? Not to be a dick, (well... actually going out of my way to be a dick) but I for one would like to see any other postings besides myself and the drop G guy (props) that are relatively unique.
> I know that unique musicality and unique tunings are unrelated, btw.



I'm in open-B with an extra lower F#, does that count?


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## Pat_s1t (Mar 9, 2011)

Usually Drop Ab or Bb Standard. It's literally in half-step down all the time, I pretty much never change tunings. I just use my six strings for that.


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## MaKo´s Tethan (Mar 9, 2011)

Usually, A standard, but now I`m more into theory and Technics so I back to BEADGBE.


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## space frog (Mar 9, 2011)

my tuning depends on what I'm playing, but I often keep it drop A or standard as all my other guitars are tuned in an alternate tuning.


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## Ill-Gotten James (Mar 9, 2011)

standard


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## CrushingAnvil (Mar 9, 2011)

How many of these threads do we need? I'm tempted to get a tremolno and test how some other tunings sound [I tune to D# standard with a low A#].


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## Opeth666 (Mar 9, 2011)

Bb or tune the low be to a G# sometimes. my mood changes


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## McHeathen (Mar 10, 2011)

I actually just ordered an ltd mh-417, i been waiting for almost a month but it's well worth it.

i actually plan to use a mixed gauge on it, going to get a blue steel set 11-60 but switch out the low a and e strings (42, 52) for the ones on a 12's set i got lying around (44, 54) so i can drop the 6th string down a step to make it ACGCFAD, but gonna keep it in ADGCFAD most of the time though. also planning to buy a capo (prolly a bad idea, but who knows) so i can play stuff in drop d as well.


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## jerome snail (Mar 10, 2011)

I just tuned my Warlock in drop Bb (Bb F Bb Eb Ab C F), with D'Addario 10/46+59, it feels and sounds awesome !
Now I hesitate between Bb F Bb Eb Ab C F and Bb F Bb Eb G C F...


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## astm (Mar 10, 2011)

you're tunning your first string with a 0.010 up to F? :O. I would use 0.008 to avoid breaking so fast!


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## cronux (Mar 10, 2011)

leandroab said:


> Standard B and Drop A



+1


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## jerome snail (Mar 10, 2011)

astm said:


> you're tunning your first string with a 0.010 up to F? :O. I would use 0.008 to avoid breaking so fast!



F is just one half step higher than E, no big deal


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## astm (Mar 10, 2011)

jerome snail said:


> F is just one half step higher than E, no big deal


yeah, I know... but I would still be afraid of doing that with a 0.010


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## Sepultorture (Mar 10, 2011)

B flat/A#

sounds great with 56's, nice low end chunk, found B a little bright, and A to muddy


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## ghostred7 (Mar 10, 2011)

Bb-Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb

B/c currently we do 6-string covers and we've always tuned 1/2 step down to ease work on vox seeing how we do Skid Row and Maiden.


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## simulclass83 (Mar 10, 2011)

Whole step down.


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## Detuned0 (Mar 11, 2011)

LTD = AEADGBE
RG = GDGCFAD

Both Guitars = 11-70


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## Nateman61392 (Mar 11, 2011)

I use drop B with a low F# for progressive core style stuff, and G# standard for goregrind/pornogrind/blackened death metal.


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## Gemmeadia (Mar 11, 2011)

Drop G# on my Inteceptor Pro 727  loooovee ittt. Started with drop G on my 6, but realized G# was a better fit for the style of music I play.


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## Koshchei (Mar 11, 2011)

Perfect fourths - BEADGCF. This lends itself well to symmetrical shapes up to four strings, but things get a little knuckle-knotty after that.


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## ittoa666 (Mar 11, 2011)

Bb.


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## somniumaeternum (Mar 11, 2011)

For me it's just standard. 

Maybe it's cause I'm lazy to change the tuning on a floating trem but I don't really see the point of going lower imho. I think a lot of people get into the mentality of "if I could only get x then I could sound better / cooler / more brutal".. I think some amazing stuff has been written in standard tuning and don't really think F tuning can do anything that B can't (other than cause me to completely resetup my guitar and spend more money). I'm not saying that changing the tuning is wrong, but I just don't really understand it (then again I don't come from a death metal background or similar). I feel like I haven't even tapped the potential of standard tunings than to change the tunings (even if it's in the same register but switch to open chords or whatnot). 

