tx-ogre Posted May 12 Share Posted May 12 I was up in the DFW area for a few days for my granddaughter’s college graduation, I found this on the local Craig’s List. An Ibanez Rg8. After buying a 7 string several years back, I contemplated adding an 8 string to my collection without breaking the bank. So far, so good. The specs on the neck (width, thickness, etc.) are almost identical to the specs on my 6 string Ibanez bass. So it feels very comfortable right away. I have it tuned to Drop E at the moment. It appears that it’s strung with the factory string gauge (9-65). A little floppy on the very low E (8th or 3rd E string in this tuning) string. If I decide to keep the drop tuning, I will most likely go with a heavier gauge. The specs for the neck/fretboard are almost identical to the neck/fretboard on my 6 string Ibanez bass. Except for the difference in string spacing between the 6 string bass and the RG8, it has been a seamless transition. I'm have always been a person who gets bored easily and constantly seeks out new horizons to push my limits. There are those in the bass community who view 5 and especially 6 string basses as absolute heresy. (“Jaco only needed 4 strings.”). And I know there are plenty of guitar players out there with the same mindset: “Clapton, Page, B.B., etc., only needed 6 strings.” True. But I have other ideas. So let the games begin with the “haters.” LOL 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larsongs Posted May 12 Share Posted May 12 (edited) I own 4 String Bass’, 6 String Acoustic’s & Electric’s plus several 12 String Acoustic’s & Electric’s.. I’ve been wanting a Fender Bass VI too…. No beef from me.. Congrats & enjoy! Edited May 12 by Larsongs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 12 Author Share Posted May 12 8 minutes ago, Larsongs said: I own 4 String Bass’, 6 String Acoustic’s & Electric’s plus several 12 String Acoustic’s & Electric’s.. I’ve been wanting a Fender Bass VI too…. No beef from me.. Congrats & enjoy! You da man! Thanks for the kind words. 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrdinaryNimda Posted May 12 Share Posted May 12 You do not have to apologize to anybody. (Never had an 8-string. Is the lowest string a "G" in standard tuning?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieDog Posted May 12 Share Posted May 12 Cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceptorman Posted May 12 Share Posted May 12 Sweet. It looks to be in excellent shape. Congrats, let us know how you get along with those extra strings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted May 12 Share Posted May 12 This guy Jimmy loves his. A lot. 😃 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted May 12 Share Posted May 12 Don’t you have to be in Slipknot! to play one of those? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 12 Author Share Posted May 12 10 hours ago, OrdinaryNimda said: You do not have to apologize to anybody. (Never had an 8-string. Is the lowest string a "G" in standard tuning?) F# in standard. Although Ibanez factory tuning is down a half-step. I’ll probably give that tuning a try for awhile too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 12 Author Share Posted May 12 9 hours ago, Ceptorman said: Sweet. It looks to be in excellent shape. Congrats, let us know how you get along with those extra strings. It’s in great shape. I don’t think the previous owner played it much. Just used some Dunlop 65 to clean the gunk off. For $240.00 I’m very happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 12 Author Share Posted May 12 9 hours ago, sparquelito said: This guy Jimmy loves his. A lot. 😃 Yep, that was one of the videos I watched before I made my decision. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 12 Author Share Posted May 12 7 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said: Don’t you have to be in Slipknot! to play one of those? Nope. Both Mick Thomson and Jim Root play 6 strings. The only bands I can think of with 8 string players are Animals as Leaders, Deftones and Meshuggah, but there are probably others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted May 12 Share Posted May 12 I apologize for the title of that guy's video; The Best Cheap 8 String. I don't consider $450 to be 'cheap'. I view that dollar amount as 'affordable'. Cheap is a hundred bucks, in my world view. 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted May 12 Share Posted May 12 I was going to say Tosin Abasi but, well, but I read the actual words in your post. Nice guitar! rct Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 13 Author Share Posted May 13 Here’s another video I watched before I bought it. I will have to test out this theory the next time I pick up one of my 6 strings: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notes_Norton Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 HNGD - it's a beauty! I think an 8 string guitar would give me two extra opportunities to play wrong notes ;) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 14 Author Share Posted May 14 3 hours ago, Notes_Norton said: HNGD - it's a beauty! I think an 8 string guitar would give me two extra opportunities to play wrong notes 😉 Yeah, I did consider that fact. When I bought my 7 string guitar back in 2015, I figured the extra string would present more and greater opportunities to increase my “suck factor.” (Like I need any additional help). Buying my 6 string bass offered the same possibilities on the low end. Buying an 8 string guitar seemed like the logical next step. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 14 Author Share Posted May 14 On 5/12/2024 at 6:03 PM, sparquelito said: I apologize for the title of that guy's video; The Best Cheap 8 String. I don't consider $450 to be 'cheap'. I view that dollar amount as 'affordable'. Cheap is a hundred bucks, in my world view. 