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7 string basses...

Whats your opinion on 7 stringed basses???

  • Crazy! I'd never play one! It 'aint even a BASS anymore!!!

    Votes: 22 19.0%

  • Hmm...

    Votes: 51 44.0%

  • Definately one for the collection but not a long-term relashionship...

    Votes: 25 21.6%

  • Main rocker baby!!!!

    Votes: 18 15.5%

  • carrots

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    116
#22
I bought a Galveston 7 string bass and I think it's quite an interesting toy. Made in Korea by a Fender technician, brought back to USA and got a setup from the guy. I payed about 450 dollars for it a couple of years ago, it costed a lot to ship to Italy.
The action was perfectly set and the double truss rod neck was perfect even after a long journey from Illinois to Italy (25 days, thanks to some dumb burocrats...). I have no ideas about the pickups, but they are surely costom made, they are bigger than every 6str pickup I've ever seen. It has an 3 bands active electronic that I usually turn off, the output is very loud and a bit noisy.

Here's a pic of me with my little monsta:
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String spacing is too small to slap but great for scales and arpeggios. I play some kind of proggie/death/extreme metal, I needed a low B, as my band mates turned on to 7str guitars and an high B to support them during arpeggios. I just use a couple of times the low Fsharp but I don't really need it...oh, by the way, 7 strings close to each other means a lot of fun with tapping!
I'm also very happy when I paly with different bands with different tuning because they will never be able to drop below my Fsharp!

It took about 6 months to get rid of this beast, the neck is so big and it's a 12Kg beastie.
I'm very happy with this bass, it has a good sound, very fast neck...and I love when I'm on stage and I see people trying to count how many strings I 'm playing! :D

I'm looking for a Traben Chaos core 5 these days because I miss a littrle the slappin' option when I jam out of my band, but I'm pretty sure I'll never stop playing my 7str, I'll probably switch between the two during live sessions
 
#23
play a six now but think thats my limit to play comfortably but who knows, the shops over here have nothing so ive never even seen one in person.
wouldnt mind getting one someday for tapping it would be great, but i wouldnt use it as much as i should to make getting one a priority. if i bought one just for tapping id probably get mroe than that
 
#27
Five string is just right for me... I've zero interest in more or fewer strings. But that's just me, I'd never try to tell anyone else what to play.

I've noodled around on some high end 7 and 8 string basses. I find them kinda fun in an awkward way, but I strongly dislike the timbre of the high strings.
 
#29
I experimented a bit with a seven-stringer...Benavente SCD. Fine instrument, and it was fun on trio and quartet hits. The high 'F' was mainly a vehicle for soloing and adding 9's, 11's, etc. to chord voicings....in other words, nothing that I found of great value to my main role as a bass player. My main beef was finding an 'F' string that sounded like the other strings in the set. On single-note and arpeggiated stuff it always sounded out of place.

Nonetheless, it was certainly fun, and it's something I'd consider again down the road if I came across the right bass. For me that'd likely be a mahogany-bodied Roscoe, or perhaps an alder-bodied MTD.
 
#31
BassMan7pm - hey there. i picked up a Conklin GT 7.... i'm not near good enough to play/NEED one, i just got a really good deal on one. it's a non-production blue color too....

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2ff75c21.gif


.... mine's tuned like a 6 with the high F. was wondering about your tuning... does the low F# come through well amped? is is it too floppity? i'm saving up for a fanned fret right now 'cause i've never been super happy with how most B's feel.

it IS a REALLY nice bass!

lol.... so.... neck divey... i put UltraLite tuners on... it helped a BIT... but only when standing. that's a HUGE cutaway.
 
#34
behndy said:
BassMan7pm - hey there. i picked up a Conklin GT 7.... i'm not near good enough to play/NEED one, i just got a really good deal on one. it's a non-production blue color too....


2ff75c21.gif


.... mine's tuned like a 6 with the high F. was wondering about your tuning... does the low F# come through well amped? is is it too floppity? i'm saving up for a fanned fret right now 'cause i've never been super happy with how most B's feel.

it IS a REALLY nice bass!

lol.... so.... neck divey... i put UltraLite tuners on... it helped a BIT... but only when standing. that's a HUGE cutaway.
Click to expand...

cool color - did you get it painted that way, or did someone else? i like it. i told bill when they were first designing these that he needed to get westheimer to add more colors to the option list, but they wouldn't listen to him.

also i address the neck dive on mine by using belt leather for my straps. the underside being suede makes them grippy enough on my shoulder that they don't dive.
 
#36
hey john.

yeah... with a strap it's not too bad once i got the UltraLights put on. lol.... just when sitting down? woof! that horn is so small, and i'm a sorta big guy, it's just SLIDE out of position. good tho. makes me practice how i'd actually play out.

that's the og color i think. i got it off somebody that was given it to entice them into being an endorser. he said it was more than he needed and had had it sittin around unplayed for a while.

i REALLY like it... but i wouldn't feel comfortable doing a show without a back up so i just use it for home stuff right now.
 
#37
Schlyder said:
And thank the bass gods he didn't play a 6er or more. Can you imagine what he would have done on an ERB??? Our heads would collectivly explode.
Click to expand...

actually, i would have liked to have heard him on an erb - i think one would have suited his style really well. from what i understand his son felix has played a conklin gt7 at some point, and he's supposed to be carrying the family torch, but i don't know that for sure.
 
#38
behndy said:
hey john.

yeah... with a strap it's not too bad once i got the UltraLights put on. lol.... just when sitting down? woof! that horn is so small, and i'm a sorta big guy, it's just SLIDE out of position. good tho. makes me practice how i'd actually play out.

that's the og color i think. i got it off somebody that was given it to entice them into being an endorser. he said it was more than he needed and had had it sittin around unplayed for a while.

i REALLY like it... but i wouldn't feel comfortable doing a show without a back up so i just use it for home stuff right now.
Click to expand...

i think edo castro had bill paint one of his gt's blue - is that his old bass? none of the gt7s or bd7's ever came stock from westheimer with anything but purple or natural that i've ever heard of. also, tbh, bill's never given a bass to anyone. folks get bargains - sometimes serious bargains, but nothing has ever been given away in the 17 years that i've known him.
 

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