A helpful resource to assist you in finding the best 7 string guitar:
Most people have heard about the six string guitar because it’s the one that has always been the most prevalent in the guitar world. However, there are many different types of guitars and the 7 string guitar is one of those lesser known, yet really interesting guitars. The additional string provides musicians with unique opportunities to play interesting chords and solos, and even allows skilled musicians to play bass lines while simultaneously playing melodies.
Best 7 String Guitar List
There are many options available when it comes to choosing a 7 string, and all these options can sometimes become quite overwhelming when you are trying to find the best 7 string guitar. One of the best was to know whether a guitar is right for you is to compare it to other guitars in the same category. That’s where the chart below comes in! The goal of this chart is to provide you with a convenient way to compare 7 string guitar prices, ratings, user reviews, and manufacturer specs! For more information on each guitar, be sure to click the images to be taken to the Amazon page where you can see even more information.
| Guitar | Price | Rating | User Reviews | Specs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guitar | Price | Rating | User Reviews | Specs |
 
PRS SE Custom 24 7-String - Royal Blue
| $$$ | 5/5 | "I've been playing for years and this baby just sings! LOVE IT."
"Gorgeous guitar at a heck of a price!!!" "This guitar is soooo versatile, you can play pretty much any music style and it sounds amazing! It's a great buy for the price too!" | You get a comfortably contoured body with a stunning flame maple top. There's also a pair of PRS's high-octane humbuckers onboard. |
 
Schecter Hellraiser C-7 7-String Electric Guitar (Gloss White)
| $$$ | 5/5 | "Feels/sounds/plays great."
"I bought this for my daughter. Its got a great sound, heavy construction, and fits naturally in her hands. She loves it!" | Set-Neck w/ Ultra Access Gothic Cross' Inlay EMG Active 707-TW pickups TonePros TOM w/Thru-Body Limited Lifetime Guarantee |
 
Ernie Ball Music Man John Petrucci JPX 7 String Electric Guitar- Two Humbucker Barolo Color Mahogany Neck Ebony Fretboard Black Hardware
| $$$$ | 5/5 | "This is by far the best guitar I've ever played in 12 years of playing. Has endless tonal possibilities with 5 way switch and piezo pups. You can adapt it to any kind of music (blues, jazz, metal, folk, funk) and it always shines through." | BFR tone woods Half as many chambers as the 25th Anniversary model Made in the USA Super Sport controls, 5 way blade switch & black/stealth hardware Ebony fretboard with wider and taller frets |
 
Ibanez RG7421 - RG 7-String, Black
| $$ | 5/5 | "if your looking for your first seven string this this is the five star choice on playability and tone for $400 bucks" | Wizard II-7 3pc Maple neck Basswood body Rosewood fretboard w/White dot inlay Jumbo frets Fixed bridge |
 
Epiphone ENC7EBBH1 Limited Edition Matt Heafy Signature Les Paul Custom 7-String Solid-Body Electric Guitar, Ebony
| $$$ | 5/5 | "Purchased this as my first 7 string, it is amazing."
"The Emg 707 pick up at the neck sounds thick and warm which is great." | The Custom has a '60s Slim Taper "D" Profile neck with glued in deep-set neck joint with "Axcess" heel gives this guitar a great ease comfort feel. With the active EMG-707 and EMG 81-7 pickups and the neck tone with a Kill pot makes this guitar a beast. |
 
Paul Reed Smith SE Custom 24 7-String Electric Guitar Kit - Includes: Tuner, Cable, Strap, Stand, Pick Sampler and PRS Gig Bag
| $$$ | 3/5 | "This guitar can be set up quite nicely, with a fully adjustable bridge. The playability is very good right out of the box, neck is flatter than i like but a lot of speed freaks will dig it." | Beveled Maple Top with Flame Maple Veneer 25-Inch Scale Length SE HFS and SE Vintage Bass Pickups with Volume, Push/Pull Tone, 3-way Blade Switch Pickup Switching Maple Neck and Rosewood Fretboard with PRS Birds Inlays |
 
ESP LTD M-17 7-String Electric Guitar Black
| $ | 4.5/5 | "For the money this is a great guitar."
"I recommend this guitar if you are looking for a good 7 string" "Great beginner guitar and i have been playing for 12 years." | Bolt-On Construction25.5 ScaleBasswood BodyMaple NeckRosewood Fingerboard48mm Standard NutThin U Neck Contour22 XJ FretsChrome HardwareLTD TunersTOM BridgeESP Designed LH-107 (B & N) PickupControls: Master Volume, Master Tone, 5-Way Switch |
 
B.C. Rich Mockingbird ST MGST7PW Mockingbird ST 7 7-String Electric Guitar, Pearl White
| $$$ | 5/5 | "Great guitar, had it for over a year and it doesn't disappoint, very nice sound. The feel and sound is awesome. Plus it looks pretty sweet. Very comfy too." | Floyd Rose Tremolo and Grover Super Rotomatic tuners Two Duncan Designed HB-103 pickups. Neck-through body construction Duncan Designed Pickups, coil tap switches, reverse phase switch and Vaitone 5 way tone control! |
 
Schecter Blackjack Slim Line Series C-7 Left Handed 7-String Electric Guitar, Satin Black, with Active Pickups
| $$$ | 5/5 | "Love this guitar, the active pickups are tone monsters, had to adjust my picking style, i.e., improve my picking style as the EMG's provide no cover for sloppy playing. I don't have big hands so the slim line neck is really nice to play, ebony fingerboard is percussive and smooth as well." | LEFT-HANDED GUITAR
Active Seymour Duncan Blackout Pick-ups Mahogany body with Flamed Maple Top 3-piece Maple Neck |
Background Info
The most common form of the 7 string guitar today is the electric version that is often associated with metal-style genres of music. Although some people think that Steve Vai or Alex Gregory invented the electric version of the seven string guitar, it was actually invented by an unlikely figure – George Van Eps. Eps was a popular American jazz guitarist who had the first electric 7 string guitar ordered for him from Epiphone way back in the 1930’s. Today, there are many different types of tunings for the seven string, but back in the 1930’s Eps tuned the 7th string to a low A. It would be about 30 years before Gretsch Guitars would manufacture and produce the first seven string electric guitar. It would be another 30 years after that before the first solid-body seven string called the Universe would be mass produced by Ibanez. The Ibanez Universe is most closely associated with Steve Vai.
In the 2000’s, the 7 string style of playing was once against transformed by 2 Ibanez Universe-playing guitarists named Brian Welch and James Schaffer of the band Korn. Welch and Schaffer played the instrument in drop A tuning, but their style of playing was far from Eps’s drop A jazz style. Their unique style of playing created a new genre of metal music often referred to as nu-metal and this style included elements of metal and hip-hop.
Examples of seven string guitars in action!
Here’s an example of George Van Eps’s jazzy 7 string guitar playing:
Here’s an example of Steve Vai’s famous playing with some commentary on the 7 string:
Here’s an example of Korn’s nu-metal playing with some commentary on their 7 string playing:
7 String Guitar Tuning
There are several common 7 string guitar tunings that guitarists typically use with this type of guitar:
- Low B: BEADGBE
- Dropped A: AEADGBE
- High A: EADGBEA
- Open G: DGBDGBD
We hope you have found this page useful when it comes to choosing the best 7 string guitar, learning some background information about the history of these guitars, and learning some common tunings! Be sure to check out some of our posts that also feature information about these guitars and the musicians who play them!