🙂 No worries. The title caught my eye when I was searching for videos. Although Ibanez and other manufacturers seem to prefer the term “entry level.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 8 hours ago, tx-ogre said: No worries. The title caught my eye when I was searching for videos. Although Ibanez and other manufacturers seem to prefer the term “entry level.” Here's my scale: $100 - Cheap $200 - Bargain $300 - Pawn shop prize $400 - $500 - Reverb price range $600 - Decent Fender, used $700 to $1,000 - Price I'll pay for most new guitars $1,150 to $1,300 - Most I have ever paid for a US-made Fender $1,400 to $1,500 - Most I have ever paid for a Gibson $2,000 and up - Whooo buddy. That's somebody else's guitar right there, not mine. 🙂 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 14 Author Share Posted May 14 (edited) 1 hour ago, sparquelito said: Here's my scale: $100 - Cheap $200 - Bargain $300 - Pawn shop prize $400 - $500 - Reverb price range $600 - Decent Fender, used $700 to $1,000 - Price I'll pay for most new guitars $1,150 to $1,300 - Most I have ever paid for a US-made Fender $1,400 to $1,500 - Most I have ever paid for a Gibson $2,000 and up - Whooo buddy. That's somebody else's guitar right there, not mine. 🙂 Pretty much in line with my purchases over the years, with only my ES-335 falling into the “whoa buddy” range. Edited May 14 by tx-ogre 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil OKeefe Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 On 5/11/2024 at 10:08 PM, Larsongs said: I own 4 String Bass’, 6 String Acoustic’s & Electric’s plus several 12 String Acoustic’s & Electric’s.. I’ve been wanting a Fender Bass VI too…. No beef from me.. Congrats & enjoy! I reviewed one of the Squier Bass VI models when it first came out. I liked it so much I bought the review unit. I still have it, and I still like it. They've gone up quite a bit since then, but they're still the least expensive way to scratch that Bass VI itch. You might want to look into one. https://www.harmonycentral.com/expert-reviews/bass-guitars/squier-vintage-modified-bass-vi-r3/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil OKeefe Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 No hate from me, tx-ogre! While I have no desire for one myself, and couldn't play one if I had one (due to my small hands), I can appreciate the extra range and musical possibilities of an extended instrument like that. HNGD! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notes_Norton Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 10 hours ago, tx-ogre said: Yeah, I did consider that fact. When I bought my 7 string guitar back in 2015, I figured the extra string would present more and greater opportunities to increase my “suck factor.” (Like I need any additional help). Buying my 6 string bass offered the same possibilities on the low end. Buying an 8 string guitar seemed like the logical next step. Guitar is my 7th instrument. While I played a little rhythm in bands, mostly barre chords, when there was no sax part, I didn't buy a guitar until I was in my 60s. Then I decided to play lead and learn more advanced chords too. I can do what I do fairly well, and feel comfortable doubling on guitar if the song isn't too challenging, but I would never take a guitar gig. 8 strings, even 7 strings, would be too much for me. I played bass (4 string) during the psychedelic years, when nobody wanted to hear saxophones, so I wasn't afraid of the fretboard. I hope your new 8 string guitar agrees with you and gives you years of pure pleasure. Notes ♫ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted May 15 Author Share Posted May 15 10 hours ago, Notes_Norton said: Guitar is my 7th instrument. While I played a little rhythm in bands, mostly barre chords, when there was no sax part, I didn't buy a guitar until I was in my 60s. Then I decided to play lead and learn more advanced chords too. I can do what I do fairly well, and feel comfortable doubling on guitar if the song isn't too challenging, but I would never take a guitar gig. 8 strings, even 7 strings, would be too much for me. I played bass (4 string) during the psychedelic years, when nobody wanted to hear saxophones, so I wasn't afraid of the fretboard. I hope your new 8 string guitar agrees with you and gives you years of pure pleasure. Notes ♫ You are way ahead of me. I have a hard enough time trying to play just two (somewhat similar) instruments. I can only imagine how clueless I would be trying to play that many instruments, regardless of how many years of experience I had. So far, so good with the new guitar. Since I have played a 7 string for several years, the transition to 8 strings has been relatively seamless. However, I have decided that changing to a higher string gauge is in order. The 9-65 set is WAY too light, even for F# standard tuning, let alone Drop E. The 7th, and especially the 8th strings, are entirely too floppy. I have no idea why Ibanez strings ALL of their 8 strings with the 9-65 set. I already ordered some D’Addario NYXL 9-80s. Definitely looking forward to hearing/feeling the difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SchroederKr Posted May 15 Share Posted May 15 On 5/14/2024 at 3:45 PM, sparquelito said: Here's my scale: $100 - Cheap $200 - Bargain $300 - Pawn shop prize $400 - $500 - Reverb price range $600 - Decent Fender, used $700 to $1,000 - Price I'll pay for most new guitars $1,150 to $1,300 - Most I have ever paid for a US-made Fender $1,400 to $1,500 - Most I have ever paid for a Gibson $2,000 and up - Whooo buddy. That's somebody else's guitar right there, not mine. 🙂 My first guitar was exactly a $600 used Fender 😄 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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