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8-string Guitar


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http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d177/dea.../EXPLORENEW.jpg

Ok Im geting started on this new design, now I wount be building the neck :D but No shop means very few tools and no space to work, now this guitar will be for me ONLY and if the design works out I may put it in the works as a BRUTALIZER but its hard to tell

now I dont like this headstock on the design so Ive come up with this one

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d177/dea...headstockex.jpg

and this is the design for the botom of the fret board

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d177/dea...rrrretboard.jpg

Its Going to be a 27" scale neck

{I hope} Custom pickup if not than EMG 45DC

I want the guitar painted in this pearl Green, Im not sure about the Top yet you know me B)

!!METAL MATT!! :D

Com'on Matt, you know that the pic is too big!

Edited by Maiden69
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Well I really Like the color of the Back in the Mockup si Im thinking that will be A really cool modern color

!!METAL MATT!! :D

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Love it Matt. The color is excellent. i have to say I like the new headstock design, but the bottom of the fretboard in the 3D model. it's more streamlined and looks more "natural".

What are you using for rendering?

komodo

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Are you sure about a 27" scale 8 string? What tuning are you going to use?

Low tuneing F# - 27"

the bottom of the fretboard in the 3D model. it's more streamlined and looks more "natural".

You may have A point there, this is a very clean guitar with nice lines I think I might stick with the 3D design

:D

!!METAL MATT!! :D

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Big improvement IMHO

I NEVER thought I'd have to suggest this for one of your designs Matt- but maybe it should be a little more pointy? :D

The point on the tip looks a little too subtle imho

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Realy nice

maybe a slight tweek to the ratios or the carve or shape or somthing on the bottom 'impailer' spike and I think it'll be right up there with that truly awe inspiring cross guitar you did.

PS a little off topic but as a man with a true talent for orginal design I was wondering if you could give a little advice on asthetics.... any good books on ratio and angles... I can never get my designs to look quite 'right' if you know what I mean.

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Are you sure about a 27" scale 8 string? What tuning are you going to use?

Low tuneing F# - 27"

Hmmm, I checked out Dougs notes on the Blackmachine 8 strings. heres what he has to say regarding the scale length....

I sought an ideal balance between string response, sustain and character. But with a low a F# and high E this was going to be a challenge. An average bass has a .100 gauge tuned to E over 34". But a .100 gauge would be difficult to play on a guitar. A .80 would be the limit I suppose.

But this is tuned to A on a bass and we want to go down 3 or 4 half steps to F# or F and use a shorter scale, both factors bad for tension. I tried it out. I took a Fender short scale bass and tuned it down 4 half steps to C so the A string was at F, and found there was just enough tension for decent string response. Another half step and the tone was gone. That was the limit then. 27" or 28" scale for 8 strings was ruled out, due to unacceptably low tension.

Going longer to 32" or 33" or so would be great, but I wanted to keep it as playable as I could, keeping the frets as close as possible to each other. I also wanted to be able to use conventional guitar string packs for the high strings. I did not want to go to .008 to achieve low enough tension on long scale for the high E for reasons of reliability.

Compound scale length is also an excellent solution to the problems of extended range guitar, check out some of the amazing work by Conklin, but I wasn't ready for the culture shock of using fanned frets just yet.

So 30 inches / 762mm scale was settled upon.

I think this is why people have problems getting the F# to intonate on 8 string guitars. The tension just isnt there for the string to be playable. I guess you could get away with 29"? What do you think Matt?

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I sought an ideal balance between string response, sustain and character. But with a low a F# and high E this was going to be a challenge. An average bass has a .100 gauge tuned to E over 34". But a .100 gauge would be difficult to play on a guitar. A .80 would be the limit I suppose.

But this is tuned to A on a bass and we want to go down 3 or 4 half steps to F# or F and use a shorter scale, both factors bad for tension. I tried it out. I took a Fender short scale bass and tuned it down 4 half steps to C so the A string was at F, and found there was just enough tension for decent string response. Another half step and the tone was gone. That was the limit then. 27" or 28" scale for 8 strings was ruled out, due to unacceptably low tension.

Going longer to 32" or 33" or so would be great, but I wanted to keep it as playable as I could, keeping the frets as close as possible to each other. I also wanted to be able to use conventional guitar string packs for the high strings. I did not want to go to .008 to achieve low enough tension on long scale for the high E for reasons of reliability.

Compound scale length is also an excellent solution to the problems of extended range guitar, check out some of the amazing work by Conklin, but I wasn't ready for the culture shock of using fanned frets just yet.

So 30 inches / 762mm scale was settled upon.

WOW!!! :D well he would know much more than me lol hes been building 8-strings for a few years

me this is my first

and with the headstock maybe I should use the IMPALER headstock add some length and do it reversed

!!METAL MATT!! :D

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You know how to figure this out? Go to Guitar Center and grab a 34" scale 6-string bass, and try to fret a power chord at the 3rd fret....that's (roughly) how a 1st-fret power chord (G if your lowest string is F#) will feel on a 30" scale guitar using the heaviest strings (having come down by almost 4 inches from the nut). Get the idea?

If it feels OK, go with 30 inches. Or go on down the neck (4th fret - 5th fret) until it feels like you can do it without doing gymnastics, and there's your scale length...just subtract where you are from the nut. It will depend a lot on how large your hands are.

A 6-string bass neck is just about as wide as an 8-string guitar neck.

Edited by erikbojerik
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well what about something like this?

8stringheadstock.jpg

Consider using 2 pickups?

NOPE :D I can really any way with the Cut in the fret board

any more thoughts on it?

Yes! Ive been thinking about faned frets and freting the botom of the fret board design

!!METAL MATT!! :D

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I vote for the above headstock, but with a 4x4 or 5x3 tuner arrangement.

That way you could shrink the headstock, cos at the moment its a loittle disproportioned imho

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I still dont like the headstock so Im going to try this just to see what it would look like

headstd.jpg

!!METAL MATT!! :D

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