any 8 stringers on here?

Dudeskin

Inspired
Hi all.
So,how many of you guys have an 8 string? Fancy sharing links,vids, samples etc?
I know there has to be a few at least.
I'm struggling to get a nice clear sound but I'm not sure what im aiming for exactly.
It would be cool to have a go to place for everyone. Sharing pointers etc.

Cheers
Joe
 
Yup. I don't have any videos, but less gain and multitrack your parts. Filter out a lot of the low end and let the bass do the work. I'm working on a few tracks atm, and will share when ready! :)
 
I play a 9-string :eek:ops
I just got my AxeFX this month, so I don't have any clips yet using that, but if you click on the link in my sig for my band's website, I use the 9-string on about half the tunes on the newest album.

Ditto the above comment. The heavy sound we're used to now it's really a patchwork of instruments, each adding a bit to the frequency spectrum.
 
Actually ordering an 8 string from Carvin within the next few weeks, very excited. As far as cleaning up the tone, filter out the low nasty frequencies (anything under 80~100 is the bass guitar's job) and boost up around the 1-1.4k range.
 
I have been using an Ibanez 2228 (EMG 808s) for a couple of years with the Ultra, and now the AxeII as well. I did an 18 volt mod (2 9 volt batteries instead of one) which increased headroom although EMG's are still compressed, made a nice difference in tone, still rather one trick pony, but a good trick nonetheless. I find that making sure the bass frequencies are attenuated helps with fidelity, but using mild wah for articullation of notes helps to clarify the 8 string in the track. I am going to mod the guitar with DiMarzio ionizers when they come available (Toson Abasi sig pickups) to help give the guitar more dynamic range as like I said, EMGs are compressed, less so with the 18 volt mod but still compressed. It's a good sound for what it is, but other pickups would give the guitar more dynamic range and more sensitivity and variety to picking and tapping.
 
As far as cleaning up the tone, filter out the low nasty frequencies (anything under 80~100 is the bass guitar's job) and boost up around the 1-1.4k range.

Just wrote a long post and lost it (doh), but the gist of it was this: the fundamental frequency of the low E on a 6 string guitar is 82.41 hz, already firmly in this territory. The low F# on a typically tuned 8 string would be 46.25 meaning that if you lose all the frequencies below 100 hz, you lose not only the fundamental but the next harmonic too. the first frequency you actually hear is the octave plus a fifth, as if you played a harmonic at the seventh fret. Now that isn't what we experience, because the human brain does an amazing job of adding back in missing frequencies implied by the rest of the harmonic series, but keep this in mind when carving out eq.

Dudeskin, what kind of 8 string do you have? What kind of pickups, what is the scale length and how is it tuned?
 
Just wrote a long post and lost it (doh), but the gist of it was this: the fundamental frequency of the low E on a 6 string guitar is 82.41 hz, already firmly in this territory. The low F# on a typically tuned 8 string would be 46.25 meaning that if you lose all the frequencies below 100 hz, you lose not only the fundamental but the next harmonic too. the first frequency you actually hear is the octave plus a fifth, as if you played a harmonic at the seventh fret. Now that isn't what we experience, because the human brain does an amazing job of adding back in missing frequencies implied by the rest of the harmonic series, but keep this in mind when carving out eq.


Looks like I was a bit misunderstood, I don't mean completely strip out the low end, just clean up some spots with EQ and either boost or cut freqs.

By the way, you wouldn't happen to be Rook on sevenstring.org would you?
 
don't go cutting everything below 100Hz by 48dB per octave.. lmao...
do it gentle... certainly less than 12dB/oct.. or even softer still...
 
I just bought an 8 string yesterday-
i absolutely hate it thus far and will probably sell it as soon as possibly can

rg8.jpg
 
Looks like I was a bit misunderstood, I don't mean completely strip out the low end, just clean up some spots with EQ and either boost or cut freqs.

By the way, you wouldn't happen to be Rook on sevenstring.org would you?

No that isn't me :)
In the previous version of my post I went into more detail about the fact that "yes, I do roll off some of those low frequencies myself", but it kinda got lost in retyping the post. I just thought it was an interesting thing to note when doing that kind of eq :)

I just bought an 8 string yesterday-
i absolutely hate it thus far and will probably sell it as soon as possibly can

That is a shame, but it isn't for everyone. Maybe have a look at this thread for my own experience with the transition http://forum.fractalaudio.com/lounge/57275-agile-8-string.html
 
Just wrote a long post and lost it (doh), but the gist of it was this: the fundamental frequency of the low E on a 6 string guitar is 82.41 hz, already firmly in this territory. The low F# on a typically tuned 8 string would be 46.25 meaning that if you lose all the frequencies below 100 hz, you lose not only the fundamental but the next harmonic too. the first frequency you actually hear is the octave plus a fifth, as if you played a harmonic at the seventh fret. Now that isn't what we experience, because the human brain does an amazing job of adding back in missing frequencies implied by the rest of the harmonic series, but keep this in mind when carving out eq.

