Fascinating responses; please keep them coming!

-e.

That is a really cool idea. Thanks for sharing this!

-e.

DavidWS, This is how [I think...] my RB-8 is tuned, which is set up in Crafty tuning [note: info here is lifted from the WARR Guitar tuning page]

Bb F C G D A C D This is a Crafty guitar tuning that covers the entire practical range on a 34-inch scale. String #8 is the lowest, as on all 8-string tunings. The strings ascend in 5ths from a low Bb, with a minor 3rd between strings 2 and 3, and a major 2nd between strings 1 and 2.

But now that I think about it - I think my first 6 strings are in 5ths and then the remaining 2 in thirds - I think..... maybe ??

I would assume that the Crafty tuning for the 7 string melody side of a Grand Stick would not include the Bb, so I am hopeful this helps answer your question.

I have tried several, including MR, DBR, mirrored 4ths, and several other variants. What I landed on is Classic with a high bass 4th.

1. As has been pointed out, it's the same as Baritone Melody 10, but with a higher 4th added to each side.

2. The notes and inlays line up in a very useful way that makes it eacieer to remember the notes in the common areas of the instrument.

3. Incredibly rich chord voicings in the left hand (because of the high bass 4th)

4. Lots of overlap, and a range of just over 5 octaves.

I would note that it;s very easy to switch back and forth between a 5th on top of the bass and a 4th. As long as you are using at least medium or heavy gauge strings, you can detune the 12th string down a whole step with no ill effects, and then tune it back up as desired.

Yes, FCGDACD is indeed the most well known 7 string melody side Crafty tuning, it was used by Trey Gunn on his 12 string Stick and 12 string Warr Guitar. He used CGDAE for the bass side, but to go lower and use the entire pitch range of Stick strings that could be BbFCGD instead, which has 4 strings matching the melody side.
For more information on the history of Crafty tunings see my post https://www.stickist.com/viewtopic.php?p=123852#p123852

Thank you both. My question is fully answered.

Has anyone tried M4 down a whole step? IOW, the low E becomes low D.

TIA,
-e.

More of an outlier option, but I've been using mirrored 4ths for the last 17 years, starting on low bass E. It really needs 12 strings to get the most out of it (6 or 7 bass strings) so you have enough pitch range for chords on the bass side that don't sound muddy.

The bass side covers bass guitar plus the lowest 4 or 5 strings of the guitar range, with low root notes and closer voiced chords on top, and I found it possible to combine melodic baselines and acoustic guitar type patterns into a satisfying left hand accompaniment style.

More recently I've been learning some baroque keyboard music which is particularly well suited to mirrored 4ths, since you often have similar motifs alternating between left and right hands and it really aids in visualizing the music and the common modulations you encounter (which might result in playing almost the same thing but just shifted by one string, in that sense easier than modulations on piano).

There's not a lot available in terms of instructional material for mirrored 4ths so you're more on your own however. I still would like to make some short videos on the tuning particularly with the new 7 bass/5 melody custom Stick I got, which I really love.

MR. Because when I got my first Stick this tuning seemed to provide access to most of the notes I want to use for free improvisation, without the hands getting in the way of each other. I tune as recommended by SE but in case I have to use a .009 guitar set on the melody side I tune the whole instrument a half step lower (putting together my own set for the bass side).

Thank you, Per; interesting. I have thought about dropping a tuning by a whole or half-step. Nice to see I'm not the only one.


-e.