Is it just for the super brutalz effect or what? I'm curious to know if there's any reason to do it for playability perspective or similar. If it's just because you can then that's cool too but then it's still a pain in the ass to resetup the guitars. I guess I can see if you do some chordal stuff and you want to use the open strings as pedal points or look for that sound. But I'm guessing that's not the typical thing here.

Keep in mind the guitar is built for a typical setup and the hardware is there to support that. To change really drastically means you should change the hardware to match it: pups, the tension rod, the strings, the trem tension, the nut, possibly the tuners... too much trouble / money for me.

In other words, I wrote all that to say: "why"?


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## Stealth7 (Mar 11, 2011)

B Standard but I'm considering tuning to Bb to play some MA, CC, Behemoth


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## rug (Mar 11, 2011)

I tune a half step down, drop the 6th string to C#, and then I drop the 7th string to G#. This allows me to do drop D voicings on the 6th and 5th strings, and then regular power chord voicings for the the 6th and 7th strings. Basically, it's a double drop tuning. The bottom four strings are octaves...

G# C# G# C#

Which makes it pretty neat to do a quick symmetrical ascending run without really any position shifts or anything, and the higher strings are preserved to do the same lead stuff as always. This tuning is a TON of fun to play with.


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## FilBack (Mar 11, 2011)

Standard for me too. It's the most versatile tuning there is.


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## Switch30 (Mar 11, 2011)

Drop A now for the new album coming out


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## Djent (Mar 11, 2011)

Drop A. The capo is your best friend; you can get any dropped tuning out of it.


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## Bramerstein (Mar 12, 2011)

Used to play Drop A, but dropping to flat made all my riffs sound much better. 

Drop A flat: Ab Eb Ab Db Gb Bb eb


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## Metal_Maniac (Mar 12, 2011)

I use 2 tunings, Bb Standard and Drop Ab


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## C2Aye (Mar 12, 2011)

For my 6 strings, I go either E standard, Drop D, Drop C or DADGAD (Dsus4). On my acoustic I have used a wild range of tunings (some of which I don't even know the names of!) like E standard, D standard, DADGAD, Gsus4, Open G, Open F, Open D, DADGCE (I quite enjoy this one!) and CGCFA#D.

On my 7, I'm currently in Drop G# but I am usually in B standard. I have also messed about with Drop A, A standard, A# standard and the so called 'Tosin Tuning' of A#C#G#C#F#A#D#.


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## SenorDingDong (Mar 12, 2011)

A#D#G#C#F#A#D#

Because Jeff Loomis told me to


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## Semichastny (Mar 13, 2011)

I use Drop-A or Double Drop-A which is (low to high) A,A,E,A,D,F#,B. the latter is really good for tapping, melody, and chording.


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## Shredenvain (Mar 19, 2011)

i tune my sevens to

a#, f, a#, d#, g#, c, f

i love havin the low string droped but tuning up a half a step up gives me incredible tension for play death and thrash plus ive found tuning up helps cut through the mix in live situations.


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## JPMDan (Mar 19, 2011)

depends on what I'm feeling some days standard, sometimes half step down or this

Ab Db Ab Db Gb Bb Eb


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## JPhoenix19 (Mar 19, 2011)

A standard, sometimes drop G.


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## Scar Symmetry (Mar 19, 2011)

A# standard, Nevermore/early Meshuggah tuning


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## JCD (Mar 20, 2011)

Customisbetter said:


> DROP B-itches
> 
> Tuning up is classy.


I like that idea! Dan from Hoobastank has a bunch of songs in Drop E on his 6 strings. I'd be scared of string breakage on the high ones though.



djpharoah said:


> Drop Z$ .. yes Z$. Tuned from Low to Lower 24-103 gauge strings.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I've been trying to tune to Drop H for a while. Whoever finds one of those Harry Potter-esque tunings is gonna revolutionize the instrument. 

For me, I just tune to Drop A for my band stuff but I enjoy standard with low B as well. Love both tunings because they can double as standard-tuned 6 strings, which is huge for me since there are so many songs out there still in standard. Makes it easy to play along to records.


