So I like to think I'm open-minded about gear, but have always ruled out 7-strings and Baritones thinking that a guitars were made to fill one sonic space in a mix, why mess with that?
However, I'm want to learn more about Baritone guitars...what's the primary reason for playing a baritone over a regular guitar? What makes it different, scale length? Is it still EADGBE or is that the point...to go lower?
Sorry for the noob questions, just intrigued and know nothing...also a little bit scared of having to learn new instruments/tunings!
Comments
I have a BassVI that's tuned E-e standard but an octave down, it bridges the gap between guitar & bass quite nicely.
They're very nice for solo work - just more depth.
100 low E, anything less (like the factory stock 86) feel like rubber bands & rattle like mad.
View my feedback at www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/1201922
I tune to a low B but use standard scale instruments. I find I need an .064 for the low B to feel nice. I do find the 0.64 goes dead sounding before my other strings.
I would like to try more baritone options as there seems to be more choice these days
The original baritones (actually Bass VI) were tuned E-E. Duane Eddy, Glen Campbell Wichita Lineman etc.
I think the B-B baritone thing is more recent.
But if you think about it, you can use a standard scale for B-B baritones...
… because on a standard guitar the second string is tuned to B, so you can use exactly the same string gauge, eg a 13, and scale length to tune it to B as a first string - it's just in a different place. Same with the G, although it becomes an F# so you may want to go up one gauge - but a 17 still seems to work fine. The D, A and E are all the same but moved over one position which just leaves the low B as a problem. Usually about a 60 to 65 works well - if you can't find a guitar string that heavy, get a *double* ball end bass string and cut off the end with the normal bass ball end - the other end is the same size as a guitar.
I've set up several normal guitars - mostly Telecasters - like this, tuned B-B with 13-60 or 13-65 strings, and they work perfectly. I've even done one tuned A-A with 15 to 75 with a wound 22 second (E) string, and that was fine too, even with a Bigsby. The only mod you need to do normally is widening the nut grooves. It can be a problem getting a string larger than a 60 into the post hole on some machineheads, but you can either drill out the hole slightly, or unwrap the outer winding to just short of the hole before you fit it.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
The first question you need to ask yourself is "do I want to play in a lower than standard tuning"? If "yes", then just de-tune your guitar and see how it feels/sounds. If the strings are too floppy (very likely), then try a thicker set. If you don't like the thicker strings or if you find that the guitar doesn't sound as in-tune with itself, then maybe a longer scale length will be what you need. Even so, make sure you try it out first - the longer scale length can make it trickier and/or less comfortable to play depending on what you are playing and how big you are.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
Drop that an octave (like the Bass VI) and you're obviously not in the same range.
you can put C-C on a 28 or 28.5 inch
30 inch can do B-B
going lower than these sounds weird to me, the guitars stop being as musical
like an FX pedal turned to max, the lowest possible baritone tuning for each guitar is much less useful than a subtle effect
e.g. a 27 inch tele tuned D-D has a little extra growl. However, tune it lower and is sounds less like a guitar, and plays less like a guitar
The Guitar does have a very wide range, if you label it with the standard vocal classifications, the Guitar goes from Bass to Soprano.