I have a theory that because the brain replaces the lower frequencies, that the tightness of the low end can actually be enhanced by the complete removal of these frequencies and their replacement by the bass. The extra energy needed in a frequency of 46Hz to appear subjectively at the same loudness as that of 82Hz means that it's harder to dampen, and may contribute to the lack of tightness often experienced by 8 string players. 46Hz is generally more felt than heard anyway. However, gating and audio editing are more responsible for the tightness people have come to expect. Must do a test sometime! :)
 
I play 7's and a 9-string.

I have an obsession with multi-channel pickups so I'm now playing a fanned headless 7-string with a separate balanced-output humbucker for each string. Four strings go into the rear inputs of an Axe-FX II and the other three go into another Axe-FX II. It's super geeky but allows you to do things like:

- play 4-note jazz chords or note clusters with a separate amp sim & lots of distortion on each string - sounds like 4 separate single note guitars overdubbed together - amazingly clean & clear.
- pan each string apart from the others and hear motion in the stereo field related to your strumming, sweeping, tapping, etc.
- apply chorusing & auto-panning effects with a different speed or note value for each string.
- apply delays with different note values to each string for polyrhythmic delays on chords.
- turn off the channels of unused strings for particular riffs or passages for extra clean playing during recording or performance.

Glad to see other extended-range geeks on here :)
 
Leo Pedersen : that sounds insane!! but i like insane so thats cool. i would love to see some of that in action dude!! i wouldnt know where to start with all that.haha.

cheers for the pointers guys!!
im a missive fan of tosin abasi and all his tracks and projects etc, ive managed to get a clean sound very similar to some of his youtube clips just struggling with a few bits.

ive got mine tuned to have a low E, but even before that, i struggle to get say if i do a bar chord, the lowest note (the route) to stand out. it almost always sounds like whatever note is on the 7th string is louder and more clear. and then 5th bellow is behind it and less defined.
thats my best explanation, i suck at getting words out.
i have the trouble more so on a none clean patch. can anyone suggest what i should try?
i know its all about lower gain, and thats fine for me but just cant get the lower notes to stand out and be as clear as other strings.
if anyone has any pointers that would be great!!
my guitar is fanned fret so i have 28 inch scale on the low E, i have a .80 string and it feels nicer than the stock so far. im not sure if that makes so much of a difference.

cheers
Joe

p.s, link us all up to youtube/soundcloud accounts.
lets get a go to area for ERG on here!!
 
FWIW I almost never play power chords, much less other intervals down on that 8th string; it is invariably single note riffing with rare exceptions. For that matter I wouldn't be playing close clusters of notes in that register of the piano either.
 
FWIW I almost never play power chords, much less other intervals down on that 8th string; it is invariably single note riffing with rare exceptions. For that matter I wouldn't be playing close clusters of notes in that register of the piano either.

That's a very good observation, worth noting for those getting into lower register guitars. It took me a while to realise that the fact that I couldn't get a tight power chord sound out of that low string when palm muting wasn't about the guitars construction, but was more about the register I was playing in.
 
I also own 2 8-string guitars and have owned several.
I first started off with a production RG2228 right when they came out.
Sold it after a while because the quality wasn't good etc.
Then got a Agile intrepid pro wich I later sold, it was a good guitar but no matter what I did I couldn't get rid of fretbuzz on the lowest string, the ibanez had the same problem.
I also owned a SC608b wich was a great guitar, but 27 inches is just a bit too short for my liking so I ended up trading that one for an Schecter SLS C-8.
So that's my main 8 that I currently own, I also own a Agile intrepid standard (28.6 inch, passive, on pick-up, bolt on maple neck).
I'm not going to sell those 2 8-strings anytime soon because they play and sound great and both have their qualities!

The schecter has great build quality and plays and sounds great.
I didn't have any trouble at all setting it up with low action without fret buzz in standard F#.
The only thing that bugs me a little is the fact the SD blackouts are noisy!!
It's funny because they advertise them as low-noise pickups.
Well, I own another blackout guitar and I can tell you, they are noisy unfortunately, so I have to set up the noise gate(s) in my Axe Fx II pretty high to minimize noise.
Be aware of that when buying a guitar with blackouts!

The Agile is great too, it just feels a bit cheaper and is less easy to play, but it sounds great!
Anyway, I'm kinda ranting away here but I was wondering how you guys set up your rhythm patches for the Axe II.
So far I've had quite some succes with one of the Cameron models and the Das metal.
Tube screamer in front of the amp with Tone set quite high, no drive.
Turn up the bass/depth and treble/presence on the amp and try not to set the mid too high.
Then I scoop quite some mids in the amp eq section to get it to sound heavy.
Usually use the OH recto cab with R121.....

It sounds quite good but I would love to get some more tips on perfecting my 8-string tone on the Axe II.
I really like the meshuggah 8-string sound (I know, I know.....).
Anyway, it's good to see more 8-stringers on here.
Lets keep this thread rolling and share some tips on getting good tones!
As soon as Axe Edit comes out I will share some patches!

Oh here's a track I made with a buddy of mine a while ago:
https://soundcloud.com/produckt
This track still features my old SC608b and the guitar sound was made with Guitar Rig 5 before I owned an Axe Fx II.
 
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