E flat

[DavidRees]

Anyone out there regularly play tuned down to E flat? If so, what do you reckon are the relative advantages both to you and the listener? All advice gratefully received

thank you and have a good Christmas everyone...

David

[Sancho]

I've been in Eb for quite some years now.
Advantages? I couldn't say. Usually it's at the request of the singer that we tune down a half step. Apparently, it makes a world of difference :?
It does seem to widen the sound a bit, but that may be totally in my head...

[38thBeatle]

My band did for a few years then the guy behind it left and we went to E. He is re joining the band so we will be going back to Eb.

Advantages: I does make singing a bit easier.The semitone seems to make a huge difference-more than you'd think so I must say I am looking forward to that.
I also think that it makes Fender guitars sound better (to my ears)though I am not so far convinced about the Gibson. The Fenders  seem to like the lower string tension whereas the Gibson doesn't seem so happy.

Disadvantages- the other guitarists guitar doesn't seem to hold tuning so well. It is a pain having to re tune if you play with other people as some folk can't seem to get their heads around it-I cannot understand why this is so.

[Sancho]

I also think that it makes Fender guitars sound better (to my ears)though I am not so far convinced about the Gibson. The Fenders  seem to like the lower string tension whereas the Gibson doesn't seem so happy.

On Gibson scale guitars, I use a heavier gauge of strings for tuning down a 1/2 step to a step. .011 instead of .010.
On Fenders it doesn't matter as much, indeed. Works fine until D with my standard .010s.

Disadvantages- the other guitarists guitar doesn't seem to hold tuning so well. It is a pain having to re tune if you play with other people as some folk can't seem to get their heads around it-I cannot understand why this is so.

I just keep a couple of guitars in E ;)
Easier to play along to albums as well.

[gordiji]

the only difference is you can use heavier gauge strings and thereby fatten your tone.think hendrix, stevie ray. if you use 11's in E they're so tight you can't bend 'em, but tuning down to Eflat makes your guitar playable.i've heard some
players go up to .15 or even .18 top e!.
i've read some stuff that said it helps deliver a more pleasing spectrum of harmonics across the fretboard (in eflat) but
i don't buy it.loads of great players sound great in e standard.

[Sancho]

I don't buy "bigger strings = fatter tone".
Tony Iommi anyone?

[BigB]

I don't buy "bigger strings = fatter tone".

I recently tried the GHS Gilmour "G" set - heavier low strings - on my SG and it does indeed fatten the tone. Now whether you like it is another story (as far as I'm concerned I found it to be a bit OTT on this guitar).

[Madsakre]

it may suit your ears better. I think Eflat sounds a bit more "right" than standard E

[gordiji]

sancho with all respect fatter strings do fatten tone considerably. this is much more noticable in cleanish settings with
'fendery' type amps. it doesn't mean you can't get a 'fat' tone with thinner strings especially if your using distortion
and a good sounding rig.bass and mid can be added at the amp.
as an experiment try a strat with 10's and compare with 11's .the tone is very different.
i use 10's for simplicity but prefer 11's detuned to e flat.i always forget which position i'm in with e flat :roll:

[Miek]

I starting using it to learn a couple of tunes a few years back and I've been using drop Db as my main tuning for quite a long time now. It sounds more "right" to me than E standard ever did, and I think there's this kind of timbre to it that D standard and drop C don't really get.

[Telerocker]

sancho with all respect fatter strings do fatten tone considerably. this is much more noticable in cleanish settings with
'fendery' type amps. it doesn't mean you can't get a 'fat' tone with thinner strings especially if your using distortion
and a good sounding rig.bass and mid can be added at the amp.
as an experiment try a strat with 10's and compare with 11's .the tone is very different.
i use 10's for simplicity but prefer 11's detuned to e flat.i always forget which position i'm in with e flat :roll:

If detuned to E-flat I would consider 0.11's. For E I prefer 0.10's on my strat. It's true bigger strings enhance the tone dramatically on strats.

[Miek]

I use a 10-52 set for Eb and drop Db, and I love the way the high strings feel a little slinkier, though I think my low strings could be a bit heavier. But no one makes any 10-56 or 10-60 sets for 6 strings.  :lol:

[James C]

But no one makes any 10-56 or 10-60 sets for 6 strings.

I think GHS did a Zakk Wylde Boomer Set that was 10-60 and another that was 10-70

[Sancho]

sancho with all respect fatter strings do fatten tone considerably. this is much more noticable in cleanish settings with
'fendery' type amps.

Ah, that's where I digress. I'm a Marshall kind of guy ;) Very rarely play clean...

as an experiment try a strat with 10's and compare with 11's .the tone is very different.

Could be. But on a Les Paul the difference is negligible. Probably something to do with humbuckers vs single coils as well.

[AndyR]

I'm possibly using Eb sometimes, or maybe even F... :lol:

I aim at E, but I only use a tuner when I'm about to record something (or play with other people, which is rare nowadays)... I'd rather tune by ear if I have the time, and often I'll take my reference off a keyboard (or another guitar) instead anyway.

I use 11's on all electrics now. Years ago it used to be 10s on fenders, and when I started using gibson scales as well I found the 10s to be far too floppy. So I spent a few years with 11s on gibson and 10s on fender - they seemed to balance reasonably well.

After a long break from guitar I got a new strat, and the only spare strings I had in the box were 11s - I gave them a go and never looked back.

Heavier strings definitely sound different - personally I'd say meatier. But whether that's down to the strings themselves, or how they make me feel and therefore how I hit them, I really don't know anymore. I do know that I have to take this into account when trying a guitar in a shop - I have to remember it's going to feel and sound a lot "better" (to me) if I get it home and rip the floppy strings off it.