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## Scottckr (Mar 20, 2011)

kris_jammage said:


> Drop G/C (GCGCfad) on both my 7's. My band play in Drop C so this seems the most logical tuning to me!


Do you actually have any use for that low G? 
I was thinking of getting a 7string and my band also plays in drop c, and that tuning you're using might be worth trying


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## jerome snail (Mar 20, 2011)

I tried this tuning once (G C G C F A D) but I didn't like it that much. Plus the low G is pretty useless if the other guitarist and the bassist don't have it... well, that's my 2 cents.

So now I've tuned my 7 in drop A# (or drop Bb) + high F (i.e. A# F A# D# G C F), and I'm loving it.
Now I must convice the other guitarist and the bassit to tune down another whole step


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## Ytseman (Mar 20, 2011)

My main guitars RGA7 & S7420 - I use 10-46 and 56 for low B, all tuned down half step (Nevermore fan ).


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## Wierdoom (Mar 20, 2011)

I jump between A D G C F A D (.012-.072) and G C G C F A D (.012-.080).


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## op1e (Mar 20, 2011)

AEADGBE for my main. I did find sumn interesting for the 2nd guitar, though. I tuned its top 6 to C# and dropped to B, then tuned the 7th to B as well (tried F# but not enough tension even with .74). On regular riffing I play it like a sixer, but when I go into the choruses I use both low B's and it has an awesome "chorus" style effect, really powerful and cool sounding.


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## Soulthief (Mar 21, 2011)

I play in Bb standard.. because IMO when you play a lets say E power chord in standard tuning.. well it's sounds like an E power cord but when you tune it a half step down and play the same E power chord (not a Eb power chord) is sounds like "A FREAKING E POWER CHORD!!!!!" same goes of course when it comes to the B chord it just sounds more heavy.... but that is how I feel about it


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## cwhitey2 (Mar 21, 2011)

Drop to the A


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## nojyeloot (Mar 21, 2011)

BEADGBE


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## StratoJazz (Mar 22, 2011)

Van eps standard tuning, top to bottom

E, B, G, D, A, E, A


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## Cybin (Mar 22, 2011)

Drop C with a high G on my main 7, an Epiphone Les Paul 7 
Works out well with an .08


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## Sephael (Mar 22, 2011)

I've recently dropped mine down to GCGCfad, I am digging the umph it gives to the two octave power chords. Tossed a d-tunah on for a bit earlier and was enjoying being able to switch from D standard to drop C


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## Konfyouzd (Mar 23, 2011)

meisterjager said:


> Drop A because the other guy I'm working in doesn't believe that you can write metal in standard tuning. hmm.


 
Well of course not... Drop tunings make the same 12 notes sound better...


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## alfred (Mar 23, 2011)

ADGCFAD ... I can't do without it!


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## ShotgunFacelift (Mar 25, 2011)

ive been trying a bunch of tunings since i got my 7 but im currently using GCGCFAD and GDGCFAD


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## RGD MIKE (Mar 25, 2011)

I started in A standard for a long time, then for a few weeks, i was in Bb standard, but yesterday i went back to A standard. it is just more suited to me, plus i can use it to play solos for six string songs, and i like it better


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## Shanster695 (Mar 27, 2011)

My 8 string is tuned F# B F# B E G# C# F#

That way I have a standard power chord shape on the bottom two strings, and the top 7 seven strings are dropped B with an extra F#

Not to mention the ability to have 6 octaves of F# 

My 6 strings are all in dropped B


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## guitarzombie (Mar 28, 2011)

A on my 7, B on my 6.


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## MatthewK (Mar 28, 2011)

On a seven I always stick to standard or half step down. B is low enough for me.


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## stupidheader (Apr 27, 2011)

Sorry for the bump, but this thread is only a month old. Ive had a hard time finding a good tuning, because Im a lover of low frequencies, but I also like to use the chords that I am familiar with. So, finally, I have settled on E tuning. That is, E-A-D-C-G-E-A. 3 and a half steps down. The strings arent nearly as sloppy as you would think, and its got a ton of low end. Oh, by the way, Im into doom, sludge, and stoner metal, so note clarity isn't a big deal for me, as much as thunderous sounds, and melodic, depressing slow melodies. Id like to hear from some other people who tune as low as I do about string tension? Has anyone had any trouble with their strings being too loose? My top string was really loose for a while, but then I tuned it with a tuner that picked up lower sounds better, and I found that it was actually way looser than it should have been. Its not bad at all now.


