Low tunings

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Sam Laming

Sam Laming

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Is there any risk playing with high output pickups/massive strings/low tunings? I say this because I play a 27" Ibanez in standard B but I use .095 for the low B .070 for the E etc - I like heavy strings, but when I play on clean, if I play chords not too lightly it clips a bit?.. One day, not soon, I'm thinking of getting another 8 string for low F stuff and if I had similar massive strings relative to that tuning I wonder if such bright/massive strings/high output low stuff could damage speakers?
 
Might as well just get a bass power amp and a guitar preamp and run it through a 4x12 with a subwoofer.
 
I guess it all depends on how loud you play, but it's definitely possible.
 
ya, ur speakers will break if you turn it up too loud, then you'll have eternal crackles. if you keep it low though you'll be fine. I'm a dumbass and sometimes play my bass through Herbie cause i'm to lazy to set up my bass amp anymore. :doh:


i just cant get enough of the Herbert!
 
I've been using 7 strings for years and at high volumes with no ill effects. Tons of bands do it. I wouldn't worry about it so much. ;)
 
Sam Laming":10kqfose said:
Is there any risk playing with high output pickups/massive strings/low tunings? I say this because I play a 27" Ibanez in standard B but I use .095 for the low B .070 for the E etc - I like heavy strings, but when I play on clean, if I play chords not too lightly it clips a bit?.. One day, not soon, I'm thinking of getting another 8 string for low F stuff and if I had similar massive strings relative to that tuning I wonder if such bright/massive strings/high output low stuff could damage speakers?
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I play stage volume in Drop A on my Diezel's and with a variety of 4x12 cabs with V30's. Dude, you aren't gonna risk anything. The clipping you are hearing is probably frequency related though, which revolves around cab design. Guitar cabs are designed around 70 Hz being the lower end of the frequency spectrum (Drop D).

As one poster wrote, you really might consider a bass cab with a 4 ohm speaker(s) to handle some of the low frequencies. I often considered this myself. Maybe get a 1x15 or 4x10 cab to run alongside your guitar cabs. Never got around to it though.


Steve
 
I don't know man, I had 072 on my 7 and it was thumping like a motherfucker. I believe most of the low tuned people just use much thinner strings. If you go 8string with a thicker string it could be dangerous.

All I can tell you is that I play a 5 sting bass through them with EV speakers & I have nothing to worry about.
 
In my experience, going with a lower ohm (matching) load handles low tunings better.
 
I've always found when it comes to low tunings, lighter gauges always have tighter bass, more definition, and a more complex tone. String vibration is a huge element to good tone in my opinion. If you're using a .095 for B instead a .052-.060 like most people, your pickups will be generating more voltage and thus you'll have decreased headroom if that makes sense.

If you're going for a mellow jazz sound, then using really heavy gauges isn't a bad idea, but I think you might be going a little overboard. I'd think something around .064-.070 would be plenty tight and smooth sounding as long as you had the right pickups. Or you could just use flatwound strings.

It shouldn't be a problem doing what you're doing in theory. Again though, the thicker the gauge, the more mellow/round/boomy the tone is going to become and the less 'guitar-like' it will sound. If this is the effect you're going for, great, but if it were me I'd go with lighter gauges and just adjust my technique.
 
Anytime you need to outfit your guitar with Bass tuning pegs your strings are too fat. ;) :D
 
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