How To: Set Up Your Guitar For Drop Tunings

If you're anything like me then you've probably experimented with drop tunings, only to realise you're not quite cool enough to pull off being in a metalcore band. 

Since you're all probably significantly cooler people than me, i'm gonna' impart some wisdom regarding drop tunings. We've all been there, trying out that new hip song (maybe just out of morbid curiosity?) and realising you've got to drop your tunings to like... 'drop y' or something. So you put on a brave face, whip out your chromatic tuner (I like the Korg CA-1 as it's about the best bang for your buck), then grimace as your poor 09 guage slinkies rattle the fretboard and sound like wet mud. Well get ready for wisdom as over the next 3 steps i'll show you how to achieve that 'thicker than thick' drop C or even B used by so many modern metal bands. 

Step 1)

The first and possibly most important step is to select the right strings for a drop tuning. If your going to drop C then it's important to have thicker gauge strings such as these 12 gauge 'Not Even Slinky' strings from Ernie Ball, these are my personal favorites for this gauge. Thicker strings do not need to be as high tension as regular gauge strings, so they allow you to hit those lower tunings without sacrificing the tightness of the string. If you're really wanting to straddle the border between a guitar and a bass with a drop B then you should look at getting some baritone strings like these baritone slinkies from Ernie Ball or maybe an even lower gauge (hell, why not just slap on some bass strings and show those metalcore kids some real thud). Some people like to mix and match on strings, preferring lighter gauge strings for the 6th, 5th and 4th strings so it's easier to bend notes. 

Step 2)

After fitting a heavier gauge of strings you'll probably find that you need to adjust your bridge height to accommodate them. As the strings are thicker now you may find you need to raise your string action (blasphemy, I know) just a little to avoid fret buzz. If you have a tune-o-matic or 'gibson style' bridge there is a great tutorial for bridge adjustment here. For 'Fender style' bridges you'll need to adjust the individual saddles using a small 0.05 'hex key' (We calls em' allen keys here in the UK). For floyd rose style bridges use the guide here. 

Step 3) 

You may find you'll need to adjust the neck itself via the truss rod as your guitar is now under different tension due to thicker strings. If you're in any way unsure regarding adjusting neck action via the truss rod then please, please, for the love of Hendrix, take it to someone who does. However if you're feeling brave then follow this guide. As i've said you should only adjust the neck if you're absolutely confident that you can do it, too many guitars have met their ends via over or under-tightening of the truss rod (it will literally snap the neck if you're not careful).

So there you have it, your axe is sharpened and ready to hit those brutal low notes and you can blast out powerful palm muted power chords in those relentless rhythms. Now go, chug those insane breakdowns to your hearts content, brave women and men of modern metal. 


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Schecter C-1 Hellraiser Special Review

So I had a chance to play a friends Schecter C-1 Hellraiser Special. Prepare to be bombarded with my subjective thoughts. 

This guitar is probably what I'd call an upper mid-range guitar, without being aware of the price at the time of playing it. I played the version which does not feature a floyd rose floating trem. It features a mahogany body, a three piece mahogany neck, a rosewood fretboard and the black cherry version that I played featured a very sexy quilted maple top (very reminiscent of a PRS if not quite as masterfully finished, gives it a very high-end look). The pickups are a pair of active EMG's an 81 and an 85 in the neck and bridge positions respectively. 

    
It must be said that my friend has had this guitar for a number of years and he's not the type to really cherish things so its had a rough life. However the guitar has stood up to his lifestyle remarkably well, the finish looks great despite many bumps and bangs. If all of these guitars are this durable then I would definitely recommend it for a touring band or someone who might be a little clumsy.

     
As you can probably tell from the aesthetic and the choice of pickups this guitar is geared heavily (that's a pun, get it?) towards metal and hard rock. I played this through a Blackstar Series One 45 Watt combo. The heavier and metal tones that can be achieved with this guitar, in tandem with a high quality high-gain amp like the Series One, are mind-blowing. It really chugs the lows (great if you're into all that 'Djent' business) and the guitar can really squeal but still maintains good clarity when playing fast runs. Despite the fact that this guitar is clearly leveraged towards high output, face-melting and head-smashing metal it fares well when you want to take the pedal away from the metal (another pun... or is it word play?). When I opted for a cleaner tone the guitar performs well, the clarity that the pickups give make for nice and clear chords that have a little bit of an acoustic character. Though it can play the cleaner tones, I wouldn't recommend this guitar if your style mostly utilizes clean tones, It just doesn't compare to a strat or a tele in this regard. 

     
The playability of this guitar was fantastic, my friend hasn't had it professionally set up so it's still factory set (which vindicates Schecters decision to manufacture their low and mid-range guitars in south korea and then have them set up in a USA factory). The action is nice and low for those that like to play quick, the neck has a reasonably small circumference (it's no wizard neck, but it can compete) and the fret board is nice and flat for quicker runs. The only downside i'd suggest is that the neck is finished with the same lacquer as the body so it occasionally slowed down my playing speed, as its a set neck I can see why it is this way but a better lacquer would have improved things. The guitar is a little on the heavy side due to the mahogany, it's not 60's Les Paul heavy but it still put pressure on my shoulder after an hour or two. All in all though its still a very pleasant playing experience. 

     
Should you buy one? Yes, if it fulfils your needs. If you're after anything that isn't metal, then it's probably best to look elsewhere. The guitar sets out its stall pretty quickly in what it's trying to achieve, you know the second you look at it. If you're after a guitar that can fulfil just about any metal tone then it's a fantastic choice, it plays quick and has a beefy low-end and the high-end will literally scream if you want it to. It's clearly very durable too, so i'd be happy to suggest this as a gigging guitar. 

All in all I'd give this guitar 7.5 out of 10. 

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