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## stevo1 (Apr 27, 2011)

I tune my rg7420 to A standard, with a mix between a regular .010 pack for the first four strings, then I use a extra light set fro the lower 3 strings. I love the tension... or the lack thereof.


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## Thunderscreech (Sep 12, 2011)

FCFA#D#GC or GCFA#D#GC, and then FBEADGB, and then like GCGCCGC or GCGCGCC. I also had like ADADDAD and ADADGCG. Then some weird microtonal thing, but now my guitar is set up for slide playing and will be tuned in either Open G (BDGDGBD) or this: ACFCFAC or Open C (but CCGCGCE). 

I change my guitar tunings more than I change my clothes, I think.


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## Oceans (Sep 12, 2011)

For now I use drop G#


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## -One- (Sep 13, 2011)

I play in drop A (AEADGBE), but when I get my 8-string, I plan to tune my 7-string to F# standard, or F standard.


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## AwakenNoMore (Sep 13, 2011)

Both seven strings where in Bb last time they where together, they are both currently down for mods


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## Stealthdjentstic (Sep 13, 2011)

Drop A on the loomis and most likely Bb on the 7421.


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## Floppystrings (Sep 13, 2011)

G# standard

It is pretty low, but I am thinking of G, F# or F, all standard.


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## Static (Sep 13, 2011)

Bb Std on my 1527 and A std on my Carperelli.


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## Phrygian (Sep 13, 2011)

Drop-D with a low A on all sevenstrings because we use this tuning in my band. i think it derives from before i started when they had sixtrings tuned to drop-d, and it felt natural to tune the 7th string to A when they got themselves some 7strings. this tuning is a lot of fun! 

But i will be getting another 7 at a later point that will be drop-Ab, i just find that i enjoy that tuning the most, it feels more like a sevenstring than the drop-D + A does.


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## a_hub10 (Sep 13, 2011)

I use drop G# on my 7. It has more chug than drop A and sounds more clear than Drop G on my guitar.


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## linchpin (Sep 13, 2011)

B-E-A-D-G-B-E

simples


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## LMak (Sep 13, 2011)

I play drop D on my six string but wanted a "heavier" guitar for the band I'm in, and I wanted a 7 string, so bought a 7 string to get both in one go. So I now use a 7 string guitar in a Pop Rock/ Rock band tuned ADADGBE

Go figure


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## Phrygian (Sep 13, 2011)

^haha, same tuning as me! never heard of anyone else using that


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## thrsher (Sep 13, 2011)

OPEN G on my 7 OPEN E on my 8


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## LMak (Sep 13, 2011)

Phrygian said:


> ^haha, same tuning as me! never heard of anyone else using that



Haha! I thought I was being original there! The low A is fun to play around with, especially if there is a breakdown I could make deliciously heavy with it 

Also helps on one of our tracks that is acoustic. I can strum a chord and tap a counter melody on the low A for extra fun.


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## dantel666 (Sep 13, 2011)

On my only 7 at the moment I tend to favor 2 tunings. One begin Drop G, and the other being the Tesseract/Fellsilent/Monuments tuning Bb/Ab F Bb Eb Gb Bb Eb. I use 11-58 gauge strings and the tension at drop G isn't floppy as hell to me and when tuned up it feels good.


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## Sepultorture (Sep 13, 2011)

i use 11-58 set with a wound 3rd, all strings tuned a half step down


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## sell2792 (Sep 13, 2011)

Ernie Ball 10-56's , kept in AEADGBE (drop A).


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## stevemcqueen (Sep 13, 2011)

Drop G# or A standard for the time being.


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## synrgy (Sep 13, 2011)

Drop A. I like that it allows me to play all my standard chords on the bottom 6, whilst also being able to do drop D style bar chords on the bottom 3.


