i mostly play in standard tuning, but occasionally when i feel like playing stuff like Metallica-Whiskey in the Jar, i go down to drop D, seldom in Eb.

you?

I used to always play in EADGBE but now I always play a step down, DGCFAD.

Standard E for the most part, and if Im feeling Death Metal I will go down to standard D. But I used to play standard C when I first started playing, well thats not an option anymore, its bad for the pegs holding the strings in place after awhile

E. Retuned few times to Eb to play Iced Earth.
I would be happiest man in the world if I could have 3 guitars.
One in Eb for Iced Earth, one in D for Death, and one in E for everything else.

I mostly play in standard...sometimes in dropped D, sometimes a whole step down, and when I'm playing Slayer I go half step down.

You guys can really play in D without changing strings?? What strings do you use (thickness)

Written by Stalker on 26.12.2007 at 23:42

You guys can really play in D without changing strings?? What strings do you use (thickness)

wtf dude, that should be possible with all strings... i use 0.10 custom gauge ernie ball and they work perfectly in almost any tuning(except i never up-tune the 1st two strings)

i mostly play in standard tuning, but i love the sound of 1 step down, just that much heavier, but i need it in standard for lessons and for playing in church band, so i generally keep it in standard...

Huh, now that I think about it, Im pretty much standard E 99% of the time especially since I jam with other people and generally just used to the layout of notes on the fretboard in terms of the sound, so thats the tuning I practice all my scales and chords on.

I think I've fucked my guitar up over the years by changing the tuning too much, the only time I've had six strings on it this year is a short time in March thanks to Savage Messiah This year I had a very brief conversation with a music store person about how I changed my tunings and he said that would be one of the reasons why my guitar is getting ruined faster than normal. I should ask them about it further but I've never quite had the motivation...

I would have changed from E to B and back with a few things in between, sometimes making up my own little variations, several times a month. I also wish I had more guitars, preferably four so I could keep in B, E, D and C# all at the same time, dropping the 6 whenever necessary.
So yeah I hardly ever play my electric these days... I would appreciate anyone PMing me some good details about how to keep the strings & other stuff in good condition, cos I never really learnt any basic maintenance stuff. I think my preferred strings are .011 to .049 (or even .052) though I spent a lot of time with .010 to .046s. Thanks to my massive lack of knowledge on the technical aspects of a guitar, however, I have absolutely no idea why that is my preference.

The acoustic is currently in standard tuning, and I'm finding that a lot of good songs to play on that are in Drop D so it's very handy there.

postscript - my electric has been in B tuning for over half the year... with three strings missing

i like the sound of 1 or half a step down, but when you're changing all the time, its easier just to stay in stadnard...

Written by Valentin B on 27.12.2007 at 00:15

Written by Stalker on 26.12.2007 at 23:42

You guys can really play in D without changing strings?? What strings do you use (thickness)

wtf dude, that should be possible with all strings... i use 0.10 custom gauge ernie ball and they work perfectly in almost any tuning(except i never up-tune the 1st two strings)

Well, I use 009 and wouldnt they become too loose in standard D??

Written by Stalker on 27.12.2007 at 13:59

Written by Valentin B on 27.12.2007 at 00:15

Written by Stalker on 26.12.2007 at 23:42

You guys can really play in D without changing strings?? What strings do you use (thickness)

wtf dude, that should be possible with all strings... i use 0.10 custom gauge ernie ball and they work perfectly in almost any tuning(except i never up-tune the 1st two strings)

Well, I use 009 and wouldnt they become too loose in standard D??

well, come to think of it, yes they would sound a bit weak, i suggest 0.11 or 0.12 to play good in D

Written by Valentin B on 27.12.2007 at 14:27


well, come to think of it, yes they would sound a bit weak, i suggest 0.11 or 0.12 to play good in D

Yaeh man, that was my point of changing strings, now you dig it.

Written by Stalker on 27.12.2007 at 14:30

Written by Valentin B on 27.12.2007 at 14:27


well, come to think of it, yes they would sound a bit weak, i suggest 0.11 or 0.12 to play good in D

Yaeh man, that was my point of changing strings, now you dig it.

of course, the thicker the strings, the better the sound, especially when it comes to metal. they might be really tight and in extreme cases they could bend your neck, like if you try 0.13's for standard E, but at least the sound is worth it.

