Speedy McFeely

your most welcome, and thanks for the comment. you have a point i'm ice cold.

dude, not to knock you, but you have no idea about string tension. if stiffer strings were not condusive to fas playing, how did SRV play any of the fast stuff he played, and don't say he couldn't or didn't play fast, because he did. string tension is determined by the gauge of the string also, not necassarily the tuning. so i compansate by a smaller low E. the other reason i put a .050 up top is becuase i like a looser trem. most 7 strings use a .056 on bottom, but because i use a higher, not lower string it affects the trem movement. so instead of a top heavy standard tuning, i let a little give in the bottom to utilize the trem more. why do you think a high A string would be for high fast solo's only. i like the versitility i get with the altered tuning. i can play more of a separated pitch melody and get different harmonies with the other guitar player in the band.

first things first, get vai's the seventh song cd, then talk about melodies. and second, it's FLYING IN A BLUE DREAM!!!!!! listen to the seventh song cd, it's all of his melodic ballady stuff. wonderful. verdict, i think it would be a tie. they are yin and yang. if they ever were to occupy the same space they would implode.

look here guitarelectronics.com

check out this website. look under care and feeding. wolfgangguitars.com

my 7 string rg, is tuned to high a. i like it better than low b. i have no problems with string breakage, because it's a .009. i just use a standard set of 9-42's, then i buy a single .050. some times a .048. meshugga plays 8 strings, tuned low b to high a.

it's not even the right body shape. the horns are different. i played a friend of mines "crystal planet" js. it is heavier than a lead paul custom. in comparison to his js1000 it sounds like a fart in a bathtub. acrylic sounds bad. IMO.

i think guitarelectronics.com has them here

i think i read somewhere that the guitar tech for paul stanley cut pieces of mirror, then glued them on in a pattern to make it look like it was smashed in the middle with a hammer. i think it would be easier with mirror acrylic, maybe easier to cut also. oh yeah and he used clear epoxy to clear coat the top. and to make it uniform. i though of doing a mosaic guitar, but then i tough it would be too heavy, maybe not with pieces of acrylic.

i'll buy one if a swirl is offered.

just take it slow, and remember what comes next. in time you'll have it. i have john petrucci's rock disipline dvd, and he has a great lesson on there about playing fast. he does it for rythm also. he starts at like 115, and is at like 250!! by the end, it's nuts!!

check this outvai acoustic. this in addition to the mirror top jem coming out next year is so exciting for all of us vai fans!!

it might be tough, not a lot of blues guys goin 7 string. now there are a ton of jazz guys who use 7 strings, john pizzarelli comes to mind. maybe do a search on him, then find out who makes his pick ups. just a thought.

i think i'd go 4 full sized humbuckers. with induvidual vol and tone pots, and 2 rotary switches for series/parallel, in/out of phase, and coil splitting. oh yeah and a pre amp to have total versatility, but probably not too practical.

most of the guitars i have made, and owned are basswood, and alder. i have one mahogony jackson, and i don't like it because it's heavier than rikki lake. to me, for what i play, wood is a moot point. i have a wolfgang, and an axis, both basswood with maple tops, both sound sooo different. it's the pick ups. i have a jem 77fp with evos. and i have a jem7vwh with evos. they sound very similar. the only difference is fp is basswood, vwh is alder. not too much different, but the alder one is a little bit less muddy in high gain situations. i like alder because it is cheap, and sounds good, not too heavy, and very easy to cut with my jig saw. i would like to try a line 6 variax out, apparently it can model all of the popular guits of the past. plus the guy on the telemodders sight took the guts out of the variax and put them in a tele, and the sound stayed the same. cool. i like versitility, over wood. my fave guitar is a alder s-type with a birdseye maple neck and tung oil finish. oh yeah it has a airnorton in the bridge and a steves special in the bridge. sounds phenominal... uh to me.

lol, yeah one day i decided to do steve vai's 8 hour practice session from guitar world. after 4, iwas done... my hand still cramps just thinking about it.

i just ordered 3 of them. for 14 bucks, uh i think they are worth it. i have a couple of bodies waiting for pups, and with 4 conductor wiring to boot, can't wait. i'll let you know as soon as they get installed.

heck yeahm the x2n is a pain to balance, thats why i got rid of mine. i wish i would have gotten a single hb routed body to try it out in though. i am dying to try the dimebucker, it's not too often wes gives props to non EMGs!!! i have heard the dime sounds great in mahogony. it balances out the sceaming high allitle, but leaves the thump. they have reviews on harmonycentral.

i used a neck back plate to stabalize a floy on one of my jacksons. i screwed it in so that the trem would go down, but not up. i did this so i could put a d-tuna on it. it worked like a champ.

i have sonar 2.0xl. it came with fruity loops, wich is good, but i like the drag ang drop drummer plug in. i'm not sure where to get it, but is's nice. it has beats, fills and intros outros, and you just drag and drop the loos you want, and with a little reverb ala sonar, it sounds convincing. p.s. my sound card is a Creative audigy 5.1. they have an audigy 2 out now that rocks, if you are in the market for a new sound card.

look for a guitar world back issue from last year, yngwie gives tip on playing the caprices, and some other challanging paganini stuff. i once started the caprices,(on violin, not guitar) and got frustrated. i love the fluidity of the violin. yngwie captures this same fluidity in his renditions of paganini. you should check out yngwies versions, top notch.

i have a bad horsie 1. it's great, the best wah ever. the two is great also, adjustable, and not too different from the BH1. i have a BH, and to justify another $180 for it is against the wifes wishes for my life.

just look for a schematic for in/out of phase, series/parallel, and coil splitting. then place the switches however you want them, PRS uses a rotary switch. my tom anderson has a funny deal inside the pick up cavity, kind of like an eq. i haven't messed with it, my tom sounds too good to dick with. i have a black classic with a full humbucker in the bridge, a single in the mid, and a stacked hum in the neck, pearloid pick guard, maple FB, and floyd. they are soooo awesome.

hell yeah, frank gambale can shedd, yep with 2 d's!!

my take is to flush mount a original floyd. you can only go down with the trem, but it has sustain, and expression. this is the only way to go for me, i have a jem that has the routed area, and i never go up with the trem, however on my anderson the floyd is flush mounted, and i also have an EVH d-tuna on it for instant drop d. it's tits man, you should look into it. IMO the original floyd is the best looking, and user friendly trem, and it is soo easy to install/ retrofit.-