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## xGUITARZEROx (Sep 13, 2011)

this may be contradicting, but my 6er is in drop G and my RG7321 is in standard.


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## Michael T (Sep 13, 2011)

Two of my ibbys are in Bb F Bb Eb Ab C F
The other 2 are in standard B


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## metalheadpunk (Sep 13, 2011)

Bb Standard


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## Shredenvain (Sep 13, 2011)

I use .10-.56 A# F A# D# G# C F on my rg7621 and xiphos 707.
And .10- .58 in A# D# A# D# G# C F on my rga7. I tune up a half step on everything
because I love the extra tension and also has a brighter clearer tone.


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## BIG ND SWEATY (Sep 13, 2011)

*F A# D# G# C# F# A# with 12-56+70 strings
*


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## Syriel (Sep 13, 2011)

LMak said:


> I play drop D on my six string but wanted a "heavier" guitar for the band I'm in, and I wanted a 7 string, so bought a 7 string to get both in one go. So I now use a 7 string guitar in a Pop Rock/ Rock band tuned ADADGBE
> 
> Go figure



Same tuning I do once in a while. 

I mainly use AEADGBE. Dropping the Low E to D is sure extra fun.


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## Phrygian (Sep 13, 2011)

LMak said:


> Haha! I thought I was being original there! The low A is fun to play around with, especially if there is a breakdown I could make deliciously heavy with it
> 
> Also helps on one of our tracks that is acoustic. I can strum a chord and tap a counter melody on the low A for extra fun.




Haha, yeah! that A-string is alot of fun, we use it both for larger chords and "breakdowns". so my guitar is basically a sixstring with an extra breakdown-string


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## ajbrassington (Sep 14, 2011)

I never keep mine in any one tuning. Go back and forth between Drop G#, B Standard, and drop D with the B tuned down to A. 

Reasons for choosing: I use Drop G# for when I want to play Periphery or stuff like The Contortionist, standard tuning just sounds good without being tampered with, and the weird drop tuning because my old band did Drop D but I had the only seven in the band and liked to play power chords with the A and D.


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## Sofos (Sep 14, 2011)

when i get it, it will be F, Bb, Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, Bb


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## Greatoliver (Sep 14, 2011)

Drop A, using Elixir 10-46 + 70


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## Devyn Eclipse Nav (Nov 2, 2011)

I use ADADGBE, because my band plays in Drop D, and the two other guys didn't want to get new instruments. Plus, it challenges me a bit more to not just chug on the low string. I don't tune like that at home, I'm usually in B, or Bb, but for my band, it's the weird Drop D tuning.


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## BlackWinds10 (Nov 2, 2011)

B Flat


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## espman (Nov 2, 2011)

AEADGBE, with D'addario 10-59's


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## ElRay (Nov 2, 2011)

I'm currently 7-less, but I was playing an M3 (all Major 3rds) tuned guitar:
Symetric tuning - same chord/scale patterns anywhere on the neck
More dense, piano-like chords
Easier single note runs in one position
Easier sight reading
I'll be back to that or something 5ths-based (all 5ths or Fripp's NST/Crafty/C-pentatonic + 1 lower 5th) when I have a 7-string again.

Ray


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## Stealthdjentstic (Nov 2, 2011)

FACAGED


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## RuffeDK (Nov 2, 2011)

A D G C F A D - both 7's \m/


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## MistaSnowman (Nov 2, 2011)

Elixir 10-56, B Standard


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## dr_kotasz (Nov 2, 2011)

BEADGBE, standard. Always. Dropped/tuned-down-tunings for the gays!  :-D


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## Anaerob (Nov 2, 2011)

Drop A. I sometimes drop the G to F#, to get closer to the drop A my six string guitar uses, and sometimes drop the low E to D# for easy dissonance/dim-scale riffing.

Just got my first seven string (NGD incoming), so it might end up anywhere between drop A# and drop F, with these variations.


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## TomasO (Nov 2, 2011)

Drop G# with 9-48 + 70 strings on a 27" scale neck


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## 0 Xero 0 (Nov 3, 2011)

Drop Ab with D'Addario Exl 115w 11-49 (wound third) + 68


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## Stealthdjentstic (Nov 3, 2011)

AFAGFAG


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## unclejemima218 (Nov 3, 2011)

GDGCFAD for me!


