new tuning

[Josh]

I tuned my guitar down to B F# B E G# C# to take a wack at some Slipknot songs. I'm never going back. Standard tuning sucks.

[StoneDragon]

What are some of the advantages that you have discovered?

[ghodaddyyo]

I know my guitars will buzz if I tune that low. Besides, I'm not very good at transposing songs from one key to another on the fly.

[StoneDragon]

I would think that you would need some pretty heavy strings for playing that low.... I've got a .056 for the low B on my 7-string, and I still don't get enough tone out of it http://www.zentao.com/ubb/smilies/alien.gif

[This message has been edited by StoneDragon (edited April 03, 2000).]

[Josh]

Advantages? It sounds cool. Yeah, that's about it. But it sounds REALLY cool! I was just gonna tune down so i could play really fast low power chords (a la slipknot) but you're right, they're a little to floppy that. Then I got rid of the distortion and started playing some open chord shapes. I was was amazed how neat it sounds. But you're also right about not getting enough tone out of the low strings. I thought it was just cuz I have shi.... uh, crappy equipment, but if you're having the same problem then I guess it's not my gear. Eventually I'm gonna rig up my old B.C. Rich with some really fat strings and see if that'll work. I'm sure the EMG pickups on that sucker are better than my generic humbuckers.

[This message has been edited by Josh (edited April 03, 2000).]

[StoneDragon]

Seems like I read somewhere that Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath) uses .008's... hard to believe that he could even play the thing with some of those low tunings he used to use.

... then again... I remember reading an interview with Ozzy and him saying that their last tour together was a disaster because Tony was having to spend so much time tuning his guitar.... don't imagine having Van Halen as an opening act helped much either http://www.zentao.com/ubb/smilies/nuke.gif