In our day-to-day life as instrumentalists, we often run into difficulties that call for specific, efficient and complete solutions. For example, the typical case of not wanting to tap-dance on the pedals every two bars of a song, or of trying to cover acoustic, electric and Spanish guitar sounds in a single song with just one guitar; or the need to sound like something we've heard on a record, and so on.
On the other hand, being associated with a musical style means our gear is also geared toward that style. If what we need is a lower sound, longer scale runs, or more tensions in our chords, or if we need those walking bass lines for our chord melodies, etc., then we need a seven-string guitar.
The question of why a seven-string guitar, that is, what pros and cons we will encounter when using a guitar with an extra string, has the following answer:
· We will have to invest more hours and effort to add a new string to our scales, chords, etc., both conceptually and in terms of visualizing the fretboard. Using a thicker, wider neck makes bends and vibrato more difficult.
· We become part of a less popular market when it comes to finding support for our instrument, that is, new string sets, special pickups, etc.
· It is harder to find information about seven-strings: books, teachers, videos, methods, etc.
But on the other hand, there are advantages such as:
· Having an extra string breaks the monotony we sometimes fall into with our conventional guitar, making us sound fresher and renewed. So to speak, it is a new injection of enthusiasm when guitar discouragement sets in.
· Great flexibility across different styles: from classical to jazz, through nu-metal, etc. Or even solo-rhythmic playing.
· Great potential for chord voicings. With an extra string we can use new chord melodies, with particular emphasis on the bass.
· Playing a seven-string means that, when we go back to playing a six-string, it feels like a simplification, making us much more agile and, thanks to our seven-string practice, better able to handle any obstacle on the fretboard.
· A wider range of sounds. With an extra, lower string, we grow sonically, gaining greater sonic richness and possibly a better tonal blend with the band.
1.- THE EXTRA STRING
The first question we ask ourselves when thinking about an extra string on the guitar is: where do we put it? That is, a lower string or a higher one? Well, although the option of a higher string has existed, it remained more of an experiment, and adding a lower string to the guitar is what caught on. This is also related to the general trend in music: over recent decades, music has tended toward the lower part of the spectrum.
1.a) TUNING
Once we have assigned our extra string, the next question is: how do we tune the new string? Here we enter into a long debate, since there are different options to consider:
· The intuitive general case would be the following:
o 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
B E A D G B E
This would be the standard case, since it preserves the relationship of fourths found on the guitar; that is, from B to E is a perfect fourth, from E to A another perfect fourth, etc. So on every level, scales, chords, etc., it simply continues the logical sequence with an extra string a perfect fourth below.
· “Drop A”. So to speak, this would be similar to what happens when we use “Drop D” on a six-string. That is, we lower the seventh string a whole step (the sixth in “Drop D”). So we get:
o 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
A E A D G B E
This has its advantages and difficulties. When we lower the seventh string a whole step, two pairs of strings in unison (at the octave) appear: the sixth and the first are E, and the seventh and the fifth are A. But the main difference between the two pairs of strings is that the latter are much closer together than the former, which helps both fingering and sound. On the other hand, we have to keep in mind that, since the seventh string is not tuned a perfect fourth below E, fingerings and chords will not follow a sequence similar to the rest of the strings.
This means that if we keep following this “Drop A” thread, we can arrive at “Drop G,” but that would involve lowering the rest of the strings a whole step as well. So:
o 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
G D G C F A D
In other words, it is the same as the previous case but with a lower sound. The only issue to consider is the string gauge, since we are going to lower the tension on the neck by a whole step on all strings and two whole steps on the seventh, so we need heavier strings.
· Alternate tunings:
Here we open a point within the article, though we could talk at length about alternate tunings and seven-strings. How we tune the seventh string will depend on which open tuning we use. The most important tunings, we could say, are “Open G” and “Open D,” which would look like this:
OPEN G
o 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
B D G D G B D
In this case, we could even lower the seventh string to G.