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## danielzabolotny (Nov 3, 2011)

Same as the guy above, drop G for me (GDGCFAD). I use a .10-.72 set, the lowest 6 are from an Ernie Ball Baritone 6 set, and the top string is just some random Ernie Ball .10. I play in drop G because both of my bands play in that tuning, and I've always loved drop tuning. Unlike a lot of people here, I never started out with a standard tuning. I got my very first 6, put it in drop C, and that's what I learned on. Drop G is the perfect tuning for me, because it's heavy enough for deathcore, yet there's still plenty of clarity and room for more melodic stuff.


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## unclejemima218 (Nov 3, 2011)

Ginsu said:


> I use drop A...I want a baritone scale 7 though, so I can use drop F#, since F# Minor is my favorite key...and since I play djent, I need an open low F#...



this just in, if you play any form of "djent," you NEED low F# or so help me!!


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## drmosh (Nov 3, 2011)

I don't have a "main" 7 string, I have a bunch of em + an 8 I tuned in various ways


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## Norstorm (Nov 3, 2011)

Drop A, and stock E w/ B


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## Electric Wizard (Nov 3, 2011)

Stealthtastic said:


> AFAGFAG


I switch between that and FAGFACE.
Sometimes I also use CABBAGE.





...But no, drop Ab is the favorite so far.


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## Kaos-G (Nov 3, 2011)

I tried to tune my Carvin in drop A but I wasn't happy with the low string tension as the Sperzels won't allow me to use a gauge thicker than 60  So I went back to standard....


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## clubshred (Nov 3, 2011)

One of my 7's is tuned like a normal guitar, but a half-step down (BEADGBE) and the other is tuned a half step down but the bottom two strings are tuned in fifths. (GDADGBE)


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## BenSolace (Nov 3, 2011)

Drop C with a low G (GCGCFAd), sometimes tuning the low C up to D when playing standard tuning songs. Love it!


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## MobiusR (Nov 3, 2011)

i use Drop G/Ab and A

I haven't found which one i should use but i keep moving around finding whats best...

When i get a 10 string i plan on using FAGEDFACE (Drop Z Tuning) 












In all seriousness 10 strings are to much for me XD


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## Hot47 (Nov 3, 2011)

On my Mayones I used to play Drop G#. I like this tuning because a low G# has almost an 8-stringy sound, but I still have the Eb tuning which is pretty much "standard"/can be used for many non-djent songs.


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## MobiusR (Nov 3, 2011)

Hot47 said:


> On my Mayones I used to play Drop G#. I like this tuning because a low G# has almost an 8-stringy sound, but I still have the Eb tuning which is pretty much "standard"/can be used for many non-djent songs.


 
exactly why i liked G#. Not only that i can still use the new standard tuning on a 8 string with a low Eb. Having me play in Drop G defeats the purpose of me getting a 8 string 

I mean i heard Tiger was played on a 8 till i saw that misha said it was on a 7 then i realize i truely love G#


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## FatKol (Nov 3, 2011)

90% of the time I'm using the Standard tuning. 

Sometimes I use also (for ambient music):
A# - F - A# - D# - F - a# - d#


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## IbanezShreds (Nov 3, 2011)

Drop G


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## Funz (Nov 4, 2011)

B standard, but Im currently in a jazz/neo soul group, so standard tunings almost ALWAYS apply. In the past I used Bb standard just so it wasnt in a standard tuning (metal).


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## Sol_high777 (Nov 4, 2011)

> Look no further. I have mine set up in Drop C (CGCFADG) since the other guitarist I'm working with uses a 6 in Drop C. My hands don't feel at home on a 6, and that extra string for lead work is just awesome.



So, just a question. what tuning could i use for my 7 when my band drops to drop b? (B,F#,b, E, G#, C#) i want to start using my seven string so i can do some stuff with the extra octave and a half but the other guitarist doesn't want to tune up. I'm kinda stuck i would like to have the drop b tuning on regular starting on the low B string and then have the extra string that would go in the sequence like the one about ^^


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## Santuzzo (Nov 4, 2011)

standard on all of them but the RGD which is a whole step down form standard.


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