Downtuning acoustics?

[celticelk]

Anyone tuning steel-strings down to B or thereabouts? What works, what sucks, is it even worth bothering? Especially interested in your experiences with resonators (wood- or metal-bodied) for fretted (not slide) playing.

[Chankgeez]

I threw a set of these on a vintage Gretsch flat top:



They sounded pretty good, but it was not a good idea. The top already had a crack in it...

[HeavyXIII]

I've been doing this with my steel string acoustic lately. I found that using bigger strings tended to sound a little bit muddy. The thinner strings so far are brighter and clearer, but I can't drop down to A# without the note changing when I strum it. I intentionally looked for the brightest sounding strings I could find. The GHS White Bronzes I found are working so far. On the plus side, they're magnetically active and very bright. I may try one set heavier to make A# possible. But I'm curious to how long they last.

I imagine resonators would also solve clarity and volume issues from down tuning as well.

[Blackened Soul]

[wildebelor]

ian mackaye from fugazi / minor threat has an acoustic project with his partner called The Evens.
He uses a baritone acoustic which sounds very cool. I think you could get some great sounds from a baritone acoustic!

[celticelk]

ian mackaye from fugazi / minor threat has an acoustic project with his partner called The Evens.
He uses a baritone acoustic which sounds very cool. I think you could get some great sounds from a baritone acoustic!

Ideally, what I'd like to have is a baritone or 7-string resonator, but they're rare birds, and I'm not yet at the point where I'm ready to drop $2600 or so to custom-order a National. Downtuning a standard-scale model is obviously cheaper, but I have some concerns about intonation for non-slide playing higher on the neck, hence the thread. A D-Scale Ovation might be a reasonable middle ground, but I really like the resonator tone and aesthetic.

[Blackened Soul]

What works, what sucks, is it even worth bothering? Especially interested in your experiences with resonators (wood- or metal-bodied) for fretted (not slide) playing.

Leadbelly tuned Baritone, which means a huge amount of guitar playing is actually based on a baritone tuned guitar...
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsfcUZBMSSg[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ye2N_2ce3QE[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQva5wKSfzM[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cu7gafphe9M[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7TRXF7HCZA[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5tOpyipNJs[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmQXmqbZ3Pc[/youtube]

[t-rey]

Lead Belly is the shit.

Downtuning acoustics sounds pretty rad.

[PetZounds]

Lead Belly is the shit.

Downtuning acoustics sounds pretty rad.

I agree with both of these sentiments.

I've found that I usually prefer to keep my acoustic in C.
I think C is just about the perfect place for my taste, really opens up the useable notes on the guitar while not getting too muddy.

[celticelk]

Lead Belly is the shit.

Downtuning acoustics sounds pretty rad.

I agree with both of these sentiments.

I've found that I usually prefer to keep my acoustic in C.
I think C is just about the perfect place for my taste, really opens up the useable notes on the guitar while not getting too muddy.

What strings are you using?