Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2008 2:17 pm Posts: 228 Location: Nantes, France
Alternative tuning for Grand Stick
I have a 10 and a 12 strings Stick, both with Stickup and tuned in Matched Reciprocal. As I don’t use the high B string on the bass part, I was wondering how I can tune my Grand.
I was thinking about the High Bass 4th tuning. Easy to try but I’m not sure I’ll even use this high A!
So I’m thinking to 7/5 tuning which means the same 5 bass strings like on my 10 but with more low/medium strings on the melodic part (low B and low F# for my MR tuning). It sounds interesting (for me). I know there’s instruments who exist but it necessitates to change the Stickup (7+5 instead of 6+6) and especially the Flaps™ Dual Nut Unit. I think SEI can make a 7/5 Stickup but it could be harder for the nuts as at this moment (I think) there is no nut unit for 7 strings and the other one can’t be a normal 5 strings because the central screw must not be positioned in the same place.
Another crazier tuning could be a kind of 5/7 tuning with 5 melodic strings (like my 10) but, as I already don’t use the highest bass string, the accompaniment part would have 5 strings with the 2 highest doubled (like on 12 string guitar)! C G up a 5th D up a 5th A up a 5th (unison with 4th string) A unison E up a 5th E unison
This means special Stickup, special Flaps Dual Nut Unit and, perhaps, special saddles on the bridge...
What do you think about all of this?
_________________ Yannick ——————————— #5162 10-string Maple Stick #5743 Tinted Salmon Light Bamboo Grand Stick
AFSTG(Association Française du Stick et de la Tape Guitare)
Last edited by Yannick on Wed Jan 02, 2019 2:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Sun Dec 30, 2018 7:24 am
Boaz
Elite Contributor
Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2015 10:08 pm Posts: 1574 Location: Tel-Aviv, Israel
Re: Alternative tuning for Grand Stick
Yannick
I would give a go for the hi bass 4th
it opens different voicing for the "regular" major chord, 7 chord and power chords since your 12th string & 10th string are the same note just different octave.
check out this great FHF from 59:26
Greg really explains the benefit of Hi bass 4th
_________________ Boaz Bar Levy
#7159, Grand Railboard,Plum, RMR tuning, MIDI melody. Manufactured Dec. 2018
#2001,10 strings Shedua, MR tuning Stickup, Fretrails Manufactured March 2002
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2008 2:17 pm Posts: 228 Location: Nantes, France
Re: Alternative tuning for Grand Stick
Boaz wrote:
check out Greg's vid. ..this "one string change" gives a lot of new options
Thank you Boaz, I was looking for this kind of video. Interesting one. I’v just down the string to give it another try to this high bass 4th and I’ll see...
And what about my « 2 highest bass doubled strings » idea, with same strings nearer than regular space (à la 12-string guitar)? (perhaps I should make a diagram...) No one is interested by?
_________________ Yannick ——————————— #5162 10-string Maple Stick #5743 Tinted Salmon Light Bamboo Grand Stick
AFSTG(Association Française du Stick et de la Tape Guitare)
Wed Jan 02, 2019 2:12 pm
Boaz
Elite Contributor
Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2015 10:08 pm Posts: 1574 Location: Tel-Aviv, Israel
Re: Alternative tuning for Grand Stick
Quote:
And what about my « 2 highest bass doubled strings » idea
i guess you are a pioneer in this tuning.
i guess the doubled string would be too far fro each other unlike 12 string guitar where the doubled strings are quite close to each other..but hey give it a shot and share
_________________ Boaz Bar Levy
#7159, Grand Railboard,Plum, RMR tuning, MIDI melody. Manufactured Dec. 2018
#2001,10 strings Shedua, MR tuning Stickup, Fretrails Manufactured March 2002
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2008 2:17 pm Posts: 228 Location: Nantes, France
Re: Alternative tuning for Grand Stick
Boaz wrote:
i guess the doubled string would be too far fro each other unlike 12 string guitar where the doubled strings are quite close to each other..but hey give it a shot and share
Yeah, that’s why I talk about « special Flaps Dual Nut Unit and special saddles on the bridge »: to get closer strings « à la 12-string guitar »
_________________ Yannick ——————————— #5162 10-string Maple Stick #5743 Tinted Salmon Light Bamboo Grand Stick
AFSTG(Association Française du Stick et de la Tape Guitare)
Thu Jan 03, 2019 1:09 am
Boaz
Elite Contributor
Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2015 10:08 pm Posts: 1574 Location: Tel-Aviv, Israel
Re: Alternative tuning for Grand Stick
well..go for it..can't wait to hear the results
BTW - from what i have tried with my 12 strings guita ,regarding the double strings i highly recommend tuning one string exactly in tune and the other just slightly out of tune - this will give you a really nice chorus effect
_________________ Boaz Bar Levy
#7159, Grand Railboard,Plum, RMR tuning, MIDI melody. Manufactured Dec. 2018
#2001,10 strings Shedua, MR tuning Stickup, Fretrails Manufactured March 2002
Great idea with the doubled strings. Not only 12-string guitars use this concept, but also many open guitar tunings. Perhaps one of the "strangest" open tunings is the one Stephen Stills uses for the song "Suite Judy Blue Eyes": E-E-E-E-B-E (low to high), or even the "Ostrich guitar tuning" created by Lou Reed: all strings are tuned to the same pitch, e.g. D-D-D-D-D-D.
Regarding the 5/7 or even 4/8 tunings there should be no big problem with the pickup as long as you are playing the stick in mono mode. But: the big problem is the distance between the 6th and the 7th string.
The answer could be a bridge and saddle construction with EQUAL distances between ALL the strings. I do not know if this exists, but it would open the Stick to all imaginable tuning combinations, e.g. 4/4/4 in ascendent/descendent combinations, 4th, 5th, unisono, etc. as you like.
Another thing: did you ever think about re-tuning tuners like Michael Manring uses? This could give you the possibility to switch e.g. from a 4th to a 5th in a second.
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