OPEN D
o 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
A D A D F# A D
1.b) STRINGS
The question of tunings leads us directly to the issue of which strings to use, which gauges, etc. An important question before choosing string gauge is knowing what feels comfortable when we play, a stiffer or a looser feel. Another is what kind of guitar we have, since if our guitar has a Stratocaster-type bridge with strings running through the body, we have to bear in mind that the first string will be under greater tension, so the gauge should be lighter. If our guitar has a Tune-o-matic-type bridge, we can go up in gauge without wrecking our fingers. The type of musician we are and the sound we are looking for will also be decisive when choosing a gauge. If our style doesn't involve a lot of bends and we are looking for a dark, aggressive sound, or a deep jazz sound, we will use heavier strings. So the most important string sets we find on the market are:
DR:
7 String Lite LT7 - 009 - 011 - 016 - 024 -032 -042 -052
7 String Medium MT7- 010 - 013 -017 -026 -036 -046 -056
DEAN MARKLEY: (Blue Steel)
011 --013 -018 -030 -042-052-060
D´Addario:
010-013-017-026-036-046-056
009-011-016-024-032-042-054
Sometimes we need that low sound we get from seven-string guitars, but our instrument is a six-string. There is a workaround: get a seven-string set, leave out the first string (the thinnest one) and put it on the six-string guitar. That would give us:
o 6 5 4 3 2 1
B E A D G B
So we get a heavier sound, sacrificing a thinner one by losing the high E.
2.- LEARNING MATERIALS
One of the biggest problems when dealing with less conventional instruments is where to find instructional material to learn from. Here is a list of books that can serve as a reference:
· 7-String Guitar Chord Book:
This method's main strength is its chord section. More than 350 chords, with fretboard diagrams, etc.
· 7-String Guitar (Andy Martin)
A book that approaches the seven-string guitar from the standpoint of scales, chords and arpeggios.
· 7-String Guitar—Tobias Hurwitz & Glenn Riley
A general book on seven-string guitars: four types of tunings, chords, riffs, scales and licks. Very complete.
· The First Chord Book for the 7-String Guitar (Jerry Sims)
A very useful method for starting to discover seven-string guitars from a jazzy point of view.
· 7 String Jazz Guitar Chord Chart (William Bay)
A book that is especially useful for jazz bass lines.
· Bucky Pizzarelli Master Jazz guitar (John Bucky Pizzarelli)
Here we can study all the licks of this master of the jazz seven-string.
· A Comprehensive Method Including chords, scales & Arpegios (Chris Buzzelli)
A complete method (CD included) that offers different sections on scales and chords, as well as backing tracks to practice with. This book is at a relatively advanced level.
3.- GUITARISTS
There are many musicians who use seven-string guitars, and they have played songs we may listen to over and over without realizing it. Besides, how many times have we tried again and again to figure out a riff or solo from a song and found it impossible, until we realized the player was using a seven-string guitar...
Here is a short list of some guitarists who are recognizable for many things, including their use of seven strings:
- JOHN PETRUCCI: Dream Theater's guitarist. On Dream Theater's album “Awake” there are several songs on which he uses a seven-string Ibanez (6:00 am, etc.). He has his own seven-string Ibanez signature models, as well as Music Man ones.
- STEVE VAI: Steve has always been one of the most visible figures of seven-string guitars. He has used them many times throughout his albums (for example, “Tender Surrender”), and has signature JEM models.
- Munky and Head (KORN): Both guitarists used seven-string guitars (generally Ibanez models) from the very beginning of their time in KORN. All of their band's albums are packed with riffs with this kind of deep, from-beyond-the-grave sound.
- DINO CAZARES (Fear Factory): This guitarist has an arsenal of riffs that follow every kick drum hit by his band's pinpoint-precise drummer. Songs like “540,000 degrees Fahrenheit” are a clear example of how he uses it.
- STEF CARPENTER (Deftones): A legendary seven-string user, with his own ESP models.
4.- PICKUPS
Another very important factor when considering the final sound of the extra string is which pickups we use. Let's go through the main manufacturers:
· Seymour Duncan: you can use the SH-1 '59 (bridge/neck), SH-2 (neck), SH-4 JB (bridge), SH-5 Duncan Custom (bridge), SH-6 Duncan Distortion (bridge/neck) and the SH-8 Invader (bridge/neck). The Duncan sound is smooth and thick. It has a creamy texture, especially in the lows. Highly recommended for sounds that are not so metal.
· DiMarzio: there are many options, such as Air Norton 7, Blaze (bridge, custom, neck, etc.), PAF 7, Tone Zone 7, Evolution 7. The DiMarzio sound is somewhat more rock-oriented than the Duncans, with more sustain and attack, and a bit less creamy than the former. Highly recommended with Ibanez guitars.
· EMG: EMG's option is the 707. An active pickup with high output and sustain. Very good at fighting nasty feedback. So to speak, it is the most metal-oriented of the options available. They go perfectly with ESP or Schecter.
That concludes our broad, general overview of the seven-string. In the next installment we will dive into the point we left pending in this chapter: which seven-string guitar options suit us best.