7 String Set Reccomendation

#4
Hi-End Basses said:
Can anyone recommend a 7 string set of strings for a 35 inch scale Ibanez BTB? They use to use Elixir strings, but I think they are discontinued.
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Which 7 string BTB do you have? The BTB7 (there were 2 version of BTB7) or the new BTB747?

My BTB7 came with D'Addario strings, not Elixir strings... You can easily by the colored ball ends. In fact, the last time I got Elixir strings as stock was on 2014 BTB685SC. The later all came with D'Addarios.

You don't need 7 string set, since they are limited. You can buy a 6 string set and then add a high F single string. Even the new BTB model which came stock with D'Addarios were constructed from a 6 string set of NYXL32130 and a plain high-F single string.
 
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#7
So have you tried them and haven't had problems with the 022 snapping like many reviewers seem to complain about?
They'e €39 here in Germany. There's also this set by Pyramid which I put on my GTBC. They're nice and the F is wound as well, but they cost €56. Haven't broken a string on these so far. So there's no D'Addario set for 7 strings? I really don't like plain F strings, they gotta be all wound, otherwise they sound so different from the rest. Would be great to find more options. Oh and there's a single wound 020 string by Pyramid as well. Since I tune in guitar tuning I'd actually prefer a thicker string. Don't know if it would be okay to take a 025 that's meant as a C string for a high E string on a 7...
 
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#8
Kryz said:
So have you tried them and haven't had problems with the 022 snapping like many reviewers seem to complain about?
They'e €39 here in Germany. There's also this set by Pyramid which I put on my GTBC. They're nice and the F is wound as well, but they cost €56. Haven't broken a string on these so far. So there's no D'Addario set for 7 strings? I really don't like plain F strings, they gotta be all wound, otherwise they sound so different from the rest. Would be great to find more options. Oh and there's a single wound 020 string by Pyramid as well. Since I tune in guitar tuning I'd actually prefer a thicker string. Don't know if it would be okay to take a 025 that's meant as a C string for a high E string on a 7...
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I don't have problem using plain .020p string for high-F (or when I down-tuned it to high-E), though it's not wound like the rests. On my guitars, I cannot use all wound strings either.

Actually, I've bought a wound .020 single from a BSO long time ago. IIRC, it was from Ken Smith burner series or something. Pretty sure more than a year have passed and I still don't have any urge to put it on replacing the plain one.
 
#9
Aidil said:
I don't have problem using plain .020p string for high-F (or when I down-tuned it to high-E), though it's not wound like the rests. On my guitars, I cannot use all wound strings either.

Actually, I've bought a wound .020 single from a BSO long time ago. IIRC, it was from Ken Smith burner series or something. Pretty sure more than a year have passed and I still don't have any urge to put it on replacing the plain one.
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Thanks, maybe I should give the plain E another chance. On guitars it's different because the G and B strings are plain as well. It just tends to stick out more when it's the only plain string. It's like the E string on a violin, actually, which also has quite a different timbre than the lower strings. Still I think I prefer all strings to be wound, if only they were more affordable and easier to get.
 
#10
Kryz said:
Thanks, maybe I should give the plain E another chance. On guitars it's different because the G and B strings are plain as well. It just tends to stick out more when it's the only plain string. It's like the E string on a violin, actually, which also has quite a different timbre than the lower strings. Still I think I prefer all strings to be wound, if only they were more affordable and easier to get.
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Agree with the different timbre. That's why I bought the .020w from Jason quite while ago.

I guess I haven't put it on because there are few testimonies saying such strings are prone to snap due to very thin core wire inside, and I've made my ears accustomed to the these kind of differences since there are also different timbre when we pluck on open string vs. 5th fret of adjacent lower string, or low-B and high-C strings which also tend to have different voicing from the rests despite both are wound and came from the same series with the rests.
 
#11
One issue with a plain F of around .020 is that it is very stiff so has a 'stiff' inharmonic tone. If you use a smaller gauge plain of .018 to .016 it has a better tone, but also the lower tension mellows the tone and lowers volume to be more consistent with the wounds. So i have found it is a good idea to 'step down' tension going from wound to plain, guitar string sets do this too.
To avoid being limited to bass plains of a certain gauge just use a guitar string and thread an old detached bass ball-end onto it. D'Addarios and maybe others are long enough to reach the tuner post nearest the nut (if top loaded in the bridge).
 
#12
However a thinner plain may slip out of the tuner post, you need to form a loop in the end of the string and pass part of the loop through the post slot. See guitar advice about how to do this. I create a self-tightening loop where the (sharp) end of the string ends up going down the hole in the tuner post.
 
#13
ixlramp said:
One issue with a plain F of around .020 is that it is very stiff so has a 'stiff' inharmonic tone. If you use a smaller gauge plain of .018 to .016 it has a better tone, but also the lower tension mellows the tone and lowers volume to be more consistent with the wounds. So i have found it is a good idea to 'step down' tension going from wound to plain, guitar string sets do this too.
To avoid being limited to bass plains of a certain gauge just use a guitar string and thread an old detached bass ball-end onto it. D'Addarios and maybe others are long enough to reach the tuner post nearest the nut (if top loaded in the bridge).
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I find .020p quite easily bendable, but in the same time worries me it would easily snap... :nailbiting:

I think I'm gonna put .018p on my next string to buy list. It's cheap enough that it's worth checking if the 'stiff' inharmonic tone thing would gone with it.

Actually, I'd been meaning to try .018p from quite awhile ago... what held me from buying one was the thought that it would decrease the tension, which consequently needed to raise the action or else it would vibrate too much touching the frets and became too twangy.
 
#14
ixlramp said:
One issue with a plain F of around .020 is that it is very stiff
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By 'stiff' i mean inflexibility (stiffness at zero tension), not tension (scientific pull force). Guitar forums get those confused so much.
The tension of a ,.020 F is not particularly high.
Don't worry about breakage since it is a quite thick solid metal rod, it is as thick as the core of a C string.
.018 F is similar tension to a .025 C.
.020 F is similar tension to a .028 C.
 
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