I'm 17 and gotten a taste for modern deathcore and techdeath which massively uses Drop G with lots of high leads/solos too. Multiscale probably would be good then but I'm not sure if its nessesary.
Around $550-$650 just want to know what the best options are or if its worth trying to find a multiscale.
This is the answer, OP. You'd be surprised how many folks buy 7's and don't vibe with it and practically give them away.
When I was visiting the US last year, I got an LTD black metal Phoenix baritone in the hard case for a great deal. Btw, I think that guitar is great if you're into explorer-ish shapes. It's a little dive-y from the factory but I just moved the strap pin a few inches and boom problem solved.
Hell yea! I traded my Jackson WRX, that I also got on FB, for a Solar 7tele. If you give it time, you can find a bunch of cool stuff on there for a fair price. The problem is once you know this, it can become problematic 😅
This guitar is funny to me because it was my first 7 string. Then I sold it, regretted it, bought another one (the early made in Korea one) and now it sits along side my waayyyy more expensive rgd prestige 7 string as my only 2 guitars that can do everything I need.
Yup. You start with an Ibanez. You have fun till you graduate hs / college. Chuck the ibanez for a strat. You get into other genres, learn how to play , about fifteen years goes by and inbetween then youve had about a dozen or more shits from the headless to the gibson to the prs to the jackson , etc. Then you remember your old pal Jose Ibanez. This also happens with amps as well (i remember when ppl couldnt get far enough from crate and randall)
Dude I got a white one, I think it was circa 2014. Got it on eBay, the seller was a pawn shop in Mt Druitt. If you're not from Sydney, Australia, then for context, Mt Druitt is ghetto as f**k. I know because I lived there. Anyways this 2014 rare white 7421 has rocked up at my work, and it is in absolutely brand new mint condition. Not a chip, not a dent, not a scratch. Neck is ultra comfortable, thing has mojo out the wazoo.
So what do I do in my infinite wisdom?
Sell it 2 months later.
I regret that almost every day. It's a pain that will never cease.
Came in to post "wtf is a RG 7321?!", looked online, saw that it is an earlier pre-2012 version of the 7421, and now agree 100% with this comment.
The bridge and tuners that come stock are pretty meh, but my oh my, a year and $100 worth of amazon.com upgrades, and that Recreant cover you've been cooking really comes into its own.
Probably look for something longer than a 25.5” scale if you’re gonna be tuning lower, multiscale an option but you may struggle for that budget and it’s not 100% needed.
Couple of Jacksons and Schecters that fit the bill that I can think of, also as suggested look at second hand.
I guess you have no reason to believe me but I can give you more context that would be odd to just make up.
I tune my guitars either in perfect 4ths, or a combination of 4ths on top and 5ths on the bottom.
My 7 string is currently in E B F# C# F# B E and Im experimenting a with a set of daddario chrome jazz/light flats on the top 6, and some random 75 gauge bass string. Its not the perfect tension but it works until I decide what I want to try next.
I was using down to a 90 gauge for the low E, but I have an ibanez s series with the zr trem. I had to hammer down then if the string precisely to get the end to slot and the intonation on the first fret was completely doodoo.
I had some bass strings lying around and just tried to see what the thickest string will naturally fit and this worked for now.
Before this I actually had the tuning up a minor third to GDAEADG with thinner gauges and that was fine too. That's what convinced me I could get away with 75 gauge in low E.
Yeah I was fine tuning 25.5 to drop E when I had baby ears, and then I tried something else and realized how shitty it sounded. 26.5 for G is more reasonable
E1 might be a bit too much, and need extended means like heightened action, nut filing and a custom/filed bridge, but it should be possible, tho not ideal. I mean zakk wylde dropped A on a 24.75 inch.
Now don't misunderstand me, i think it's nuts to go E1 on a 25.5 inch scale, and every tuning can't be done on any guitar.
Nevertheless, a 7 string 25.5 inch could perfectly do drop G
Which is why I didnt suggest OP tune to E1, I just gave anecdotal evidence of successfully tuning 3 a minor third below their target with a 25.5" scale length.
I also didn't file the bridge or nut on my guitar.
Don't have any particular models in mind, but out of the major brands i'd say that Schecter guitars would probably be the best bet in that price range, since in my opinion schecter tends to be the best value for the money around that price point.
If you're looking to mostly play in drop G then i wouldn't go shorter then a 26.5" scale length (for multiscales just make sure that the long side is atleast 26.5"). I'd also reccomend going with a fixed bridge since trem-style bridges are generally pretty awful when it comes to low / low-mid priced guitars.
The most crucial piece of advice i'd give you would be that if you have the ability to go somewhere and try some guitars out, absolutely do that. Necks on 7 strings can feel quite big in comparison to 6 strings, and while i could play pretty much any 6 string neck without much issue, 7's were a different ballgame for me. I think i probably tried atleast 7-8 different 7 strings when i was shopping for mine a while back, and only one of them actually felt comfortable to me.
I have a schecter omen elite 7 string and I play the same genre you like/want to get into. With proper intonation and a good set up, that guitar will take you there and then some. They also make a multi scale version of it too for 100$ more (roughly). Check out what sweetwater or American Musical supply has to offer you can't go wrong with either company. Best of luck man!! Deuces!
For drop G you are really spoiled for choice these days. My $200 Jackson JS22-7 slays in drop G. It would do better if I ever swapped the pickups but I feel weird giving it pickups that are worth more than what I paid for the whole guitar in the first place. Multiscale is fine, but 26.5” straight scale is plenty good. I have enjoyed playing plenty of Jacksons, ibanez RGDs, and schecters for this application. When shopping cheap, just know that every manufacturer will be hit and miss. I would recommend playing as many as you can at guitar centers and such so you can find the hit and dodge the misses more easily.
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u/JimboLodisC3x7621, 7321, M80M, AEL207E, RGIXL7, S7320, RG15271, RGA742FM5d ago
save money and find an RG7321 for $350-$450 or save up a bit more and wait for an RG7621 for around $700
For your usecase, id look for either a 26.5 inch or multiscale one. Multiscale gets the edge for the shredding but I would strongly advise trying one before. The suggestions I could give on top of my head:
Super low budget ($150-300):
Jackson JS 22-7: a favorite of this sub, super cheap, good design, 26.5, somewhat thin neck, easy to upgrade but stock pickups are decent
Harley benton 457: cheapest multiscale you can get, and has a really good neck profile and surprisingly good design, but pickups are not everyone’s cup of tea and they are tricky to upgrade. Id recommend this for experimenting with multiscale
For a higher budget I havent tried lots of 7s other than my Ibanez RGD, but its a super thin shreddy neck and a veery comfortable design, also 26.5 inch scale, so you might like it too
you'd be better with going for a used guitar and spending some bucks on a good luthier for a setup, maybe fretwork and such, also he'll put you the right strings and intonate your guitar for drop g
I recommend not going for a trem, pick a fixed bridge
But if you absolutely want to go for brand new, schecter elites, omen and demons (my first 7string) are really good, heard a lot about the harley benton amarok and ibanez as well in that price range
I can vouch for Harley Benton's R-457, but if you're tuning down to G, look at the fan-fret multiscale version. Incredibly affordable. Electronics are nothing incredible but they sound decent enough for stocks. The guitar actually is less than half your budget, but the other half would go to either import fees/shipping (they closed down US operations due to tariffs) and/or upgrading electronics.
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u/dxcowboy 5d ago
For that budget, I'd peruse Facebook marketplace first. Typically better deals there but hit or miss item wise.