Written by Valentin B on 27.12.2007 at 14:49

Written by Stalker on 27.12.2007 at 14:30

Written by Valentin B on 27.12.2007 at 14:27


well, come to think of it, yes they would sound a bit weak, i suggest 0.11 or 0.12 to play good in D

Yaeh man, that was my point of changing strings, now you dig it.

of course, the thicker the strings, the better the sound, especially when it comes to metal. they might be really tight and in extreme cases they could bend your neck, like if you try 0.13's for standard E, but at least the sound is worth it.

I wont do that, be sure ;P since I like thinner strings because its easier to control tone on them, you know what I mean..?

Depends what Im doing. Typically I stick with E standard. Sometimes I play in drop A (hahah, yeah) when I want to do some death metal.

Written by Zombie, M.D. on 28.12.2007 at 03:43

Sometimes I play in drop A (hahah, yeah) when I want to do some death metal.

I play in drop-A quite often too (for some Nile stuff and some of my own wankery etc.).

Mostly I play in B (love this tune) and E standard though. I've got a 0.12 set for B / drop-A which works nicely.

Written by Valentin B on 27.12.2007 at 14:49

of course, the thicker the strings, the better the sound, especially when it comes to metal. they might be really tight and in extreme cases they could bend your neck, like if you try 0.13's for standard E, but at least the sound is worth it.

it's really the other way around. Fat strings last longer but thiner strings have a better tone. But if by metal you mean some fvcked up ultra sick br00tality yeah, get 'em as fat as they go

Written by NECURATU on 28.12.2007 at 22:29

Written by Valentin B on 27.12.2007 at 14:49

of course, the thicker the strings, the better the sound, especially when it comes to metal. they might be really tight and in extreme cases they could bend your neck, like if you try 0.13's for standard E, but at least the sound is worth it.

it's really the other way around. Fat strings last longer but thiner strings have a better tone. But if by metal you mean some fvcked up ultra sick br00tality yeah, get 'em as fat as they go

no, no, no. i don't know where did you get this idea but try this: get a 0.08 high e string, and tune it to A under normal E, and see how well it sounds. then try a 0.13 and see the difference. the tone will be much fuller, and of course fuller means "heavier", so it's better for metal.

or you could just try with your own E string, tune it to B or something, and i guarantee it sounds like crap, if it's a thin one you're using(i assume)

I don't like how it sounds on D (maybe because of my rusty guitar). I always tune on standard or Eb, its best for playing BM

Written by Valentin B on 28.12.2007 at 23:27

Written by NECURATU on 28.12.2007 at 22:29

Written by Valentin B on 27.12.2007 at 14:49

of course, the thicker the strings, the better the sound, especially when it comes to metal. they might be really tight and in extreme cases they could bend your neck, like if you try 0.13's for standard E, but at least the sound is worth it.

it's really the other way around. Fat strings last longer but thiner strings have a better tone. But if by metal you mean some fvcked up ultra sick br00tality yeah, get 'em as fat as they go

no, no, no. i don't know where did you get this idea but try this: get a 0.08 high e string, and tune it to A under normal E, and see how well it sounds. then try a 0.13 and see the difference. the tone will be much fuller, and of course fuller means "heavier", so it's better for metal.

or you could just try with your own E string, tune it to B or something, and i guarantee it sounds like crap, if it's a thin one you're using(i assume)

Hmm, didn't look it up anywhere, it just seems to me that skinny strings sound better (brighter, clearer bla bla) both on my bass and my guitar so dunno Cheers.

Standard 7-string (BEADGBE) for the most part. Two songs I've done in Vortech are in drop-A, but everything else is in standard tuning. When Coldway was active, I used G#-tuning on a 7-string.

For 1,5 year I tune for BEADF#B, i use ernie ball strings (0.11 - 0.54). Earlier i tune for DGCFAD and I play on D'addario (0.09 - 0.42)

i mostly play in drop d or c. sometime if i feel like playing old metallica ill tune back up to standard

BEADGBE i use a 7 string guitar because i like the low sound of B tuning but cant do without the high sound of Standard E

D

I play drop-C for our stoner project, and drop-B for our post-metal/sludge/doom band. Tuning pedals are a handy little application to have around.

0.10 seem pretty good for playing in 1 step down. I use this tuning often now because started to play Symphony X stuff.

Standard E, it kinda depends of band or music I play in or of though