7-String, 8-String, & 9-String Guitars 101 - Extended Range Guitar Lesson

7-String, 8-String, & 9-String Guitars 101

Guitar Lessons For Beginners

When you think of a guitar, what comes to mind? In most cases, it’s an acoustic or electric instrument with 6-strings. But there’s a growing guitar-niche in which guitars begin magically growing extra strings and traveling into bass guitar territory. Mostly, that space is the many subgenres of metal, however, these days, it’s becoming more and more common to see them in rock, jazz, and other more popular styles. In this lesson, Andrew Baena joins us to give you the rundown on extended range guitars.

These guitars typically sport 7-strings, 8-strings, 9-strings, and sometimes even more! And they give a guitar player the ability to go extra low. That usually means having the bass tuned even lower, or ditched altogether. It’s important to note that there is a difference between “extended range” guitars and “extended scale” guitars.

While extended range guitars give you the ability to go lower through having access to more strings, extended scale guitars have a greater distance between the nut and saddles. This gives you more room to tune the guitar lower. Both are good options for reaching lower notes, and the right choice comes down to what you prefer and what your specific needs are.

If you enjoyed this guitar lesson, be sure to subscribe to Andrew Baena’s channel for more: YouTube